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Relevance Theory

Relevance Theory is a cognitive theory of human communication developed by D. Sperber and D. Wilson and emerged in the late 1970s and early 1980s as a cognitive- centred alternative to Grice s cooperative –ruled explanation of human communication. The main assumption of the theory is that human beings are endowed with a biologically rooted ability to maximize the relevance of incoming stimuli including linguistic utterances and other communicative behaviour. This characterizes the theory as a principle theoretical framework in the area of cognitive pragmatics. In fact, it may be seen as an attempt to work out in details on of Grice s central maxims : that an essential feature of most human communication , both verbal and non-verbal , is the expression and recognition of intentions. To put it in other words , is a theory of communication and cognition based on the claim that human cognition is geared to the maximizing of relevance. New information is relevant if it interacts with old information to produce various contextual effects , and the more contextual effects it produces , the more relevant it is. The theory claims that all communicative acts carry a guarantee of optimal relevance.

According to the Relevance Theory , utterances raise expectations of relevance not because speakers are expected to obey cooperative principles and maxims or some other specifically communicative conventions , but because the search for relevance is a basic feature of human cognition which communicators may utilize. On this, basis relevance results from two principles:

1.Human communication tends to be geared to the maximization of relevance( The Cognitive Principle).

2.Every act of ostensive communication communicates a presumption of its optimal relevance( The Communication Principle ).

According to the Cognitive Principle , the newly presented information can interact with a context of existing assumptions and therefore achieve relevance in three ways:

1.Strengthening an existing assumption

2.Contradicting and eliminating an existing assumption

3.Combining it with the context to yield contextual implications

As for the Principle of Communication , it basically consists of the cooperative principle and the principle of relevance. According to this principle , intention , cooperation , and relevance are all responsible for communicating an action in a concrete context.