Chapter 04

THINKING
 Definition
• Term think means: to reason
• Can be defined as: organizing and manipulating
information.
• It is aimed at achieving something
• Study of thinking includes studying all higher
mental processes also known as Cognition.
•Cognition:
• Comes from Latin word which
means “get to know”
• This term is used for all forms of
knowing.
• Includes: attending, reasoning,
remembering, imagining,
anticipating, planning, deciding,
problem solving and
communicating ideas.
 Nature of Thinking:

Gives humans Provides (CPM)

the capacity to • Context for our
think about what perception
was, is, will be, • Purpose to our
language
might be and • Meaning to our
should be. memories
 KINDS OF THINKING
Thinking
Autistic thinking Realistic thinking

Day Problem Creative

Reasoning
dreaming solving thinking

Free Inductive
association reasoning

Word Deductive
association reasoning
 Autistic thinking
It is non creative
It is the mental activity individual fulfills all
Called unrealistic/ non thinking: because not
which is in accordance the desires and wishes
creative thinking even a single step is
with ones wishes in fantasy
taken to solve problem
 Autistic thinking
Day dreaming/ fantasy: Free association Word association

Individual fulfills all his Therapeutic Partly free association;

desire and unreal technique association of ideas is
goals in fantasy. bound to some stimulus

People talk freely

about what ever Subject is asked to listen
Gives pleasure comes in their to list of words and report
mind the first word that comes
into their mind.
Normal people day
dream but comes out
of it instantly

Mentally disturbed or
frustrated person day dreams
a lot, as a withdrawal reaction
to frustration
 Realistic Thinking

Problem Creative
Reasoning
solving thinking

Inductive
reasoning

Deductive
reasoning
 Reasoning

Refers to mental activity of It’s a process by which people

transforming to reach evaluate and generate argument
conclusions, and reach conclusions

Inductive Deductive reasoning

Reasoning

Involves Consists of drawing Reasoning form general to

reasoning conclusions, forming specific
from specific concepts about all members
to general. of a category based on
some members. E.g; During fever, people take
Panadol, ali is having fever and
E.g. research: is often taking Panadol will cure fever.
inductive, involves drawing
conclusions about population
from which sample is drawn

Example 2: cat is mortal, lion is mortal, dog is

mortal, cow is mortal; these all are animals; all
animals are mortal.
 PROBLEM SOLVING

• Problem solving means coping with novel

situation for which we have no well
established response.
• Problem solving is an attempt to find an
appropriate way of attaining a goal, when goal
is not readily available.
• Involves usage of thought processes to
overcome obstacles and work towards goals.
 4 Stages of Problem Solving

Preparation Production Incubation Judgement

Before a problem Involves thinking If unable to find Refers to evaluating the

is solved, it needs about possible solutions solutions
to be reorganized solutions

After defining A solution that We evaluate solutions to

First diagnose it problem, need to seemed out of reach have a clear criterion in
develop strategies may suddenly appear mind for effectiveness of
to solve it. after a person solution.
Devise a plan engages in unrelated
to solve it,

Execute plan

Evaluate
results
3. Creative Thinking
• Creativity is ability to think about something in novel
and unusual ways to come up with conventional
solutions to problems.
• Characteristics of creative individuals:
• Think critically, grasp the deeper meaning of ideas.
• Open to learn different approaches and
perspectives.
• Flexible thinkers
 4. Decision Making
• Involves evaluating alternatives
and then making choices among
them.
 Concepts

TOOLS OF
THINKING Imagery

Language
Concept:
• It is One of the basic ingredient of
thought
• Are categories of objects , events or ideas
with common properties
• Refer to general ideas which are formed
from different pieces of information
• Concepts are mental categories that are
used to group objects, events and
characteristics.
• FUNCTIONS OF CONCEPTS
• Vital to thought, because it helps us relate each object or
event we encounter to a category that is already known.
• Makes logical thoughts possible
• Helps in problem solving
• Allows us to generalize information
• Allows us to associate experiences and objects. The
concept of car gives us ability to compare them
• Makes memory more efficient, so that we do not need to
have reconstruct or encode information every time.
 CONCEPT FORMATION

Not based on single experience, multiple experiences must be

there.

Classical model Prototypical model

Concepts are formed by clearly

defined set of rules or properties, People decide whether an item Some may have more
such that all members of the reflects a concept by comparing it characteristics than other.
concept share defining properties.eg with most typical item in that
concept of Triangle category.
Also known as natural
concepts
Concepts defined by this model
are called logical concepts
They do not have fixed set of
defining features rather share a set
of characteristic features.
 • Thinking is based on manipulation of visual images
• Visual imagery is re seeing of information previously
perceived and stored in memory
• Mental pictures consist of personal experiences of objects,
persons or situations, heard and felt.
IMAGERY • Mental pictures symbolize actual objects, experiences and
activities. In thinking, we usually manipulate the images
rather than the actual objects, experiences or activities.
 • Language is form of communication, it can either be written or
spoken
• Their elements are different one being letters and others being
sound
• Most efficient and developed vehicle used for carrying out the
process of thinking.
LANGUAGE: • Enables us to communicate complex ideas from person to person
• When a person reads, writes or hears words or sentences or
observes gesture in any language one is stimulated to think. Thus
reading and writing of documents and literature also help in
stimulating and promoting the thinking process.
THEORIES OF
THINKING
 THEORIES OF THINKING

Information-
The Central The Peripheral
Associationism Gestalt processing
Theory Theory.
models
1. Associationism

Events or ideas will be associated if they have frequently or

consistently occurred together.

One idea will be associated with and hence give rise to another, if the events
producing those ideas have occurred at the same time as one another, or in
the same place as one another, or if they have consistently occurred together.

One idea will give rise to another to the extent that they
resemble one another.
2. Gestalt Theory

• The term “Gestalt,” comes from a German word that roughly

means pattern or form.
• The main concept of the Gestalt theory is that the whole is greater
than the sum of its parts; learning is more than just developing the
mechanical responses .
• Mind could be understood as a collection of simple ideas joined
together and we perceive and think about a situation as whole.
• This theory help us to Understand thinking from the perspective of
perception: successful thinking involves the perception or the
understanding of the situation.
3. Information-processing model:
• The organism is a complex information processing system.
• Brain is viewed as a thinking unit.
• Generally, though not necessarily, it uses the computer (or computer programme)
as its model. People are said to behave in a sense, like computers.
• The input to a computer is like the environmental stimulation of an organism
and the output is compared to the performance of the individual.
• The internal, programmed, information processing operations of a computing
system are comparable to the inner thought processes of the organism.
4. The Central Theory:
• According to this theory,
• thinking and reasoning take place only in the brain and the brain
is solely responsible for all kinds of thinking and problem-solving
activities.
• When we think with our brains it’s often said that the brain
secretes thoughts.
5. The Peripheral Theory:

• The peripheral nervous

system is mainly involved in
the process of thinking.
• Also called motor theory.
• According to this theory the
brain is one of the parts of
thinking process.
• Since all our learning are
both mental and physical, we
think with our whole brain
and the nervous system-the
whole body.
DECISION MAKING
 Decision Making
• Involves evaluating alternatives
and then making choices among
them.
Decision-making is regarded as the cognitive
process resulting in the selection of a belief or
a course of action among several possible
alternative options, it could be either rational
or irrational.

Decision-making process is a reasoning

process based on assumptions
of values, preferences and beliefs of the
decision-maker
CHARACTERISTICS OF DECISION MAKING

Objectives must first be established

Objectives must be classified and placed in order of importance

Alternative actions must be developed

The alternatives must be evaluated against all the objectives

The alternative that is able to achieve all the objectives is the tentative decision

The tentative decision is evaluated for more possible consequences

The decisive actions are taken, and additional actions are taken to prevent any adverse consequences from
becoming problems and starting both systems (problem analysis and decision-making) all over again
The End