Introduction to Critical Thinking
On a regular basis, humans are confronted with events that necessitate decision making. Critical thinking is an important human trait and talent that enables people to make sound judgments in the face of adversity. The application of in-depth analysis, reconstruction, and assessment of any given topic, situation, or subject by an individual to arrive at the best alternative possible is referred to as critical thinking. Empathy, reason, and rationality are characteristics of critical thinking, which ensures fairness and objectivity in problem solving and general decision making. Critical thinking is a talent that must be learned and practiced over time. Critical thinkers are very much aware of the nature of decision making a majority of people make. Decision making and the judgment of situations is always flawed with prejudice, stereotyping and biasness that render the decisions made subjective. In the nursing profession, critical thinking is essential as nurses attempt to provide the best nursing care to patients from diverse backgrounds and different ailments.
Critical Thinking in School
Life in school is in most cases defined by socio-centrism and native egocentrism. In school, critical thinking helps one in developing problem-solving capabilities, effective communication, and the grounds to overcome socio-centric and egocentric behavioral tendencies. Also, critical thinking is important to students in that quality and objective thinking is a step towards developing intellectual virtues that bring forth academic excellence. Nursing students in school capitalize on critical thinking to learn empathy which allows the nurses to objectively understand the situation of a patient. Nurses ought not to develop sympathy or grow emotional instability at the face of suffering when they face practical nursing encounters. Intellectual humility, integrity, civility, empathy, and confidence in reason are some of the skills accorded to students stemming out of critical thinking in school (Alfaro-LeFevre, 2017).
Developing Critical Thinking
Critical thinking is developed over time. One can develop critical thinking by understanding the elements of thinking and decision making. One has to define the purpose of thinking and the dilemma at hand. Here the person will be able to view the situation from a holistic angle beyond his or her own understanding. A person has to collect the relevant information about any given scenario demanding critical thinking. Information is ideal in creating inferences, assessment, and the assumptions attributed to the given situation. Developing critical thinking also requires one to determine the concepts, implications, and the conflicting point of views from different parties. Here, a person will be able to assess a situation from an objective position and make a viable decision. Critical thinking development also goes on to include the assessment of thinking to ensure accuracy, clarity, and precision (Cohen, 2017).
Applications of Critical Thinking
Critical thinking is used in the development of adaptive behaviors, problem-solving, and decision making. Human beings ought to adapt to the changing environmental factors in the real world. The ability to live harmoniously with people from different behavioral traits is enhanced by critical thinking where one understands the other party objectively and behaves in a manner that creates compatibility. Critical thinking is ideal for problem solving and decision making. At the face of a problem, several alternatives are always available. It is upon a person to assess the given alternatives critically and make a quality conclusion. In nursing, an example of a situation that requires critical thinking is at the face of special-needs patients. Patients suffering from post-traumatic stress disorders require empathy to allow productive therapy to allow the patient to recover from the condition. Critical thinking allows the nurse to assess a patient objectively through the assessment of the available information to create a deeper understanding and make quality decisions.
Conclusion
Critical thinking is a necessary skill for everyone. Service delivery is based on the ability to understand the client needs and respond appropriately. Nursing is a human service career that requires development and use of critical thinking to serve humanity.
References
Alfaro-LeFevre, R. (2017). Critical thinking, clinical reasoning, and clinical judgment: A practical approach. Philadelphia: Elsevier, 2017.
Cohen, S. (2017). Critical thinking in long-term care nursing. Brentwood, TN: HCPro. 2017
