Chapter 1 Definitions

No one in Collin’s circle of friends likes rap music. They all say that it sounds like noise; it has no melody and it takes no talent to produce, they claim. Personally, Collin tends to like rap, and he thinks that a lot of skill and knowledge would have to go into producing something that complex. But if everyone else hates it, he reasons that he is probably wrong, so he eventually convinces himself to hate rap too.

• Conformity

• Relativism

• Wishful thinking

• Confirmation Bias

Answer explanation

Collin's change in opinion about rap music, influenced by his friends' negative views, exemplifies conformity. He suppresses his own preference to align with the group's beliefs, demonstrating the pressure to conform.

Jeannette has an upcoming exam in anatomy and physiology. It will cover the four chapters read and discussed over the last month. Jeannette hasn’t studied. Though there are well over 200 terms she will be expected to remember, Jeannette knows that her memory is great. She will remember the terms just from having heard them mentioned in class. After all, because of her excellent memory, she got through high school without studying. Despite her faith in her memory, her lack of studying results in an F on the exam.

• Relativism

• Wishful Thinking

• Overconfidence

• Conformation bias

Answer explanation

Jeannette's belief that she can rely solely on her memory without studying reflects Wishful Thinking. She hopes for a positive outcome based on her past experiences, ignoring the reality of the situation, which leads to her poor exam result.

Paul’s girlfriend goes out of town for the week with her friends. While she is away, Paul runs into Gina, a girl he has had a crush on for several years. Gina asks Paul to “hang-out” on Friday. Paul knows that if he does, his girlfriend will be upset. His girlfriend knows about Paul’s crush on Gina. Paul says yes to Gina; after all, if Paul’s girlfriend cared, she would have invited him on her vacation. Plus, Paul thinks, she was not nice to him before she left. So, according to Paul, it’s really his girlfriend’s fault. If his girlfriend had been a better girlfriend, he wouldn’t be tempted to hang-out with Gina.

• Conformity

• Wishful thinking

• Egocentrism

• Rationalizing

Answer explanation

Paul is rationalizing his decision to hang out with Gina by blaming his girlfriend for not being a better partner. He justifies his actions by suggesting that her behavior led him to seek attention elsewhere.

Barriers to critical thinking include _________, ethnocentrism, conformism, ___________, relativism vs objectivism and intimidation by authority.

• A. Egocentrism, unexamined or unwarranted assumptions

• B. Objectivism, positive thinking

• C. Egocentrism, objectivism

• D. Positive thinking, unexamined assumptions

Answer explanation

The correct choice is A. Egocentrism and unexamined assumptions are significant barriers to critical thinking, as they hinder objective analysis and self-reflection, unlike the other options which do not fit the context.

What is critical thinking?

• understanding the why and how behind the details

• unpaid volunteer service that is embedded in courses across the curriculum

• the ability to think for yourself and to reliably make decisions that affect your life

• the ability to recognize, understand, use, and manage moods, feelings, and attitudes

Answer explanation

Critical thinking is defined as the ability to think for yourself and make reliable decisions that impact your life. This involves analyzing information and evaluating different perspectives.

This means being sensible and reasonable.

• Reasoning

• Generalizing

• Illogical

• Logical

Answer explanation

The term 'logical' refers to being sensible and reasonable, aligning perfectly with the definition provided. In contrast, 'illogical' denotes a lack of sense, while 'reasoning' and 'generalizing' do not directly imply sensibility.

Being unreasonable and lacking sense is ____________.

• Illogical

• Persuading

• Generalizing

• Logical

Answer explanation

The term 'illogical' describes something that is unreasonable and lacks sense, making it the correct choice. In contrast, 'persuading', 'generalizing', and 'logical' do not fit this definition.

A woman reads a book for her book club and really enjoys it. When she attends her book club meeting, the other members all disliked the book. Rather than go against the group opinion, she simply agrees with the others that the book was terrible.

• Provincialism

• Conformism

• Cultural relativism

• Peer Pressure

Answer explanation

The woman demonstrates conformism by agreeing with the group's negative opinion of the book, despite her own enjoyment. This behavior reflects a tendency to align with group views rather than express her true feelings.

This is one of barriers to critical thinking. It is _______________

• unwarranted assumption

• egocentrism

• wishful thinking

• subjectivism

Answer explanation

Wishful thinking is a barrier to critical thinking as it involves believing something simply because one wishes it to be true, rather than based on evidence or rational analysis. This can distort judgment and decision-making.

Each statement includes ______________ .

• wishful thinking

• conformity

• denial

• a stereotype

Answer explanation

The correct choice is 'stereotype' because it refers to a fixed, oversimplified idea about a group, which aligns with the context of the sentence. The other options do not fit as well in describing a specific type of thinking.