We have heard more than once in our lives that men and women think differently. But this statement is not true. Everyone thinks the same way, but every time a person uses different methods. For a long time, psychologists have identified several types. These include: intuitive thinking, discursive, rational, figurative, abstract, theoretical, practical, analytical, and so on. After reading this article to the end, you will understand how they differ from each other, and what each of these types implies.
Definition
The difficulty of formulating this concept lies in the fact that almost every adult person represents what exactly is called thinking. This is a way or means of obtaining information about the world and the processes taking place in it. It has an indirect and generalizing character.
There are different types (kinds) of this process. These include: discursive, figurative thinking, intuitive, rational, practical and pralogical. Each of themsomething radically different, and something, on the contrary, may be similar to any others. Let's find out what their differences and similarities are. In addition to types, the thought process has two forms: inference and judgment.
Inference is the result of all judgments, the final conclusion obtained from the information provided. There are only three types:
- deductive;
- inductive;
- by analogy.
It is worth considering each of them in more detail, so that the following information is more understandable to you. The deductive is done on the basis of general rules in relation to any particular case. Reliable facts are taken as a basis, and already on their basis a person comes to some kind of conclusion. Let's take the simplest example. Metals are ductile, iron is a metal. So it's plastic. With the inductive method, the individual, on the contrary, proceeds to a general judgment on the basis of a particular case. An inference by analogy is one that is reached based on the similarity of two (or more) cases, objects, or any properties.
A judgment is individual thoughts about an object. Linking them into a single chain, you can come to a certain conclusion. For example: "A person who committed a crime should be punished" is a judgment.
Intuitive thinking
Already, based on the name of this type, you can guess that it is associated with a person's intuition. You can decide that a person with an intuitive type of thinking does not even try to think logically. He doesn't wantstreamline the thought process. But in fact, this is not entirely true. The subject still builds some kind of mental chain. But all this passes for him so imperceptibly and quickly that it may seem as if the person did not think about anything at all.
If we compare intuitive and rational thinking, then the second one looks more reliable, since in the process of it the individual tries to draw conclusions, relying on factual knowledge. But this is actually a misleading impression. Because even if someone tries to build a logical chain of judgments, there is no guarantee that he will not make mistakes in this process.
In the process of intuitive thinking, a person considers the problem in a complex way, from different angles, using his emotions, previous experience and knowledge for this. In most cases, these actions remain invisible to people, so it seems that the decision or conclusion came from somewhere "above".
Discursive
A person's thinking can be of a discursive type. In the vast majority of cases, it seems to people more reliable. But, as it turned out, the reliability is very illusory. Here, in contrast to intuitive thinking, a person comes to a conclusion by sorting through various options for solving a problem.
The simplest example to explain this type is the process of putting together a mosaic. The subject finds the necessary piece, sorting through all possible ones. In turn, he applies the puzzle to the picture until he finds the one he is looking for. Agree, this method is quite strongdiffers from intuitive thinking. In addition, the discursive type is also divided into deductive and inductive:
- Deduction - with this method, the transformation of one judgment into another is carried out only through a logical transition. Finding this connection between them is strictly necessary. It was deduction that was used by the famous Sherlock Holmes, the hero of Conan Doyle's novels.
- Induction (or as it is also called, the guidance method) is a logical conclusion obtained on the basis of the transition from special cases to general ones.
Figurative
This type is neither intuitive nor discursive. In this case, a person perceives information received from the environment through mental (mental) images created in the head. It is easier for such people to perceive a thought when it is explained by some specific examples. The functioning of some detail in a huge machine (and the machine itself) must first be visualized in their head, and only then continue to work with it.
Rational type
As mentioned earlier, it is clearly different from intuitive thinking and even figurative. Because in this case, a person moves from one judgment to another, guided only by the rules of logic. At the same time, the subject absolutely completely abstracts from any feelings and emotions in solving this or that matter. Sometimes this type can be called boolean. Both versions of the name will be correct.
Practical
This type is based on a person's accumulated life experience, observations, perception of the world and common sense. It has a large number of people on earth. It is practical thinking that helps us cope with the usual routine or difficult work, find a way out of everyday and life situations.
Pralogical thinking
This concept was introduced by L. Levy-Bruhl. The term turned out to be necessary to designate the early stage of the formation of the basic laws of logic. We are talking about the stage of formation when the meaning of cause-and-effect relationships is already understood and realized, but its essence is not entirely clear and even mystified. The reason for the appearance of certain conditions is necessarily some higher power, natural or animal (an example of this is the use of a totem, worship of the forces of nature, etc.). We are talking about that stage of human development when a severe thunderstorm or drought could be perceived as the wrath of the gods.
This should probably end here. Of course, there are many other types. But the ones we mentioned can be called the most basic. Now you know that in addition to the logical, there is also an intuitive kind of thinking, and besides the practical, there is a pralogical kind. But keep in mind, it is not always possible to say that a particular person uses only one particular look. Most often, in different situations, people resort to different thought processes, often without control over their choice.
