Responsibility of a Critical Thinker - Research Paper Example

Responsibility of a Critical Thinker Introduction People are increasingly faced with complex problems that affect the whole world. Examples are issues such as global warming, pollution and social issues such as drug abuse, teenage suicide, obesity, and several others. Because of these issues, the society needs good thinkers to help it deal with the situations. The society has to find ways of solving its problems. Apart from the role of various specialties, critical thinking is necessary for the truth and good judgment. Critical thinking considers ethics and moral reasoning before a conclusion is made. Critical thinking depends on research for informed decision-making, and critical thinking informs the society on the way forward. Critical thinking is thinking rationally and clearly. It involves thinking in a systematic and precise manner, following the rules of scientific reasoning and logic, to come up with a solution or conclusion. A critical thinker formulates ideas precisely and succinctly detects common mistakes and inconsistencies in reasoning, evaluates the pros and cons of a decision, analyzes problems systematically, understands the logical connection between ideas and justifies importance and relevance of ideas (Lau, 2011). In this paper, the responsibility of a critical thinker is shown using one of the contemporary issues; teenage suicide. Literature Review Teen Suicide Teen suicide has been an issue for a long time. Literature indicates that teen suicide has increased over time. Even though the rate sometimes reduces, the prevalence rate is still worrying. In the US, suicide is ranked third-leading cause of death among the youths aged between 15-24 years. It has been established that in every two hours three minutes, one youth commits suicide. The major cause of suicide is depression which is also related to mental disorders that eventually drive the teenagers to commit suicide. Evidence shows that 90% of teenagers who commit suicide suffer from mental disorders that are treatable or manageable. Among the 90%, more than half suffered major depression (King, Strunk & Sorter, 2011). In Canada, suicide is ranked first as the cause of death among the youth of 15-24 years. This results in the loss of 500 youth per year (Szumilas & Kutcher, 2009). There is evidence that most teenagers suffer from depression, and it is not easy for parents and teachers to detect it. This makes the depression worsen, impairing normal functioning and leading to increased risk of suicidal thoughts and behaviors. Depression also drives teenagers to other risk-taking behaviors such as drug taking. The depression is so severe that for every one suicide there are 100 to 200 attempted suicides among the youths. King, Strunk and Sorter (2011), also indicates that in every US classroom, there are two females and one male who have attempted suicide. Teenage suicide is an issue to be concerned about. In McArt, Shulman and Gajary (1999), it is indicated that since the major cause of suicide is depression and related mental health problems, it is important to have mental health institutions that can help teenagers deal with their issues. It has also been found that a high percentage of the teenagers get depressed. The mental health institutions should, therefore, be made available to assist teenagers deal with depression and mental health problems that eventually lead to suicide. One problem that has been identified, however, is that parents and the teenagers always have difficulty identifying these institutions as well as access to them (McArt, Shulman & Gajary, 1999). From this gap, McArt, Shulman and Gajary (1999), came up with a solution, which was to develop workshops that would inform teenagers and their parents about the relevant mental health institutions. The workshops also educated the teenagers and their parents about depression and suicide among children and adolescents. King, Strunk and Sorter’s research (2011) is about an awareness program that should be used by teenagers to prevent suicide. According to this study, awareness programs reduce the chances of the teenagers committing suicide or even planning to commit suicide. This intervention program was focused on educational institutions because schools provide an easy way of identifying the depressed, and are already organized institutions for education and other interventions (King, Strunk & Sorter, 2011). In another study, Zupp’s management of suicide among teenagers is focused on the role of the school nurse (2013). The study shows that nurses can play an important role in preventing suicide if they can act as gatekeepers an already formulated suicide prevention strategy; “Plan Prepare and Prevent Child and youth suicide." If the nurse can be able to identify the symptoms early enough, then the children and teenagers can be helped (Zupp, 2013). Three main issues have been identified in this review. That suicide is among the top causes of death among the teenagers; it is, as a result of depression and related mental health problems, and interventions meant to reduce the prevalence have not succeeded as expected. A critical thinker is supposed to consider information given and make a decision on the best way forward. Principles of Critical Thinking There are four main principle of critical thinking. That a few truths surpass the need for experimental testing; that it is crucial to judge the quality of evidence, that an authority or a claimed expertise does not automatically make an idea true, and that critical thinking requires an open mind (Lau, 2011). A Few Truths Surpasses the need for experimental Testing In critical thinking, one only gets knowledge through reasoning, thinking and questioning. Reasoning makes one ask the right questions, and information obtained out of inquisitiveness produce the facts which makes one knowledgeable. Any truth will make anybody ignore the need for testing, but one cannot rely on just the truth from one person. This is why a few truths makes it useless to test because the same results will be achieved (Lau, 2011). Take the example of the issue above. There are three research studies that have information indicating that the suicide among teenagers is high, and so is an issue of concern. If a researcher wanted to determine the suicide rates among teenagers. Information from two or more reliable sources will eliminate the need for experimental testing. The responsibility of a critical thinker is to provide reliable information to the readers. This is either from other reliable sources as the peer-reviewed journals or through experimental testing. It Is Crucial To Judge The Quality Of Evidence Not every source of information has reliable information for decision making. Critical thinking requires knowledge and knowledge is obtained from facts. Facts cannot be informed by imprecision and low-quality evidence. It is therefore, important to judge the quality of evidence used (Lau, 2011). In the research study reports used to inform the conclusion about teen suicide above, quality of evidence should be judged by factors such as; study limitations, imprecision, indirectness, publication bias, phase investigation, inconsistency, and publication bias. The quality of evidence ascertains how the evidence was tested. An authority or a claimed expertise does not automatically make an idea true Critical thinking requires an individual to look for logical answers an not to believe the results or conclusion of an expert because the person has the title of an expert (Lau, 2011). An example of this is the case of a doctor telling a patient to go for a specific treatment. The patient should not just go ahead and accept the treatment. He should seek to understand why the doctor recommends such treatment. In the case of rising rate of suicide among teenagers, just because a researcher says that it is due to depression, the critical thinker should not assume that it is only depression that causes such increased rate of suicide. The critical thinker should seek a second opinion, for example, from other research studies. In the above social issue, there are two more research studies supporting the evidence that depression is a leading cause of suicide among teenagers. Critical Thinking Requires, An Open Mind Critical thinkers look for facts to present ideas or information. Because of this they need to be open minded. This means being willing to look at things that have been considered impossible. It all depends on the evidence provided (Lau, 2011). Importance of Ethics in Critical Thinking Ethics provides a foundation for critical thinking. Fowler (2008) indicates that critical thinking is a sustained and complex human activity, with a rich ethical background. The background is all about the ability of ethics to provide sustained arguments. Sustained arguments uphold the worthy standards of critical thinking and keep the discussion alive and growing. A sustained argument supports the members of the community so as to respect the community’s need to think together, their dignity, and the need to make decisions about important things. It is capable of doing that because fresh arguments emerge from the original argument trying to defend the dignity of the society or the importance of an issue. A sustaining argument protects the community so that it remains a place where people can argue in. Ethics guides what is wrong or right in the community. Ethics guides people’s behaviours in the community. There are rules that prohibit people from stealing. Some criminal laws however may allow criminals to receive very light punishments. Since the community is a place with ethical guidelines, such a move would create a sustained argument. For the community to remain a place where people can argue, a critical thinker will have to consider the ethics of the community for it to remain a place of dignity. The critical thinker has to consider the dignity of the community and try to find a better explanation to the existence of such a law. Sustaining arguments are used to guide critical thinking about important matters of the society (Lavery & Hughes, 2008). Certain principles, however, have to be used for sustaining arguments to be used so. Consider what ethics is about and what is expected of a critical thinker. Ethics is about extending charity, showing respect, keeping each other honest and achieving the best outcome. These are values that communities strive to sustain when thinking together (Fowler, 2008). In critical thinking, a person is expected to be able to look at the premises of an argument and identify its conclusion. This needs a critical thinker to make sound, as well as valid arguments. Valid arguments need facts, and as indicated earlier, these are informed by evidence. Sound argument considers logic as well as ethics. A critical thinker, therefore, not only needs logic to come up with an argument’s conclusion, but also needs reasoning by analogy, an understanding of causal correlations, and application of standards which support the argument. Ethics provides such standards. The Role Of Moral Reasoning In Critical Thinking Moral reasoning is that which leads to judgment about unfair or fair, good or bad, and right or wrong. Moral reasoning is needed for decision making about moral issues. A critical thinker has to have a compass that guides his moral reasoning. This compass includes; discovering the natural law, considering the ethic of care, developing an informed intuition, accepting responsibility, choosing to be a moral person, considering the ethic of justice, promoting happiness, justifying moral judgments, and making morality a priority. There are different life situations, and a critical thinker should be able to think through these situations. In some cases, however, the right is obvious. In the above case about high rate of suicide among teenagers, issues that arise may be; that the interventions used are not performing as expected, that there could be other causes of suicide and that there is the need to engage all parties involved in the teenagers lives. According to the three research studies, prevention of suicide among the youths can be done through creating awareness, educating them about depression and suicide, teaching them mental health institutions and their importance, and involving the nurses when necessary. Interventions have so far focused on schools. The ‘right’ is quite clear; that teenage suicide is high, and the society needs to review their strategies. The critical thinker is still expected to make morality a priority, and accept responsibility among other features of moral decision making. Critical thinking helps people to use informed moral reasoning, develop liberal values, and make well supported ethical conclusions (Miffin, 2014). Importance of A Research-Based Process To Search For Truth Critical thinking is a process which requires an individual to engage with the subject matter. It involves considering alternative interpretations, different points of view, and entering into a critical dialogue with the material of concern. This only means that critical thinking needs knowledge, and knowledge is only obtained through research. By considering alternative interpretations and different points of view, critical thinking leads one to research which eventually reveals the truth, or a logical conclusion. A critical thinker needs to understand the world around him to come up with an informed decision or conclusion. Research based process, supports critical thinking through provision of knowledge. Knowledge is acquired through experience and reasoning. Experience includes knowledge gained through sensory perceptions, while reasoning includes mathematical knowledge and logic. These eventually lead to the identification of truth which is very essential in critical thinking. Nakkeeran (2010) indicates that knowledge is always tagged with a truth connotation, meaning anything considered knowledge should be the truth. An example is knowledge about depression. With the knowledge about depression, a critical thinker can know how it leads to suicide. A critical thinker can also research depression among teenagers, and why it affects them. These can inform the critical thinker about the situation, hence the judgement about the appropriate prevention measures. The case of suicide among teenagers presents a good example on how research-based process is important in the search for the truth. According to the three research studies, suicide prevention interventions can be implemented in schools and should involve education and nursing practice. A critical thinker would want to find out a lot of issues about depression and suicide before coming to a conclusion about suicide preventive interventions. The critical thinker can first find out the relationship between depression and suicide, the reasons why there are high suicide rates among teenagers, preventive interventions that have been used previously, interventions that have succeeded before, and those that have not, the effect of school nurse intervention as proposed by one of the studies, and several other issues that can inform decision making. How Academic Knowledge Impacts The Social Elements And Institutions Of Both Local And Global Communities Academic knowledge affects the structuring of social elements. In the current society, for example, information technology has enabled sharing of information and data about issues affecting the society. In response, people try to work towards solving the problems. Academic knowledge informs the people on how they can contribute to the well-being of the society (Nakkeeran, 2010). This can be through debates, or provision of professional advice. An example of such impact is the posting on blogs about teenage suicide rates and how to prevent it. In one blog (Medlar, 2014), the author describes ten signs that teachers, parents and guardians should look out for in teenagers. This provides information on how to prevent suicide. The Advantages Of Information Technology In Gathering Data Information technology provides accurate, timely and efficient data. It has led to the development of new models of data collection, data analysis and interpretation, which are more efficient, accurate and reliable. A variety of information now exists on the internet because of information technology. There are databases with quality research data about various issues. The databases also store historical information which are necessary for data collection and analysis. A critical thinker can understand the trend of an issue based on research from previous year studies or data (U.S Department of Interior, 2014; Gibbs, Friese & Mangabeira, 2002). Information technology has enabled improved data storage and file management. There are articles, journals, government documents, and information from company websites, blogs, social sites and many more sources (Gibbs, Friese & Mangabeira, 2002). How the principles of active citizenship could impact the Teenage Suicide issue during the next five to ten years. Active citizenship is all about people getting involved at all levels in their communities. This means that when people realize that the suicide rate among teenagers is increasing, they will want to get involved and try to get solutions (Nosko & Széger, 2013). As a critical thinker this requires investigation to determine which organizations have been involved previously, and how other people have reacted before. Active citizenship is one way through which the society can develop and be made healthy. Active citizenship could change the strategies currently used to prevent teenage suicide. Conclusion A critical thinker considers several factors before coming to a conclusion about an issue. The responsibility of the critical thinker is to identify a contemporary issue, conduct research about the issue, obtain relevant knowledge in relation to the issue. A critical thinker has to consider the importance of moral reasoning, and ethics, and how he can make use of current technology to achieve his aim. References Fowler, M. C. (2008). The Ethical Practice of Critical Thinking. Durham, North Carolina: Carolina Academic Press. Gibbs, G. R., Friese, S. and Mangabeira, W. C. (2002). The Use of New Technology in Qualitative Research. Introduction to Issue 3(2) of FQS, Qualitative Social Research, 3(2). http://www.qualitative-research.net/index.php/fqs/article/view/847/1840 King, K. A., Strunk, C. M. and Sorter, M. T. (2011). Preliminary Effectiveness of Surviving the Teens® Suicide Prevention and Depression Awareness Program on Adolescents’ Suicidality and Self-Efficacy in Performing Help-Seeking Behaviours. Journal of School Health, 81(9). Lau, J. Y. F. (2011). An Introduction to Critical Thinking and Creativity: Think More, Think Better. New Jersey: John Wiley & Sons. Lavery, J. and Hughes, W. (2008). Critical Thinking, fifth edition: An Introduction to the Basic Skills. (5th Ed.). Plymouth, UK: Broadview Press. Medlar, F. (2014 July 9). A Few Signs Your Teenager May Be Depressed. YOURTANGO EXPERTS Retrieved from: http://psychcentral.com/blog/archives/2012/07/21/a-few-signs-your-teenager-may-be-depressed/ McArt, E. W., Shulman, D. A. and Gajary, E. (1999). Developing an Educational Workshop on Teen Depression and Suicide: A Proactive Community Intervention. Child Welfare, LXXVIII(6): 793-806. Miffin, H. (2014). Thinking Critically about Moral Issues. Retrieved from: http://college.cengage.com/english/chaffee/thinking_critically/9e/assets/students/chaffee_chs9to12_pp2.pdf. Nakkeeran, N. (2010). Knowledge, Truth, and Social Reality: An Introductory Note on Qualitative Research, Indian Journal of Community Medicine, 35(3): 379–381. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2963873/#sec1-3title. Nosko, A. and Széger, K. (2013). Active Citizenship Can Change Your Country For the Better. Retrieved from: http://www.opensocietyfoundations.org/voices/active-citizenship-can-change-your-country-better Szumilas, M. and Kutcher, S. (2009). Teen Suicide Information on the Internet: A Systematic Analysis of Quality. La Revue canadienne de psychiatrie, 54(9): 596–604. U.S Department of Interior. (2014). Information Technology & Data Collection. Retrieved from: http://www.doi.gov/pam/quicinfo.cfm. Zupp, A. (2013). School Nurses as Gatekeepers to Plan, Prepare, and Prevent Child and Youth Suicide: New SOS Signs of Suicide Online Module. 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