Making decisions are a very important part of life because they determine who we are and the quality of life we will have. Those who learn the art of making decisions using critical thinking skills will enjoy many successes in life both in their personal and professional lives. All decisions have three components; criteria, alternatives and cause/effect beliefs (Decision Making Models, 1999). The Students at concord.edu posted a slide show on the internet that shows a diagram for responsible decision making. The slide show shows seven steps to better decision making using critical thinking skills. The steps are as follows:
* Clearly describe the situation faced
* List possible actions that can be taken
* Share list of actions with a responsible adult
* Carefully evaluate each possible action
* Evaluate what action this decision will this decision result in
* Decide on appropriate action
* Evaluate results and follow through
The first step in this process is the ability to collect and evaluate facts.
Inquiry: Critical Thinking Across the Disciplines
English: There are no symbols that represent skept...
English: There are no symbols that represent skept...Evaluate points from a factual perspective, not one slanted toward dreams (http://www.busop1.com/decision.html).
Many bad decisions are made because the person making the decision failed to get factual information. They may have relied on something someone told them or made a decision based purely on their personal perception or wishful thinking. This was something that happened all the time at my job at a local grocery store. The manager had his favorite employees who would get away with all kinds of unprofessional behavior and those same employees seemed to love causing problems for the rest of us. I remember one incident when I was called up to the bosses office to once again be accused of something I had not done. As my boss went on describing the incident and who the witnesses were...