An Introduction to Critical Thinking and Creativity: Think more, Think better

Abstract

This is a textbook on critical and creative thinking. It can be used as a course text or a self-contained study guide. Since there are many similar textbooks in the market, let me describe some special features of this book: • Unlike most textbooks, I discuss both critical and creative thinking because they are equally important for problem solving and they are not indepen- dent of each other. We need creativity in critical thinking to come up with arguments, counterexamples, and alternative explanations. And creativity needs critical thinking in evaluating and improving new ideas. They are both part of the essential thinking toolkit. • Good thinking requires not just knowledge of the principles of good reason- ing. We discuss them of course, but personality and other psychological fac- tors matter as well. This book emphasizes the importance of attitudes and practice for good thinking. We also discuss findings in cognitive science and psychology, such as cognitive biases in reasoning and decision making. • Our thinking directly affects our life through the choices we make. These choices depend in part on our values and moral outlook. It is of utmost importance that we can think about these issues critically and impartially. I therefore include a chapter on decision making and another one on the foundation of moral reasoning. IX X PREFACE • This book has a companion website: Critical Thinking Web. It is located at http: / /philosophy.hku.hk/think, and hosted by the Philosophy Department of the University of Hong Kong. The website includes many online tuto- rials that are used in schools and universities around the world. A special section is devoted to this book, which includes errata, additional notes and exercises, and further readings. • This book is not an encyclopedia on thinking skills. It aims to be a short and readable text, providing the reader with a practical and sound foundation. I deliberately leave out a complete treatment of Venn diagrams and standard formal logic. Interested readers and teachers can consult the companion website for online tutorials on these topics. • Useful facts and rules are often presented in bullet points to make them clearer. I also include many examples from finance and business to show how critical thinking is relevant to a variety of careers. A note of warning: To make the text more readable and the sentences shorter, sometimes I simplify and leave out minor qualifications. I am also less strict with the use of quotations marks than I would otherwise be as an academic philoso- pher. Finally, many of the ideas in the book are not original. They come from other philosophers, psychologists, and experts in other areas. Thanks to Tim van Gelder for his comments on my earlier book proposal. I also want to thank Lee Tien Ming and Jonathan Chan. I have learned a lot about critical thinking from all of them. I would also like to thank Executive Editor Stephen Quigley at John Wiley & Sons, Inc., and Assistant Editor Jacqueline Palmieri. They have been most patient even though I kept missing one deadline after another. On a more technical matter, this book was typeset with ETÈX- It has made the whole project so much more efficient and enjoyable. Thanks to Donald Knuth, Leslie Lamport, and other contributors to the system. Finally, this book is the result of over ten years of teaching in critical thinking. My heartfelt thanks to the many generations of students who endured my classes and smiled politely at my jokes.