Critical Thinking and Professional Judgement for Social Work (Book Review)

Book review of Critical Thinking and Professional Judgement for Social Work, and summary on the question: what is professional judgement in social work practice?

In the book “Critical Thinking and Professional Judgement for Social Work”, the authors Lynne Rutter and Keith Brown emphasize the importance of critical thinking while making professional judgement, especially for practitioners in social service.

The term “critical thinking” is one of those often used words that many people use but not all of them are on the same page as to what it actually means. And very few even realize that critical thinking can be developed.

Every profession requires practitioners to have critical abilities because they have to take decisions on the spot and under pressure, and the decisions can have significant impact. Social work/care presents several complex scenarios where the consequences of judgement, decisions and actions are extremely important as it can impact the lives of many.

That is why it is important to develop critical thinking so that practitioners can make Professional Judgement while doing Social Work. However, in order to develop critical thinking, the author suggests using additional intellectual resources as well. As per the authors, the following intellectual resources are required for critical thinking:

• Background knowledge
• Critical concepts
• Critical thinking standards
• Strategies
• Habits of Mind

The author suggests following a methodology to sharpen one’s critical thinking. The first step is to know more about the particular topic, because without adequate knowledge of the subject, it is not possible to develop critical thinking.

The author then explains the different kinds of arguments – deductive arguments, inductive arguments, and abductive arguments to clearly understand the various kinds of logic, so that ambiguities and uncertainties are eliminated.

For a deductive argument to have a justifiable conclusion the premise must be true and the underlying inferences must also be justifiable and reasonable.

Here is a valid and sound deductive argument:

• Premise: All pilots are people who know how to fly airplanes.
• Premise: John is a plot
• Conclusion: John knows how to fly airplanes.

Here is an invalid deductive argument:

• Premise: Fish can swim.
• Premise: My father can swim
• Conclusion: My father is a fish.

An inductive argument, on the other hand, is the opposite way to a deductive argument; it usually argues and infers from the specific to the general. An acceptable inductive conclusion requires the sample and the population to be similar.

Abductive reasoning is when a person observes a surprising circumstance and tries to develop the hypothesis that explains why it may have happened. It’s also important to hear, distinguishing and understand the various kinds of arguments in order to really understand what is being suggested or implied. The author also suggests developing standards and strategies that will enable us to deliberate and judge in a sound manner. And it’s equally important to train your mind to follow this approach, so that it gets better at critical thinking.

The author suggests that we must develop critical thinking so that we are able to use the ‘best’ thinking under various circumstances and offer the best professional judgement and expertise.

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