CHAPTER FOUR: BASIC CONCEPTS OF CRITICAL THINKING
1: Meaning of Critical Thinking
• Critical thinking can be defined as a wide range of cognitive skills and
intellectual dispositions/personality needed to effectively identify,
analyze, and evaluate arguments and truth claims.
• It helps to discover and overcome personal preconceptions and biases; to
formulate and present convincing reasons in support of conclusions; and
to make reasonable, intelligent decisions about what to believe and what
to do.
• Critical thinking is a process or journey that helps us to arrive at the most
useful, helpful, and most likely destinations when evaluating claims for
scientific truth.
• Critical thinking, is thinking clearly, thinking fairly, thinking
rationally, thinking objectively, and thinking independently.
• the aim of critical thinking is to arrive at well-reasoned,
considered, and justifiable conclusions.
• The American philosopher, John Dewey, has defined
critical thinking as an active, persistent, and careful
consideration of a belief or supposed form of knowledge
in the light of the grounds, which support it and the
further conclusions to which it tends.
Active process: For Dewey, critical thinking is essentially an active
process – one in which you think things through for yourself, raise
questions yourself, find relevant information yourself and so on,
rather than learning in a largely passive way from someone else.
Persistent and careful consideration(የማያቋርጥ እና ጥንቃቄ የተሞላበት
ግምት): For example, we sometimes jump to a conclusion or make a
quick decision without thinking about it. Of course, sometimes, we
may have to do this because we need to decide quickly or the issue
is not important enough to warrant careful thought, but we often do
it when we ought to stop and think
• Edward Glaser defined critical thinking as: (1) an attitude of being
disposed to consider in a thoughtful way the problems and subjects
that come within the range of one’s experience; (2) knowledge of
the methods of logical enquiry/Investigation or analysis and
reasoning; and (3) some skill in applying those methods.
• there are two points which stands out in this definition.
1st: The first sentence speaks about an attitude or disposition to be
thoughtful about problems and recognizes that you can apply what he
calls ‗the methods of logical enquiry and reasoning‘ with more or less
‗skill‘.
• The other most famous contributors to the development of the critical
thinking tradition is Robert Ennis. He defined critical thinking as
reasonable, reflective thinking that is focused on deciding what to
believe or do.
• Decision-making is an important part of critical thinking in Ennis‘s
conception.
• Here is another important definition of critical thinking is given by
Richard Paul: 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.
• Michael Scriven has defined critical thinking as skilled and
active interpretation and evaluation of observations and
communications, information and argumentation.
• Critical thinking is sometimes referred to as ‘criticocreative‘
thinking. This word is the combination of two words: critical
and creative.
2: Standards of Critical Thinking
• Not every thinking is critical.
• To identify a critical thinking from the uncritical, we refer to some
standards.
• For thinking to be critical, it has to meet certain standards.
• Standard of critical thinking refers a conditions or a level that
critical thinking should meet to be considered as normal and
acceptable.
• Among the most important of these intellectual standards are
clarity, precision, accuracy, relevance, consistency, logical
correctness, completeness, and fairness.
1) Clarity : Clarity refers to clear understanding of concepts and
clearly expressing them in a language that is free of obscurity and
vagueness. Before we can effectively evaluate a person‘s argument
or claim, we need to understand clearly what the person is saying. If
a statement is unclear, we cannot determine whether it is accurate or
relevant. Sometimes lack of clarity is due to laziness, carelessness,
or a lack of skill.
2) Precision(ትክክለኛነት): Precision is a matter of being exact,
accurate and careful. Most ideas are vague and obscures though we
think we have precise understanding of them. To get precise
understanding, we should pay close attention to details.
3) Accuracy: Accuracy is about correct information. Critical
thinking should care a lot about genuine information. If the ideas
and thoughts one processes are not real, then once decision based
on wrong and false information will likely to result in distorting
realities.
Accuracy is about having and getting true information. There is a
well-known saying about computers: ―Garbage in, garbage out.
4) Relevance: The question of relevance is a question of
connections. When there is a discussion or debate, it should focus
on relevant ideas and information.
5) Consistency: Consistency is about the quality of always
behaving in the same way or of having the same opinions or
standards.
• Logic tells us that if a person holds inconsistent beliefs, at
least one of those beliefs must be false.
• There are two kinds of inconsistency that should be avoided.
logical inconsistency: which involves saying or believing
inconsistent things
Practical inconsistency: which involves saying one thing and
doing another.
6) Logical Correctness : To think logically is to reason
correctly; that is, to draw well-founded conclusions from the
beliefs held.
To think critically, we need accurate and well supported beliefs.
7) Completeness: In most contexts, we rightly prefer deep and
complete thinking to shallow and superficial thinking.
8) Fairness: Critical thinking demands that our thinking be fair -
that is, open minded, impartial, and free of distorting biases and
preconceptions.
3.1 Principles of Good Argument
1) The Structural Principle : The structural principle of a good
argument requires that one who argues for or against a
position should use an argument that meets the fundamental
structural requirements of a well-formed argument.
• Such an argument does not use reasons that contradict each
other, that contradict the conclusion.
• The first criterion used in determining whether an argument is
a good one is the requirement that it be structurally sound.
2) The Relevance Principle
• This is the second principle of a good argument that requires
that one who presents an argument for or against a position
should set forth only reasons whose truth provides some
evidence for the truth of the conclusion.
• The premises of a good argument must be relevant to the truth
or merit of the conclusion.
• There is no reason to waste time assessing the truth or
acceptability of a premise if it is not even relevant to the truth
of the conclusion.
3) The Acceptability Principle
• This principle requires that one who presents an argument for or against a
position should provide reasons that are likely to be accepted by a mature,
rational person and that meet standard criteria of acceptability.
• A reason is acceptable if it is the kind of claim that a rational person would
accept in the face of all the relevant evidence available.
4) sufficiency principle
• The four principle of a good argument is the sufficiency principle, which
requires that one who presents an argument for or against a position
should attempt to provide relevant and acceptable reasons of the right
kind, that together are sufficient in number and weight to justify the
acceptance of the conclusion.
5) The Rebuttal Principle
• This principle requires that one who presents an argument for
or against a position should include in the argument an
effective rebuttal to all anticipated serious criticisms of the
argument that may be brought against it or against the position
it supports.(ውጤታማ የሆነ ማስተባበያ ማካተት).
3.2 Principles of Critical Thinking
1) The Fallibility Principle(የመሳሳት መርህ)
• This principle requires that each participant in a discussion of a
disputed issue should be willing to accept the fact that he or she
is fallible, which means that one must acknowledge that one‘s
own initial view may not be the most defensible position on the
question.
• To employ the fallibility principle in a discussion is consciously
to accept the fact that you are fallible, that is, that your present
view may be wrong or not the most defensible view on the
matter in dispute.
2) The Truth Seeking Principle
• The search for truth is lifelong endeavor, which principally takes
the form of discussion, wherein we systematically entertain the
ideas and arguments of fellow seekers after truth, while at the
same time thoughtfully considering criticisms of our own views
3) The Clarity Principle
• The clarity principle is the third principle of a critical thinking.
It requires that the formulations of all positions, defences, and
attacks should be free of any kind of linguistic confusion and
clearly separated from other positions and issues.
4) The Burden of Proof Principle
• The fourth principle of a critical thinking is the burden of
proof principle. This principle requires that the burden of
proof for any position usually rests on the participant who sets
forth the position. If, and when, an opponent asks, the
proponent should provide an argument for that position.
• Just as a person is generally held accountable for his or her
own actions, one who makes a positive or negative claim
about something has what is called the burden of proof.
5) The Principle of Charity
• This is the fifth principle of a critical thinking that
requires that if a participant‘s argument is
reformulated by an opponent, it should be carefully
expressed in its strongest possible version that is
consistent with what is believed to be the original
intention of the arguer.
6) The Suspension of Judgment Principle
• The sixth principle of a critical thinking is the suspension of judgment
principle. This principle requires that if no position is defended by a good
argument, or if two or more positions seem to be defended with equal
strength, one should, in most cases, suspend judgment about the issue.
7) The Resolution Principle
• This principle requires that an issue should be considered resolved if the
argument for one of the alternative positions is a structurally sound, one
that uses relevant and acceptable reasons that together provide sufficient
grounds to justify the conclusion and that also include an effective rebuttal
to all serious criticisms of the argument and/or the position it supports.
4: Characteristics of Critical Thinking
• Let us discuss some characteristics of Critical and Uncritical
Thinkers.
4.1 Basic Traits of Critical Thinkers
Critical thinkers:
Are honest with themselves, acknowledging what they don't
know, recognizing their limitations, and being watchful of
their own errors.
Regard problems and controversial issues as exciting
challenges.
Strive for understanding, keep curiosity alive, remain patient with
complexity, and are ready to invest time to overcome confusion.
Base judgments on evidence rather than personal preferences, deferring
judgment whenever evidence is insufficient. They revise judgments when
new evidence reveals error.
Are interested in other people's ideas and so are willing to read and listen
attentively, even when they tend to disagree with the other person.
Recognize that extreme views (whether conservative or liberal) are
seldom correct, so they avoid them, practice fair-mindedness, and seek a
balance view.
Practice restraint, controlling their feelings rather than being controlled by
them, and thinking before acting.
4.2 Basic Traits of Uncritical Thinkers
Uncritical thinkers:
Pretend they know more than they do, ignore their limitations,
and assume their views are error-free.
Regard problems and controversial issues as nuisances or threats
to their ego.
Are inpatient with complexity and thus would rather remain
confused than make the effort to understand.
Are preoccupied with themselves and their own opinions, and so
are unwilling to pay attention to others' views.
Tend to follow their feelings and act impulsively. (ግዴለሽነት)
Reading assignments:
compare and contrasts the key intellectual traits of
critical thinkers with the relevant traits of uncritical
thinkers:……..page 150 on your module
5: Barriers to Critical Thinking
• In this lesson, we will discuss some of the problems that impede critical
thinking. But we will limit our discussion to four of them:
egocentrism(self-centered thinking), sociocentrism (group centered
thinking) , unwarranted assumptions and stereotype and relativistic
thinking.
1) Egocentrism:
• One of the most powerful barriers to critical thinking is egocentrism.
• Even highly educated and intelligent people are prey to egocentrism
• Egocentrism is the tendency to see reality as centered on oneself.
Egocentrics are selfish, self-absorbed people who view their interests,
ideas, and values as superior to everyone else‘s.
2) Socio-centrism
• The second powerful barrier that paralyze the critical thinking ability of
most people including intellectuals is sociocentrism.
• Socio-centrism can hinder rational thinking by focusing excessively on
the group.
• Socio-centrism can distort critical thinking in many ways. Two of the
most important are group bias and conformism.
Group bias is the tendency to see one‘s own group (nation, tribe, sect, peer
group, and the like) as being inherently better than others.
Conformism refers to our tendency to follow the crowd - that is, to conform
(often unthinkingly) to authority or to group standards of conduct and belief.
3) Unwarranted Assumptions and Stereotypes
• An assumption is something we take for granted - something we believe to
be true without any proof or conclusive evidence.
• Almost everything we think and do is based on assumptions. If the weather
report calls for rain, we take an umbrella because we assume that the
meteorologist is not lying, that the report is based on a scientific analysis of
weather patterns, that the instruments are accurate, and so forth.
• There may be no proof that any of this is true,
• An unwarranted assumption is something taken for granted without good
reason. Such assumptions often prevent our seeing things clearly.
• The word streotype comes from the printing press era, when plates, or
stereotypes, were used to produce identical copies of one page.
4) Relativistic Thinking
• One of the strongest challenges to critical thinking is relativistic thinking.
Relativism is the view that truth is a matter of opinion.
• There are two popular forms of relativism: subjectivism and cultural relativism.
• Subjectivism is the view that truth is a matter of individual opinion. For
example, suppose Abdella believes that abortion is wrong and Obang For
example, suppose Abdella believes that abortion is wrong and Obang
• Cultural relativism is the view that truth is a matter of social or cultural
opinion. In other words, cultural relativism is the view that what is true for
person A is what person A‘s culture or society believes is true. Drinking wine,
for example, is widely considered to be wrong in Iran but is not generally
considered to be wrong in France.
5) Wishful Thinking
• Wishful thinking refers to a state of believing something not
because you had good evidence for it but simply because you
wished it were true.
• People fear the unknown and invent comforting myths to
render the universe less hostile and more predictable .
6: Benefits of Critical Thinking
Critical Thinking: Skills and Dispositions
• Critical thinking is what university is all about. University is
not only about teaching students with facts. It‘s about teaching
students to think- think critically.
• the skills and dispositions you need to become an independent,
self-directed thinker and learner.
Critical Thinking in the Classroom
Critical Thinking in Life: three ways in which this is the case.
• First, critical thinking can help us avoid making foolish personal decisions.
Critical thinking can help us avoid such mistakes by teaching us to think
about important life decisions more carefully, clearly, and logically.
• Second, critical thinking plays a vital role in promoting democratic
processes. In democracy, it is the people who have the ultimate say over
who governs and for what purposes. Citizens should vote, should evaluate
different public policies, and collectively determine their fate and et cetera.
• Third, critical thinking is worth studying for its own sake, simply for the
personal enrichment it can bring to our lives. One of the most basic truths of
the human condition is that most people, most of the time, believe what they
are told.
