A 5 Step Process for Effective Critical Thinking
Improve your critical thinking ability by applying a systematic approach.
The life is full of ambiguity and dilemma for everyone. Every day, we have to get into some kind of confusing situation when making decisions on various matters. Many of these decisions may be trivial and insignificant — but in some cases, we ought to make a prudent move because it can have a severe impact on our lives.
For example, which field should I pick as a career, during shopping — which color of the dress will suit me perfectly, do I step into that particular relationship, and so on. We’ve always had to deal with a thousand such circumstances. And it’s practically unlikely to pick the right one on every chance.
There are multiple different ways to improve the likelihood of making the correct decision. One such powerful technique is critical thinking.
“This is a way of approaching a question that allows us to carefully deconstruct a situation, reveal its hidden issues, such as bias and manipulation, and make the best decision,” Samantha Agoos, an educator, states in a TEDEd lesson.
Those who practice critical thinking do not find any fact right merely because it appears to be right — instead, they examine all possible alternatives with inspection and dubiousness. At first, they exclude everything except the most relevant and reliable information and make careful decisions based on this information.
The above words may sound very appealing — but in real world, it’s quite challenging to think so conceptually, especially in a confounding circumstance. And that’s why you need to build up your capacity of critical thinking by constant practice.
We often make decisions by overlooking important discrepancies.
There are many ways to address critical thinking. However, Samantha Agoos describes a 5 step process to approach a problem with critical thinking. I ‘m going to explain those 5 steps to you through a practical scenario.
Suppose you are planning to buy a smartphone, and that’s why you are browsing over the internet to find the best one. There are hundreds of brands in the market with thousands of features — and now you are in a perplexing condition — which one you should pick. Okay, let’s try to solve this problem with the five-step process suggested by Samantha Agoos.
1. Figure out exactly what do you want
Apparently, the answer to this question seems very simple, but the reality is quite different. Let’s approach the matter on the basis of the above scenario. First of all, you have to ask yourself exactly what type of phone you want to purchase — in this particular instance; you can consider the following aspects:
- Your budget
- Phone features — e.g., high-resolution camera
- Battery capacity
- Durability etc.
Thus, precisely identify what functionalities you want to have on your phone. If you have a clear view of the goal, it will be easier for you to take the necessary measures to achieve it.
2. Collect the essential details
After determining your specific criteria, it is time to collect the relevant information. Compiling information from a variety of aspects will allow you to make a comparison between different options that will ultimately enable you to choose the right piece.
While buying the phone — you should note which features are available on the phones of which brands, whether or not it meets your budget, which operating system you want to use (e.g., Android or iOS), etc. Also, take advice from those who know the technical details of smartphones — besides, you may even listen to the opinions of others who used a similar type of phone before.
3. Scrutinize the information
You’ve already got a good understanding of your desired decision — but that’s not the end of it. Now it’s time to think logically. Check if what you want is reasonable from your standpoint by asking yourself some sensible questions. Such as, is it really important to you now, or does it add value to your life and career, or whether your expenses are going in vain?
For instance, in the phone purchase scenario, after you’ve compiled all the info together, you’ll sort out a few phones that match your requirements. Then it would be best if you think rationally, whether you actually need these features, or do you want to spend that much cash on this device.
Only if such logical questions give you affirmative answers, you can consider taking that particular action. I would like to remind you again, don’t make a decision just because it feels good — you must scrutinize the practical facts.
4. Focus on the long-term consequences
In most cases, due to contemporary emotional turbulence, we overlook the long-term impact of any decision. Frequently, you may find yourself in a position where the consequences of a decision will last a lifetime — and once you make a wrong choice, you may not have the opportunity to correct it later. So, evaluate the potential long-term effect of the move you’re going to make.
In the context of the example discussed above, you may have chosen a flagship phone rich in attractive features by considering all aspects. But now you’ve got to assume if you buy this phone, which kind of troubles you may face in the future.
For instance, whether this phone’s accessories are available in your locality, or is there any service center within your range to fix the phone when it is damaged?
5. Examine from other perspectives
One of the typical characteristics of human beings is that we believe our point of view is always accurate — this is why we often make decisions by overlooking important discrepancies.
In a specific situation, while you are taking one decision, just think why others choose a different one. No, I’m not saying you have to do what the others are doing. Just look from a different viewpoint, analyze parallelly — and thus compare your choice with others. Such a capacity to think from varied perspectives would greatly help you to make a rational decision.
That’s why, after selecting a smartphone, considering all the factors, now think a little bit, why despite having so many features, others are buying another one rather than buying this phone? In this way, by means of comparative analysis, you can get a clearer idea of whether your decision is correct.
Yes, I fully admit it, the course of our lives is not as simple as purchasing a cell phone. Often we have to go through a more complicated condition. Here, with the analogy of buying a mobile phone, I’ve been trying to explain how you can maximize the chances of making the right decision by approaching step by step when you’re in a perplexing situation.
As you establish the habit of practicing stepwise critical thinking in both minor and major events of life, at the end of the day, you would find that your ability to make the right choices has improved a lot — and you are no more overwhelmed by irrational thinking as before.
