Reasoning Them Out, and Believing

¶ … reasoning them out, and believing the result of this reasoning process. In terms of the first element, asking questions also involves recognizing the fact that there are questions that can be asked. Reasoning out the answers to these questions means that an individual is thinking actively about the question and its possible responses. The answers are not predetermined by others or by expectations. Reasoning out answers means that the individual provides his own responses without relying on others for more than inspiration.

Finally, believing the results means that the individual has found answers that he or she finds intrinsically reasonable and reliable. The certainty behind this is that the individual has, by reasoning, found the answers that are the best possible option.

One major misconception about critical thinking is that it is negative. The word "critical" is often equated with the action of criticizing something. In critical thinking, however, the connotation is rather that thinking is applied in a thorough and conscious manner in order to gain insight into the target of thought. Judgments are made in terms of the content, and conclusions drawn.

It is also possible to apply critical thinking when negative judgments are made about one's work or input. A person can apply critical thinking to the judgment, discard what is irrelevant and learn from what is applicable. In this way, the negative emotion is removed and the experience is transformed into positive learning.

3. Critical thinking is by definition clear thinking. While negative emotions such as rage or panic can influence the clarity necessary for such thinking, it is also important to recognize that some emotions do play an important role in such thinking. Emotions such as love for example help critical thinking about effectively handling one's relationships.

Emotions also provide data according to which effective decisions can be made. Living close to persons that are important to an individual for example can influence the decision to move for the sake of a job offer, for example. Furthermore, the emotion of fear could serve as a valuable warning factor in making critical decisions. Emotion is an innate part of humanity, and can be used effectively towards critical thinking.

4. The five concepts that impede critical thinking are based upon actions that accept a certain worldview without questioning it. The first is forming a view of the world based upon the news. Newsworthy events are generally sensationalist in nature for the purpose of attracting more viewers, and is therefore not accurate or realistic. Forming a view of the world on the basis of media such as the movies, television, advertising or magazines is more positive, but equally detrimental to critical thinking. This discourages critical thinking and promotes acceptance at face value.

The media also often encourage types of general thinking that does not promote critical thinking. One of these is all-or-nothing thinking, or other absolutist forms of thinking such as stereotyping. Such thinking is often the result of education or growing up within certain types of society. Some forms of education and schooling also encourage this. In education, children are sometimes discouraged from critical thinking by being expected to obey rules without question. Fear can also discourage critical thinking by impeding a person's willingness to take chances or learn new things.

5. The "sponge" concept of thinking is an approach that absorbs information in an unquestioning fashion. The main purpose is to absorb as much information as possible. The main advantage is that it teaches the learner as much as possible about the world for later use. It is a passive style of thinking.

Panning for gold" is active thinking that discerns which information to retain and which to discard. It makes critical judgments relating to the importance of information.

6. Weak-sense critical thinking uses critical thinking to defend an individual's existing beliefs and judgments on issues. There is no attempt to revise these, but rather to change the beliefs and judgments of others.

Strong-sense critical thinking exists to evaluate and revise if necessary all judgments, including the thinker's own.

7. Eight elements are always present in the reasoning process. The first of these is purpose. Reasoning is always accompanies by an identifiable purpose. The second is the question at issue. The purpose of reasoning goes hand in hand with seeking an answer to a central question. The third element is the assumptions that serve as the starting point or basis for reasoning about the central question. This is the background of the problem. Implications and consequences follows the end point of the reasoning process. It is what follows.

The fifth element is information. The reasoning process uses available information to determine what information should still be obtained. The sixth element, concepts, organizes and delineates the relevant concepts in the reasoning process. Concepts are defined and explained. In element 7, conclusions and interpretations are made from the reasoning process. Finally, the eighth element is point-of-view: all reasoning occurs on the basis of a certain viewpoint.

8. There are seven major standards of critical thinking. The first of these is clarity. This standard requires that thinking be clear and easily understood, without the likelihood of misunderstanding. The second standard, accuracy, is attained by using the best possible reasoning and the most reliable sources available. Accuracy could be problematic, as the requirement is to adhere to the truth or how things are - this is not always possible to determine. The third standard is importance or relevance. Critical thinking has to be relevant to the issue being decided. In other words, it has to be sufficiently important to include in the decision-making process.

The fourth standard is sufficiency: critical thinking is sufficient when reasoning has been applied well enough to decide the issue at hand. The fifth and sixth standards, depth and breadth, focus on whether the issue has been regarded from all possible angels, and whether all related contexts have been taken into account. The seventh standard is precision, and questions whether critical thinking is applied with enough detail.