> [!abstract] A process of actively analyzing, synthesozing and eveluating information to guide belief and action ## Brief Critical thinking is not a single skill but a collection of interconnected acts. Rather than teaching these acts as isolated techniques, they can be grounded in the brain's most primal operating system — the same four steps that even single-cell organisms use to navigate their environment. ## The Four Steps | Step | Name | Brain Mode | |------|------|------------| | 1 | [[#1. Detailed Analytic Observation\|Detailed Analytic Observation]] | Perceiving the environment | | 2 | [[#2. Complex Question Clarification\|Complex Question Clarification]] | Sensing danger and reward | | 3 | [[#3. Multivariant Evaluation\|Multivariant Evaluation]] | Deciding between options | | 4 | [[#4. Complex Conclusions\|Complex Conclusions]] | Acting on a decision | The steps are sequential and interdependent — poor observation yields a poorly formed question, which makes evaluation incoherent, which produces a weak conclusion. ### 1. Detailed Analytic Observation *Brain mode: perceiving the environment* Actively scan for every factor that could potentially matter — features, patterns, tensions, anomalies. The goal is not passive note-taking but deliberate extraction of details. The content of what you observe doesn't matter (a Shakespeare play, a nursing simulation, a business proposal); the point is conditioning the brain to extract more before moving on. ### 2. Complex Question Clarification *Brain mode: sensing danger and reward* Use what you observed to refine and sharpen the actual question. Most people default to vague or binary questions ("Is this good or bad?"). This step forces you to ask: *What factors from observation are most relevant? What is the real problem underneath the surface question?* The question is not fixed at the start — it evolves through engagement with the evidence. A poorly formed question makes everything downstream incoherent. ### 3. Multivariant Evaluation *Brain mode: deciding between options* Weigh all the relevant factors — not in isolation, but in relation to each other. The brain defaults to finding a simple narrative and confirming it; this step requires resisting that pull and sustaining analytical tension between competing factors. Ask: *how do these factors interact, contradict, reinforce, or complicate each other?* Evaluating factors as a checklist is not enough — they must be considered in terms of what they do to the conclusion. ### 4. Complex Conclusions *Brain mode: acting on a decision* Form a conclusion that is proportioned to the actual complexity of the evidence. A "complex conclusion" is not a hedged or wishy-washy one — it is a claim that is adequately nuanced to reflect what Steps 1–3 revealed. If you've done the prior steps honestly and still arrive at a simple yes/no, that is a failure of the process. Teaching these four steps causes all other critical thinking skills — problem-solving, innovation, strategizing — to emerge naturally. No critical thinking act is possible without first completing these four steps. ## Notes - The four steps mirror the brain's primal acts: perceive, sense danger/reward, decide, act - The approach is discipline-agnostic — it works identically in literature, nursing, business, etc. - Critical thinking skills — not raw intellect — are the biggest determinant of high-stakes decisions teens make - Employers consistently rank critical thinking as the #1 skill they seek but cannot find ## Sources [[x_Sources/Videos/Video - 4 tips for developing critical thinking skills|Video - 4 tips for developing critical thinking skills]] by [[x_Sources/Persons/Steve Pearlman|Steve Pearlman]]