Module 4: Discussion Forum
Discerning Fallacies and Cognitive Biases in Our Thinking

Discussion Questions

A) Where do you see sociocentrism at work in your own thinking or the thinking of those around you? Why is sociocentrism detrimental to critical reasoning?

B) As you think about your personal goals and aspirations, what cognitive fallacies outlined by Wilke and Mata (2012) might impede your growth? What active steps might you take to recognize and combat such fallacious forms of thinking?

Requirements for Discussion Boards

Use the required readings to analyze and engage the discussion board questions.
Your initial post should be roughly 200 words (plus or minus 10%). Each subsequent post should be 100 words (plus or minus 10%).
Include one or two scholarly sources that are not required or recommended for the HUM 101 course. The CSU-Global Library (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. is a good place to find these sources.
Format your discussion, including all in-text citations and references, according to the CSU-Global Guide to Writing & APA (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site..
Each discussion board post (including follow-up posts) should include scholarly citations and references.

Reference

Paul, R., & Elder, L. (2012). Critical Thinking: Tools for Taking Charge of Your Learning and Your Life (3rd edition). Boston: Pearson.

Module 4: Portfolio Milestone 25pts

Options #1 and #2: Revised Topic and Outline

Overview
HUM 101 requires a Final Portfolio Project. This project will focus on an issue (social, professional, or personal) that you wish to investigate critically.

Please read the full Portfolio Project description and grading rubric, which you can access in Module 8.
This is the second milestone assignment that counts toward the completion of the Portfolio Project. Also, note that in Week 7 you will post your Final Portfolio outlines and critique your colleagues in peer discussions.

In this Portfolio Milestone, you will submit your revised topic and a first outline of your Final Portfolio.

Directions:

Submit a one-page academic outline with the following parts:
a paragraph describing your revised topic selection and a question or thesis (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. statement to investigate critically
An outline which includes:
main points
sub-points
engagement with the intellectual standards and elements of reason demonstrating your strategy for critically investigating the topic. You may wish to refer to Chapter 5 of Paul and Elder (2012).
a reference section which includes three new scholarly references to support your introduction (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. and thesis (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. statement. Find peer-reviewed sources that are not required or recommended readings for this course. The CSU-Global Library (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. is a good place to find these sources.
Format your paper and references according to the CSU-Global Guide to Writing & APA (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site., including a title and references page.

Expert Answer

Discussion

Module 4: Discussion

Student’s Name

Institutional Affiliation

Date

Where do you see sociocentrism at work in your own thinking or the thinking of those around you? Why is sociocentrism detrimental to critical reasoning?

Sociocentrism results in an individual only looking inward and not considering reality or the behavior of other groups as normal or right (Payette & Barnes, 2017). In my own thinking, is sometimes find myself disregarding the ideas of other people who do not belong to my peer group, especially during group discussions. When I was younger, my friends and I formed a little group of five kids. We would play together and take walks together. I remember fighting off some kid for allegedly playing “in our territory” – an area around where we lived and considered to belong only to the five of us. Sociocentrism negatively affects critical reasoning since an individual with sociocentric behavior tends to consider only the behaviors and beliefs of their group to be right. It cripples logic and open-mindedness too. Critical reasoning demands that one considers all the possible outcomes or ideas on the table. An individual who is sociocentric only considers what is accepted as good by their group.

As you think about your personal goals and aspirations, what cognitive fallacies outlined by Wilke and Mata (2012) might impede your growth? What active steps might you take to recognize and combat such fallacious forms of thinking?

In my life, I have several aspirations and goals that I set for myself either career-wise or in other areas of my life. A number of cognitive fallacies threaten the achievement of these goals. “The tendency by which people develop a preference for things merely because they are familiar with them” (Wilke & Mata, 2012), mere exposure effect, is one of the biases that affect my life. I have a tendency to take risks that I am already familiar with and participate in activities that I have participated in before. In addition, the endowment effect also affects my personal life. I am, however, confident that through critical thinking, I will be able to overcome these fallacies. I plan on reflecting on my beliefs to see whether they serve me and to make decisions based on critical reasoning and logic.

References

Payette, P., & Barnes, B. (2017, May). Teaching for Critical Thinking: Combatting the ‘Truthiness’ Tendencies. In The National Teaching & Learning Forum (Vol. 26, No. 4, pp. 7-9).

Wilke A., & Mata R. (2012) Cognitive Bias. In: V.S. Ramachandran (ed.) The Encyclopedia of Human Behavior, vol. 1, pp. 531-535. Academic Press.

Critical Thinking

Module 4: Portfolio Milestone

Student’s Name

Institutional Affiliation

Date

Critical Thinking in Effective Decision Making

In the day to day personal livelihood of human beings, one is faced with problems that require them to come up with a solution that will eliminate the problem and enable them to proceed with their normal activities. Critical reasoning and thinking have been proposed by several authors and researchers as the best methods for decision making and problem-solving (Paul & Elder, 2005). Defined as the practice of collecting, analyzing, and evaluating information in a manner that is methodical, critical thinking enables an individual to analyze a situation and evaluate the possible decisions and outcomes (Paul & Elder, 2016). It provides an opportunity for thinking through the various possible options and outcomes. The ultimate goal of decision making is to arrive at a conclusion that is actionable and that will result in the best possible outcome. Arriving at the best possible outcome is what is referred to as problem-solving. My interest is to investigate the role of critical thinking in decision making and problem-solving.

The research will seek to provide an answer to the question: why is it important to utilize critical thinking when making decisions? The thesis of the research will be: critical thinking enables one to arrive at the best possible solution to a challenge or problem. The research will be a discussion of why critical thinking is important in making day to day decisions.

The following is an outline of the portfolio project:

1. Introduction

Definition of terms such as decision-making, problem-solving, intellectual standards, elements of reasoning, and critical thinking.

The motivation for the study.

The aim of the study.

Statement of the thesis.

2. Literature review

An analysis of various literature materials on critical thinking and its importance in the process of decision making.

An analysis of various literature materials detailing the intellectual standards and elements of reason and their connection to decision making (Paul & Elder, 2012).

3. Discussion

Identification of the importance of critical thinking in making decisions from the literature review:

1. Critical thinking enables one to appreciate that their own opinions may not be correct.
2. Critical thinking ensures that one considers all the possible outcomes before choosing the correct decision (Perkins, 2016).
3. Discussion of the role of intellectual standards in making decisions (Paul & Elder, 2012).
4. Critical thinking ensures that one does not make erroneous decisions based on their own assumptions (Noel et al., 2017).
5. Critical thinking ensures that one makes decisions based on logic and values, avoiding the influence of others (Eipstein, 2006).
6. Through critical thinking, one is able to consider the opinions of others – the principle of charity, enabling one to arrive at an informed decision (Hughes & Lavery, 2015).
7. Conclusion

A brief summary of the research.

A summary of the main points from the discussion.

Identification of limitations identified from the study and suggestions for further research (posing of questions that require further study).

5. References

A list of all the sources used in the development of the research paper.

References

Paul, R., & Elder, L. (2016). Critical thinking: concept and tools. 2006. The Foundation for Critical Thinking, Dillon Beach, CA.

Paul, R., & Elder, L. (2005). Critical thinking competency standards. Tomales, CA: Foundation   for Critical Thinking.

Paul, R., & Elder, L. (2012). Critical Thinking: Tools for Taking Charge of Your Learning and    Your Life (3rd edition). Boston: Pearson.

Eipstein, R. (2006). Critical thinking. USA: Wadsworth.

Perkins, D. N. (2016). Teaching thinking: Issues and approaches. Routledge.

Noel, L., Pierre, S., & Watson, J. (2017). Critical Thinking, Decision Making, and Mindfullness.

Hughes, W., & Lavery, J. (2015). Critical Thinking: An Introduction to the Basic Skills    Canadian Seventh Edition. Broadview Press.