You just finished a session with ChatGPT (or your favorite LLM) and you've never felt more empowered. Not only do you feel like an expert in your new area of inquiry, but AI has affirmed that you are unique/clever/insightful/etc.!
Then you read a headline that says AI is degrading our critical thinking skills. How can that be? Don't you feel more intelligent?
This is how I use AI to help with my critical thinking skills (just some ideas). During (or after a learning session, ask:
- "What are some things that I haven't thought about? Do I have any blind spots?"
- "How might I be wrong in the conclusions I have come to?"
- "What biases do I have that may be preventing me from considering all of the facts?"
- "Is there anything that you (the AI) may be missing or be inaccurate about?"
Basically, challenge yourself and challenge the AI. I use ChatGPT primarily, but I also cross check with Perplexity, Grok, and Gemini. Today, a friend told me that he trusts Claude more certain tasks. I find that each has it's strengths and I'm learning which I can trust more. But I have to be careful that I don't select an AI for a topic because of my own confirmation bias.
Be careful to avoid "paralysis by analysis." What I mean, is that you do a critical review of some information which results in more information. Then you do a critical review of the critical review. Now you feel confused and depressed, as though you can never know the truth. I prefer discovering a limited number of blind spots. This can help your confidence in the sense of widening your understanding without unraveling your mental model.
Of course, you can also ask your preferred AI to help you understand the concepts behind Critical Thinking and even ask it to help you develop Critical Thinking skills.
Example 1 - Healing Back Pain
In 2014, I read the book "Healing Back Pain" by Dr. John Sarno and it helped resolved pain I was experiencing at the time. I've been having shoulder pain for the last 2 years, so I asked ChatGPT, "Can this book help shoulder pain as well as back pain?" It confirmed that it could and I started reading it again. Some red flags were going off about some of Dr. Sarno's claims, so I inquired "Can you provide a critical review of the book Healing Back Pain by John Sarno?" I then asked "Is there a better, more current book related to pain management?" I got several suggestions, and asked follow-up questions. The resulting suggestion was "The Way Out", which I just read. I found it more helpful and I'm trying the things I learned. I still feel there is some validity to Dr. Sarno's claims, but "The Way Out" gives me another way to frame my pain. (NOTE: I just asked for a critical review of "The Way Out" which resulted in me adding the "Be careful..." line above.)