5/7/2018 Thinking Styles

In Psychology

Jahanzaib Tariq
BACHELOR OF BUSINESS ADMINISRATION (UCP)
 “DEDICATION”

We have dedicated our work to our subject, co- fellows and our
teachers. We tried our best to get possible reasons, signs and its
possible treatment.

1
 “ACKNOWLEDGEMENT”
We would like to thanks our Professor and fellows helping us in
completing this project of psychology having topic “Thinking.”
A special note of thanks to our Professor Ma’am Arifa Khursheed
for their expert guidance.

2
What is thinking?
Thinking is the human process of using knowledge and information to make
plans, interpret and model the world, and constructively interact with and
make predictions about the world in general.

Introduction to Thinking:

Cognitive abilities like thinking, reasoning and problem-solving may be

considered to be some of the chief characteristics which distinguish human
beings from other species including the higher animals.

The challenges and problems faced by the individual or by society, in general

are solved through series of efforts involving thinking and reasoning. The
powers of thinking and reasoning may thus be considered to be the essential
tools for the welfare and meaningful existence of the individual as well as
society.

1. Ross:
“Thinking is a mental activity in its cognitive aspect or mental activity with
regard to psychological aspects”.

2. Garrett:
“Thinking is a behavior which is often implicit and hidden and in which
symbols are ordinarily employed”.

3. Gilmer:
“Thinking is a problem-solving process in which we use ideas or symbols in
place of overt activity”.

4. Mohsin:
“Thinking is an implicit problem-solving behavior”.

3
Types of Thinking:
Thinking can be classified as follows:
1. Perceptual or Concrete Thinking:
This is the simplest form of thinking the basis of this type is perception, i.e.
interpretation of sensation according to one’s experience. It is also called
concrete thinking as it is carried out on the perception of actual or concrete
objects and events.

2. Conceptual or Abstract Thinking:

Here one makes use of concepts, the generalized objects and languages, it is
regarded as being superior to perceptual thinking as it economizes efforts in
understanding and problem-solving.

3. Reflective Thinking:
This type of thinking aims in solving complex problems, thus it requires
reorganization of all the relevant experiences to a situation or removing
obstacles instead of relating with that experiences or ideas.

This is an insightful cognitive approach in reflective thinking as the mental

activity here does not involve the mechanical trial and error type of efforts.

In this type, thinking processes take all the relevant facts arranged in a logical
order into an account in order to arrive at a solution of the problem.

4. Creative Thinking:
This type of thinking is associated with one’s ability to create or construct
something new, novel or unusual. It looks for new relationships and
associations to describe and interpret the nature of things, events and
situations. Here the individual himself usually formulates the evidences and
tools for its solution. For example; scientists, artists or inventors.

Skinner, the famous psychologist says creative thinking means that the
prediction and inferences for the individual are new, original, ingenious and

4
unusual. The creative thinker is one who expresses new ideas and makes new
observations, new predictions and new inferences.

Characteristics of Creative Thinking:

a. Creative thinking, in all its shapes and forms is absolutely an internal
mental process and hence should be considered as an important component
of one’s cognitive behavior.

b. Every one of us is capable of creative thinking and hence it is a universal

phenomenon.

c. Creative thinking results in the production of something new or novel

including a new form of arrangement of old elements.

d. Creative thinking in all its dimensions involve divergent thinking instead of

the routine and final types of convergent thinking. The mind must have
complete freedom to wander around to create a new idea.

e. The field of creative thinking and its out part is quite comprehensive and
built wide. It covers all the aspects of human accomplishments belonging to
an individual’s life.

5. Critical Thinking:
It is a type of thinking that helps a person in stepping aside from his own
personal beliefs, prejudices and opinions to sort out the faiths and discover
the truth, even at the expense of his basic belief system.

Here one resorts to set higher cognitive abilities and skills for the proper
interpretation, analysis, evaluation and inference, as well as explanation of
the gathered or communicated information resulting in a purposeful
unbiased and self-regulatory judgement.

5
An ideal thinker is habitually inquisitive, well-informed, open-minded,
flexible, fair-minded in evaluation, free from personal bias and prejudices,
honest in seeking relevant information, skilled in the proper use of the
abilities like interpretation, analysis, synthesis, evaluation and drawing
conclusion and inferences, etc.

The critical thinking is of a higher order well-disciplined thought process

which involves the use of cognitive skills like conceptualization,
interpretation, analysis, synthesis and evaluation for arriving at an unbiased,
valid and reliable judgment of the gathered or communicated information or
data as a guide to one’s belief and action.

6. Non-directed or Associative Thinking:

There are times when we find ourselves engaged in a unique type of thinking
which is non-directed and without goal. It is reflected through dreaming and
other free-flowing uncontrolled activities. Psychologically these forms of
thought are termed as associative thinking.

Here day-dreaming, fantasy and delusions all fall in the category of

withdrawal behavior that helps an individual to escape from the demands of
the real world by making his thinking face non-directed and floating, placing
him somewhere, ordering something unconnected with his environment.

We hear there is nothing seriously abnormal in behavior involving day-

dreaming and fantasy but behavior involving delusions definitely points
towards abnormality.

A person under the influence of such delusions may think or believe that he
is a millionaire, the ruler of the universe, a great inventor, a noted historian
or even God. In contrast, a person in the grip of delusion may be inclined to
be the most incapable, unworthy and unwanted person and may develop
guilt feelings or complain that he is the victim of some incurable physical or
mental diseases.

6
Development of Thinking:
Thinking is one of the most important aspects of learning process. Our ability
to learn and solve the problems depends upon our ability to think correctly
which helps us in adjustment and is necessary for a successful living.

Only those men who can think distinctly, constructively and carefully can
very much contribute something worthwhile to the society.

As no person is born-thinker, one has to acquire knowledge of technique and

practice of proper thinking.

There are few methods which help to develop thinking through training.

1. Adequacy of the Knowledge and Experience:

Adequacy of the knowledge and experience is considered to be the
background of systematic thinking.

So care should be taken to help the children with adequate knowledge and
experiences which can be done by:
(a) Training the children to enhance the process of sensation and perception
to gain better knowledge and experience to improve critical thinking.

(b) A person should be provided with opportunities for gaining adequate

experiences and should be encouraged for self-study, discussion and
participation in healthy and stimulating activities.

2. Adequate Motivation and Definiteness of Aims:

Motivation helps in mobilizing our energy for thinking. It creates genuine
interest and voluntary attention in the process of thinking, and thus helps a
lot in increasing the adequacy and efficiency of our thinking. Thus one should
try to think on definite lines with a definite end or purpose, the problems we
solve should have intimate connection with our immediate needs and basic
motives, and such thinking should be directed on creative and productive
activities.

7
3. Adequate Freedom and Flexibility:
Thinking should not be obstructed by imposing unnecessary restrictions and
narrowing of the field of thought process. If the past experiences or habitual
methods do not help in solving the problem we should strive for new
association, relationships and possibilities for arriving at satisfactory results.

4. Incubation:
When we set ourselves to solve a problem but fail to solve it in-spite of our
strain, putting more efforts to thinking and persistent thinking, it is better to
lay aside the problem for some time and relax for a while or engage in some
other activity. During this interval a solution is evolved to that specific
problem through the efforts of our unconscious mind. This phenomenon of
incubation is helpful.

5. Intelligence and Wisdom:

Intelligence is defined as the ability to think properly, and thus proper
development of intelligence is essential for bringing adequate thinking.
Proper care should be taken to use intelligence, wisdom and other cognitive
abilities for carrying out the process of thinking.

7. Adequacy of Reasoning Process:

Thinking is also influenced by the mode of reasons one adopts. Illogical
reasoning often leads to incorrect thinking. Logic is the science of correct
reasoning which helps to think correctly. Therefore, we should cultivate the
habit of logical reasoning among our children.

8
 Problem Statement
Negative thinking is destroying our society.

Hypotheses
If our society adopt positive thinking we can eliminate misunderstandings
and we’ll began to move towards success.

Positive Thinking

Do you tend to see the glass as half empty or half full? You have probably
heard that question plenty of times. Your answer relates directly to the
concept of positive thinking and whether you have a positive or negative
outlook on life. Positive thinking plays an important role in positive
psychology, a subfield devoted to the study of what makes people happy and
fulfilled.

Research has found that positive thinking can aid in stress management and
even plays an important role in your overall health and well-being.

What Is Positive Thinking?

"Most folks are about as happy as they make up their minds to be." -
Abraham Lincoln

So what exactly is positive thinking? You might be tempted to assume that it

implies seeing the world through rose-colored lenses by ignoring or glossing
over the negative aspects of life. However, positive thinking actually means
approaching life's challenges with a positive outlook. It does not necessarily
mean avoiding or ignoring the bad things; instead, it involves making the
most of the potentially bad situations, trying to see the best in other people,
and viewing yourself and your abilities in a positive light.

9
Some researchers, including positive psychologist Martin Seligman, often
frame positive thinking in terms of explanatory style. Your explanatory style
is how you explain why events happened. People with an optimistic
explanatory style tend to give themselves credit when good things happen,
but typically blame outside forces for bad outcomes. They also tend to see
negative events as temporary and atypical.

On the other hand, individuals with a pessimistic explanatory style often

blame themselves when bad things happen, but fail to give themselves
adequate credit for successful outcomes. They also have a tendency to view
negative events as expected and lasting. As you can imagine, blaming
yourself for events outside of your control or viewing these unfortunate
events as a persistent part of your life can have a detrimental impact on your
state of mind.

Positive thinkers are more apt to use an optimistic explanatory style, but the
way in which people attribute events can also vary depending upon the exact
situation. For example, a person who is generally a positive thinker might use
a more pessimistic explanatory style in particularly challenging situations,
such as at work or at school.

Health Benefits

In recent years, the so-called "power of positive thinking" has gained a great
deal of attention thanks to self-help books such as The Secret. While these
pop-psychology books often tout positive thinking as a sort of psychological
panacea, empirical research has found that there are many very real health
benefits linked to positive thinking and optimistic attitudes.

According to the Mayo Clinic, positive thinking is linked to a wide range of

health benefits including:

 Longer life span

 Less stress

10
  Lower rates of depression
 Increased resistance to the common cold
 Better stress management and coping skills
 Lower risk of cardiovascular disease-related death
 Increased physical well-being
 Better psychological health

One study of 1,558 older adults found that positive thinking could also
reduce frailty during old age.

Clearly, there are many benefits of positive thinking, but why exactly does
positive thinking have such a strong impact on physical and mental health.
One theory is that people who think positively tend to be less affected by
stress. Another possibility is that people who think positively tend to live
healthier lives in general; they may exercise more, follow a more nutritious
diet and avoid unhealthy behaviors.

Negative Thinking
Negative thinking is a thought process where people tend to find the worst
in everything, or reduce their expectations by considering the worst possible
scenarios. This approach can allay disappointment in some situations; but,
negative thinking tends to manifest into a pattern that can cause
tremendous stress, worry, or sadness over time. The opposite approach
would be positive thinking, approaching situations or circumstances with a
positive attitude.

Common Examples of Negative Thinking

 I just won the lottery. The worst part is that I can’t tell my family and
friends because if I did, they’d all want some of the money.

11
 A new higher paying job would be a good thing except for the change in
the commute, possible reduction in health insurance and having to get
to know a whole new group of people.
 I can’t imagine why anyone would want to live in a great big house with
all that land. All I can think of is the heating bill, and cutting that grass!
 I’d rather not own a highly successful restaurant. Sure, you could be
famous and make a ton of money, but just think of those long hours and
dealing with the public all the time.
 You may say you want a cool sporty car, but I can’t imagine paying that
car insurance and getting pulled over by cops all the time.
 It might be nice that I am graduating at the top of my class, but really,
what difference does is make when I have to pay back all of these student
loans?
 Dogs could be great companions and really brighten things up if they
didn’t make such a mess and all that noise.
 My job pays really well and fast tracks its employees into higher positions
since they’re growing so quickly, but sitting in a grey, boring cubicle
listening to sad FM radio all afternoon from the cubicle next door is just
too much.
 Urban environments are great for restaurants and culture, but why
would I live there if I am just going to constantly worried I’m going to be
assaulted or my house is going to be robbed?
 Some people think all of this snow is pretty. I think it just ruins everything.
You can’t get to work, you have to shovel, and you can fall and hurt
yourself. No thanks.
 Having a king size bed might sound nice, but it just takes up the whole
room and the sheets are really expensive.
 Our trip to the Maldives would have been fabulous were it not for having
to spend 14 hours in flight. No sleep, poor airline food, and noisy other
passengers were no fun at all.
 My husband cooked dinner tonight since I had a long day at work but it
was only pasta - I mean, how hard is that?

12
 I won a brand new computer to replace my old broken one, but it has a
whole new operating system that I have to learn now - who has time for
that?

Research Objective
 The main objective of this research is to find thinking style of different
people in our society.
 Second objective is to find negativity in our society, because negative
thinking is destroying us by different ways.
 Find solution for negative thinking.
 Persuade people for positive thinking.

Methodology
There were available many options for is to collect data like questionnaire,
interview, case study and articles. But we preferred to choose questionnaire,
articles and case study as a supporting material.

Sampling
We took 40 samples for analysis. There were people around age 20 to 35,
with education level minimum Graduation to M. Phil. Some people were job
holders and others were jobless. We get 75 percent of questionnaire from
middle and upper class people and 25 percent remaining include general
public.

13
 Statistical Result of Questionnaire

Questions Yes No Positive Negative

Thinker Thinker
Question 1 24 16 40 % 60 %
Question 2 19 21 47.5 % 52.5 %
Question 3 29 11 72.5 % 27.5 %
Question 4 26 14 35 % 65 %
Question 5 25 15 62.5 % 37.5 %
Question 6 12 28 30 % 70 %
Question 7 20 20 50 % 50 %
Question 8 34 6 15 % 85 %
Question 9 13 27 32.5 % 67.5 %
Question 10 23 17 57.5 % 42.5 %
Question 11 31 09 22.5 % 77.5 %
Question 12 20 20 50 % 50 %
Question 13 27 13 32.5 % 67.5 %
Question 14 05 35 12.5 % 87.5 %
Question 15 24 16 60 % 40.5 %
Question 16 36 04 10 % 90 %

Total Percentage

POSITIVE THINKERS = 39.35

NEGATIVE THINKER = 60.65

14
 Conclusion
By analyzing complete research wo reach at the point that people that are
negative thinker are more in quantity as compare to positive thinker. Few
people are living their life aimlessly. They does not take interest in any mater
or in any personality. Shortly as we can see that negative thinker are more in
our society, so we concluded that negative thinking create
misunderstandings and stop the way of our success. Negative thinking
reduce our problem solving capacity and our broadness in thinking relating
to any object. If we adopt positive thinking we’ll more able to tackle with
problems and can create more opportunities for success and well bring for
society.

15
 Suggestions
Positive thinking…it can sound simple, but often, not easy. Our life is made
of habits and even Buddha once said: “We are what we think.” This is why,
it’s very important to constantly choose positive way of thinking and make
an optimistic attitude – your habit or second nature.

So, it is our aim to promote positive thinking in our society. By promoting

positive thinking we will able to achieve these following important specialties
in our society.

1) Positive mind attracts positive events.

First of all, if we decide to become positive, we can make the so called “law
of attraction” work for our favor. The main principle of the law of attraction
is that “like attracts like”. If you will make positive thinking your habitual way
of seeing life, imagine how many great things you can attract into your life!

2) Great and harmonious relationships.

When you chose positive attitude, you will start to notice a lot of positive
qualities in people and ignore their defaults, and then, you will start to create
more meaningful friendships and great relationships. This type of attitude
will create a very good and positive atmosphere around you.

3) Better first impression.

If you make a positive thinking your priority, you will always make a great
first impression. People, usually, are attracted to kind and friendly
personalities and the good first impression can have a big impact on the
development of your future relationships.

16
4) Vibrant health.
Positive thinking is very beneficial for your health. Even several scientific
studies have shown that people with a good, positive “vibe” are less likely to
suffer from depression and they get ill more rarely than the negative
thinkers. In many cases, bad thoughts are the main cause of deceases, and
even the word “decease” means that the person is not at ease…Just change
your thoughts and you will change your life. That’s why, taking care of our
thoughts – is taking care of our health!

5) Key of success.
Positive people are more likely to be successful than the negative ones.
When you will implement positive thinking into your life, you will notice that
success becomes easier and it’s not as tough and difficult, as many people
think.

6) No more stress.
The main cause of stress is worry and negative thoughts. If we think about it
further, we can understand that stress never solves problems, on the
contrary, it can leave us helpless. Positive people overcome stress more
easily. When you start to increase the quantity of good and positive
thoughts, stress will gradually leave your life, until you won’t hear about it
anymore.

7) Positive thinking and optimistic attitude will turn all your

problems into opportunities.
Negativity can blind people’s mind. If you turn your thoughts from the
negative ones into positive, your eyes will be opened and you will see the
bottle half full, instead of half empty. You will start to notice solutions and
will understand that every problem is actually an opportunity to grow. All
problems can be solved, and you, finally, will be able to see it.

17
8) You will notice the abundance of good things in your life.
Sometime people live their life without knowing how blessed they really are,
they take things for granted and forget to be thankful. As I mentioned earlier,
there are certain laws in life, one of them says: “like attracts like” and
another is: “you will reap what you sow”. When people live their live
complaining and mourning about their destiny, without appreciating the
things that they already have, then, they risk to lose even this. Appreciation
and gratitude, on the contrary, can bring more of good things to be thankful
for into their life. So, let’s be thankful and let’s count our blessings.

9) Boost of motivation.
Positive attitude will boost your motivation and you will start to achieve your
goals quicker and easier. To have strong motivation is the same as to have
“wings”!

10) Beauty will shine from within.

Positive thinking will make you look more beautiful. It happens naturally:
smiling, friendly and happy people are, somehow, extremely attractive. Your
inner beauty will shine and will become visible on the outside, as well.

This is only a tip of the iceberg of benefits of positive thinking. Actually, being
optimistic and positive is the most beneficial skill you can learn in life, on my
opinion.
Do you think it’s important to have positive and optimistic outlook on life?
Please, share your thoughts with me in the comment’s section.

Make positive thinking – your habit and stay happy!

18
PS: Here are some motivational quotes to make your day brighter:

“With the new day comes new strength and new thoughts.”
– Eleanor Roosevelt
“We can complain because rose bushes have thorns, or rejoice because thorn
bushes have roses.”
– Abraham Lincoln
“You are never too old to set another goal or to dream a new dream.”
– C. S. Lewis

19
 Questionnaire
1. If there is something unexpected that forces you to alter your plans, you
quickly look for ways to spot an advantage in this new situation, even
considering this new change?

a) Yes b) No

2. If you consider your next year, do you think the year will improve and you
will be better off than now?

a) Yes b) No

3. Do you believe that humans will survive well into the next century?

a) Yes b) No

4. Do you get surprised or disappointed when a friend or family member lets

you down?

a) Yes b) No

5. Is your general perception of yourself that you are happy?

a) Yes b) No

6. If you were asked to write down your 10 favorite people, would you place
your own name on that list?

a) Yes b) No

20
7. Can you take being criticized without feeling hurt or resentful?

a) Yes b) No

8. Do you want to move in a developed country?

a) Yes b) No

9. Will you trust on a stranger?

a) Yes b) No

10. Do you feel that demerits in all departments can be solved only by government?

a) Yes b) No

11. Do you think that our current country condition arise by politician?

a) Yes b) No

21
12. Do you think that baggers of our country really deserve for help?

a)Yes b) No

13. Do you think that bribe is necessary in some legal affairs?

a)Yes b) No

14. Do you think that a government officer is serving our country truly?

a)Yes b) No

15. Are you satisfy with your life?

a) Yes b) No

16. Are you satisfied with implementation of amount from taxes in country?

a) Yes b) No

22
 References
https://www.beautyandtips.com/motivation/10-benefits-of-positive-thinking/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7XFLTDQ4JMk&t=20s

https://enaming.com/exclusive/domain/buffee.com/

https://leadingpersonality.wordpress.com/2013/03/15/what-is-positive-thinking/

https://www.verywellmind.com/what-is-positive-thinking-2794772

http://www.whatishowtoinfo.com/

23