One must begin by understanding the bases on which critical thinking is built and the objective of its application. Putting into practice the following habits you will improve your skills when creating arguments or giving them a reply. Always remember that the Internet abounds with untested news and unsupported claims.
Cultivating critical thinking does not mean that you have the tools to criticize and dismantle the arguments of the rest, but it does provide the necessary keys to think with judgment, to express opinions and to elaborate hypotheses without falling into false assumptions, prejudices or being dragged by little information. consistent.
To begin to put these habits into practice and be aware that we can elaborate critical reasoning, we must always start from a principle of skepticism . That is to say, we do not take as true any absolute statement and we know how to find out the credibility of such ideas.
Habits to work critical thinking
How do we think?
It is not very common to stop to analyze how to think and detect our abilities or what we fail.
Working to recognize this process facilitates the improvement of our way of thinking and avoid taking us by irrational attitudes or emotional responses.
Consult variety of sources
Starting by being clear that not everything that the Internet says is true and that we must know where the data and its sources come from.
Doubt of any study or article that does not mention the sources from which he has extracted the data or on which he has relied to construct his arguments.
If you doubt the validity of certain information, consult other sources or authors to prove the credibility of the information.
Do not get carried away by the arguments of influences and referents if they are not able to demonstrate on what basis their claims.
Apply the scientific method
It is important to be aware of the importance of data and objectivity and this is achieved thanks to scientific rigor.
Experiments, hypothesis testing, statistical culture and field work are necessary practices to create critical thinking.
Question everything
Improving the ability to discern and the credibility of the arguments involves asking the right questions and trying to question oneself about what surrounds us, about what we read or about the subjects of study.
It is based on promoting and prioritizing the Socratic principle or logical demonstration , based on the affirmation: “I only know that I do not know anything”.
Detect hidden interests
Nowadays, with the Internet and commercial objectives in all types of content it is important to take into account the intentional of the published information.
In many cases, the opinions expressed may respond to commercial interests and, with this, they may be published with certain non-obvious objectives.
It does not mean that this information is invalid, but it is necessary that we are aware of it and that, perhaps, it only shows a perspective or uses biased data.
The purpose of critical thinking and work through these habits is based on demonstrating certain intellectual integrity , which improves the capabilities to provide logical reasoning, well-built and well-founded.
