A Definition of Critical Thinking

Critical thinking encompasses the ability to engage in critical thinking, draw conclusions, and make decisions from a factual point of view as opposed to an emotional point of view. Critical thinkers will confront the bias in their own thinking and use a combination of factual data, life experience, the life experience of others and any other relevant and empirical data to reach a conclusion.

Critical thinking incorporates the ability to analyze statistical information and not only draw conclusions, but also generate other relevant questions. Critical thinkers possess the ability to criticize their own thinking and learn to integrate new information into their thought process, even when it conflicts with initial theories and beliefs.

Critical thinkers possess valuable intellectual traits whether they were learned, or inherited that set them apart from others. These intellectual traits include but are not limited to:

• Intellectual humility-Those who possess intellectual humility understand and accept their own limitations when it comes to knowledge.

• Intellectual courage/empathy- Possessing intellectual courage and empathy means having the ability to steadfastly maintain a commitment on an issue that is inherently right, even though it may not be popular with the majority.

• Fair mindedness- Being fair minded means you have the ability to dispel selfish tendencies that are naturally apart of individual thinking.

• Faith in reason- Having faith in reason generally means you have confidence in your ability to reason so you avoid constantly questioning your own decisions.

I tend to agree with the majority of the information presented in the readings for this week's activity. As a future media psychologist, I believe one of our most significant challenges is confronting the media's impact on media audiences. In analyzing the media's effects, we are also in many ways looking into its impact on critical thinking.

For example, I may want to conduct a study that would shed light on how CNN news coverage of the 2008 election impacted the final results. Did their coverage of the candidates have an impact on the audience's perception of each candidate? Did people vote for Barack Obama due to a skew of slightly more positive media coverage on CNN? These are just a few examples of the types of questions I may seek to answer as a media psychologist. This will surely be a fun and invigorating challenge.