Assignment:
Scientific Thinking
Critical thinking involves a set of skills that will help you distinguish arguments based on solidly grounded evidence from those that do not.
Here are eight guidelines that should be followed to ensure critical and scientific thinking in psychology.
Problem 1) Ask Questions; Be willing to Wonder
Problem 2) Define your terms
Problem 3) Examine the evidence
Problem 4) Analyze Assumptions and Biases
Problem 5) Avoid Emotional Reasoning
Problem 6) Don't oversimplify
Problem 7) Consider Other Interpretations
Problem 8) Tolerate uncertainty
1) Based upon the eight guidelines above, what guidelines were validated in the scenario below?
2) Briefly explain the meaning of the guideline or guidelines that you chose.
3) Based on the eight guidelines how can you help others to keep an open mind and think critically?
Here is the scenario:
Due to erroneous research published in the late 1990s and early 2000s, many people believed that vaccines cause autism, despite clear and conclusive scientific evidence to the contrary.