Understanding Critical Thinking

What is Critical Thinking?

• Critical thinking is a cognitive activity associated with using the mind.
• It involves analytical and evaluative thinking through attention, categorization, selection, and judgment.
• It includes systematic evaluation or formulation of beliefs or statements using rational standards.

Critical Thinking as a Process

• Critical thinking is a complex deliberation process involving various skills and attitudes.
• It includes identifying your own and others' positions, arguments, and conclusions.
• Evaluating evidence for alternative points of view is a key component.
• Fairly weighing opposing arguments and evidence is essential.
• It requires judiciously selecting sources, evidence, and examples to support claims.
• Being able to read between the lines, see behind surfaces, and identify false or unfair assumptions.

Recognizing Techniques

• Critical thinking involves recognizing techniques used, like false logic and persuasive devices, to make certain positions more appealing.
• Reflecting in a structured way, bringing logic and insight to bear on issues.
• Drawing conclusions based on logically acceptable reasons, evidence, and valid inference.
• Synthesizing information to form new positions and presenting points of view in a structured, clear, well-reasoned manner.

What Critical Thinking Is NOT

• Just opinion, lists of facts, discussions, or general thoughts on a topic.
• It is not about confirming what we want to believe or providing inadequate reasons to support a decision.

Skepticism and Trust

• Critical thinking involves both skepticism and trust via dispositions and abilities.
• It is the ability to reflect skeptically and to think in a reasoned manner are critical.
• Skepticism in critical thinking means bringing an element of polite doubt.
• It requires openness to the possibility that current knowledge is incomplete.
• Analyzing the basis of what is considered true enables us to discern when to trust and when to be skeptical.

Method vs. Personality

• Critical thinking is about methods aimed at exploring evidence.
• Structured approaches help skeptical people trust outcomes, while trusting individuals can use methods for constructive doubt.

Critical Thinking and Argument

• Critical thinking focuses on the argument - the message being conveyed, whether through speech, writing, performance or other media.
• It helps identify obvious and hidden messages and understand how arguments are constructed.

Reasoning

• Critical thinking associates with reasoning and rational thought.
• "Rational" means using reasons to solve problems.
• It starts with having and being aware of reasons for beliefs and actions.
• It also involves critically evaluating beliefs and actions, ensuring reasons are logically acceptable based on evidence – not simply opinion or wishful thinking, and presenting those reasons to others.

Assumptions and Analysis

• Challenging assumptions helps uncover them by examining the foundations of reasons systematically.
• Critical analysis of other people's reasoning requires grasping overall arguments.
• Skill in analyzing and evaluating arguments in detail is required.

Analyzing Reasons

• Critical analysis involves identifying reasons and conclusions, and how they are selected, combined, and ordered to construct a line of reasoning.
• Determining if reasons support conclusions and if they are well-founded.
• Identifying flaws in reasoning is required to support an argument

Constructing Reasons

• Reasoning involves analyzing evidence and drawing conclusions, then presenting evidence to support the conclusion.
• Skills include selecting and structuring reasons to support a conclusion, presenting consistently, using logical order, and using language effectively.

Origin of Critical Thinking

• Critical thinking developed from philosophy, logic, and rhetoric.
• It draws heavily on the ancient Greeks' interest in argumentation to reach philosophical truths through formal discussion.
• Plato (427-347 BCE) called this process "dialectics."
• The Socratic-dialectical method is dialogic, leading to the disclosure of truth through discourse.

Skills of Argument

• Argumentation requires formulating arguments that can withstand challenge.
• It also demands judging whether an argument is valid.
• Formulating arguments and judging the validity of arguments are regarded as essential skills in studying argumentation.

Hegelian Dialectic

• Hegel (1770–1831) promoted dialectics to advance philosophical arguments.
• He structured contradictory logical claims where reasoning challenges reasoning.
• Synthesis of the original idea and contradictions brings one closer to truth.

Benefits of Critical Thinking

• Sharpens minds, preventing hasty judgments and opinion-based assumptions that lead to errors.
• Critical awareness helps identify where to critique thinking processes and actions systematically.
• Critical abilities enhance spotting assumptions and inconsistencies, leading to sound decisions.
• Reduces the likelihood of being misled, improves relevance recognition, and increases accuracy in tasks.

Problem Solving

• Develops problem-solving skills, aiding in identifying improvements and evaluating solutions.
• Systematic approaches ensure essentials are not overlooked.
• Increases speed in analyzing complex information.
• Boosts confidence in tackling complex problems.
• Sharpens an awareness to see the world through different eyes.

Underlying Skills and Attitudes

• Critical thinking requires skills and attitudes like perseverance, accuracy, and precision.
• It involves attention to detail to note small clues that illuminate issues
• Identifying trends through careful mapping of information, data analysis, and recognizing repetition and similarity.
• Repetition, by repeatedly reviewing the same material to ensure nothing is missed, is crucial.

Perspectives and Objectivity

• It helps a person to take different perspectives by examining information from different points of view.
• Focus on objectivity by setting aside personal beliefs to gain deeper understanding.
• It requires considering implications and distant consequences of actions.

Emotional Self-Management

• Although dispassionate in nature, critical thinking can invoke emotions that require emotional self-management.
• Managing emotions to calmly present logical reasons is a important skill.

Self-Awareness in Judgement

• Accurate judgments require awareness of influences on thinking, like assumptions, preconceptions, bias, dislikes, and unquestioned beliefs.

Strategies

• Start with a quick assessment and initial response.
• Get an overall picture of claims and arguments.
• After a cursory reading, read carefully and closely.
• Check the author's sources and evaluate if they correspond to sources' claims.
• Then, organize an evaluation and have a synthesis in order to formulate your own idea based on what you read.

Academic Contexts

• Students are expected to develop critical thinking skills to dig deeper into subjects and engage in critical dialogue.
• Skills are usually honed through critical debate in seminars, presentations, or writing.

Critical Thinking for Students

• Students should aim find the best evidence for the topic being discussed and evaluate the strength of evidence to support different arguments.
• It is also important to come to interim conclusions based on available evidence, construct a line of reasoning, and select the best examples.
• Providing evidence to illustrate arguments is essential.

Barriers to Critical Thinking

• Misunderstanding criticism, which involves identifying positive and negative aspects.
• Overestimating reasoning abilities and exhibiting hubris or underestimating others' arguments.
• Also considering personal biases and virtue signalling can be barriers

Practice and Expertise

• Lacking methods or strategies hinders critical thinking skills.
• Being Reluctant to critique experts can be a challenge faced by students

Affective Reasoning

• Emotional self-management is part of critical thinking; acknowledging multiple perspectives without abandoning important beliefs.

Information versus Understanding

• Mistaking information for understanding can be caused by only taking notes of information without understanding the point of the argument.

Focus

• Insufficient focus and attention to detail can negatively impact critical thinking.
• A general subject matter is better than detailed understanding and tangents unrelated to the issue.