Critical Thinking Barriers from Critical thinking: Argumentative reading and writing. (.n.d.). “Common Barriers to Critical Thinking.”

Created by kbasinger

Cognitive Biases: Confirmation Bias
Favoring information that supports what we already believe while ignoring evidence that doesn’t.

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TermDefinition
Cognitive Biases: Confirmation BiasFavoring information that supports what we already believe while ignoring evidence that doesn’t.
Cognitive Biases: Anchoring BiasRelying too much on the first information we encounter.
Cognitive Biases: Availability HeuristicOverestimating the importance of information that comes to mind easily.
Emotional Influences: Stress and AnxietyThese feelings cloud judgment and weaken decision making and thinking.
Emotional Influences: Personal BiasStrong feelings about an idea can make it hard to analyze information objectively.
Lack of Information: Superficial UnderstandingSkimming or not fully engaging with a text leads to shallow understanding, resulting in weak arguments and poorly supported conclusions.
Lack of Information: Over-reliance on Secondary SourcesUsing mostly secondary sources without checking primary data can introduce errors and bias.
Overconfidence: Assuming ExpertiseThinking we know more than we do, which keeps us from seeking more information or questioning assumptions.
Overconfidence: Dismissing FeedbackIgnoring criticism, which prevents us from refining our ideas and improving our work.
Groupthink: Pressure to ConformFeeling pressure to agree with peers or instructors can limit independent critical thinking in academic settings.
Groupthink: Lack of Diverse PerspectivesConforming to group opinions limits diverse viewpoints, harming critical analysis.