Forms of thinking

Thinking is exactly what allows a person to establish certain patterns between phenomena and objects of the surrounding world. With his help we know the reality surrounding us. Forms of thinking are of great importance. In the event that we perceived reality differently, the history of mankind would be quite different. The forms of thinking in psychology are nothing more than formal structures of thought. There are three:

- concept;

- Judgment;

- Inference.

Types of thinking in psychology:

- Practically-effective;

Verbal and logical;

- Visual-shaped.

In this article, we will consider exactly what forms of thinking there are.

Forms of thinking: concept

This category reflects the general properties of phenomena and objects. It is worth noting that we are talking about essential properties.

Everything around is different in some ways. At the same time, it can be argued that everything around is not so unique. We can distinguish objects and phenomena from the distinctive features that they possess. For example, the squares have the same sides, the milk is always white, the dogs are barking.

Concepts can exist only in the form of meanings of words. It is also worth noting that it is in words that they are designated. In terms of all our knowledge of the objects and drying of the world.

Do not confuse the concept with the perception or presentation of memory, because in both of these cases our mind operates with something specific. In the case of the concept, there is no specificity (the term "horse" does not mean a specific horse, but all horses at once).

Forms of thinking: judgment

Judgment is nothing more than the affirmation or denial of something, about an object or phenomenon of the surrounding world. It can be the negation or affirmation of connections, properties, attributes and so on.

Judgment, unlike a concept, is expressed not by a word, but by a sentence. Judgments can be divided into:

- general and private;

- affirmative and negative;

- categorical and conditional.

In the first case, everything depends on whether all subjects and phenomena are talked about or only about individual. An example of a common judgment: all living breathes, an example of a particular: some dogs have long ears.

Affirmative proposition: the table is wooden, negative: it's not cold outside.

If a proposition mentions a condition (if there is rain, then) it is conditional. Conditions are not present - it is categorical.

Judgments help to reveal the essence of concepts. It is worth noting that a true judgment can be constructed only knowing the essence of the concept in question.

Judgments can express not only knowledge, but also subjective assessments.

Forms of thinking: reasoning

In this case, from one or several judgments, we get new ones. They may be:

- deductive;

- inductive;

- Similarly.

Deduction is a movement from the whole to the part (from the general to the particular). Everything in this case is based on the fact that a person, on the basis of some general laws, knows certain phenomena and objects.

Induction is the reverse. Thought moves from the general to the particular. That is, general laws are established on the basis of any particular phenomena or objects.

An analogy is a movement of thought from the particular to the particular. In other words, a person studies two similar objects or phenomena, and on the basis of the obtained information draws some conclusions. It is important to note that the objects in question must have at least some common characteristics.

Example deductive reasoning:

All people are lying. Vakulin is a man. Vakulin is lying.

An example of inductive reasoning:

The seagull has a beak. The crow has a beak. Each bird should have a beak.

An example of inference by analogy:

My cheap TV broke. Cheap neighbor's TV broke. All cheap TVs break down.

Thus, the person through the described forms of thinking knows the surrounding reality.