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EVIDENCE ON THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN ECONOMICS AND CRITICAL THINKING SKILLS
Author(s) -
BORG MARY O.,
STRANAHAN HARRIET A.
Publication year - 2010
Publication title -
contemporary economic policy
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.454
H-Index - 49
eISSN - 1465-7287
pISSN - 1074-3529
DOI - 10.1111/j.1465-7287.2008.00134.x
Subject(s) - critical thinking , economics education , context (archaeology) , mathematics education , psychology , curriculum , test (biology) , watson , critical appraisal , economics , pedagogy , computer science , medicine , paleontology , primary education , natural language processing , biology , alternative medicine , pathology
This research provides empirical support for the hypothesis that learning economics increases a student’s critical thinking skills. Using the short form of the Watson‐Glaser Critical Thinking Appraisal (WGCTA‐S) as our measure of critical thinking skills, we find that students who gain a high level of economic understanding in their introductory economics class, as measured by the Test of Understanding College Economics (TUCE), have statistically significant gains in their WGCTA‐S scores. Students who spend more time taking classes and are more fully engaged in the university experience also have greater gains in critical thinking. These results lend support to the idea that introductory economics courses can work in concert with other university level courses, especially within the context of a full‐time curriculum, to enhance critical thinking skills. ( JEL A22)