MIDTERMS : Critical Thinking Flashcards
Types of Decisions
When problems are unusual and unclear. When creative, novel solutions are necessary.
Innovative decision
Process of:
- Examining underlying assumptions
- Interpreting and evaluating arguments
- Imagining and exploring alternatives
- Developing a reflective criticism for the purpose of reaching a conclusion that can be justified
Critical thinking
The Decision-making Process
- Identify all possible outcomes.
- Examine the probability of each alternative.
- Take the action that yields the highest probability of achieving the most desirable outcome.
Rational decision-making model
Decision-making Conditions
Likelihood, expressed as a percentage, that an event will or will not occur
Probability
Stumbling Blocks
Managers are often selected because of their expert clinical, not managerial, skills. Optimism, humor, and a positive approach are crucial to energizing staff and promoting creativity.
Personality
Involves diagnosing a problem and solving it. May or may not require making a decision.
Problem solving
____ are unquestioned beliefs that influence an individual’s reasoning.
Underlying assumptions
Types of Decisions
Necessary when both problems and alternative solutions are somewhat unusual and only partially understood
Adaptive decision
Critical thinking model’s parts
Creativity
Decision making
Problem solving
Creativity is one way to keep organizations ____
alive
Decision-making Conditions
Individual or group making the decision does not know all the alternatives, attendant risks, or possible consequences of each option
Uncertainty and risk
Strategy to bridge the gap between an existing state and a desired state
Innovation
Problem-Solving Methods
An individual’s experience can determine how much risk to take in present circumstances.
Past experience
The Decision-making Process
- Emphasizes limitations of decision maker and situation
Descriptive rationality model
The Decision-making Process
- Power is the ability to influence or control how problems and objectives are defined, what alternative solutions are considered and selected, what information flows, and what decisions are made.
Political decision-making model
Likelihood that an event will or will not occur based on manager’s personal judgment and beliefs
Subjective probability
An essential component of decision making. A higher level cognitive process that includes creativity, problem solving, and decision making
Critical thinking
May or may not involve a problem. Always involves making a choice.
Decision making
Problem-Solving Methods
- Involves testing a theory or hunch
- A project or study is carried out in either a controlled or uncontrolled setting.
- Data are collected and analyzed and results interpreted to determine whether the solution tried has been effective.
Experimentation
Four stages of creativity
Preparation, incubation, insight, verification
Critical-thinking classes for new nurses improve ____, ____, and ____.
patient safety, job satisfaction, and retention
Stumbling Blocks
One proposed course of action is right and all others are wrong. Only one opinion can be voiced and others will be silent.
Preconceived Ideas
Four Stages of Creativity
Solutions often emerge after a period of reflection
Insight
Problem-Solving Methods
If permitted to run a natural course, problems are solved by those personally involved.
Some problems are self-solving
The Decision-making Process
- The individual chooses an alternative that is not ideal but either is good enough under existing circumstances to meet minimum standards of acceptance or is the first acceptable alternative.
Satisficing
The ability to develop and implement new and better solutions. It produces new and better solutions to challenges.
Creativity
Likelihood that an event will or will not occur based on facts and reliable information
Objective probability
Four Stages of Creativity
Once a solution has been implemented, evaluate it for effectiveness.
Verification
Four Stages of Creativity
Allow as much time as possible to elapse before deciding on solutions
Incubation
Decision-making Conditions
When alternatives and the conditions surrounding each alternative are known, a state of certainty is said to exist.
Under certainty
Problem-Solving Methods
Relies heavily on past experience and trial and error
Intuition
Four Stages of Creativity
- Pick a specific task
- Gather relevant facts
- Challenge every detail
- Develop preferred solutions
- Implement improvements
Preparation
Stumbling Blocks
An inflexible management style
Rigidity
Group members come to think alike and have similar prejudices and blind spots. Seriously impairs critical thinking; can result in erroneous and damaging decisions
Groupthink
Problem-Solving Methods
Applying one solution after another until the problem is solved or appears to be improving
Trial-and-error method
Types of Decisions
Relatively well-defined, common problems. Often using established rules, policies, and procedures.
Routine decision
Critical-thinking skills can be used to resolve problems _____
rationally
Using different ____ and ____ can help the critical thinker develop several different views of an issue.
basic assumptions and paradigms
Group members meet together and generate many diverse ideas about the nature, cause, definition, or solution to a problem without consideration of their relative value.
Premium is placed on generating lots of ideas as quickly as possible and on coming up with unusual ideas.
Brainstorming
Expected risk is calculated or estimated
Probability analysis
