The Fundamental Concept of Critical Thinking

The Fundamental Concept of Critical Thinking

  • Submitted By: rissmalloy
  • Date Submitted: 05/15/2011 7:35 AM
  • Category: Business
  • Words: 1140
  • Page: 5
  • Views: 776

Abstract
This paper will discuss the fundamental concept of critical thinking and its significance, and also identify the various benefits of developing critical thinking skills. Additionally, this paper will specifically discuss the important role critical thinking has in decision-making and will also give a personal example of how critical thinking was used in a work-related decision.
Critical Thinking Application
One of the most famous critical thinkers was Greek philosopher, Socrates, who asked the question “What is wisdom”? He determined that to gain wisdom and knowledge, a person would have to abandon their conventional thought processes and beliefs, and learn to think critically. “True wisdom comes to each of us when we realize how little we understand about life, ourselves, and the world around us” (Socrates, 2011). Critical thinking transcends traditional ideas and reasoning, it enhances cognitive development, and it has proven to be essential and beneficial in decision-making processes.
Describe Critical Thinking
Before we can describe critical thinking and discuss its significance, it is important to understand how people most commonly learn and how this form of learning limits our ability to think critically.
Incidental learning, which is an unintentional, unplanned, and unconscious way of learning, is the most common style of learning This type of learning begins when we are infants and continues throughout our adult lives. Incidental learning occurs in many ways, such as imitation, observations, social interactions, discussions, repetitions, making mistakes, adapting to new circumstances, Combined with enculturation, it determines an individual’s values, preferences, assumptions, perceptions, moral standards, opinions, and various other thought processes and behaviors..
Although incidental learning and enculturation play a vital part in our cognitive development, they can also have an extremely negative effect on our thinking....

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