Barriers to Critical Thinking
One of the barriers I learned about was emotions. Emotions like anger, jealousy, and depression could affect my thinking because they all cause irrational thought. Whenever I feel a negative, or sometimes even positive, emotion my thoughts are emphasizing that particular feeling. In order to overcome this, I can take a step back and think about what my actions or decisions may lead to. Cooling down, if I have time, can be a way to give my mind time to clear up so my thoughts could be more rational. If I don’t have time, what I can do is recognize the emotion I am feeling and hold back, or just not make a decision at that time at all.
Enculturation is a common barrier for most people. Everyone around us can influence the way we think or view things, including family, friends, and even religion. For example, I grew up with friends and family drinking at age 18 because they were at home and not running around in public. Though a lot of people I know believe it is okay, I know a lot of other people, including the law, who think it is still too young. The best way to overcome enculturation is to develop my own personal perspective on things and use facts and experiences along the way.
When somebody uses projection, rationalization, or denial it is called ego defense. Ego defense is a barrier because it is used to distort reality to protect mind, self, or ego. It is easy to blame somebody else or deny that something was wrong on our own part because that involves vulnerability. A good way to overcome the ego defense barrier is to recognize when we are wrong. Although it is hard, taking blame when we have done or said something wrong prevents arguments, fights, or guilt. Another way to overcome this barrier is to stop lying to ourselves. Once we do that, it is easier to not only stop deceiving others, but to also stop deceiving ourselves.
Enculturation is a common barrier for most people. Everyone around us can influence the way we think or view things, including family, friends, and even religion. For example, I grew up with friends and family drinking at age 18 because they were at home and not running around in public. Though a lot of people I know believe it is okay, I know a lot of other people, including the law, who think it is still too young. The best way to overcome enculturation is to develop my own personal perspective on things and use facts and experiences along the way.
When somebody uses projection, rationalization, or denial it is called ego defense. Ego defense is a barrier because it is used to distort reality to protect mind, self, or ego. It is easy to blame somebody else or deny that something was wrong on our own part because that involves vulnerability. A good way to overcome the ego defense barrier is to recognize when we are wrong. Although it is hard, taking blame when we have done or said something wrong prevents arguments, fights, or guilt. Another way to overcome this barrier is to stop lying to ourselves. Once we do that, it is easier to not only stop deceiving others, but to also stop deceiving ourselves.