How to Think Critically

Critical thinking is not encouraged or widely taught, which is a shame. It would help to keep us out of trouble.

The steps to follow to think critically

It must be possible to conceive of evidence that would prove a claim false.

Any argument offered as evidence in support of any claim must be sound. That is, the argument is valid (the conclusion follows unavoidably from its premises) and all the premises are true.

The evidence offered in support of any claim must be exhaustive — that is, all of the available evidence must be considered.

The evidence offered in support of any claim must be evaluated without self-deception.

If the evidence for any claim is based upon an experimental result, or if the evidence offered in support of any claim could logically be explained as coincidental, then it is necessary for the evidence to be repeated in subsequent experiments or trials.

The evidence offered in support of any claim must be adequate to establish the truth of that claim, with these stipulations:

• the burden of proof for any claim rests on the person who makes the claim
• extraordinary claims demand extraordinary evidence
• for paranormal claims, evidence based upon authority or testimony is always inadequate