COMPONENT SKILLS FOR THEAGILE LEADER

AMEDD C&S CAPTAINS CAREER COURSE

OUTLINE

Critical Thinking Mind-Sets / Mental Models Barriers to Critical Thinking Creative Thinking Exercise Conclusion Questions References

CRITICAL THINKING2-part process:

1) Thinking about thinking

2) Evaluating the results of that thinking

Generates PURPOSE

Embodies a POINT OF VIEW

Makes ASSUMPTIONS

Generates IMPLICATIONS

Utilizes CONCEPTS

Uses INFORMATION

Makes INFERENCES

Raises QUESTIONS

ELEMENTS OF THOUGHT

CRITICAL THINKING MODEL Make decision /

Clarify position / Use judgment

IMPLICATIONS

Requires critical

thinking?

CLARIFY CONCERN

EVALUATION OF

INFORMATION

Impact of biases and traps

Argument analysis

Stimulus requiring judgment

POINT OF VIEW INFERENCESASSUMPTIONS

Egocentric tendencies

NO

YES

EGOCENTRIC TENDENCIESRelatively common in military culture

Egocentric memory Egocentric myopia Egocentric righteousness Egocentric blindness

PERCEPTION: Why Can’t We See What Is There To Be Seen?

PARISIN THE

THE SPRING

ONCEIN A

A LIFETIME

BIRDIN THE

THE HAND

CRITICAL THINKING MODEL Make decision /

Clarify position / Use judgment

IMPLICATIONS

Requires critical

thinking?

CLARIFY CONCERN

EVALUATION OF

INFORMATION

Impact of biases and traps

Argument analysis

Stimulus requiring judgment

POINT OF VIEW INFERENCESASSUMPTIONS

Egocentric tendencies

NO

YES

MIND-SETS aka MENTAL MODELS Patterns of expectations on what to

look for, what is important, and how to interpret what is seen that predisposes thinking to a certain way

Mind-set is akin to a screen or lens through which one perceives the world

Impressions Resist Change

It is difficult to look at the same information from different perspectives

Implications

People form impressions on the basis of very little information, but once formed, they do not reject or change them unless they obtain rather solid evidence

Limit the adverse impact of this tendency by suspending judgment for as long as possible as new information is being received

If information does not fit into what people know, or think they know, they have great difficulty processing it

CRITICAL THINKING MODEL Make decision /

Clarify position / Use judgment

IMPLICATIONS

Requires critical

thinking?

CLARIFY CONCERN

EVALUATION OF

INFORMATION

Impact of biases and traps

Argument analysis

Stimulus requiring judgment

POINT OF VIEW INFERENCESASSUMPTIONS

Egocentric tendencies

NO

YES

Military leaders need to continuously ask themselves the following questions…

Is this something I need to think about critically?How are my point of view and egocentric tendencies

affecting the way I look at this?What’s the point of view of the person presenting the

information?What are my assumptions?Are we making the correct inferences based on the

data provided?Are there data we need to consider and can access?Is the information true or at least plausible?Are the conclusions warranted by the evidence?Are biases and traps affecting our judgment?Have I considered all the implications?

BARRIERS TO CRITICAL THINKINGCognitive Bias

Psychological impediments

Logical fallacies

COGNITIVE BIAS Mental errors caused by our simplified

information processing strategies

Availability Heuristic: likelihood of event assessed by ease with which examples of that event can be brought to mind

Representative Heuristic: make judgment based on how much item represents known item – sample size bias; regression to the mean

Anchoring and Adjustment Heuristic: develop estimates from initial anchor and adjust from there to yield the final answer

PSYCHOLOGICAL IMPEDIMENTS

Loyalty, herd instinct, groupthink

Prejudice, stereotypes, scapegoats

Wishful thinking, mirror-imaging, self-deception

Rationalization, denial

Groupthink Symptoms

Illusion of invulnerabilit

y

Belief in inherent

group morality

Collective rationalizatio

n

Out-group stereotypes

Self-censorship

Illusion of unanimity

Direct pressure on dissenters

Self-appointed

mind guards

LOGICAL FALLACIES

Common fallacies in MDMP Appeal to (unqualified) authority,

fear, masses Slippery slope Straw man Arguments against the person False dichotomy False cause Red herring

INTELLECTUAL STANDARDS

CLARITY ACCURACY PRECISION

RELEVANCE DEPTH BREADTH

LOGIC SIGNIFICANCE FAIRNESS

CREATIVE THINKING

Problem-Solving Exercise

MENTAL TOOLS

Questioning Assumptions Seeing Different Perspective

Thinking Backwards Devil’s Advocate

Stimulating Creative Thinking

BLUF: A questioning attitude is a prerequisite to a successful search for new ideas

Problem to Solution

Solution 1

Solution 2

Solution 3

EXERCISE BREAKThis is not a test of intelligence.

EXERCISE RULES OF ENGAGEMENTYou will be asked to answer 2

questions that require reasoningThese are not trick questionsThe information provided is true and

complete – take it at face valueYou will have 60 seconds for each

questionThis is not a test of intelligence – jot

your answers on a piece of paper

QUESTION 1

Each card has a letter on 1 side and number on the other.RULE: If the letter is a vowel, the number must be even. Which card(s) must you check at the minimum to ensure

compliance with the rule?

A B 4 7

QUESTION 2

Rule: You must be at least 21 to drink alcoholic beverages.

Which reveler(s) must you check at the minimum to ensure compliance?

She’s 23.

She’s 19.He’s drinking wine.

He’s drinking lemonade.

EXERCISE RESULTS

•Check the A to see that the number on the reverse is even.

•Check the 7 to see that the letter on the reverse is not a vowel.

•The rule is not violated no matter what number is behind the B or what letter is behind the 4.

•Check the wine drinker to see that he’s at least 21.

•Check the 19 y/o to see that her drink is non-alcoholic.

•The rule is not violated no matter what the 23 y/o is drinking or how old the lemonade drinker is.

CONCLUSION

“Technological advances alone do not constitute change. The most dramatic advances in military operations over history have been borne of ideas – ideas about warfighting, organization, and doctrine. The Army’s most critical asset will not be technology; it will be critical thinking.”

AUSA Torchbearer National Security Report, March 2005

ANY QUESTIONS?

Components Skills for the Agile Leader

REFERENCES Thinking Critically About Critical Thinking: A Fundamental Guide

for Strategic Leaders, Colonel Stephen J. Gerras, Ph.D., Director, Leadership and Command Instruction, U.S. Army War College, 1 June 2006

Psychology of Intelligence Analysis, Richards J. Heuer, Jr., Center for the Study of Intelligence, Central Intelligence Agency, 1999

How Critical Thinking Shapes the Military Decision Making Process, Floyd J. Usry, Jr., LtCol., USMC, Naval War College, 17 May 2004

Critical Thinking Competency Standards: Standards, Principles, Performance Indicators, and Outcomes with a Critical Thinking Master Rubric, Dr. Richard Paul and Dr. Linda Elder, www.criticalthinking.org, 2008

Fallacies: The Art of Mental Trickery and Manipulation, Dr. Richard Paul and Dr. Linda Elder, www.criticalthinking.org, 2008

RESOURCES ON THE WEB Foundations for Critical Thinking –

http://www.criticalthinking.org/ Creativity, Thinking Skills, Critical

Thinking, Problem Solving, Decision Making – http://www.au.af.mil/au/awc/awcgate/awc-thkg.htm

Tools, Techniques, Methods, Quotes on All Matters Creative – http://creatingminds.org/

Online Writing Lab at Purdue – http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/