Mastering Critical Thinking: Skills and Virtues
Critical Thinking
What is Critical Thinking?
“The ability of individuals to take charge of their own thinking. This requires them to develop appropriate criteria and standards to analyze and evaluate their own thinking and routinely use those criteria and standards to improve its quality.”
Critical Thinking Skills
Analysis, inference, explanation, abstraction, metacognition.
A Critical Thinker
- Formulates vital problems and questions with clarity and precision.
- Collects and evaluates relevant information, using abstract ideas to interpret that information effectively.
- Draws well-reasoned conclusions and solutions, testing them against relevant criteria and standards.
- Thinks with an open mind within alternative systems of thought, recognizing and assessing, as needed, assumptions, implications, and practical consequences.
- Communicates effectively with others in figuring out solutions to complex problems.
Characteristics or Intellectual Virtues
Intellectual humility, intellectual courage, intellectual empathy, intellectual autonomy, intellectual integrity, intellectual perseverance, confidence in reason, impartiality.
Why is it Important to Think Critically?
Without critical thinking, conclusions may remain vague. A person must go further, providing more detail and delving deeply into the subject matter.
How do Critical Thinkers Approach Problems?
- Clarity in stating the question or concern.
- Order when working with complex issues.
- Diligence in seeking relevant information.
- Mindfulness in selecting and applying criteria.
- Care in focusing attention on the concerns at hand.
- Persistence despite difficulties encountered.
- Accuracy to the point where the subject and the circumstances permit.
How Would a Poor Critical Thinker Approach Problems?
- Confused thinking about what they are doing.
- Disorganized and extremely simplistic thinking.
- Irregular respect for understanding the facts.
- Prone to applying unreasonable criteria.
- Distracted, ready to surrender at the first sign of difficulty.
- Engaged in a detailed solution when it is not possible, or
- Satisfied with a general response that is extremely vague and useless.
Elements of Critical Thinking
- Points of View: Frame of reference, perspective, orientation.
- Purpose of Thought: Goal, objective.
- Question at Issue: Problem, matter.
- Information: Data, facts, observations, experiences.
- Interpretation and Inference: Conclusions, solutions.
- Concepts: Theories, definitions, axioms, laws, principles, models.
- Assumptions: Presuppositions, taking for granted.
- Implications and Consequences.
Questions that Use the Elements of Thought
Purpose: What am I trying to accomplish? What is my main goal? What is my purpose?
Question: What question am I asking? What question am I answering?
Information: What information am I using to reach that conclusion? What experiences have I had to support this claim? What information do I need to resolve that question?
Inferences/Conclusions: How did I reach this conclusion? Is there another way to interpret this information?
Concepts: What is the central idea? Can I explain this idea?
Assumptions: What am I assuming? What assumptions have led me to this conclusion?
Implications/Consequences: If someone accepted my position, what would be the implications? What am I implying?
Points of View: From what point of view am I approaching this issue? Is there another point of view that I should consider?
Universal Intellectual Standards
Clarity: Could you elaborate on this issue? Could you give an example? Could you illustrate what you mean?
Accuracy: Is it possible to verify that? Is it possible to know for sure if that’s true? How can we test that?
Precision: Can you be more specific? Can you provide further details? Can you clarify more?
Relevance: How is that connected to the question? How does that bear on the issue? How does that help us with the issue?
Depth: What factors make this a difficult problem? What are some of the complexities of this question? What are some of the difficulties we need to deal with?
Breadth: Do we need to look at this from another perspective? Do we need to consider another point of view? Do we need to look at this in other ways?
Logic: Does all of this make sense together? Does your first paragraph fit in with your last? Does what you say follow from the evidence?