Barriers to Critical

Thinking
Ms BOUZID
 why do people find
Difficulties to think critically??
The Most Common Barriers:

 Egocentrism
 Sociocentrism
 Peer Pressure
 Denial
 Face-Saving
 Fear of Change
 Scapegoating
 Assumptions and Stereotyping
1. Egocentrism

Ego means self .

Egocentrism At the centre
 
Egocentric people are focused on themselves. They think
their own interests and ideas are more important and better
than anyone else’s.
E.g
“I don’t like horror movies. How can anyone like them?
People who do are sick!”
E.G
THE FISH LOVE
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YNx7kDJ2kDI
1.1 Self-Interested Thinking

Supporting something because it benefits you or is in your

interests. You consider your wants or needs more important
than others.

 Example
you decide to take an exam early in the morning just because
it suits you but it is not suiting anyone in your class except
you.
1.2 self-serving bias.

Self-serving bias is when you take credit for your

successes and blame others for your failures
Bias is like adding weight to your point of view.

 Self-Serving Bias Examples

when someone gets a good mark in an exam he
says I got 20 But when he gets a bad mark
instead he tends to say the teacher gave me 05.
2. Sociocentrism
us no us
 Sociocentrism is to be centered on one’s group. It
focuses on what would be good for the group that a
person belongs to.

 When this happens, it often leads to group bias,

which is when people think that their own group
(nation, tribe, peer group, etc.) is better than others. 
E.G https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cPYiS5ebGgk
« Morrocan tea is the best in the world
»
Journalism students are the
hardworking students
Sociocentrism is common in all cultures
throughout history. When it is taken too far
can often lead to conflict and violence.
Watch an Experiment in Sociocentrism
In-Group / Out-Group Bias & Racism :
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H-
nQF4RYC7w
3. Peer Pressure
 Peer means someone in your group

  Peer Pressure is when a group puts pressure or stress on a

person to be the same as the group. It might be to conform
to the group’s thoughts, feelings, opinions, or actions. 

 Studies show that a peer group has the strongest impact

on a teenager’s life (much more so than parents).
 The Asch Experiment An example of Peer
Pressure from history
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qA-
gbpt7Ts8

 Another example
https://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=ZA09vyY76g8
4. Denial
 Denial means to refuse or say “No” Denial is a way people push away
unpleasant thoughts from our minds.

example

  It can be a refusal to see that something bad is happening.

I think you might be addicted to Facebook. Me? No! I only check it a
couple of times a week! Honestly. It can be a refusal to see that
something bad is happening.

  Drug addicts or alcoholics often deny that they have a problem

Drug addicts or alcoholics often deny that they have a problem. “I can
stop anytime!”
 People might stay in a bad relationship
because they are in denial that their
relationship is not working. “I am sure we will
fall in love again” 

 Victims of traumatic events may deny that

the event ever occurred
5. Face Saving 

 Face-saving behaviours are things we do to

save us from embarrassment
‘Saving face’ helps us maintain our dignity
and public image.
6. Fear of Change 
  Fear of change can stop you from taking action or
changing your mind
You might even want to change but the fear of change
means that you don’t try.

 Sometimes people prefer not to ask questions because

they don’t want to know the answers. They are afraid to
change. 
 Sometimes the fear of change means we avoid
thinking critically or we might feel paralyzed and can’t
do anything. 
example
https://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=_slYICgPsQc
7. Scapegoating 
 A scapegoat is someone (or a group of people) who people
blame for something that goes wrong. 

IN some situations, scapegoating first starts as

Sociocentrism.
No, it’s their fault! It’s their fault!

  Scapegoating in History
In Nazi Germany, Hitler repeatedly told his people that the
Jews were the reason for all of Germany's economic, social
and political problems. He made Jewish people wear a
yellow star on their clothes all the time.
 They became the scapegoat for all the country’s problems
People supported Hitler and in the end, he sent millions of Jews
to prison (concentration camps) where they were killed.

  To this day, scapegoating continues to be used by politicians

They often blame minorities for problems such as increased
crime and rising unemployment. They do it to take attention
away from the people who are really responsible for problems.
8. Assumptions and stereotyping  
 An assumption is something we take for granted
It is something that we believe to be true but we haven’t checked.

 The most common type of assumption uses stereotypes.

 Stereotyping is when we judge someone because of a group they are in

Stereotyping means we talk about ‘all’ or ‘every’ instead of looking at individuals. “All
MUSLUMS ARE….., ALL WESTERNS ARE ……

  Stereotypes can be positive or negative

They are unfair or untrue because they say everyone in a group is the same.“People who wear
glasses are intelligent”.

  Gender Stereotypes are a very common form of stereotype. Can you think of examples? “All
women…” “All men…”

 Example

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XUO59Emi3eo
 Stereotypes are often shown in advertising
This can actually strengthen people’s beliefs
in unfair stereotyping.

 Some stereotypes might seem funny but it is

important to remember – believing unfair
stereotypes can cause serious problems.