Thinking and reasoning (II)
Recent research suggests that the individual's knowledge and theories have a role in the formation of concepts and the organization of categories. Thus, people's concepts would be the result of not only discovering a structure in the world, but also of imposing a structure upon it.
Concepts are used in the reasoning process. It is said that one is reasoning when one is thinking with the specific purpose of finding a solution to a problem or, in general, trying to ascertain the correctness of a thought. The philosophical orientation that sustains that the knowledge of truth is derived from the use of reason (that is, by reasoning) is called Rationalism. Sometimes an antagonism is viewed between reason and faith, as this last term is understood in the context of theology.
Reasoning is also viewed as opposed to feeling and desire. In this sense, reasoning is a process that, following the rules of logic, tries to reach a conclusion out of a set of fixed premises. This kind of reasoning can be further categorized as deductive reasoning, which goes from general rules to specific instances, and inductive reasoning, which reaches a conclusion after examining many observations.
Informally, it may be also called reasoning the mental processes that frequently occur which are affected by emotions and less governed by the laws of logic. This type of cognitive processes, also called thinking, is employed in everyday problem solving. The two uses of the term 'reasoning' were outlined by Sigmund Freud.
Freud said that there exists a kind of thought that obeys the principle of reality and tries to understand the world and predict events. Thought of this kind operates consciously and rationally, but there is also another kind of thought that obeys the pleasure principle, and operates unconsciously and non-rationally. What this kind of thought tries to achieve is the reduction of tension.
Psychologists of the behaviorist school have emphasized overt behavior in detriment of inner processes. They maintain that problem solving is carried out by a series of gradual and continuous behavior changes, and that these processes are the foundations of intelligence and creativity. On the other hand, Gestalt psychology gives more importance to the roles of intelligence and creativity in problem solving. These psychologists argue that a problem is solved by insight, which is a sudden and creative solution brought up by the correct combination of previously unrelated concepts.
Developmental psychologists distinguish various kinds of thought that correspond to different steps of maturation. Representation of reality may be accomplished, for example, by actions, by images, or by linguistic symbols. People may operate in four modes as they develop: sensory-motor, pre-operational, concrete operational, and formal operational. The progression is from an interpretation centered in the self and in the appearance of things, to one typified by independence of self and appearance, and by systematic, formal thinking.
With the widespread use of computer technology, a model has evolved that uses concepts akin with this new tool. Information storage and retrieval, data storage, operators, are terms used to describe strategies for solving problems. A distinction has been made between algorithms--methods precisely specified--and heuristic processes where the outcome is not pre-defined.
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