Natalie Kerr Lawrence et al.
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students will exert that effort only when they are sufficiently motivated to do so. What
propensity elements motivate students to think critically? Furthermore, how can we as
instructors nurture the propensity to think critically?
Before our students can think critically, they need to recognize the attitudes or disposi-
tions of a critical thinker. It is not enough for us to tell them: “Think critically!” We must
define the concept for them and provide specific guidelines for how to do critical thinking.
Wade and Tavris (2002) stated that critical thinkers should (a) ask questions and be willing
to wonder, (b) define problems clearly, (c) examine evidence, (d) analyze assumptions and
biases, (e) avoid emotional reasoning, (f ) avoid oversimplification, (g) consider alternative
interpretations, and (h) tolerate uncertainty. These guidelines help to demystify the concept
of critical thinking for students.
Students who recognize the attitudes of a critical thinker must also be motivated to
adopt them. The literature on attitude change has shown that personal relevance (e.g.,
Petty & Cacioppo, 1984) and task importance (e.g., Maheswaran & Chaiken, 1991)
increase the likelihood that a person will think carefully about an issue. These factors may
also increase the likelihood that a person will think critically. Thus instructors should
attempt to make course material personally relevant. To encourage critical thinking about
the research process, have students be a part of the process (as participants, confederates,
or experimenters). To encourage critical thinking about conformity, create a situation in
which students are likely to conform. You could also have students write a paper in which
they apply psychological principles to their lives or to current events. There are scores of
other ways in which you can help students understand the personal relevance of psychol-
ogy. A more difficult task may be getting students to understand why it is important to
think critically. The dangers of not thinking critically must be apparent. There are many
examples of charlatans banking on the poor critical thinking skills of the public, from faith
healers to holistic medicine peddlers. These and other everyday examples can help stu-
dents understand that “critical thinking is not an academic fad; it is an essential skill for
living in the information age” (Connor-Greene & Greene, 2002, p. 324).
Emotions can also motivate critical thinking. Indeed, surprise may be one of the most
useful tools in critical thinking instruction. Halonen (1995) claimed that “surprise is at
the basis of the disequilibrium that triggers the critical-thinking process” (p. 77). We
can surprise our students—and trigger critical thinking—by violating their expecta-
tions. Sometimes the course content may violate their expectations (consider students’
surprise when they learn about Freud’s ideas). Other times, instructors may need to
employ a surprising strategy or demonstration. One tried and true example is a demon-
stration of the Barnum effect—the tendency to believe that a personality description is
highly accurate even though it is so general that it will apply to almost everyone. Have
your students submit a sample of their handwriting and tell them that you will have
each sample analyzed by a graphologist. After a few days, give each student a copy of a
one-size-fits-all personality description (e.g., see Boyce & Geller, 2002). Ask students to
rate the accuracy of the personality description. Many students will demonstrate the
Barnum effect. When you reveal the hoax, students will be quite surprised to learn that
everyone received the same personality description. This demonstration can motivate
students to think critically about the differences between science and pseudoscience
(Boyce & Geller, 2002).