Critical Thinking

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Critical Thinking

What critical thinking is NOT!Being a Critic

What critical thinking is NOT!Being a Critic

(This is not the same thing. Unfortunately they sound the same, but a critic typically means someone who is negative and who cuts people down. This is not critical thinking.)

Boring(Critical thinking takes effort and can stimulate heated debates

and discussion.)

Critical Thinking

Defined:

The use of cognitive skills and strategies that increase the probability of a desirable outcome

Critical Thinking

Who doesn’t want better outcomes?!?

Psychologists study how we make decisions.

Critical thinking, in this course, involves learning the skills and strategies that TEND TO WORK! I hope you agree, this is probably a good thing.

Components of Critical ThinkingCognitive Component – knowledge of the skills

Yes, this part can be boring…Good news: you can learn the skills.Better news: your text covers these skills in a way

supported by research. If you try to learn these skills, you will probably learn to be a more critical thinker.

Affective (emotional) – attitude or dispositionCovered after the next slide

Cognitive Skills of Critical Thinking

Verbal ReasoningScientific MethodArgument/PersuasionProbabilityDecision-Making / Problem-Solving

We will cover all of these this semester

Attitude / Affective ComponentMost important

part:

You must be willing to think!

Attitude / Affective ComponentCritical thinking is:

Active not passive – it takes effort! If it leads to better decisions, the effort is probably worth it.

Flexible not rigid Critical thinkers typically doubt simple answers to questions.

Rigid thinking tends to be un-critical, explores fewer alternatives, and settles on solutions.

Skeptical not CynicalSkeptical – doubting certainty, questioning things – this is a

critical thinker’s motto!Cynical – assuming negative explanations – this hurts critical

thinking!

Review Questions (vocabulary in bold)

Define “Critical Thinking”

What are the two components to Critical Thinking?

Describe what it means to be active verses passive when thinking about a topic.

How is being rigid in your thinking the opposite of critical thinking?

Can a cynic be a critical thinker? Why or why not?

Which term refers to having a “questioning” approach to the world? Skeptical or cynical.