Critical Thinking Ethical Reasoning
Critical Thinking and Ethical Reasoning
Jennifer Browning
ETH 316
April 2, 2015
Professor Peter Fortuna
Critical thinking and ethical reasoning are not far on the scale of relevance to one another. In ethical reasoning we look at two scenarios: are we harming ourselves or someone else OR are we bettering ourselves or someone else? Humans tend to do what is best for themselves whether not they could be hurting someone else. They do not typically look at the big picture or the consequence of their actions. Critical thinking comes into the scenario by looking at your mode of thinking and then assessing your situation and improving your thought process. Critical thinking is defined as “that mode of thinking — about any subject, content, or problem — in which the thinker improves the quality of his or her thinking by skillfully analyzing, assessing, and reconstructing it. Critical thinking is self-directed, self-disciplined, self-monitored, and self-corrective thinking.” (Foundation of Critical Thinking, 2013).
These are important foundations to look at when going into a situation that you feel uncomfortable with or unsure of. Everyone has a different upbringing and background. I think if there was a set of rules and guidelines for logical thinking, that everyone all over the world followed, there would not be a need for ethical decision making. The decisions would just be automatic. Take for example the book/movie The Giver. Everyone in that society had a place and part they placed. Everyone knew their duties and followed the rules. Only one questioned authority. It is human nature to question authority which is why they had to inject people with a drug to make them ‘forget the past’. That injection alone is ethically wrong. It is depriving that individual of free thinking and free speech.
With today’s logical thinking, not everyone agrees with the person standing next to them. For example, I was raised to work hard and hold my own, never rely on
Jennifer Browning
ETH 316
April 2, 2015
Professor Peter Fortuna
Critical thinking and ethical reasoning are not far on the scale of relevance to one another. In ethical reasoning we look at two scenarios: are we harming ourselves or someone else OR are we bettering ourselves or someone else? Humans tend to do what is best for themselves whether not they could be hurting someone else. They do not typically look at the big picture or the consequence of their actions. Critical thinking comes into the scenario by looking at your mode of thinking and then assessing your situation and improving your thought process. Critical thinking is defined as “that mode of thinking — about any subject, content, or problem — in which the thinker improves the quality of his or her thinking by skillfully analyzing, assessing, and reconstructing it. Critical thinking is self-directed, self-disciplined, self-monitored, and self-corrective thinking.” (Foundation of Critical Thinking, 2013).
These are important foundations to look at when going into a situation that you feel uncomfortable with or unsure of. Everyone has a different upbringing and background. I think if there was a set of rules and guidelines for logical thinking, that everyone all over the world followed, there would not be a need for ethical decision making. The decisions would just be automatic. Take for example the book/movie The Giver. Everyone in that society had a place and part they placed. Everyone knew their duties and followed the rules. Only one questioned authority. It is human nature to question authority which is why they had to inject people with a drug to make them ‘forget the past’. That injection alone is ethically wrong. It is depriving that individual of free thinking and free speech.
With today’s logical thinking, not everyone agrees with the person standing next to them. For example, I was raised to work hard and hold my own, never rely on
References: University of Phoenix Material. (N.D.). Thinking Critically about Ethical Issues 9e Ch06. Retrieved from University of Phoenix Material, ETH 316 website. **Please note, I could not find the source of the book as it was not posted what book we were using in the syllabus… Please advise.