Critical Thinking Traps & tips

Ever been stuck and feel like you can’t get out of your box? Maybe even backed into a corner? Our minds really don’t like to think. It defaults to a mental path we’ve created over and over again. It takes less energy and mental work to follow the same path or process. If we don’t vary our methods, we miss the obvious or some fresh idea. We get stuck. The consequence? We are predisposed to ignore the open spaces of our box. Our logic becomes counterproductive because we box ourselves in and produce the same solution to problem that we’ve always done. 

Great critical thinkers are able to remain objective, even in the most emotional of situations. They are able to remove their emotional investment, anxiety, sensitivities and even fears to stay focused and on task. 


CRITICAL THINKING TRAPS & TIPS

1. The Anchoring Trap: Over-Relying on First Thoughts.

initial impressions, ideas, estimates or data “anchor” subsequent thoughts

• Always view a problem from different perspectives
• Think on your own before consulting others
• Seek information from a wide variety of sources

2. The Status Quo Trap: Keeping on Keeping On

 status quo automatically has an advantage over every other alternative

• Consider the status quo as just another alternative.
• Know your objectives.
• Avoid exaggerating switching costs.

3. The Sunk Cost Trap: Protecting Earlier Choices

it's a sunk cost, and it shouldn't influence your decision

• Be OK with making mistakes.
• Listen to people who were not involved in the earlier decisions.
• Focus on your goals.

4. The Confirmation Trap: Seeing What You Want to See

looking for information that will most likely support your initial point of view

• Expose yourself to conflicting information.
• Get a devil's advocate.
• Don't ask leading questions.

5. The Incomplete Information Trap: Review Your Assumptions

overlooking a simple data element can make our intuitions go completely astray

• Make your assumptions explicit.
• Always favor hard data over mental simplifications.

6. The Conformity Trap: Everybody Else Is Doing It

other people's actions do heavily influence ours

• Discount the influence of others.
• Beware "social proof".
• Be courageous.

7. The Illusion of Control Trap: Shooting in the Dark

we still tend to irrationally believe that we can somehow influence results. We just love to feel in control

• Understand that randomness is part and parcel of life.
• Beware of superstitions.

8. The Coincidence Trap: We Suck at Probabilities

Probabilities can be unintuitive.

• Don't over-rely on gut estimates.
• Beware of "after the fact" probabilities.

9. The Recall Trap: Not All Memories Are Created Equal

we analyze information based on experience, on what we can remember from it

• Get hard data.
• Be aware of your emotions.

10. The Superiority Trap: The Average is Above Average

people have much inflated views of themselves

• Be humble.
• Don't go overboard. 

When using lateral thinking just go crazy. Consider mundane and ridiculous ideas. You’re looking for the knock-off effect. One idea may be a stepping stone to another. It may feel strange and odd and don’t give up. At some point you will reach new innovations.

Psychologist Edward de Bono : “You cannot dig a hole in a

 different place by digging the same hole deeper.”


Garth Jowett PhD. is a professor at the University of Houstons school of Communications. In Living Smart he discusses how to develop critical thinking skills.