Chapter 07 – Creative and Critical Thinking in the Small Group
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Chapter 07
Creative and Critical Thinking in the Small Group
Multiple Choice Questions
1. (p. 154–156) Creative thinking in small groups encourages the use of
A. wild and crazy ideas thrown out rapidly by group members.
E. ethos.
2. (p. 154) Group creativity involves which of the following two concepts?
A. symbolism and connectivism
B. cross-cultural and intra-cultural learning
3. (p. 156) All of the following are individual characteristics that promote creative thinking
EXCEPT
A. willingness to communicate.
B. willingness to be unconventional.
4. (p. 158–159) Which of the following is often used when groups are generating ideas?
D. thinking
E. talking
5. (p. 160–161) A creative group technique that stimulates thinking using metaphors and analogies
is called
A. meta-analysis.
E. quest discussion.
6. (p. 161) During synectics sessions, group members are asked to
Chapter 07 – Creative and Critical Thinking in the Small Group
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D. think of the underlying issues and needs of people involved.
E. figure out what must be done, by whom, and when.
7. (p. 158) The first and most important rule governing brainstorming is to
A. write all suggestions on a large piece of chart paper that everyone can see.
B. schedule a short amount of time for ideas to be thrown around for consideration.
8. (p. 164) Critical thinking is characterized by
A. evidence to support opinions and generalizations.
B. use of facts to back a claim.
9. (p. 165) The most important “technique” to help groups do a good job of critical thinking is
A. creativity.
E. none of the answers is correct.
10. (p. 166) “Probing questions” are
A. questions used to argue.
E. a type of argument used to test reasoning.
11. (p. 166–167) Which of the following is NOT an attitude of critical thinkers?
A. open-mindedness
B. skepticism
12. (p. 167) When critical thinkers gather information and ideas, the first step they take is to
D. classify the types of information they have.
E. determine whether their sources are trustworthy.
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13. (p. 170) When evaluating web-based sources, you should consider which of the following?
D. connectedness
E. worth
14. (p. 172–173) The first step in evaluating information group members have gathered is to
D. determine the credibility of all sources.
E. assess the relevance and importance of the information.
15. (p. 173) Which of the following is something that can be verified by observation and is not
arguable?
A. an ambiguous term
B. an opinion
16. (p. 175) A tobacco company has issued a press release suggesting the effects of secondhand
smoking are not as detrimental as previously suggested by healthcare professionals. A group
should be sure to do which of the following in evaluating this information?
A. identify ambiguous terms
B. clarify ambiguous terms
17. (p. 176) Mrs. Grundy believes that boarding schools provide the best education because after
attending such a school, she found herself well prepared for college. The fallacy in her
thinking is
A. Mrs. Grundy may not know what she is talking about without having observed it firsthand.
B. she has treated an inference as a fact.
18. (p. 179) A committee member reads that 20 percent of college students default on
government-guaranteed loans, then concludes that “college students are irresponsible.” This
illustrates which error in reasoning?
Chapter 07 – Creative and Critical Thinking in the Small Group
D. posing a false either-or situation
E. concluding that because two things are related, one caused the other
19. (p. 179) A group member concludes that because one of your sources is a prisoner, the group
should not accept what the person said. This is an example of
A. overgeneralizing.
B. making an incomplete comparison.
20. (p. 179–181) “As soon as we got a new division manager, profits went down the tubes. The
new manager reduced productivity.” This statement is an example of which of the following
fallacies?
A. overgeneralizing
B. making an incomplete comparison
Fill in the Blank Questions
21. (p. 154) Group creativity involves _____ and _____ thinking, each requiring slightly
different communication behaviors to succeed.
22. (p. 155) For a group to be creative, both _____ and _____ creativity are needed.
23. (p. 157) An ideal time to use creativity-enhancing procedures is after members have learned
something about the problem but _____ they delve into the details.
24. (p. 164) Synectics is a technique that stimulates thinking in _____ and analogies.
25. (p. 160) Brainstorming is a procedure designed to tap members’ creativity by asking them to
generate as many _____ as possible without evaluation.
26. (p. 164) Two principal components are required for critical thinking: evidence and logical
_____.
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39. (p. 160–161) Synectics asks group members to remain rooted firmly in reality when generating
new ideas for solutions to a problem.
40. (p. 163) Creativity is essential to productivity and effective problem solving.
41. (p. 165) Some decisions are not important enough to warrant the time and effort required for
a group to engage in critical thinking about them.
42. (p. 165) Critical thinkers are open minded, or willing and eager to consider new information
and ideas, even if that information contradicts what they previously believed.
43. (p. 166) Skeptical decision makers never challenge information.
44. (p. 167) Critical thinking does not include the gathering of information needed before
making a decision.
45. (p. 169–171) Everything on the Internet is peer reviewed within a discipline.
46. (p. 173) The following is a statement of fact: “Springfield, Missouri, is a rapidly growing
city.”
47. (p. 173) Inferential errors impair a group’s ability to think critically.
48. (p. 181) Alice Paul did for Women’s suffrage what Malcolm X did for Civil Rights is an
example of an analogy.
49. (p. 183–184) Experiencing pressure to conform with the rest of the group is not a symptom of
groupthink.
50. (p. 184–186) The devil’s advocate helps spot potential flaws in a plan or holes in arguments.
Essay Questions
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51. (p. 154–157) Describe six member characteristics that promote creative thinking for group
members. What attitudes and behaviors go into the creative thinking process?
Answers will vary.
52. (p. 158–160) Describe and explain the five guidelines for promoting brainstorming in groups.
Answers will vary.
53. (p. 164–167) What does “critical thinking” involve, and why is it important to small group
problem solving?
Answers will vary.
54. (p. 165–167) List and describe the three attitudes that facilitate critical thinking.
Answers will vary.
55. (p. 166–167) Explain the nature and purpose of probing questions, and then give an example
of a probing question.
Answers will vary.
56. (p. 167) What member behaviors are especially counterproductive to critical thinking during
group discussions?
Answers will vary.
57. (p. 169–171) What are the benefits and limitations of a computer-assisted search for
information?
Answers will vary.
58. (p. 178–181) List five common errors in reasoning that inhibit the critical quality of a person’s
thinking. Explain how each error can be potentially damaging to a group decision.
Answers will vary.
59. (p. 181–184) Explain the three symptoms of groupthink and describe how they are deterrents
to good decision making.
Answers will vary.
60. (p. 184–187) Describe the four ways that groups can prevent groupthink.
Answers will vary.