CRITICAL THINKING: CHARACTERISTICS, SKILLS AND ATTITUDES - PHILOSOPHY - 2025

The critical thinking or critical thinking is the ability to analyze and reflect on the facts in an objective way for a trial or accurate opinion can be created. Although there are different definitions of the term, they all include the examination of reality in a rational way as a fundamental component of the capacity for critical thinking.

This way of thinking does not develop automatically with birth, but needs to be practiced in order to be able to use it. In order to develop it, it is necessary to overcome some innate characteristics of people, such as egocentrism and sociocentrism.

On the other hand, the ability to form critical judgments brings many benefits, such as systematically solving problems, understanding the logical connections between ideas, and acquiring values ​​and beliefs based on reality. Due to its importance, the study of this way of thinking has been fundamental since ancient times.

characteristics

Critical thinking is a skill that can be used in many situations due to its versatility; but precisely because of the breadth of situations and contexts in which it is useful, there is no universal definition of the term.

Therefore, many scholars of critical thinking focus on describing its characteristics rather than defining exactly what it is. To better understand what critical thinking is, we are going to see seven of its most important characteristics.

It is reasonable and rational

A person who is using critical thinking does not jump to conclusions or rely on their emotions to make a decision.

On the contrary, it is able to collect the data necessary to understand a situation completely, and then analyze it to draw the most logical conclusion.

Therefore, any reasoning that is based on feelings or opinions rather than facts cannot be considered critical thinking.

Is thoughtful

To carry out an act of critical thinking, it is not enough to be able to collect rational data and ignore emotions.

In addition to this, a person who wants to formulate a critical judgment will have to be able to reflect on the subject, in such a way as to ensure that they fully understand what is happening.

Requires the will to investigate a topic

A person who is not curious about a specific topic or situation will never be able to do a critical thinking exercise about it.

This is because, in order to collect all the data and analyze it in an unbiased way, you need to really want to know what is happening.

For this reason, people capable of formulating critical judgments are innately curious or, on some occasions, have learned to generate it.

The person must be able to think independently

By accepting all the information they receive, a person will never be able to develop their critical thinking skills. On the contrary, for someone who wants to achieve it, he must be able to analyze all the opinions and facts that he receives, in order to separate those that are true from those that are not.

For this same reason, a person who is capable of using critical thinking is not easily manipulated: by always reflecting on what he hears, he will be able to separate the truth from what is not.

Requires creative thinking

Because he cannot trust everything he hears, a critical thinking person must be able to find novel solutions to different problems; this way you can generate your own answers, even if no one else has found them yet.

It has to be impartial

The person with the ability to generate critical judgments must be able to listen to all the versions of the same event in order to decide which is the true one.

Therefore, you cannot get carried away by your prejudices or previous opinions; skewed thoughts have no place in a person who wants to master this skill.

Focuses on consciously deciding what to believe or do

Unlike many people who never choose their way of thinking or acting and simply get carried away, those capable of using critical thinking consciously reflect on these important aspects of their lives.

In this way, instead of being carried away by what the majority think, they are able to create their own path and find the truths that are valid for them.

Critical thinker skills

To be able to use critical thinking, a person must master a series of fundamental skills:

- Be aware of the situation, in order to identify problems, ideas or situations on which you want to reflect.

- Understand the importance of prioritizing and organizing data to solve a problem.

- Be able to collect relevant information to understand the situation at hand.

- Understand all the data collected, even those that have hidden meanings.

- Differentiate between true information from that which is not true, avoiding using prejudices to separate the two types.

- Find logical relationships between the different data, in such a way that they are ordered in a coherent explanation.

- Draw conclusions and logical generalizations, in addition to being able to put them to the test to verify their veracity.

- Reorganize their own beliefs based on new experiences and information acquired over time.

What are these skills for?

All these skills acquired by developing critical thinking can be used in a multitude of situations, both in personal and professional life. Some examples are the following:

- An emergency doctor will be able to decide in what order the patients should be treated based on the characteristics of each case.

- A bricklayer will be able to select the best materials for the construction work you have to do.

- A lawyer will find the appropriate strategies to deal with a specific case.

Critical thinker attitudes

Becoming a critical thinker involves a process; It is not only necessary to develop the skills mentioned above, but you also have to acquire the ways of thinking and behaving related to this skill.

In his book Becoming a Critical Thinker, industrial engineer and social worker Vincent Ruggiero describes what he calls "the four empowering attitudes" of a critical thinker. They are: humility, openness to criticism, respect for others and willingness to work hard.

Humility

Even the best critical thinkers can be wrong in their judgments. When a person thinks they already know everything about a topic, they are no longer open to new information, criticism or ideas.

Therefore, one of the most important attitudes to adopt when making critical judgments is humility. In this way, the person will continue to learn from all the situations that they encounter, either to reinforce their previous ideas or to change them based on new ideas.

Openness to criticism

For the same reason, a critical thinker has to be able to listen to opinions contrary to his own.

However, this does not mean that you have to accept everything that others tell you: you should simply be open to feedback from others before deciding if what they say makes sense or if it is necessary to dismiss it.

Respect to the others

Although in many cases their ideas will be more valid than those of most people (mainly because they have spent more time reflecting on them), the critical thinker must respect others regardless of who is right.

Even when you disagree with the other person's views, adopting a hostile attitude toward them will harm your critical thinking process as well as your relationships with others.

Willingness to work hard

Understanding the real way the world works is a very important step, but it is only the first. Therefore, once he has clarified his ideas, the critical thinker must be ready to put them to the test through action.

In this sense, reflecting on the best possible action plan to achieve an objective will help to achieve it more efficiently; therefore, critical thinking and hard work are two mutually reinforcing skills.

How does critical thinking develop?

Here are seven strategies that you can use right now to start developing your critical thinking skills.

Ask simple questions

When we begin to examine a topic, it is easy to become overwhelmed with the amount of information available. Usually we want to know everything at once, but if our questions are not the right ones we can fall prey to excess information.

To avoid this and begin to develop your critical thinking skills, start by asking simple questions: What do you already know about the topic in question? What do you want to learn? Is there a specific aspect that you need to know more about? Where can you get the information from?

Question everything

Sometimes what we think we know is so complex, or the information is so mixed, that it is difficult to separate what is true from what is not.

Therefore, to think rationally about any issue, the first thing we need to do is go over the fundamentals of what we have as true.

To do this, you will have to begin to systematically doubt everything that you considered good. When you detect a belief or thought that you cannot support with objective and easily verifiable facts, do research on the subject until you can form a rational opinion about it.

Pay attention to your mental processes

Our mind is capable of a great many feats, but it is not infallible. According to Daniel Kahneman, a Nobel Prize-winning psychologist, when we examine information, our brain takes a series of shortcuts to explain more simply what is happening: heuristics.

These thought processes will make you have to be very aware of what is going on inside your mind if you want to be able to examine the available information without getting carried away by your prejudices or preconceptions.

Rationally evaluate existing evidence

When you're examining a specific issue or topic, you don't need to avoid looking for information about it for fear of being objective.

Although it is true that for almost everything there is contradictory evidence, one of the best ways to practice critical thinking is by examining all the information on a topic trying to distinguish what is valid from what is not.

To do this, when you find yourself facing new evidence, ask yourself the following:

- Who has collected this information? Is it an opinion or, on the contrary, are they demonstrable facts?

- How has this data been collected? Is the procedure based on the scientific method or, on the contrary, is it less conclusive evidence such as surveys or interviews?

- What intentions did the investigators have? Could they have influenced the results of your studies?

Think by yourself

Finally, sometimes the evidence found is not enough to form a definitive opinion on an issue. In these moments, you will have to listen to your common sense and your previous experiences to make a decision.

For example, in the field of nutrition there seems to be a lot of conflicting data on what is healthy and what is not. However, in your own experience, what makes you feel better? How are you healthier and have a healthier body?

Real examples of critical thinking

Below we will see various situations in everyday life in which developing critical thinking can be helpful.

Distinguish true news from false news

The media are full of false news, half-truths, propaganda, and information designed to mislead viewers; But although most of us believe that we are able to distinguish what is true from what is not, the latest research reveals that this is not the case.

According to a study carried out by Stanford University, 82% of the adolescents interviewed were not able to distinguish between a real news story and a totally fabricated one. On the contrary, they believed everything they saw in the media without thinking about it.

In these situations, it is essential to develop critical thinking tools to avoid believing in fake news that can increase our misinformation.

Are your friends always right?

Another of the biggest problems of adolescents is their need to fit into their reference group. Because of this powerful urge, many of them accept whatever their friends tell them without thinking rationally about it.

This can lead to problems in all sorts of areas: from relationships to drugs or alcohol.

Therefore, an adolescent who develops his critical thinking will be much more protected than the rest against problems generated by his lack of rationality when he is with his friends.

References

1. "7 Characteristics of Critical Thinking" in: RN Central. Retrieved on: April 10, 2018 from RN Central: rncentral.com.
2. "Adopting the Attitude of a Critical Thinker" in: Cengage. Retrieved on: April 10, 2018 from Cengage: blog.cengage.com.
3. "Critical thinking" in: Wikipedia. Retrieved on: April 10, 2018 from Wikipedia: en.wikipedia.org.
4. "7 Ways to Improve Your Critical Thinking Skills" in: College Info Geek. Retrieved on: April 10, 2018 from College Info Geek: collegeinfogeek.com.
5. "Critical thinking in everyday life" in: Thinker Academy. Retrieved on: April 10, 2018 from Thinker Academy: thinkeracademy.com.