Abstract thinking is the absence of abstract thinking. Features and signs of abstract thinking

When a person does not know something, he turns on abstract thinking, which helps him to make guesses, make judgments, reason. To understand what it is, you need to familiarize yourself with examples, forms and methods of its development.

What is Abstract Thinking?

What is it and why does the psychotherapeutic help site psymedcare.ru touch on the topic of abstract thinking? It is the ability to think in general that helps in finding a solution to an impasse, in the emergence of a different view of the world.

There is precise and generalized thinking. Accurate thinking is activated when a person has knowledge, information and a clear understanding of what is happening. Generalized thinking turns on when a person does not know the exact data, does not have specific information. He can guess, assume, draw general conclusions. Generalized thinking is abstract thinking in simple words.

The scientific language of abstract thinking is a type of cognitive activity when a person moves away from specific details and begins to reason in general. The picture is considered as a whole, without affecting the details, specifics, accuracy. This contributes to the departure from the rules and dogmas and consideration of the situation from different angles. When an event is considered in general, then there are various ways to solve it.

Usually a person proceeds from specific knowledge. For example, a man lies on the couch and watches TV. The thought arises: "He is a slacker." In this situation, the viewer proceeds from his own ideas about what is happening. What could actually be happening? The man lay down for 5 minutes to rest. He had already done everything around the house, so he allowed himself to watch TV. He got sick, so he lies on the couch. There can be many variations of what is happening here. If you ignore the specifics and look at the situation from different angles, then you can find out a lot of new and interesting things.

In abstract thinking, a person thinks approximately. There are no specifics or details here. Generalized words are used: “life”, “world”, “in general”, “by and large”.

Abstract thinking is useful in situations where a person cannot find a way out (intellectual impasse). Due to the lack of information or knowledge, he is forced to reason, guess. If we abstract from the situation with its specific details, then we can consider in it what was not noticed before.

Abstract logical thinking

In abstract-logical thinking, abstractions are used - units of certain patterns that have been isolated from the "abstract", "imaginary" qualities of an object, phenomenon. In other words, a person operates with phenomena that he cannot “touch with his hands”, “see with his eyes”, “smell”.

A very striking example of such thinking is mathematics, which explains phenomena that do not exist in physical nature. For example, there is no such thing as the number "2". The person understands that we are talking about two identical units. However, this figure was invented by people in order to simplify some phenomena.

The progress and development of mankind has forced people to use concepts that in fact do not exist. Another striking example would be the language a person uses. There are no letters, words, sentences in nature. Man invented the alphabet, words and expressions to simplify the expression of his thoughts, which he wants to convey to other people. This allowed people to find mutual language, since everyone understands the meaning of the same word, recognize letters, build sentences.

Abstract-logical thinking becomes necessary in a situation where there is some certainty that is not yet understood and known to a person, and when an intellectual impasse arises. There is a need to identify what is in reality, to find a definition for it.

Abstraction is divided into types and purposes. Types of abstraction:

• Primitive-sensual - highlighting some properties of an object, ignoring its other qualities. For example, considering the structure, but ignoring the form of the subject.
• Generalizing - highlighting a common characteristic in one phenomenon, ignoring the presence of individual characteristics.
• Idealizing - replacing real properties with an ideal scheme that eliminates existing shortcomings.
• Isolating - highlights the component on which attention is focused.
• Actual infinity – infinite sets are defined as finite.
• Constructivization - "coarseness", giving form to phenomena that have vague boundaries.

According to the goals of abstraction there are:

1. Formal (theoretical thinking), when a person considers objects according to their external manifestations. These qualities themselves do not exist on their own without these objects and phenomena.
2. Content, when a person can single out a property from an object or phenomenon that can exist on its own, be autonomous.

The development of abstract-logical thinking is important, since it was it that made it possible to isolate from the surrounding world that which cannot be recognized by the natural senses. Here, concepts (linguistic expressions) were formed that convey the general pattern of a particular phenomenon. Now each person does not have to identify this or that concept, since he learns about it in the process of learning at school, university, at home, etc. This brings us to the next topic about forms of abstract thinking.

Forms of abstract thinking

Since a person cannot “create a wheel” every time, he must systematize the knowledge gained. Many phenomena are not visible to the human eye, something does not exist at all, but all this is in human life, therefore it must have one form or another. In abstract thinking, there are 3 forms:

This is a thought that conveys a common property that can be traced in different subjects. They may be different. However, their homogeneity and similarity allows a person to combine them into one group. So, for example, a chair. It can be with round handles or square seats. Different chairs have a different color, shape, composition. However, their common feature is that they have 4 legs and it is customary to sit on them. The same purpose of objects and their design allows a person to be combined into one group.

People teach these concepts to children from childhood. Speaking of "dog", we mean an animal that runs on 4 legs, barks, barks, etc. Dogs themselves come in different breeds. However, they all have the same characteristics, according to which they are combined into one common concept - "dog".

People use this form of abstraction when they want to confirm or refute something. Moreover, this verbal form is unambiguous. It comes in two forms: simple and complex. Simple - for example, a cat meows. It is short and clear. The second - "the garbage was thrown out, the bucket was empty." It is often expressed in whole sentences of narrative form.

The judgment may be true or false. A true judgment reflects the real state of affairs and is often based on the fact that a person does not show any relation to him, that is, he judges objectively. A judgment becomes false when a person is interested in it and is based on his own conclusions, and not on the real picture of what is happening.

This is a thought that is formed on the basis of two or more judgments, from which a new judgment is formed. In every conclusion there are 3 components: premise (premise), conclusion and conclusion. The premise (premise) is the initial judgments. Inference is the process of logical thinking that leads to a conclusion - a new judgment.

Examples of Abstract Thinking

Having considered the theoretical part of abstract thinking, you should familiarize yourself with various examples. The most striking example of what an abstract judgment is is the exact sciences. Mathematics, physics, astronomy and other sciences are often based on abstract thinking. We do not see numbers as such, but we can count. We collect objects in a group and call their number.

The man talks about life. But what is it? This is the existence of a body in which a person moves, breathes, functions. It is impossible to give a clear definition of what life is. However, a person can unambiguously determine when someone lives and when they die.

Clearly abstract thinking manifests itself when a person thinks about the future. It is not known what will happen there, but everyone has goals, desires, plans. Without the ability to dream and imagine, a person would not be able to plan for the future. Now he seeks to realize these goals. His movement through life becomes more purposeful. Strategies and tactics are emerging that should lead to the desired future. This reality does not yet exist, but a person strives to form it the way he wants to see it.

Another common form of abstraction is idealization. People like to idealize others and the world in general. Women dream of princes from fairy tales, not noticing what men are in the real world. Men dream of obedient wives, ignoring the fact that only an unthinking being can be subordinate to another.

Many people use judgment. Often they are false. Thus, a woman may conclude that "all men are bad" after being betrayed by a single partner. Since she singles out a man as a single class, which is characterized by the same quality, she ascribes to everyone the quality that manifested itself in one person.

Often, wrong conclusions are made on the basis of false judgments. For example, “the neighbors are unfriendly”, “the heating is not supplied”, “the wiring needs to be changed” means “the apartment is dysfunctional”. Based on the emotional discomfort that occurs under the circumstances, unambiguous judgments and conclusions are made that distort reality.

Development of abstract thinking

The most optimal age for the development of abstract thinking is the preschool period. As soon as the child begins to explore the world, he can be helped in the development of all kinds of thinking.

Toys are the most effective way of development. Through shapes, volumes, colors, etc., the child first begins to recognize the details, and then combine them into groups. You can give the child several toys of a square or round shape, so that he divides them into two piles according to the same characteristics.

As soon as a child learns to draw, sculpt, make with his own hands, he should be allowed to engage in such hobbies. This develops not only fine motor skills, but also contributes to the manifestation of creativity. We can say that abstract thinking is creativity that is not limited by frames, shapes, colors.

When a child learns to read, count, write and perceive words by sound, you can work with him to develop abstract-logical thinking. Riddles that should be solved are well suited here, puzzles where it is necessary to solve some question, exercises for ingenuity, where it is necessary to notice an error, an inaccuracy.

Since abstract thinking is not born with a person, but develops as he grows, various rebuses, crosswords, and puzzles will help here. There is a lot of literature on how to develop different types thinking. It should be understood that some puzzles cannot develop only one type of thinking. All of them are partially or completely engaged in the development various kinds cognitive activity.

Particularly effective are various life situations in which the child must find a way out of the situation. A simple task to take out the garbage will force the child to first think about how to dress and what to wear in order to leave the house and carry the garbage bag to the bin. If the garbage can is far from home, then it will be forced to predict its route in advance. Forecasting the future is another way to develop abstract thinking. Children have a good imagination, which should not be oppressed.

The result of abstract thinking is that a person is able to find solutions in any situation. He thinks creatively, flexibly, outside the box. Not always accurate knowledge is objective and able to help in any situation. Circumstances happen different, which makes a person think, reason, predict.

Psychologists note the negative consequences if parents do not engage in the development of this thinking in their child. Firstly, the baby will not learn to distinguish the general from the details and, conversely, move from the general to the details. Secondly, he will not be able to show flexibility of thinking in situations in which he does not know a way out. Thirdly, he will be deprived of the ability to predict the future of his actions.

Abstract thinking differs from linear thinking in that a person does not think in terms of cause and effect. He abstracts from the details and begins to reason in general. The most remarkable thing here is that only after a general vision of affairs can a person move on to the details that are important in a situation. And when the details do not help in solving the problem, then there is a need to abstract, to go beyond what is happening.

Abstract thinking allows you to find something new, to create, to create. If a person were deprived of such thinking, then he would not be able to create a wheel, a car, an airplane and other technologies that many people use now. There would be no progress that arises first from the ability of a person to imagine, dream, go beyond the accepted and reasonable. These skills are also useful in everyday life, when a person is faced with different characters and behaviors of people whom he has never met before. The ability to quickly rebuild and adapt to unchanging circumstances is due to abstract thinking.

Adaptation of children to the preschool educational institution Each person sooner or later changes the environment of his usual habitat. Every.

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Abstract thinking

Abstract thinking is a type of thinking that allows you to abstract from small details and look at the situation as a whole. This type of thinking allows you to step beyond the boundaries of norms and rules and make new discoveries. The development of abstract thinking in a person from childhood should occupy an important place, because this approach makes it easier to find unexpected solutions and new ways out of the situation.

Basic forms of abstract thinking

A feature of abstract thinking is that it has three different forms - concepts, judgments and conclusions. Without understanding their specifics, it is difficult to sink into the concept of "abstract thinking".

The concept is a form of thinking in which an object or group of objects is reflected as one or more features. Each of these signs must be significant! The concept can be expressed both in one word and in a phrase - for example, the concepts of "cat", "leaves", "student of a humanitarian university", "green-eyed girl".

Judgment is a form of thinking in which any phrase describing the world around, objects, relationships and patterns is denied or approved. In turn, judgments are divided into two types - complex and simple. A simple proposition may sound like, for example, "the cat eats sour cream." A complex proposition expresses the meaning in a slightly different form: "The bus started moving, the stop was empty." A complex proposition usually takes the form of a declarative sentence.

Inference is a form of thinking in which, from one or a group of related propositions, a conclusion is drawn, which is a new proposition. This is the basis of abstract-logical thinking. Judgments that precede the formation of the final version are called prerequisites, and the final judgment is called the "conclusion". For example: “All birds fly. Sparrow flies. Sparrow is a bird.

The abstract type of thinking involves the free operation of concepts, judgments and conclusions - such categories that do not make sense without correlation with our everyday life.

How to develop abstract thinking?

Needless to say, the ability for abstract thinking is different for everyone? Some people are given to draw beautifully, others to write poetry, and others to think abstractly. However, the formation of abstract thinking is possible, and for this it is necessary to give the brain a reason for reflection from early childhood.

There are currently many printed publications, which give food for thought - all kinds of collections of puzzles for logic, puzzles and the like. If you want to engage in the development of abstract thinking in yourself or your child, it is enough to find just a minute twice a week to immerse yourself in solving such tasks. The effect will not keep you waiting. It has been noticed that at an early age the brain is easier to solve this kind of problems, but the more training it receives, the better the results.

The complete absence of abstract thinking can give rise not only to many problems with creative activities, but also with the study of those disciplines in which most of the key concepts are abstract. That is why it is important to pay much attention to this topic.

Properly developed abstract thinking allows you to know what has not yet been known by anyone before, to discover various secrets of nature, to distinguish truth from lies. In addition, this method of cognition differs from others in that it does not require direct contact with the object under study and allows you to remotely draw important conclusions and conclusions.

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What is abstract thinking and how does it manifest itself?

1. Definition 2. Forms 3. Types of thinking 4. Features 5. Are people equally developed abstraction? 6. Methods for the development of abstract thinking 7. Abstract thinking and children

Each person in his daily life uses a number of thought processes, one of these is abstract thinking.

Abstract thinking is unique to humans. No animal has this ability.

Definition

Abstract thinking is a type of thinking in which a person abstracts from details and thinks in broad terms, sees the big picture. This feature of the brain allows you to go beyond the ordinary, to go towards your goal regardless of the opinions of other people, to make new discoveries. In today's world, many employers greatly appreciate such abilities in their employees, this provides non-standard problem solving, new original projects. Developing abstract thinking in a child is an important task for his parents, since in many ways this is the key to his success in the future.

Forms

In order to understand the essence of thinking, it is worth understanding what forms it has. Forms of thought processes:

A concept is the ability to characterize an object or phenomenon in one or more words according to its most important features. Example: gray cat, branchy tree, dark-haired girl, small child.

Judgment is a special form of thinking that describes objects and processes in the surrounding world, their relationship and interaction. It can affirm or deny any information. Judgment, in turn, is divided into simple and complex.

An example of a simple proposition: "the grass grows." A complex proposition: “The sun is shining outside the window, therefore, the weather is good,” it has a narrative character.

Inference is a form of thinking, thanks to which, based on several judgments, a person draws a conclusion, which, in fact, will be a generalized judgment. A conclusion is made up of premises and a conclusion. Example: spring has come, it has become warmer outside, the grass has begun to grow.

Abstract thinking allows not only to freely operate with these three concepts, but also to apply them in life. Often in everyday activities we use all three forms of abstract thinking without noticing it.

Types of thinking

In psychology, there are several types of thinking. This separation is a reflection of a person's ability to combine word, action and thought or image. Psychologists categorize them as follows:

1. Specifically effective or practical.
2. Concrete-figurative or artistic
3. Verbal-logical or abstract.

It is especially worth mentioning the verbal-logical type, since it is he who accompanies all the significant achievements of mankind.

Peculiarities

As has been repeatedly said, it is this type of thinking that underlies the empirical cognitive function. Psychologists are constantly trying to improve and concretize the processes that occur in our minds. It is customary to divide several directions in abstract thinking, based on the tasks that a person is trying to solve:

1. Idealizing.
2. Generalizing.
3. Primitively sensual.
4. Insulating.
5. actual infinity.
6. Constructivization.

The idealizing form involves the replacement of real concepts by ideals. This greatly complicates the analysis of the surrounding world, since it is very difficult to find an ideal or apply an ideal solution to real circumstances. Human representations are absolutely ideal. Example: "perfectly white snow".

Generalizing type is the main weapon of mathematicians. It is characterized by the perception of the object of thought in general, depriving it of details and specifics, and therefore, making it a little divorced from reality.

The primitive-sensory type consists in abstracting from some properties of phenomena and objects, while their other properties come to the fore. This type is the main one in any human activity, since it is responsible for the perception of the surrounding world.

The isolating type consists in concentrating on one, the most significant detail for a person, while he does not pay due attention to the rest of the subject.

Constructivization is a distraction from the general characteristics of an object or circumstance.

Also, abstract thinking is divided into:

Are people equally developed abstraction?

The answer is unequivocal - no. Each of us is endowed with abilities, and they are all different, which is why humanity is so diverse in its views, interests, aspirations. For example, someone writes poetry, and another composes prose, some cannot imagine themselves without music, while others prefer to draw in silence. Such diversity allows the society to develop, to make discoveries in all spheres of life. To live in a world where everyone thinks the same, would that be interesting? However, abstract thinking can and should be developed.

In patients with oligophrenia, mental retardation, and some other behavioral deviations, psychiatrists note poorly developed abstract thinking or its complete absence.

Development Methods

The development of abstract thinking is a long and laborious process. But everything is not as scary as it might seem at first glance. In order to develop this type of thinking, a person only needs to devote an hour or an hour and a half to solving logical problems and puzzles two or three times a week. This is a very exciting process, and you will not have time to look back, how it will become your favorite hobby! In the modern world, there are enough printed publications for the development of logic, as well as exercises and assignments can be found on the Internet. This means that finding such information is not difficult. For example, there is a popular site that presents puzzles of varying complexity.

This kind of thinking originates in the East from the time ancient world. It originated as a branch of logic. Logic itself is the ability to think and reason, to draw conclusions about things and their essence. Abstract thinking allows you to build theoretical schemes.

With regular practice, the results will not be long in coming. Within a few weeks, you will notice that it has become easier to think, make long-term plans, and solve issues that previously caused difficulty.

The little man is an open book in which you can write whatever you want! Children are more receptive to learning and developing any abilities. A child's abilities need to be developed through play. The modern toy industry offers a rich selection of games for early development. For example, it can be small puzzles, mosaics, a banal pyramid. At an older age, in order to teach a child to think, invite him to look at pictures in books, explain his understanding of what is happening on them.

Teaching a child to think abstractly is very important. Abstract thinking is not only the key to his creative development, but it is also the ability to question everything, to achieve everything by experience. Developed thinking helps to collect, analyze information and draw independent conclusions, and then back them up with proven facts.

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Abstract thinking - the ability to know the essence

The world surrounding a person is full of concrete things that can be seen, heard, touched. Nevertheless, there is a lot in our life that neither the eyes, nor the ears, nor other sense organs are able to determine. For example, how to imagine infinity, or how to measure the power of love, or what will happen if a modern person is suddenly moved to the distant past? There are answers to these questions, but they are ambiguous, because each person has his own idea of ​​\u200b\u200bwhat you can’t see with your eyes, you can’t hear with your ears and you can’t touch with your hands. This feature is given to him thanks to abstract thinking, which is also called abstract-logical.

Abstract-logical thinking is the privilege of exclusively people. Animals do not have the ability to draw conclusions, analyze, compare and reflect. They act on instinct. Unlike them, a person can not only study the world around him, but also, on the basis of his experience, represent its components in images and symbols, and even predict the future, considering an alternative course of events. By the way, to understand what abstract thinking is, its skills are just the same.

What are the forms of abstract thinking

Depending on what questions a person is able to answer about the world around him, three forms of abstract thinking are distinguished:

• concept - allows a person to answer the question: “What is this?”, And in one or two words. Here, for example, a woman is standing at a bus stop, and next to her is a tall woman, and a little further away is also a woman, also tall, but extremely beautiful;
• Judgment is the ability of a person to understand “what is happening or will happen?”. For example, when a bus pulls up, the women at the bus stop are likely to get on public transport;
• inference - will allow you to draw a conclusion on the topic: "Why did this happen this way?". Suppose a bus drove up to the women standing at the bus stop, but only one entered it. Why are the other two left? Apparently, this route does not suit them.

Thus, abstract-logical thinking enables a person to go beyond the visible and tangible boundaries of the surrounding world and immerse himself in the world that he creates in his mind.

It should be understood that abstract thinking in psychology is the interaction of connections between the causes of phenomena and their consequences based on personal conclusions. It has nothing to do with what constitutes the area of ​​isolated emotions and feelings. Intuition also refers to the concept, which is not a form of abstract thinking.

The possibilities of abstract thinking

Thanks to the ability of a person to see more than the surrounding reality offers, he receives unique opportunities as a gift:

• evaluate objects or phenomena by comparing them with each other;
• analyze what is happening, decomposing the event into components or combining its disparate parts into a whole;
• abstract from specific circumstances, separating signs from the subject;
• generalize or concretize objects or phenomena, finding correspondences between the particular and the general;
• systematize and classify knowledge, extracting what is needed and pushing aside what is superfluous for this moment time.

All these abilities are inherent in every person, but to varying degrees. However, it is in the power of man to improve these abilities. That is why the question: “How to develop abstract thinking?” relevant at any age, although the sooner an answer is found to it, the better.

How to develop abstract thinking?

The development of abstract thinking must begin from early childhood. The younger a person is, according to scientists, the easier it will be for him to learn a new science for himself. The main thing is to do it gradually and according to age. Parents can take on board a lot of simple tricks:

• play associations - for example, fantasize what the objects around you look like;
• compose fairy tales with your child, the heroes of which can be everything that you have at hand - a comb, a refrigerator, a zucchini grown in a garden;
• draw each other's drawings or ask your child to continue one given sketch in different versions - what is hidden behind a zigzag across the entire page or what spiral circles can mean;
• invent life stories accidentally seen by people - whether they are just passers-by on the street or strangers from glossy magazines;
• create chains of associations - for example, what words can correspond to the word "rest" or what the word "delicious" means;
• solve logical puzzles together - remember, in childhood, we all tried to transport a wolf, a goat and cabbage to the shore in one boat?

There are many ways to develop abstract thinking. It is enough to deal with a child for only half an hour a day, and after some time he will amaze you with the logicalness of judgments and the ability to draw conclusions.

What is abstraction, abstract thinking

Thinking is one of the most interesting and at the same time complex cognitive processes of our psyche. It is thinking that allows us to learn, explore the world around us, compare, draw conclusions, build judgments and come to conclusions, and, of course, create, create something fundamentally new based on past experience.

Each of us is endowed with this ability, which allows us to successfully interact with each other. It must be understood that our thinking has a certain classification and peculiar stages of development. The highest form of development of thinking is abstract-logical.

This type of thinking is based on the concepts of "abstraction", "abstract"; and it is the meaning of the word "abstraction" or "abstract" that makes it possible to better understand the nature of this type of thinking. So, abstraction is a concentration of attention on important, essential aspects of an object or phenomenon. As a result of abstraction, abstraction arises, i.e. some generalization that results from this abstraction.

Forms

It is necessary to consider not only general provisions, but also abstract thinking and its forms. After all, it manifests itself in quite a variety of ways.

So, psychologists distinguish the following forms of abstract thinking:

1. Concepts are the simplest and most basic form of mental activity, since other, more complex ones are based on it. This form combines many phenomena or objects with similar features into one concept. For example, the concept of "chair" is furniture that is used for sitting, it has a seating surface, a back, often legs (one or four), designed for one person.

2. Judgment is a more complex form, which does not consist of one concept, but of several, and with the help of judgment we are able to state the fact of something, and we can also describe objects and phenomena or their relationship. Distinguish between simple and complex sentences:

• Simple is a short phrase, such as "It's raining" or "The plane is flying."
• Complex is a chain of short phrases that gives a more detailed understanding of what is happening, for example, "It's cold outside, it's snowing and the wind is blowing."

3. Inference - the most complex form, which is the union of several judgments, on the basis of which we can draw a conclusion, and therefore create a new judgment. For example: “It’s cold outside and the wind is blowing, so you need to dress warmly.” It is a mental process that allows the development of theoretical knowledge.

Our life consists of constantly operating with both concepts and judgments that lead us to new conclusions. Each of us goes from visual-figurative thinking to an abstract and logical kind of thinking.

There are also the main features of the abstract type of thinking:

• The ability to operate with abstract concepts (happiness, law, life, truth).
• Ability to summarize and analyze information.
• The ability to create a system based on the information received.
• Revealing the patterns of the world around you without actually interacting with it (for example, to understand that it is cold outside by looking at the weather forecast on the Internet).
• Ability to establish causal relationships.

Development

The main question that interests almost everyone is the development of abstract thinking, how it happens and whether it can be influenced. So, according to experts, this type of mental activity develops at primary school age, starting from the age of 7, so it can be developed already in the first grades.

Contributes to its development, of course, the game, it is through the game that the child is able to learn the basic concepts, learn to operate with them, and also build conclusions based on judgments. It is also important to involve the child in solving various problems, especially logical ones or those where there are abstract concepts, such as "perimeter" or "area".

Creative activity also helps develop the ability to think abstractly. These can be drawing, modeling, reading poetry or prose, designing, and so on - the choice of the type of creativity should directly depend on the child's abilities.

If we talk about the development of an abstract and logical type of thinking in adults, then they are also recommended to engage in creativity, delve into the understanding of what art is, turn to philosophical concepts and categories. It’s good to give yourself the opportunity to solve puzzles from time to time, to try a non-standard approach to solving everyday problems.

All this allows you to take a fresh look at the world around, and, consequently, expand the functions and possibilities of your thinking. You need to remember and understand that the ability to think abstractly in different people is not equally developed, so you should not compare your results with someone else's - it's better to follow how you were able to develop abstract thinking in yourself and how it changes.

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Our world is full of amazing things, and it exists according to its own laws, often defying logic and rational mind. Operating only with exact knowledge and instructions, we can lose sight of much that has not yet been known and keeps a secret. And just when a person comes into contact with what he does not know, abstract thinking is activated in him, allowing him to reason, make some conclusions, and speculate. This kind of thinking is very important, but in order to understand why it is so and what it is in general, it is necessary to delve into its description, forms and types, examples and methods of development. This is what we will do.

The essence and benefits of abstract thinking

The ability of a person to think, in short, allows him to form a vision of the world, resolve many life situations, achieve success and, in general, be a person. Thinking can be precise and generalized. We operate with exact thinking when we have some knowledge and data, when we clearly understand what is happening. And generalized thinking begins to work in any opposite situation. Then we guess, assume, draw general conclusions. Simply put, generalized thinking is abstract thinking.

Scientifically speaking, abstract thinking is special kind cognitive activity, when a person begins to reason in general terms, moving away from specifics. Here the picture of something is considered as a whole, and accuracy and details are not affected. This, in turn, allows you to move away from dogmas and rules, expand the boundaries and look at the situation from different angles, find extraordinary ways to solve any problem.

In most everyday situations, people start from specific knowledge. For example, a guy sits on a bench at the entrance and clicks seeds. You might immediately think that he is lazy and does not want to do business. And in this case, the basis of our reasoning is our own ideas about what is happening. However, how can it be in reality?

The guy was returning home after a hard shift at work, where he patrolled the territory of a facility under construction for a day. He has a day off and he is free to do whatever he wants, including relaxing, clicking seeds on the bench. Or it could have been that a quarrel took place at his house, and he only, and therefore, in order not to renew a bad habit, he bought seeds and ponders what happened in their company. Variants of events can be very different, and if you move away from the specifics (the guy sits and clicks the seeds), you can abstract and look at the event from different points of view and find a lot of interesting things.

Thinking abstractly, a person thinks, as it were, approximately, which is very useful in everyday situations that lead him into an intellectual dead end, i.e. when he finds it difficult to find a way out or a solution, to form an objective opinion. Abstraction allows you to find in everything that was imperceptible before.

It is important to note that abstract thinking is often also called abstract-logical thinking. This clarification is typical for situations in which a person logically operates with abstractions - units of specific regularities, previously isolated from the "imagined", "imaginary" or "abstract" qualities of a phenomenon or object. In other words, a person uses what he cannot see, hear or touch.

Abstract-logical thinking manifests itself most clearly in mathematics, which explains phenomena that are absent in physical nature. For example, there is no such thing as the number "4", and a person simply understands that four identical units are meant. The very same figure was invented by people in order to simplify certain phenomena. As the development and progress of mankind has become forced to apply concepts that do not exist in essence.

There is one more good example is human language. By themselves, there are no lexical units in nature, such as letters, words, and sentences. But people have created the alphabet and the phenomena that flow from it in order to simplify the expression of their thoughts and facilitate their transmission. Thanks to this, today we can find a common language with each other, because each of us understands what this or that word means, is able to recognize letters and build sentences. Therefore, by the way, abstract thinking and speech are closely interconnected.

Abstract-logical thinking is necessary for us in situations where there is some uncertainty, incomprehensibility and uncertainty, and, again, when an intellectual impasse arises. Thinking in abstractions and , we are able to find what is in the surrounding reality, and look for a definition for this.

Thus, we can single out several useful practical possibilities that abstract (abstract-logical) thinking gives a person:

• distraction from the framework of circumstances and separation from the object or phenomenon of individual signs;
• assessment of objects and phenomena and their comparison;
• generalization and concretization of objects and phenomena;
• finding correspondences between general and particular;
• systematization and classification of knowledge;
• extracting the necessary and cutting off the excess for specific situations;
• analysis of what is happening;
• isolating individual components of events;
• combining disparate information into a big picture.

Each of these mental abilities already exists in each of us, but it is developed and manifests itself to varying degrees. However, they can be successfully improved to get more practical benefits. Therefore, the development of abstract thinking is very important. However, we will talk about this very soon, but for now let's look a little more at the types of abstractions and forms of abstract thinking. But before we continue, we offer you to pass an amusing video test for abstract thinking.

Types of abstractions

As you remember, abstract-logical thinking involves manipulations with abstractions (units of specific patterns). And in order to get closer to understanding abstract thinking and its mechanism, it is necessary to talk about the types of abstractions and their purposes.

There are six kinds of abstractions:

• isolating abstraction - allows you to highlight the components of the phenomena on which attention is focused;
• general abstraction - allows you to highlight general characteristics in a specific phenomenon, cutting off individual characteristics;
• constructivization - allows you to give clearer forms to phenomena with "blurred" boundaries;
• idealizing abstraction - allows you to replace the real properties of the phenomenon with an ideal template that eliminates shortcomings;
• abstraction of actual infinity - allows you to define infinite sets as finite;
• primitive sensory abstraction - allows you to highlight some properties of the phenomenon and ignore the rest.

In addition, abstractions are also divided by purpose:

• formal abstractions - necessary to consider phenomena, based on external manifestations, without these phenomena do not exist;
• meaningful abstractions are necessary for separating properties from phenomena that can exist autonomously outside of these phenomena.

Operating with abstractions of all kinds (and thanks to the possibilities that they give), we can "select" from the world around us that which cannot be recognized with the help of natural senses.

The general patterns of all phenomena are transmitted through special linguistic expressions. With them, we no longer need to identify different concepts every time, because we learn about them from the very beginning of life - from parents, educators, teachers, etc. And it is here that we must speak about the forms of abstract thinking.

Forms of abstract thinking

In abstract thinking, a person operates with different knowledge and mental experience. Over time, all this came to a certain system. Many phenomena of the world are not subject to sight, hearing or touch (and about some it can be said that they do not exist at all as such). But such phenomena are part of human life, and therefore must have at least some form.

There are three main forms of abstract thinking: concept, judgment, and inference. Let's talk about them briefly.

concept

A concept is a thought that conveys a common property of various phenomena. Properties may differ, but be homogeneous and similar, which allows them to be combined into one group. Let's take a car for example. It can be an SUV, sedan or hatchback; different cars have different shape, color, characteristics. But their common feature is that they all have wheels, an engine, a gearbox, etc., and that they can be ridden. It is these signs (design, purpose) that make it possible to attribute properties to one group.

And we are taught such things from the cradle. Mom talks about “cat”, and we immediately understand that this is a meowing and purring four-legged animal with a tail, etc. Cats come in different breeds and colors, but everyone has common features, according to which they refer to the general concept of "cat" or "cat".

Judgment

Judgment a person uses, intending to confirm or refute something. It can be simple or complex. Here is a simple one - “the cat meows” - it can be expressed specifically and unambiguously. But the complex one - “the cat began to meow because he is hungry” - it can be expressed in several declarative sentences.

Judgments are also true and false. True ones reflect the actual state of affairs and are based, as a rule, on the absence of an individual assessment of a person, i.e. he judges objectively. A false judgment becomes when a person shows his interest, based on personal arguments, and not on what is happening in reality.

inference

An inference is a thought formed by two or more judgments. This is a new, more complex proposition. Any conclusion consists of a premise, a conclusion and a conclusion. The premise is the initial judgment, the conclusion is the logical reasoning leading to the conclusion.

These three forms of abstract thinking form its basis. We operate with all abstractions with their help. But what we have said about (forms and types of abstract thinking and abstractions, their goals, etc.) may not be quite enough to understand abstract thinking and its features, because, in fact, all this is theory. Therefore, it makes sense to talk separately about specific examples.

Examples of Abstract Thinking

The clearest example of abstract thinking is the exact sciences, such as astronomy, physics and mathematics, etc. Most often it serves as their base. As such, a person does not see numbers and formulas, but he knows how to calculate, measure, count, combine objects into groups and find their number.

The same goes for life itself. What is life? This is when there is a body in which consciousness functions. We cannot give an exact definition of the concept of "life", but we can say with accuracy when a person is alive and when he is dead.

Abstract thinking is no less obvious when we look to the future. We do not know what awaits us, but we have aspirations and desires. If we couldn't dream and fantasize, we wouldn't be able to plan for the future. Now we are making efforts to achieve results. Our movement in life has a direction. Abstract thinking gives us tactics and strategies that lead to the desired future. This reality does not yet exist, but we are trying to make it match our ideas.

Considering examples of abstract thinking, one cannot but recall idealization. Many idealize both the world in which they live and the people who surround them. There are, for example, men who dream of "possessing" a woman, and at the same time do not even think that one can only possess an inanimate object or an unthinking being. There are also women waiting for the “prince on a white horse” and not paying attention to what many “princes” are in real life.

There is also a great example of false judgments. Let's talk about relationships again: some women believe that all men are "bad", but this judgment is based on bitter experience - situations in which men betrayed these women. In any case, a woman distinguishes men as a separate class with her own specific properties, and therefore she can attribute to all of them what was manifested in one representative.

From false judgments, in addition, false conclusions often grow. For example, a house may be called "dysfunctional" due to faulty wiring, poor heating, unfriendly neighbors. Based on his emotional discomfort that arises in the current conditions, a person makes unambiguous judgments, from which conclusions are formed that form a conclusion that distorts reality - after all, a house may well be “normal”, you just need to bring everything in it to mind.

There are many such examples, but all of them will say that abstract thinking (including the false judgments and conclusions resulting from it) is a huge part of our everyday thought process. It manifests itself differently for everyone, and there will always be components that require development. Someone can systematize information well, but find it difficult to isolate individual elements of events. Someone can ideally find correspondences between the particular and the general, but it is difficult to specify something, etc. And in order to train your brain and improve your intellectual abilities, you need to develop abstract thinking.

Why develop abstract thinking?

Let's start small: abstract thinking, constantly present in our lives, begins to form from an early age. Remember how, as a child, you fantasized and invented all sorts of fables. This is how your abstract thinking developed, with the help of which you abstracted from something concrete and began to do all sorts of manipulations with its properties.

During your school years, this skill helped you master mathematics and other exact sciences. Then, at an institute or university, you used it to solve many abstract problems. And, finally, already in the professional field, abstract thinking allows you to operate with huge amounts of data, a lot of tasks and their properties, divide them into groups according to different parameters, solve problems, and even find the relationship between what you are doing and.

Time management, engineering, philosophy, psychology, writing are just a few areas where abstract thinking is involved. In addition to this, only with its help you can dream about the future and make plans, think about God and love, use a sense of humor and joke, create something new. It’s just not enough to list everything, and does it even make sense?!

Abstract-logical thinking makes a person a rational being and helps to see what is "not there", create a cosmos in chaos and cognize the phenomena of the surrounding world. The value of these abilities cannot be overestimated, and even they are quite enough to understand why it is necessary to develop abstract thinking - in order to achieve better results in everything, increase the level of intelligence, achieve success and conquer new heights. But the most surprising thing is that completely simple methods are suitable for this.

Development of abstract thinking

In this block, we want to briefly talk about how to develop abstract thinking in children and adults. Considering that the ways of its development in these cases will differ, we will talk about them separately.

The development of abstract thinking in children

Despite the fact that abstract thinking develops automatically in a child, parents can create special conditions to improve this process. It is recommended to start classes from the first years of life, when the children's brain is formed and grows. The main task is to help the child move from operations with specific objects to work with abstract concepts, as well as to expand his horizons as much as possible.

Here are some suitable exercises for this:

• Take a landscape sheet and pour some gouache or ink on it to make a blot. It is necessary, together with the baby, to make some kind of drawing out of this blot, for example, a cheerful face or a funny little man.
• Come up with unusual names and names with your child. You can pick up an image on the Internet and come up with at least three interesting names for it. Unusual names can be made for animals and even people.
• Put on small theatrical productions with your child. Create costumes and other props from improvised means. Abstract thinking in children is perfectly developed by playing shadow theater.

Together with these exercises, solve puzzles, riddles, riddles and anagrams with your child. Play and chess, collect puzzles and pick up associations. Initially, the baby may have difficulty completing tasks, but very soon his abstract thinking will develop very quickly, and much faster than in an adult.

The development of abstract thinking in adults

Developing abstract-logical thinking in an adult is a little more difficult than in a child. The fact is that the thinking of an adult has already been formed and has become less flexible. New knowledge is perceived and assimilated more difficult. But this is not a hindrance if you perform special exercises on and the ability to think in abstract categories:

• Close your eyes and imagine as vividly as possible everyone with whom you had to communicate during the day. Do it in every detail: remember the clothes, the timbre and volume of the voice, gestures, facial expressions. At the same time, remember your feelings in the process of communicating with people.
• Close your eyes and start imagining different emotions: joy, horror, fear, tenderness, anxiety, distrust, etc. Create in your mind an image of an emotion without a specific object.
• Close your eyes and imagine an image of an idea, concept or term that interests you. Try to track the associations, sensations and symbols that arise during this. Such abstract phenomena as infinity, energy, freedom, space, religiosity, etc. are wonderfully suitable for performing the exercise.

In addition to the proposed exercises, all the same puzzles, rebuses, sudoku are suitable; engage in drawing and invent non-existent words and expressions. Also, try to read books in an unusual way - backwards, upside down, obliquely, etc.

Also look at books on abstract thinking. Among the most popular are “Abstract Thinking” by Kirill Berendeev, “Intellect Training” by Andrey Rodionov, “Develop the Intellect” by Philip Carter, “Teach Yourself to Think” by Edward de Bono, “Rules of the Brain” by John Medina and.

Learn to think abstractly. If we did not know how to do this, the first aircraft or car would hardly have appeared, there would not have been many discoveries and stunning technological progress. All this comes from the human ability to imagine, fantasize, go beyond the boundaries of the reasonable and familiar. Knowing how to think in abstractions, each of us easily rebuilds and adapts to circumstances, finds ways out of situations and solves problems, creates and creates, thinks, argues, analyzes and predicts.

However, we think that it will be useful for you to get acquainted with a professional point of view on abstract thinking. In the video below, Gennady Nikolayevich Konstantinov, professor at the Higher School of Economics, Doctor of Physical and Mathematical Sciences, teacher and consultant in strategic management and corporate governance, talks about its importance. We wish you a pleasant viewing and, of course, successful in any important direction for you!

Abstract thinking is one that allows you to abstract from small details and look at the situation as a whole. This type of thinking allows you to step beyond the boundaries of norms and rules and make new discoveries. The development of abstract thinking in a person from childhood should occupy an important place, because this approach makes it easier to find unexpected solutions and new ways out of the situation.

Basic forms of abstract thinking

A feature of abstract thinking is that it has three different forms - concepts, judgments and conclusions. Without understanding their specifics, it is difficult to sink into the concept of "abstract thinking".

1. Concept

The concept is a form of thinking in which an object or group of objects is reflected as one or more features. Each of these signs must be significant! The concept can be expressed both in one word and in a phrase - for example, the concepts of "cat", "leaves", "student of a humanitarian university", "green-eyed girl".

2. Judgment

Judgment is a form of thinking in which any phrase describing the world around, objects, relationships and patterns is denied or approved. In turn, judgments are divided into two types - complex and simple. A simple proposition may sound like, for example, "the cat eats sour cream." A complex proposition expresses the meaning in a slightly different form: "The bus started moving, the stop was empty." A complex proposition usually takes the form of a declarative sentence.

3. Inference

Inference is a form of thinking in which, from one or a group of related propositions, a conclusion is drawn, which is a new proposition. This is the basis of abstract-logical thinking. Judgments that precede the formation of the final version are called prerequisites, and the final judgment is called the "conclusion". For example: “All birds fly. Sparrow flies. Sparrow is a bird.

The abstract type of thinking involves the free operation of concepts, judgments and conclusions - such categories that do not make sense without correlation with our everyday life.

How to develop abstract thinking?

Needless to say, the ability for abstract thinking is different for everyone? Some people are given to draw beautifully, others to write poetry, and others to think abstractly. However, the formation of abstract thinking is possible, and for this it is necessary to give the brain a reason for reflection from early childhood.

Currently, there are a lot of printed publications that provide food for thought - all kinds of collections, puzzles and the like. If you want to engage in the development of abstract thinking in yourself or your child, it is enough to find only 30-60 minutes twice a week to immerse yourself in solving such tasks. The effect will not keep you waiting. It is noticed that at an early age the brain is easier to decide this kind of problem, but the more training he gets, the better the results.

The complete absence of abstract thinking can give rise not only to many problems with creative activities, but also with the study of those disciplines in which most of the key concepts are abstract. That is why it is important to pay much attention to this topic.

Properly developed abstract thinking allows you to know what has not yet been known by anyone before, to discover various secrets of nature, to distinguish truth from lies. In addition, this method of cognition differs from others in that it does not require direct contact with the object under study and allows you to remotely draw important conclusions and conclusions.

A variety of information about the outside world enters our brain through the senses in the form of sounds, smells, tactile sensations, visual images, nuances of taste. But this is raw information that still needs to be processed. This requires mental activity and its highest form - abstract thinking. It is it that allows not only to make a detailed analysis of the signals entering the brain, but also to generalize, systematize, categorize them and develop an optimal behavior strategy.

- the result of a long evolution, in its development it has gone through several stages. Abstract thinking is today considered its highest form. Perhaps this is not the last step in the development of human cognitive processes, but so far other, more advanced forms of mental activity are unknown.

Three stages in the development of thinking

The formation of abstract thinking is a process of development and complication of cognitive activity. Its main regularities are characteristic of both anthropogenesis (the development of mankind) and ontogenesis (the development of a child). In both cases, thinking goes through three stages, increasingly increasing the degree of abstractness or abstraction.

1. This form of cognitive processes begins its path with visual-effective thinking. It is concrete in nature and is associated with objective activity. In fact, it is carried out only in the process of manipulating objects, and abstract reflections are impossible for him.
2. The second stage of development is figurative thinking, which is characterized by operations with sensory images. It can already be abstract and is the basis of the process of creating new images, that is, imagination. At this stage, both generalization and systematization appear, but still, figurative thinking is limited to direct, concrete experience.
3. The possibility of overcoming the framework of concreteness appears only at the stage of abstract thinking. It is this type of mental activity that allows one to achieve high level generalizations and operate not with images, but with abstract signs - concepts. Therefore, abstract thinking is also called conceptual.

Figurative thinking wears, that is, it resembles circles diverging in different directions from a stone thrown into the lake - the central image. It is quite chaotic, the images intertwine, interact, evoke. In contrast, abstract thinking is linear, thoughts in it line up in a certain sequence, subject to strict laws. The laws of abstract thinking were discovered in the era of Antiquity and combined into a special field of knowledge called logic. Therefore, abstract thinking is also called logical.

Abstract Thinking Tools

If figurative thinking operates with images, then abstract thinking operates with concepts. Words are his main tool, and this type of thinking exists in speech form. It is the speech formulations of thoughts that allow you to build them logically and sequentially.

Words organize and facilitate thinking. If something is not clear to you, try to talk about this problem, or even better, explain it to someone. And believe me, in the process of this explanation, you yourself will understand even a very difficult issue. And if there are no people willing to listen to your reasoning, then explain to your reflection in the mirror. This is even better and more efficient, since the reflection does not interrupt, and you can also feel free to express yourself in expressions.

The clarity and clarity of speech directly affects mental activity and vice versa - a well-formulated statement requires its comprehension and internal study. Therefore, abstract thinking is sometimes called inner speech, which, although it also uses words, is still different from ordinary, sound:

• it consists not only of words, but also includes images and emotions;
• inner speech is more chaotic and broken, especially if a person does not try to specially organize his thinking;
• it has a convoluted character, when some of the words are skipped and attention is focused on key, significant concepts.

Inner speech resembles the statements of a small child 2-3 years old. Children at this age also designate only key concepts, everything else in their head is occupied by images that they have not yet learned to call words. For example, a baby who just wakes up exclaims joyfully: “Bye-bye - a woman!” Translated into "adult" language, this means: "It's great that while I was sleeping, my grandmother came to us."

Fragmentation and conciseness of inner speech is one of the obstacles to the clarity of abstract-logical thinking. Therefore, it is necessary to train not only external, but also internal speech, achieving the most accurate mental formulations in the process of solving complex problems. Such an ordered inner speech is also called inner pronunciation.

The use of words in thinking is a manifestation of the sign function of consciousness - what distinguishes it from the primitive thinking of animals. Each word is a sign, that is, an abstraction associated with a real object or phenomenon by meaning. Marshak has a poem "Cat's House", and there is such a phrase: "This is a chair - they sit on it, this is a table - they eat at it." This is a very good illustration of meanings - the connection of a word with an object. This connection exists only in a person’s head; in reality, the combination of sounds “table” has nothing to do with a real object. In another language, a completely different combination of sounds is endowed with such a meaning.

The establishment of such connections, and even more so the operation in the mind not with specific images, but with abstract signs, words, numbers, formulas, is a very complex mental process. Therefore, people gradually master it up to adolescence, and even then not all and not fully.

Logic is the science of conceptual thinking

Logic, as the science of thinking, was born more than 2 thousand years ago in Ancient Greece. At the same time, the main types of logical thinking were described and the laws of logic were formulated, which remain unshakable to this day.

Two kinds of thinking: deduction and induction

The elementary unit of abstract-logical thinking is a concept. Several concepts combined into a coherent thought is a judgment. They are affirmative and negative. For example:

• “In autumn, leaves fall from the trees” - affirmative.
• “In winter, there are no leaves on the trees” - negative.

Judgments are either true or false. Thus, the proposition “In winter, young leaves grow on trees” is false.

From two or more judgments, one can draw a conclusion or conclusion, and this whole construction is called a syllogism. For example:

• 1st premise (judgment): "In autumn, leaves fall from the trees."
• 2nd premise (judgment): "Now the leaves have begun to fly around the trees."
• Conclusion (syllogism): "Autumn has come."

Depending on the method on the basis of which the conclusion is made, there are two types of thinking: deductive and inductive.

Method of induction. From several particular judgments, a general conclusion is drawn. For example: “schoolboy Vasya does not study in the summer”, “schoolchild Petya does not study in the summer”, “schoolgirls Masha and Olya also do not study in the summer”. Consequently, "schoolchildren do not study in the summer." Induction is not a very reliable method, since an absolutely correct conclusion can be drawn only if all special cases are taken into account, and this is difficult, and sometimes impossible.

deduction method. In this case, reasoning is built on the basis of general premises and information given in the judgments. That is, the ideal option: one general judgment, one particular judgment, and the conclusion is also a particular judgment. Example:

• “All schoolchildren have holidays in the summer.”
• "Vasya is a schoolboy."
• "Vasya has a vacation in the summer."

This is how the most elementary conclusions in logical thinking look like. True, in order to draw correct conclusions, certain conditions or laws must be observed.

Laws of logic

There are four basic laws, and three of them were formulated by Aristotle:

• The law of identity. According to him, any thought expressed within the framework of logical reasoning must be identical to itself, that is, remain unchanged throughout the entire reasoning or dispute.
• The law of contradiction. If two statements (judgments) contradict each other, then one of them is necessarily false.
• Law of the excluded middle. Any statement can be either false or true, something else is impossible.

In the 17th century, the philosopher Leibniz supplemented these three with a fourth law of "sufficient reason." The proof of the truth of any idea or judgment is possible only on the basis of the use of reliable arguments.

It is believed that it is enough to follow these laws, to be able to correctly form judgments and draw conclusions, and any most difficult task can be solved. But now it has been proven that logical thinking is limited and often faltering, especially when a serious problem arises that does not have one single correct solution. Abstract-logical thinking is too straightforward and inflexible.

The limitations of logic were proved already in the era of Antiquity with the help of the so-called paradoxes - logical problems that have no solution. And the simplest of them is the "liar's paradox", which refutes the inviolability of the third law of logic. In the IV century BC. e. the ancient Greek philosopher Eubulides shocked the supporters of logic with one phrase: "I lie." Is this a true or false proposition? It cannot be true, since the author himself claims that he is lying. But if the phrase "I'm lying" is false, then in this way the proposition becomes true. And logic cannot overcome this vicious circle.

But abstract-logical thinking, despite its limitations and inflexibility, is best managed and itself very well "organizes the brain", makes us adhere to strict rules in the thought process. In addition, the abstract form of thinking continues to be the highest form of cognitive activity. Therefore, the development of abstract thinking is relevant not only in childhood, but also in adults.

Exercises for the development of abstract thinking

Think about what shapes can be made from these details.

The development of this type of thinking is closely related to speech activity, including the richness of vocabulary, the correct construction of sentences and the ability to analyze information.

Exercise "Prove the contrary"

This exercise is best done in writing. In addition to convenience, written speech has another important advantage over oral speech - it is more strictly organized, streamlined and linear. Here is the task itself.

Choose one of the relatively simple, and most importantly, consistent statements. For example: "A seaside vacation is very attractive."

Now find arguments that prove the opposite - the more rebuttals, the better. Write them down in a column, admire and find a rebuttal to each of these arguments. That is, again prove the truth of the first judgment.

Abbreviations exercise

This exercise is good to do in a company, it is not only useful for thinking, but it can also entertain you, for example, during a long journey, or brighten up the wait.

You need to take several arbitrary combinations of 3-4 letters. For example: UPC, USC, NALI, etc.

Next, imagine that these are not just combinations of letters, but abbreviations, and try to decipher them. Perhaps something humorous will turn out - it's not worse. contributes to the development of thinking. I can offer the following options: SKP - "Council of Creative Writers" or "Union of Krivorukov Producers". UOSK - "Management of individual social conflicts", etc.

If you are doing the task in a team, compete on who has the most original name and what such an organization can do.

Exercise "Working with concepts"

Exercises with concepts, more precisely with abstract categories, which have no analogues in the material world, develop abstract thinking well and establish a connection between thought processes different levels. As a rule, such categories reflect the qualities, properties of objects, their interdependence or contradictions. There are many such categories, but for the exercise you can take even the simplest ones, such as “beauty”, “fame”, “hatred”.

1. Having chosen one of the concepts, try to explain as simply as possible (in your own words) what it is. Just avoid explaining through examples (“this is when ...), they even scold you for this at school.
2. Pick up synonyms for this concept and try to determine if there are any differences, nuances between the main word and the synonym.
3. Come up with a symbol of this concept, it can be both abstract and concrete, expressed in words or in a graphic image.

After you have worked with simple concepts, you can move on to complex ones. For example, such: “congruence”, “victimity”, “resistance”, etc. If you do not know what it is, then it is permissible to look at the definitions of these words, but you will still explain them in your own words.

The benefit of developing abstract thinking is not only in learning to solve logical problems. Without it, success in the exact sciences is impossible, it is difficult to understand many economic and social laws. In addition, and importantly, this thinking will make speech more correct and clear, teach you to prove your point of view on the basis of strict laws of logic, and not because “I think so.”

The abstract thinking of a person may seem to someone not such an important mental process. For example, why would anyone need to think about what the Universe is, try to solve in advance unsolvable problems of being, or look for the meaning of life?

However, experts will not agree with this, because abstract thinking makes it possible to abstract from trifles and try to look at the situation as a whole. For example, consider the abstract and concrete thinking: looking out the window you can see Lada Kalina, Toyota Karina, etc. at the entrance, but if you evaluate it specifically, and if you look abstractly, then there are cars near the house ... And this is the ability of a person to look at the world from different angles.

Abstractness in thinking does not allow a person to stagnate, obsessing over trifles, it allows you to go only forward, crossing the existing limits and norms. This is how innovative discoveries appear in the world and the most difficult vital tasks are solved.

Even as a child, a person must acquire the ability to think abstractly and intensively develop this ability. In the future, this will help to assess the overall picture of ongoing events, draw your own conclusions, and not only look for rational decision, but also to find a way out of any, even deadlock situations.

What are the abstract types of thinking

There are three forms of abstract thinking, without knowing which there will be no realization of what it means to think abstractly:

Intermediate judgments leading to a single conclusion are called "premises", and the final conclusion is a "conclusion".

Abstract - this means unencumbered, free thinking, the ability to operate with judgments, independently draw conclusions. Without these mental processes everyday life would be meaningless.

Characteristic signs of abstract thinking

This type of thinking is necessary for the full life of people and there are features of abstract thinking that you should be aware of:

There is a conditional division of the thinking process into 2 stages:

• thinking that does not use language;
• self-communication, which is called "internal dialogue".

You should not even question the fact that people get most of their information from print media, television programs, and the Internet. And everything happens with the use of spoken language.

That is, when receiving information from a source, a person processes it, creates a new one, which is fixed in memory. This confirms that language is, in addition to a means of expression, also a method of fixing information.

To summarize, abstract mental processes give a person the opportunity to:

• the ability to use concepts, groups and criteria that do not exist in the real world;
• summarize and analyze the information received;
• systematize knowledge;
• identify patterns without the need to interact with objects and phenomena of the surrounding world;
• build cause-and-effect relationships, create new models of any ongoing processes.

Logic is the basis of abstract thinking

The root of an abstract phenomenon is considered to be logic, which is a native of the most ancient countries - Ancient Greece, India and the Chinese state. That is, this concept arose long before the creation modern world, And historical facts confirm that it existed as early as the 4th century BC.

Experts managed to find out that the practical application of logic occurred simultaneously in different parts of the world. This only confirms that world development is impossible without mental abstractions or logical judgments. They are necessary for the study of individual objects, phenomena or the overall world picture.

Today, logic is a whole scientific field that has a clear definition as a philosophical branch, a science that studies reasoning, laws and rules used to obtain correct conclusions about the objects under study.

Thus, we can say that logic uses abstract thinking as the main tool, which makes it possible to abstract from the material and build consistent conclusions.

Abstract-logical thinking has deep roots, because logic arose during the appearance of man, and accompanies him in the process of all stages of development.

Diagnosis of mental abstraction abilities

In modern psychology, the ability for abstract thinking is revealed even in childhood.

Various tests have been developed to find out how this type of thinking is developed in a person:

1. Testing that determines the types of thinking. Naturally, in this case, a positive result is the predominance of the identified type of thinking. Such tests often take the form of questionnaires based on working with images or choosing expressions that suit you. The main purpose of testing is to identify relationships between phenomena and their results (causal relationships). In this case, a person receives the initial data, and on their basis, it is necessary, by applying logic, to come to the correct conclusion. Often, specialists use non-existent terms, this makes it possible to assess how detached a person is and whether he has a stable ability to move away from distracting small details.
2. Tests, during which a person receives some verbal combinations and must try to discover the patterns by which they are combined. Then they spread to other groups of words.

Opportunities for Process Improvement

Having a general definition, abstract thinking is individual for each person. Examples of this can always be taken from life - the mother draws beautifully, the daughter has literary abilities, and the son can think abstractly.

However, the formation of abstract thinking in everyone takes place in childhood, and then this aspect should be developed - the child should learn to think independently, he should be encouraged to think and various kinds of fantasies should be encouraged.

Today you can buy various educational material - collections of logical problems, riddles, rebuses and other puzzles that make the brain work. If the development of abstract thinking in an adult individual is required, then this is quite possible. It is enough to spend 30 minutes-1 hour a day to solve logic tasks in order to get the desired result.

Of course, the children's brain is much more flexible and is able to solve even complex tasks (an example of this is the numerous children's riddles, which often lead adults to a dead end, but do not cause any difficulties for a child), but training the brain activity of an adult will allow you to think abstractly. It is important to choose those types of tasks that are especially difficult.

The child, on the other hand, must be constantly provided with the necessary “food for the mind”, since the ability to think abstractly will not interfere with creative activity, but will help in the future to master numerous scientific disciplines based on such skills.

Of course, a person must develop comprehensively, taking into account all mental aspects and his own abilities. People with developed abstract thinking are distinguished by high efficiency, devotion to their favorite work and the ability to independently find a way out of any situation. And these qualities are also necessary for a harmoniously developed personality.