Bethel College Critical Thinking in Management Discussion Look carefully at the discussion on pgs 40-43 in (Paul, R., & Elder, L. (2012). Critical Thinking

Bethel College Critical Thinking in Management Discussion Look carefully at the discussion on pgs 40-43 in (Paul, R., & Elder, L. (2012). Critical Thinking: Tools for Taking Charge of Your Professional and Personal Life) our reading for this week, which describes the relationship between thinking, feeling, and wanting. Summarize the way in which Paul, R., & Elder, L. (2012) explain the relationship of thinking, feeling and wanting in 1-2 sentences, no more. Then apply this description to one of the desires of the “American dream” which we can summarize to include: a) the desire for the freedom to pursue one’s passions, b) the desire for economic security and well being, and c) the desire for hope and progress in one’s life. [you can read more about the American dream as quantified this way http://blog.oup.com/2014/07/questioning-american-d…Remember to use in work citations ie: (Author, 2018) and provide the full citation in APA format at the end of the response for each question where you cited information from the reference. Also, remember not to cut/paste directly from a source, although it may be cited, you still need to put the information into your own wording (unless direct quotes, figures, etc). In total this assignment should be no less than 350 words and 2 sources Paul, R., & Elder, L. (2012) the uploaded book and Rank, Mark (2014) from this link http://blog.oup.com/2014/07/questioning-american-d.. Chapter 4
Self-Understanding
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he preceding chapters emphasized that:
R of basic intellectual skills, abilities,
Critical thinking requires the development
and insights;
.
Becoming a skilled thinker is like becoming
skilled in basketball, ballet, or
,
saxophone playing;
These skills can be used to serve two incompatible ends: self-centeredness or fairG
mindedness;
A in a “weak” sense (sel?sh thinking);
The skills of critical thinking can be learned
We are focused on the development ofRcritical thinking in a “strong” sense (i.e.,
serving fair-minded thinking);
R
Fair-mindedness requires that we develop a network of interrelated traits of
Y
mind;
Developing as a thinker is challenging, requiring internal motivation.
2
Our goal in this chapter is to lay a foundation for understanding better how the
0 a further look at human egocentrism
human mind works. We will begin by taking
and the obstacle it represents. We then will9take a look at some of the most basic distinctions we can use to achieve greater self-command.
0
Our latent egocentrism asserts itself through each of the basic functions of the mind.
We must understand those functions, as T
they work in relationship to each other.
S
37
Critical Thinking Strategies for Success (Collection), by Richard Paul, Linda Elder, Judy Chartrand, Stewart Emery, Russ Hall, Heather Ishikawa, John Maketa,
and Robert E. Gunther. Published by Financial Press. Copyright © 2012 by Pearson Education, Inc.
38
CRITICAL THINKING
Only through our practical insight into how our mind operates can we hope to
understand, and transform, ourselves.
Monitoring the Egocentrism in Your Thought and Life
S
One of the fundamental challenges most humans
face in developing is that our life is
dominated by a tendency to think and feelAegocentrically. Our life is deeply situated
in our own immediate desires, pains, thoughts, and feelings. We seek immediate
U
grati?cation or long-term grati?cation based on an essentially sel?sh perspective. We
N with whether our perceptions or meanare not typically or fundamentally concerned
ings are accurate, though we may think we
Dare. We are not signi?cantly concerned
with personal growth, self-insight, or ultimate integrity, though we think we are. We
E weaknesses, prejudices, or self-decepare not deeply motivated to discover our own
tion. Rather, we seek to get what we want, R
avoid the disapproval of others, and justify
ourselves in our own mind.
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The tendency for humans to think in an egocentric fashion means that, typically, we
have little or no real insight into the nature of our own thinking and emotions. For
example, many of us unconsciously believe
Sthat it is possible to acquire knowledge
without much thought, that it is possible to read without exerting intellectual energy,
R
and that good writing is a talent one is born with—not a product of practice and
.
hard work. As a result, we tend to evade responsibility
for our own development. We
do not seek to learn new ways of looking ,at things. Much of our thinking is stereotypical and simplistic, yet our egocentrism prevents us from recognizing this. We create the inner chains that enslave us.
G on our relationships, success, growth,
These inner chains can have a negative effect
and happiness. It is not possible to get beyond
A the egocentrism that you and I inherit
as human beings by ignoring our ego or pretending that we are decent people. We
R
can restrain our egocentrism only by developing explicit habits that enable us to do
so. We get beyond egocentric emotionalRresponses not by denying that we ever
respond in such a way but, rather, by owning
Y these responses when they occur and
restructuring the thinking that is feeding those emotions.
For example, each of us wants to see ourselves as an ethical person. Yet, through our
2 are blatantly unethical. Industries, for
egocentrism we often behave in ways that
example, often engage in systematic practices
0 that result in large amounts of pollutants in the environment. Yet if asked to explain their behavior, they will instead justify it through rationalization. They will 9make comments such as “We meet and
exceed all of the federal regulations for pollution
control, and in fact we do more
0
than most companies to ensure that we don’t pollute.” Yet these companies are often
T
hiding behind the concept of “federal regulations.” They are not essentially conS of their behavior. Rather they are concerned with the ethical or unethical nature
cerned simply with following the regulations. In cases such as these, industry leaders
are unconcerned with whether they are actually polluting. They may not even know
Critical Thinking Strategies for Success (Collection), by Richard Paul, Linda Elder, Judy Chartrand, Stewart Emery, Russ Hall, Heather Ishikawa, John Maketa,
and Robert E. Gunther. Published by Financial Press. Copyright © 2012 by Pearson Education, Inc.
SELF-UNDERSTANDING
39
whether they are causing damage to the environment. And very often they do not
want to know. Through their egocentrism they are able to avoid self-scrutiny. They
are able to go on engaging in practices that will yield the highest monetary gain,
without reference to the impact of the behavior on the environment.
We will return to the problem of dealingSwith egocentrism later. But you should
begin to think about what egocentrism is and
A to monitor your thinking for evidence
of it.
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N
Test the Idea: Beginning to Understand Egocentrism
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Think of the most self-centered person you know. This may be someone
E Describe the person’s behavior
who is fundamentally sel?sh or arrogant.
in detail. Based on the person’s behavior,
how would you describe his/
R
her thinking? What types of feelings does he/she seem to display? What
S extent does the person use other
is the person motivated to do? To what
people to get what he/she wants? To what extent does the person exhibit
sincere concern for the thoughts and feelings of others?
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Making a Commitment to Fair-Mindedness
.
Though no one de?nes himself or herself ,as an egocentric person, each of us should
recognize that being egocentric is an important part of what we have to understand
in dealing with the structure of our mind. One of the ways to begin to confront our
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own egocentrism is by exploring the extent to which we have allowed our identity to
A previously emphasized, we are all born
be egocentrically shaped. For example, as we
into a culture, a nation, and a family. Our R
parents inculcate into us particular beliefs
(about the family, personal relationships, marriage, childhood, obedience, religion,
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politics, schooling, and so on). We form associations with people who have certain
Y
beliefs (which they have encouraged, or expected,
us to accept). We are, in the ?rst
instance, a product of these in?uences. Only through self-understanding can we
begin to be more than a product of in?uences.
2
If we uncritically believe what we were taught
0 to believe, these beliefs are likely to
become part of our egocentric identity. When they do, it affects the manner in which
9 to the extent that an examination of our
we believe. For example, we are all egocentric
attitudes reveals that we unconsciously use 0
egocentric standards to justify our beliefs:
1. “It’s true because I believe it.” PeopleTdon’t say this aloud, but we often ?nd
ourselves assuming that others are correct
S when they agree with us and incorrect
when they do not. The way we respond to people indicates that we egocentrically
assume we have a unique insight into the truth.
Critical Thinking Strategies for Success (Collection), by Richard Paul, Linda Elder, Judy Chartrand, Stewart Emery, Russ Hall, Heather Ishikawa, John Maketa,
and Robert E. Gunther. Published by Financial Press. Copyright © 2012 by Pearson Education, Inc.
40
CRITICAL THINKING
2. “It’s true because we believe it.” Our behavior indicates that we egocentrically
assume that the groups to which we belong have a unique insight into the truth.
Our religion, our company, our country, our friends are special—and better.
3. “It’s true because I want to believe it.” Our behavior indicates that we more
readily believe what coincides with what
S we egocentrically want to believe, even
to the point of absurdity.
A
4. “It’s true because I have always believed it.” Our behavior indicates that we more
U
readily believe what coincides with beliefs we have long held. We egocentrically
N
assume the rightness of our early beliefs.
D to believe it.” Our behavior indicates
5. “It’s true because it is in my sel?sh interest
that we more readily believe what coincides
E with beliefs that, when held, serve to
advance our wealth, power, or position, even if they con?ict with the ethical
R
principles that we insist we hold.
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If we consciously recognize these tendencies in ourselves and deliberately and systematically seek to overcome them by thinking fair-mindedly, our de?nition of ourselves
S begin to divide our thoughts into two
can aid our development as thinkers. We then
categories: 1) thoughts that serve to advance
Rthe agenda of our egocentric nature, and
2) thoughts that serve to develop our rational fair-mindedness. To effectively do this,
we need to develop a special relationship to. our mind; we must become a student of
our mind’s operations, especially of its pathology.
,
Recognizing the Mind’s Three Distinctive
Functions
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The mind has three basic functions—thinking,
A feeling, and wanting (Figures 4.1 &
4.2).
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1. The function of thinking is to createRmeaning. Thinking makes sense of the
events of our lives; it sorts events into named categories and ?nds patterns for us.
Y on. This is what is happening. Notice
It continually tells us: This is what is going
this and that. This is how it makes sense to understand the situation. It is the
part of the mind that ?gures things out.
2
2. The function of feeling is to monitor or evaluate the meanings created by the
0
thinking function—evaluating how positive
and negative the events of our life
are, given the meaning we are ascribing
9 to them. It continually tells us: This is
how you should feel about what is happening in your life. You’re doing really
0
well. Or, alternatively, watch out—you are getting into trouble!
T
3. The function of wanting allocates energy to action, in keeping with our
S It continually tells us: This is what
de?nitions of what is desirable and possible.
is worth getting. Go for it! Or, conversely, it tells: This is not worth getting.
Don’t bother.
Critical Thinking Strategies for Success (Collection), by Richard Paul, Linda Elder, Judy Chartrand, Stewart Emery, Russ Hall, Heather Ishikawa, John Maketa,
and Robert E. Gunther. Published by Financial Press. Copyright © 2012 by Pearson Education, Inc.
SELF-UNDERSTANDING
Figure 4.1
41
The three basic functions of the mind are intricately interrelated.
Three basic functions of
the human mind
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Thinking
Feeling
Wanting
N
D
Looked at this way, our mind is continually
Ecommunicating three kinds of things to
us: 1) what is going on in our life; 2) feelings (positive or negative) about those
R our energy (in the light of 1 and 2).
events; and 3) things to pursue, where to put
S interrelation between thinking, feeling,
What is more, there is an intimate, dynamic
and wanting (Figure 4.3). Each is continually in?uencing the other two. When, for
example, we think we are being threatened, we feel fear, and we inevitably want to
S
?ee from or attack whatever we think is threatening us. When we think that attendR want to avoid attending it and will feel
ing a meeting will be a waste of time, we will
bored if compelled to attend.
.
Figure 4.2
THINKING
Makes sense of
the world:
?
?
?
?
?
?
?
,
Thinking is the part of the mind that ?gures out what is going on.
Feelings tell us whether things are going well or poorly for us. The
wanting part of the mind propels us forward or away from action.
judging
perceiving
analyzing
clarifying
determining
comparing
synthesizing
G
A
THE THREE FUNCTIONS
OF THE MIND
R
R
Y
FEELING
?
2
0
happy
9
sad
depressed
0
anxious
stressedT
calm
worried S
?
excited
WANTING
Tells us how we
are doing:
Drives us to act as
we do:
?
?
?
?
?
?
?
?
?
?
?
?
goals
desires
purposes
agendas
values
motives
Critical Thinking Strategies for Success (Collection), by Richard Paul, Linda Elder, Judy Chartrand, Stewart Emery, Russ Hall, Heather Ishikawa, John Maketa,
and Robert E. Gunther. Published by Financial Press. Copyright © 2012 by Pearson Education, Inc.
CRITICAL THINKING
42
Understanding That You Have a Special Relationship to Your Mind
It should now be clear that everyone lives in a special and intimate relationship to his
or her mind—at least unconsciously. The trick is to make that unconscious relationship conscious and deliberate. All of our activity is a product of inward ideas of who
S
and what we are, ideas of what we are experiencing
(from moment to moment), of
where we are going (our future), of whereAwe have come from (our past). And, in
addition, all of these ideas are in a state of continual interplay with our emotions and
U function as ongoing evaluators of the
feelings about them. Emotions and feelings
N
quality of our lives and circumstances.
Figure 4.3
D
Thinking, feeling, and wanting
E are interwoven. Where there is one,
the other two are present as well. These three functions continuR another in a dynamic process.
ally interact and in?uence one
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I THINK . . .
S
R
.
,
I FEEL . . .
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A. . .
I WANT
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R
Y
Thinking
Doing
2
0
9
0
T
S
Feeling
Wanting
Critical Thinking Strategies for Success (Collection), by Richard Paul, Linda Elder, Judy Chartrand, Stewart Emery, Russ Hall, Heather Ishikawa, John Maketa,
and Robert E. Gunther. Published by Financial Press. Copyright © 2012 by Pearson Education, Inc.
SELF-UNDERSTANDING
43
For every positive thought the mind “believes,” the mind naturally tends to generate
a positive emotion to ?t it. Conversely, for every negative thought, the mind tends to
generate a negative emotion. If we explicitly recognize the continual interrelationships among these three functions of our mind, we will gain a central insight that we
can begin to use to our advantage. Then we can begin to exercise command over our
S
own mind’s functions. Let’s look into this idea more closely.
A
We experience joy, happiness, frustration, pain, confusion, desire, passion, and indifference because we give a meaning to everyU
situation we experience, because we think
about it in a particular fashion, and because
Nwe connect it to feelings we experienced
in what we perceived as similar or related circumstances. The meaning we create can
D
be grounded in insight, objective reality, a fantasy, or even a dysfunctional interpretation of reality. For example, two people inEthe same situation may react completely
differently, with one person experiencing pain
R and frustration while the other experiences curiosity and excitement.
S
Consider two employees faced with the task of improving of?ce procedures in order
to improve productivity. The ?rst experiences resentment at being required to change
what appears to be “working just ?ne.” This
S person gives a negative meaning to the
task of improvement, considering it unnecessary and time consuming (when so
R
many other things are more important). Given the negative thinking this person is
. about the task.
engaging in, s/he will feel negative emotions
, welcome the opportunity for improveIn the same situation, another person might
ment. De?ning the situation as a chance to be creative and to think independently
about ways to improve procedures, she/he looks forward to the task. Positive, rather
G
than negative, emotions result from such a de?nition.
A
The actual task at hand is precisely the same. Nevertheless, the dif?culty or ease with
which a person handles the challenge, the R
decision to take up the challenge or avoid
it altogether, ultimate success or failure, is R
determined fundamentally by the manner
in which the situation is interpreted through one’s thinking (Figure 4.4). Different
Y
emotions follow from these differences in thought
and action.
When we understand the interrelated roles of thoughts, feelings, and motivation,
when we can see that for every feeling state2we experience, a related thought process
exists that motivates us to some action, we0can begin to analyze thoughts underlying
our emotions and desires. If I am frustrated in a meeting, I can ask myself: What is
9 this feeling of frustration? What exactly
the thinking in my mind that is leading to
am I frustrated with? What is the thinking0that leads me to be frustrated (Figure 4.5
& 4.6)?
T
S
Critical Thinking Strategies for Success (Collection), by Richard Paul, Linda Elder, Judy Chartrand, Stewart Emery, Russ Hall, Heather Ishikawa, John Maketa,
and Robert E. Gunther. Published by Financial Press. Copyright © 2012 by Pearson Education, Inc.
CRITICAL THINKING
44
Figure 4.4
We change undesirable feelings and desires by changing the thinking that is leading to them.
Feelings
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A
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Do not correct
N
themselves
D
E
Change onlyRthrough
S
Desires
(or wants)
THINKING
S
R
.
,
Test the Idea: Understanding the Relationship Between the
Three Functions of the Mind
G
Think of a situation you were in recently
where you experienced a
negative emotion such as anger, frustration,
depression, insecurity, or
A
fear:
R
1. Write out in detail what was going on in the situation and how you
R
felt in the situation.
2. Now try to ?gure out the thinkingY
you were doing in the circumstance
that led to the negative feeling. Write out the thinking in detail.
3. Then write how your thinking and feeling impacted your behavior. (In
other words, given the thinking2and feeling, what were you motivated to do?)
0
9
0
T
S
Critical Thinking Strategies for Success (Collection), by Richard Paul, Linda Elder, Judy Chartrand, Stewart Emery, Russ Hall, Heather Ishikawa, John Maketa,
and Robert E. Gunther. Published by Financial Press. Copyright © 2012 by Pearson Education, Inc.
SELF-UNDERSTANDING
Figure 4.5
45
By taking command of our thinking we can take command of all
three functions of the mind.
THINKING
the key to
S
A
U
N
Feeling
Wanting
Thinking
D
E
R
S part of your life. But do you control
Figure 4.6 Your thinking controls every
your thinking?
S
YOUR THINKING
R
.
,
controls you
Your emotions
G
A
R
R
Y
Your decisions
DO YOU CONTROL2YOUR THINKING?
0
9
0
T
S
Critical Thinking Strategies for Success (Collection), by Richard Paul, Linda Elder, Judy Chartrand, Stewart Emery, Russ Hall, Heather Ishikawa, John Maketa,
and Robert E. Gunther. Published by Financial Press. Copyright © 2012 by Pearson Education, Inc.
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A
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D
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R
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A
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2
0
9
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Critical Thinking Strategies for Success (Collection), by Richard Paul, Linda Elder, Judy Chartrand, Stewart Emery, Russ Hall, Heather Ishikawa, John Maketa,
and Robert E. Gunther. Published by Financial Press. Copyright © 2012 by Pearson Education, Inc.
Chapter 5
The First Four
Stages of
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Development:A What Level
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Thinker Are
You?
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D
E
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ost of us are not what we could be.SWe are less. We have great capacity, but
most of it is dormant and undeveloped.
Improvement in thinking is like
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improvement in basketball, ballet, or playing the saxophone. It is unlikely to take
.
place in the absence of a conscious commitment to learn. As long as we take our
thinking for granted, we don’t do the work,required for improvement.
M
Development in thinking is a gradual process requiring plateaus of learning and just
plain hard work. It is not possible to become
G an excellent thinker by simply taking a
beginning course. Changing…
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