Page 17 - SREENARAYANAGURU OPEN UNIVERSITY

highlights the importance of incorporating diverse thinking
styles to tackle complex challenges and make well-informed
decisions in various life situations.

In this way, convergent thinking is coming up with standard
answers to questions, and it is thinking which requires skills
such as speed, accuracy and logic. It is about recalling the
stored information, accepting well-accepted answers, and
not questioning or critiquing known information or engaging
in creativity. It aims for the single best solution or the right
answer without any element of doubt. Divergent thinking, on
the other hand, is when there is no belief in a single correct
answer but a willingness to consider multiple possibilities
entertained by the mind for analysis or verifiability, and each
Four types of of these possibilities is analysed in relation to benefits and
thinking skills in disadvantages. Here judgment on the solution or answer to
research the question is deferred as the mind evaluates the different
possibilities considered. Once these various possibilities are
analysed, convergent thinking could be applied to obtain the
best answer that appears clear and logical. Critical thinking
is analysing with an open mind and suspending preconceived
ideas, values and beliefs to form a judgement on the question
or problem based on analysis. Creative thinking is thinking
unconventionally to generate a novel idea or output. All these
types of thinking skills are important in research.

Fig. 1.1.2 Thinking Skills

SGOU - SLM - Foundational Skills for Research and Writing 11