Why Assess Critical Thinking Skills?

If you follow @careerdiva on Twitter, you probably caught her post last week which asked “Who the hell isn’t a critical thinker?” Sadly, the truth is many people have low or average critical thinking ability.  Study after study show how important critical thinking skills are in the workplace.  Employers are increasingly focusing on this skill as a key area for selection and development, and they are using the Watson-Glaser™ II Critical Thinking Appraisal assessment to determine critical thinking ability.

But why assess critical thinking skills? The answer is simple- have you ever told someone they lack critical thinking skills?  How did they take that news?  Probably not very well.  Better yet, imagine someone telling you that you have poor critical thinking skills.  How would you react?  The Watson Glaser™ II assessment is an objective and scientific measure which people respect and trust.  If you simply tell someone that you believe they lack critical thinking skills, they will become defensive, argumentative, or worse.  If a person is assessed objectively, they may or may not be pleased with the results, but they will know the results are valid.

In addition, the assessment is important for structuring training and coaching plans.  The Watson-Glaser™ II will break down results into three key areas of critical thinking (Recognizing Assumptions, Evaluating Arguments, and Drawing Conclusions).  If an individual scores well in Recognizing Assumptions and Drawing Conclusions, then you know you can focus your training on Evaluating Arguments.

The assessment helps you concentrate your time on the most pressing issue for development.

For more information on Applied Critical Thinking, be sure to watch tomorrow’s webcast from 1-2pm Eastern.  To Register click here.