My original intent for this ongoing series of articles was to get people aware of and willing to discuss and consider mental health and social topics that are complex but are essential to human well-being.
My goal was to educate about substance use disorder, mental wellness, self-care, social issues, women’s issues, and try to normalize such appearance of issues in our small town papers. I think, in hindsight, my real goal was to encourage thinking in a new way while using some critical thinking skills.
What are critical thinking skills? They are skills that help us think about a message in such a way that becomes scientific--who is providing this message? What is that person trying to “sell”? Why do I need to know this information? Why should it matter to me or anyone else? And so on. Critical thinking allows us to set aside some of our automatic responses to new information while allowing us to learn and motivating us to do our own research.
A few tips for dissecting information critically:
-Follow the money. Is this information meant to sell a product? Is the person pitching these claims trying to sell me something? Who benefits from this information? Is the information somehow connected to advertisers who are trying to reach a certain audience?
-Follow the information. Was this information taken out of context to suit the author’s agenda? Is this information from a valid information source, such as a scholarly journal and empirical data?
-Do your own research. While consuming data and information, it is our job to research it and not take the author at their word. Look up the sources. Follow the links. Discern the evidence and weigh it against other data sources.
-Watch out for an angle. Is the author trying to persuade you to buy into their message? Are they gaining something by putting the message out? Does this message harm any person or group of people? Do they want you to jump on the bandwagon?
These are just a few examples of questions to ask while thinking critically about information presented from any source.
I hope you are able to become more aware of information presented to you in print, online, through television, and so on. If you ever feel as if you shouldn’t question any data presented, know that is exactly the time to do more research because there is most likely an agenda behind the message being presented.
Go forth, ask questions, do your research, and above all--use your noodle and be curious!
Sarah Mears-Ivy brings 13 years of experience in the field of human sciences and advocacy.