Critical Thinking: Conceptual Perspectives and Practical Guidelines

Dwyer's book is unique and distinctive as it presents and discusses a modern conceptualization of critical thinking – one that is commensurate with the exponential increase in the annual output of knowledge. The abilities of navigating new knowledge outputs, engaging in enquiry and constructively solving problems are not only important in academic contexts, but are also essential life skills. Specifically, the book provides a modern, detailed, accessible and integrative model of critical thinking that accounts for critical thinking sub-skills and real-world applications; and is commensurate with the standards of twenty-first-century knowledge. The book provides both opportunities to learn and apply these skills through a series of exercises, as well as guidelines on how critical thinking can be developed and practised, in light of existing psychological research, which can be used to enhance the experience of critical thinking training and facilitate gains in critical thinking ability.

Table of Contents:
Part I. Foundations of Critical Thinking: 1. Frameworks for thinking; 2. Memory and comprehension; 3. Historical perspectives; Part II. Critical Thinking Skills and Dispositions: 4. What is critical thinking? Definitions and conceptualisations; 5. Analysis; 6. Evaluation; 7. Inference; 8. Reflective judgment; Part III. Critical Thinking in Real-World Settings: 9. Applications of critical thinking; 10. Judgment, heuristics and biases; 11. Critical thinking instruction and assessment; 12. Pedagogical and learning strategies; 13. Summary and conclusions.

About the Author :
Christopher Dwyer is a post-doctoral researcher and lecturer in the School of Psychology at the National University of Ireland, Galway. In addition to critical thinking, he has worked on a wide array of funded research projects in diverse areas, including instructional design, clinical judgment-making and chronic pain. Dr Dwyer has been teaching critical thinking at university level since 2007. Since 2011, he has written more than ten peer-reviewed published manuscripts on the topic of critical thinking.

Review :
'The initial presentation of logical structures lays the groundwork for an important discussion of the varied ways critical thinking is conceptualized. Then Dwyer describes why the application of critical thinking is so difficult when people face ambiguity and complexity in daily life. This latter material will be of greatest interest to psychologists and their students because Dwyer discusses how the disposition for critical thought, reflection about thinking, and acceptance of uncertainty interact with purely logical approaches.' CHOICE 'Critical Thinking belongs on the bookshelf of anyone who wants to know more about this important 21st-century skill.' PsycCRITIQUES