Critical Thinking Definitions Thesis research requires independent thought on your part, rather than simple regurgitation or the “book report” style of work. As a result of that process, you will be able to make an original contribution, however limited in scope, to the subject by bringing new insight or a fresh perspective to your topic. But you must: 1. Identify a broad area of interest. 2. Immerse yourself in the existing literature on your subject, both to gain knowledge of the subject and to identify a more precise area of research that needs to be undertaken. 3. Formulate one or more research questions. 4. Formulate a specific, testable hypothesis. 5. Produce a statement of your research methods. 6. Test your hypothesis in a method or manner consistent with the standards in your field of concentration. All of these steps require critical thinking, in the positive sense of carefully evaluating rather than accepting without questioning. We will be covering each of these topics in the Proseminar course. The Booth text will also help guide you in the critical thinking component of this course. There is also information on critical thinking on the Internet. One of these web sites is http://www.criticalthinking.org. It defines critical thinking as follows: Critical thinking is the intellectually disciplined process of actively and skillfully conceptualizing, applying, analyzing, synthesizing, and/or evaluating information gathered from, or generated by, observation, experience, reflection, reasoning, or communication, as a guide to belief and action. In its exemplary form, it is based on universal intellectual values that transcend subject matter divisions: clarity, accuracy, precision, consistency, relevance, sound evidence, good reasons, depth, breadth, and fairness. It entails the examination of those structures or elements of thought implicit in all reasoning: purpose, problem, or question-at-issue; assumptions; concepts; empirical grounding; reasoning leading to conclusions; implications and consequences; objections from alternative viewpoints; and frame of reference. Critical thinking - in being responsive to variable subject matter, issues, and purposes - is incorporated in a family of interwoven modes of thinking, among them: scientific thinking, mathematical thinking, historical thinking, anthropological thinking, economic thinking, moral thinking, and philosophical thinking. Critical thinking can be seen as having two components: 1) a set of information and belief generating and processing skills, and 2) the habit, based on intellectual commitment, of using

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those skills to guide behavior. It is thus to be contrasted with: 1) the mere acquisition and retention of information alone, because it involves a particular way in which information is sought and treated; 2) the mere possession of a set of skills, because it involves the continual use of them; and 3) the mere use of those skills ("as an exercise") without acceptance of their results. Critical thinking varies according to the motivation underlying it. When grounded in selfish motives, it is often manifested in the skillful manipulation of ideas in service of one's own, or one's groups', vested interest. As such it is typically intellectually flawed, however pragmatically successful it might be. When grounded in fair mindedness and intellectual integrity, it is typically of a higher order intellectually, though subject to the charge of "idealism" by those habituated to its selfish use. Critical thinking of any kind is never universal in any individual; everyone is subject to episodes of undisciplined or irrational thought. Its quality is therefore typically a matter of degree and dependent on , among other things, the quality and depth of experience in a given domain of thinking or with respect to a particular class of questions. No one is a critical thinker through-and-through, but only to such-and-such a degree, with such-and-such insights and blind spots, subject to such-and-such tendencies towards self-delusion. For this reason, the development of critical thinking skills and dispositions is a life-long endeavor.

Why Critical Thinking? The Problem Everyone thinks; it is our nature to do so. But much of our thinking, left to itself, is biased, distorted, partial, uninformed or down-right prejudiced. Yet the quality of our life and that of what we produce, make, or build depends precisely on the quality of our thought. Shoddy thinking is costly, both in money and in quality of life. Excellence in thought, however, must be systematically cultivated. A Definition Critical thinking is that mode of thinking - about any subject, content, or problem - in which the thinker improves the quality of his or her thinking by skillfully taking charge of the structures inherent in thinking and imposing intellectual standards upon them. The Result A well cultivated critical thinker: • Raises vital questions and problems, formulating them clearly and precisely; • Gathers and assesses relevant information, using abstract ideas to interpret it effectively comes to well-reasoned conclusions and solutions, testing them against relevant criteria and standards;

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Thinks open mindedly within alternative systems of thought, recognizing and assessing, as need be, their assumptions, implications, and practical consequences; and Communicates effectively with others in figuring out solutions to complex problems.

Critical thinking is, in short, self-directed, self-disciplined, self-monitored, and selfcorrective thinking. It presupposes assent to rigorous standards of excellence and mindful command of their use. It entails effective communication and problem solving abilities and a commitment to overcome our native egocentrism and sociocentrism. Sir Francis Bacon said in 1605: For myself, I found that I was fitted for nothing so well as for the study of Truth; as having a mind nimble and versatile enough to catch the resemblances of things … and at the same time steady enough to fix and distinguish their subtler differences; as being gifted by nature with desire to seek, patience to doubt, fondness to meditate, slowness to assert, readiness to consider, carefulness to dispose and set in order; and as being a man that neither affects what is new nor admires what is old, and that hates every kind of imposture. A shorter version from “The Art of Being Right:” Or, more prosaically: critical thinking is the skillful application of a repertoire of validated general techniques for deciding the level of confidence you should have in a proposition in the light of the available evidence.

More Critical Thinking Definitions The following are definitions of Critical Thinking according to the people who write textbooks and articles on the subject. While this does not make them automatically correct, it does indicate that they have spent some time thinking about the topic.

Critical thinking is deciding rationally what to or what not to believe." Norris, Stephen P. "Synthesis of Research on Critical Thinking. Educational Leadership, v 42 n 8 May 1985. 40-45.

"Critical thinking is the use of those cognitive skills or strategies that increase the probability of a desirable outcome. It is used to describe thinking that is purposeful, reasoned and goal directed - the kind of thinking involved in solving problems, formulating inferences, calculating likelihoods, and making decisions when the thinker is using skills that are thoughtful and effective for the particular context and type of 3

thinking task. Critical thinking also involves evaluating the thinking process - the reasoning that went into the conclusion we've arrived at the kinds of factors considered in making a decision. Critical thinking is sometimes called directed thinking because it focuses on a desired outcome." Halpern, Diane F. Thought and Knowledge: An Introduction to Critical Thinking. 1996.

Critical thinking is the formation of logical inferences. Simon and Kapplan, 1989.

Critical thinking is the development of cohesive and logical reasoning patterns. Stahl and Stahl, 1991. Critical thinking is careful and deliberate determination of whether to accept, reject, or suspend judgment. Moore and Parker, 1994.

"The purpose of critical thinking is, therefore, to achieve understanding, evaluate view points, and solve problems. Since all three areas involve the asking of questions, we can say that critical thinking is the questioning or inquiry we engage in when we seek to understand, evaluate, or resolve." Maiorana, Victor P. Critical Thinking Across the Curriculum: Building the Analytical Classroom. 1992.

Critical thinking skills: understanding the meaning of a statement, judging ambiguity, judging whether an inductive conclusion is warranted, and judging whether statements made by authorities are acceptable. Smith, 1990.

Critical thinking is "the examination and testing of suggested solutions to see whether they will work." Lindzey, Hall, and Thompson, 1978.

"Broadly speaking, critical thinking is concerned with reason, intellectual honesty, and open-mindedness, as opposed too emotionalism, intellectual laziness, and closed-

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mindedness. Thus, critical thinking involves: following evidence where it leads; considering all possibilities; relying on reason rather than emotion; being precise; considering a variety of possible viewpoints and explanations; weighing the effects of motives and biases; being concerned more with finding the truth than with being right; not rejecting unpopular views out of hand; being aware of one's own prejudices and biases, and not allowing them to sway one's judgment." Kurland, Daniel J. I Know What It Says . . . What does it Mean? 1995. Critical thinking is "reasonably and reflectively deciding what to believe or do." Ennis (1985)

Critical thinking is "the art of thinking about your thinking while you are thinking in order to make your thinking better: more clear, more accurate, or more defensible." Paul, Binker, Adamson, and Martin (1989)

Critical thinking is "a process which stresses an attitude of suspended judgment, incorporates logical inquiry and problem solving, and leads to an evaluative decision or action." NCTE Committee on Critical Thinking and the Language Arts.

"Critical thinking includes the ability to respond to material by distinguishing between facts and opinions or personal feelings, judgments and inferences, inductive and deductive arguments, and the objective and subjective. It also includes the ability to generate questions, construct, and recognize the structure of arguments, and adequately support arguments; define, analyze, and devise solutions for problems and issues; sort, organize, classify, correlate, and analyze materials and data; integrate information and see relationships; evaluate information, materials, and data by drawing inferences, arriving at reasonable and informed conclusions, applying understanding and knowledge to new and different problems, developing rational and reasonable interpretations, suspending beliefs and remaining open to new information, methods, cultural systems, values and beliefs and by assimilating information." MCC General Education Initiatives

Uses of critical thinking: "underlies reading, writing, speaking, and listening . . . the basic elements of communication"

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"plays an important part in social change . . . institutions in any society - courts, governments, schools, businesses - are the products of a certain way of thinking." "helps us uncover bias and prejudice." "is a path to freedom form half-truths and deceptions." "the willingness to change one point of view as we continue to examine and re-examine ideas that may seem obvious. Such thinking takes time and the willingness to say three subversive words: I don't know." Critical thinkers: distinguish between fact and opinion; ask questions; make detailed observations; uncover assumptions and define their terms; and make assertions based on sound logic and solid evidence. Ellis, D. Becoming a Master Student, 1997.

Attributes of a critical thinker: • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •

asks pertinent questions assesses statements and arguments is able to admit a lack of understanding or information has a sense of curiosity is interested in finding new solutions is able to clearly define a set of criteria for analyzing ideas is willing to examine beliefs, assumptions, and opinions and weigh them against facts listens carefully to others and is able to give feedback sees that critical thinking is a lifelong process of self-assessment suspends judgment until all facts have been gathered and considered looks for evidence to support assumption and beliefs is able to adjust opinions when new facts are found looks for proof examines problems closely is able to reject information that is incorrect or irrelevant

Ferrett, S. Peak Performance (1997). "Critical thinking is best understood as the ability of thinkers to take charge of their own thinking. This requires that they develop sound criteria and standards for analyzing and assessing their own thinking and routinely use those criteria and standards to improve its quality." Elder, L. and Paul, R. "Critical Thinking: Why we must transform our teaching." Journal of Developmental Education 18:1, Fall 1994, 34-35.

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