Critical Thinking

Critical Thinking

Critical thinking is something that people use everyday. Making decisions, processing and interrupting something you’ve read, and emotional impact are just a few factors that come into play when critically thinking. Critical thinking helps individual’s process information everyday.

To look at what critical thinking is you must first break down both words. Critical is defined as “characterized by careful evaluation and judgment” (wordnetweb) Things that have the word critical attached to it usually means something important or something that needs to be a part of something. Thinking is defined as “the activity of the brain that can potentially be communicated.” (Kirby & Goodpaster 2007)

With thinking there are both input and output components. On the input side there is listening, observing, and reading. All of these components stimulate the activity in the brain making an individual think. If the individual chooses to they can then use the output side; the output side includes speaking, acting, or writing. Just because an individual chooses to use the output side doesn’t necessarily mean they are critically thinking.

Individuals think all the time. Having your mind wonder or even reading a book; people’s minds are working and thinking. Critical thinking then would be activity of the brain where one is consciously making the effort to think about something in particular. Critical thinkers demonstrate the ability to focus in and elaborate or try to elaborate on what it is they are thinking about. For instance making a decision as simply as going out on a week night. If the individual decides to go out or stay in based on one or two thoughts it is simply thinking. If the individual weights pros and cons, look at factors around the situation, and then make a decision, then they are using critical thinking.

An example at a work related instance would be the processing of information and making sure the individual...