Chapter 1: What is Critical Thinking Anyway?

Declarative

A sentence that is either true or false.

Immoral

Not conforming to accepted standards of morality.

Moral

The principles of right and wrong behavior and the goodness or badness of human character.

Availability Heuristics

Unconscious assigning a probability to a type of event on the bias of how often one thinks of events of that type.

Obedience To Authority

is a form of a social influence where an individual at in response to a direct order from (usually and authority figure).

Confirmation Bias

(cognitive Bias) The tendency to attach more weigh to evidence that supports our viewpoints.

Subjective Claim

(it cannot be proved right or wrong) It is an expressed belief, opinion, or personal preference.

Objective Claim

(you have the right to object) Whether it is true or false, it is separate from whether people think it is true or false.

Opinion

*In this book, "opinion is another word for BELIEF.

Belief

*Is propositional and can be expressed in a declarative sentence.

Overconfidence Effect

A cognitive bias in which someone believes subjectively that his or her judgement is better or more reliable than it objectively is.

Arguments

An argument presents a consideration for accepting a claim. *Argument consist of two parts: Premise & Conclusion *Some arguments can be very long and complicated. *Not every issue requires an argument for a resolusion Example: A dog would keep me company; so I should get one. This example is and argument for getting a dog. Example: My landlord will raise my rent; so I shouldn't get one. This example is an argument for not getting one.

Bandwagon Effect

An unconscious tendency to align one's thinking with that of other people.

What does argument mean?

Argument means, an attempt to support or prove something.

In-Group Bias

Cognitive factor that may color perception and distort judgement. Example: we find it easier to form negative opinions of people who don't belong or fit-in in your group of people you hang out with.

Heuristics

General rules we unconsciously follow in estimating probability.

Premise

Gives reasons for taking that position. Example: A dog would keep me company; so I should get one. Premise: "...keep me company..."

Issues

It is simply a question. Issues can be both subjective and objective.

Relativism

It is the idea that truth is relative to the standards of a given culture.

Loss Aversion

People generally are more strongly motivated to avoid a loss than to accrue again.

Conclusion

Stating a position on an issue. Example: A dog would keep me company; so I should get one. Conclusion: I should get a dog.

Moral Subjectivism

The idea that moral opinions, such as "Bullfighting" is morally wrong= subjective.

False Consensus Effect

The inclination we may have to assume that our attitudes and those held by people around us are shared by society at large.

Negative Bias

The tendency people have to weigh negative Information more heavily than positive when evaluating things.

Belief Bias

The tendency to evaluate reasoning by the believability of its conclusion.

Fundamental Attribution Error

The tendency to not appreciate that others behavior is as much constrained by events and circumstances as our own would be if we were in their positions.

Cognitive Biases

They skew our apprehension of reality and interfere with our ability to think clearly, process information accurately, and reason objectively