PSYC105 Lecture 3: PSYCH105 - CRITICAL THINKING IN PSYCHOLOGY - WK 3
PSYCH105 - CRITICAL THINKING IN PSYCHOLOGY
Wk. 3 - Believing vs Knowing
Beliefs
Help us understand the world and guide actions but not all beliefs are equal.
Certain:
-I believe I will die someday
Less Certain:
-I believe that life exists on other planets (less supporting evidence)
More accurate beliefs give us a better understanding of the world, better predictions.
How do we know that we know something?
-I think this belief is completely accurate
-I can explain to you the reasons or evidence that support this belief
-If either of these standards is not met, we would usually say that you not really
“know”.
How do we evaluate the accuracy of beliefs?
-Examine the reasons or evidence that support them?
-E.g. what is the justification?
-Routinely check and revise beliefs
Knowledge and Truth
Many of us are socialised to believe that knowledge and truth are absolute and
unchanging.
Critical thinkers have a responsibility to engage actively in the learning process and
participate in developing their own understanding of the world.
Rarely is anything in science definitively ‘proven’.
-E.g. researchers often publish contrasting findings
What do we do when experts disagree?
-Analyse and evaluate all available information
-Develop our own well-reasoned beliefs
-Recognise when we don’t have sufficient information to arrive at a well-
reasoned belief.
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