(i) Concepts: Concepts are one of the key elements of thinking. Concepts represent objects, activities, ideas, or living organisms. They also represent properties (such as “sour” or “brave”), abstractions (such as “anger” or “fear”), and relations (such as “smaller than” or “more intelligent than”). Concepts are mental structures which allow us to organise knowledge in systematic ways. We cannot observe them directly, but we can infer them from behaviour.
We as human beings have the capacity to abstract the essential characteristics of objects, events or whatever we perceive. For example, when we see a Potato we categorise it as ‘vegetable’, and when we see a towel we categorise it as ‘cloth’. Whenever we encounter a new stimulus we tend to treat it as a member of a familiar or remembered category and take the same action toward it and give it the same Label.
(ii) Reasoning: Reasoning is also one of the key aspects of thinking. It is a process that involves inference. Reasoning is used in logical thinking and problem solving. It is goal directed, and the conclusions or judgments are drawn from a set of facts. In reasoning, information from the environment and the stored information in the mind are used following certain rules. There are two types of reasoning: deductive and inductive. In deductive reasoning we try to deduce or draw conclusion from a set of initial assertions or premises; whereas in inductive reasoning we start from available evidence to generate a conclusion about the likelihood of something. Most cases of
Scientific reasoning are inductive in nature. Scientists and even lay people consider a number of instances and try to determine what general rule covers them all.
For example, the person is a priest, because he is wearing plain cloth, prays and eats simple food.
(iii) Problem solving: Problem solving is part and parcel of our daily life. Every day we solve a number of problems ranging from simple to complex.
For example if you want to score good marks in an exam, you study hard, take the help of teachers,friends, and parents and finally you score good marks.
