Critical Thinking and Decision Making

Critical thinking is the process of actively listening and carefully questioning the facts, opinions, and views expressed by others. As a result, the critical thinker is able to come to an educated, defensible conclusion or decision.
To make a decision is to take action on a problem or to arrive at a conclusion based on facts learned by, not given to, the critical thinker. A decision can also become a belief by discovering your own personal truths through careful consideration and thought.
The authors Browne, Keeley, McCall, and Kaplan (2001) of our e-text Critical Thinking: Strategies in Decision Making describe critical thinking as the mastery of two learned skills. The first skill deals with the way we take information in, specifically the way we listen and read....