Chapter 5: Critical Thinking (II) In the previous chapter, we began to examine characteristics of critical thinkers. In this chapter, we will continue to look at more characteristics to help us improve our critical thinking capabilities. Four additional topics are presented in this chapter. They are: • • • •
Seeing the big picture Objectivity Using your emotions Being self-aware
Seeing the Big Picture One of the main functions of thinking is to make connections. Our own ideas gain significance when we can relate or connect them to other ideas. We start to gain insight when we see the similarities between ideas. The way we structure our ideas can be based on how they connect in one of two ways: causal or conceptual relationships. Since many problems arise due to causal changes, we will focus on this aspect. Steps in discovering causal relations include: • • •
Laying out the account Determining a hierarchy Interpreting convergences and divergences o Convergences are ideas/things that reinforce, supplement, or complement events o Divergences are points that do not reinforce events
