There are eight elements of critical thinking that everyone should be aware of. These eight elements are a point of view, purpose, a question at issue, assumptions, implications and consequences, information, concepts, and conclusion interpretations. Each of these elements is different and have their own reasoning of why they are important in critical thinking.

The first element would be the purpose, which means you want to find the goal or why something needs to be done a certain way or has been done that way. The next element is the issue which would be what the problem is or why we need to do the critical thinking. The third element is the assumptions which are the theories that are made since there has to have been a starting point. The fourth element is implications and consequences which would be what happens afterward, was there any consequences or bonuses and what could possibly change. The fifth element would be information concepts which are simply the information or data that was gathered and used to help make a decision or decide an outcome. The sixth element is concepts which are the thoughts of ideas that came about. The seventh element is the conclusion interpretations which are what you believe the outcome would be based on all the reasoning and data. Finally, the last element would be the point of view that is made or taken at the very end and how the person or group understands it.

When conducting research on the element that I would use the most is information, because the data that is retrieved and used can help prove or answer the questions or thoughts that come about. The information can sometimes be enough to support a cause or theory. By using information from a strong source the information can be viable and help be the strongest element. Personal experience that I have with information is that it can help when trying to solve through a problem or answer. The reason for this is that the history can often help sway the future since you can avoid methods that hadn’t worked previously which is something that is frequently done at any job and possible at home. This is especially true with raising children since after the first the information is easier to learn, remember and use.

Nosich, Gerald M. (2012). Learning to Think Things Through: A Guide to Critical Thinking Across the Curriculum (4th Edition). Pearson HE, Inc.. Kindle Edition.