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CITATION

Aveyard, Helen; Sharp, Pam; and Woolliams, Mary. A Beginner's Guide to Critical Thinking and Writing in Health and Social Care, 2nd Edition. Maidenhead: Open University Press, 2015.

A Beginner's Guide to Critical Thinking and Writing in Health and Social Care, 2nd Edition

Authors: Helen Aveyard, Pam Sharp and Mary Woolliams

Published:  March 2015 Pages: 192

eISBN: 9780335264353 | ISBN: 9780335264346
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  • Cover page
  • Halftitle page
  • Title page
  • Copyright page
  • Praise for this book
  • Contents
  • Acknowledgements
  • Introduction
  • Aim of the book
  • How to get the most from this book
  • What's new in this edition?
  • Structure of the book
  • 1 What is `critical thinking' and why is it important?
  • Introduction to critical think ing: what it is and why it is important in health and social care
  • Defining critical thinking
  • Is critical thinking a new idea?
  • Critical thinking is not as common as you may think
  • An example of critical thinking in action
  • How you can think more critically – using our `Six questions for critical thinking'
  • The need to think critically has never been more important . . .
  • How critical thinking can help you in your professional practice and academic assignments
  • In summary
  • Key points
  • 2 How you can thinkmore critically about information that is readily available
  • Critical thinking and the use of information/evid ence
  • What type of information is readily available?
  • Thinking critically about the quality and usefulness of `readily available information'
  • In summary
  • Key points
  • 3 Being more critical: how you can find the `best available' evidence
  • Why you need to dig deeper to find evidence
  • Beginning the search process
  • Using subject-specific electronic databases
  • How you can plan and search for literature using specific databases
  • What is the `best available' evidence?
  • Research evidence
  • In summary
  • Key points
  • 4 How you can demonstrate your critical thinking skills in your written work and presentations
  • Why it is important to incorporate critical thinking into your writing and verbal presentations
  • When you need to incorporate critical thinking into your writing and presentations
  • How you can develop good critical writing and presentations
  • The importance of planning your work
  • The importance of developing a clear, logical and thorough approach to your work
  • Using different styles of writing and presenting
  • An example of applying critical thinking skills to written academic work
  • Demonstrating critical thinking in verbal presentations
  • A checklist for assessing your critical thinking in written work and presentations
  • In summary
  • Key points
  • 5 How you can adopt critical thinking in your professional practice
  • The professional context and complexity of critical thinking – connecting theory and practice
  • How you can think critically about the influences on your professional practice: routine, relying on your experience, using professional judgement and learning from others
  • Assessing and developing your skills as a critical thinker
  • Using questions to develop a more in-depth approach to critical thinking
  • Influencing the `critical thinking' culture of your workplace
  • In summary
  • Key points
  • 6 Shaping the future: what is the role of critical thinking in the development of health and social care services?
  • Why is critical thinking important for developing a broader perspective in your personal, professional and academic life?
  • What are the changes influencing health and social care in the twenty-first century, and how can critical thinking help you respond to these?
  • How can you think more critically about these changes?
  • Skills and qualities needed to promote critical thinking in relation to broader perspectives in health and social care
  • Broadening your horizons in health and social care in your academic work and practice
  • In summary
  • Key points
  • Appendix: useful websites
  • Glossary
  • References
  • Index