Assumptions and critical thinking

Critical thinking is the ability to think clearly and rationally (http://philosophy.hku.hk/think/critical/). Critical thinking is "the disciplined mental activity of evaluating arguments or propositions and making judgments that can guide the development of beliefs and taking action?
Critical thinking may seem at odds with assumptions, but people draw conclusions based on assumptions (consciously or unconsciously), which need to be critically evaluated, An inference is a conclusion you come to in your mind based on something else that is true or you believe to be true. Assumptions are part of your belief system, and often, something that you do not challenge or question. Your mind takes for granted that your assumption is true.
Let's look at some general inferences and assumptions, where a conclusion or inference is made, based on a belief and assumption about what is believed to be true based on prior experiences. It is important to consider these assumptions behind the inference or statement to accurately interpret the meaning of the conclusion (inference) statement. The critical thinking process helps to identify these assumptions, which can bias decision making when left unchallenged.

1. Inference: We should reduce the penalty for drunken driving, as a milder penalty would mean more convictions.
Assumption: We should increase the number of convictions for drunken driving.

Initially, assumptions may not seem like they do not belong in the critical thinking process. However, as seen above, ones assumptions are a key factor because they provide things to critically evaluate. In the critical thinking process, for example, assumptions are questioned to try to either substantiate or unsubstantiated them. In daily decision-making, the arguments we normally encounter are often arguments where important assumptions are not made explicit. This is why it is an important part of critical thinking that we should be able to identify such hidden assumptions or implicit assumptions.

Lisa,

Please restate and include your references for the work and your colleagues. In addition, please analyze this paragraph

1. Inference: We should reduce the penalty for drunken driving, as a milder penalty would mean more convictions. How do you identify such assumptions?

Assumption: We should increase the number of convictions for drunken driving.

Initially, assumptions may not seem like they do not belong in the critical thinking process. However, as seen above, ones assumptions are a key factor because they provide things to critically evaluate. In the critical thinking process, for example, assumptions are questioned to try to either substantiate or unsubstantiated them. In daily decision-making, the arguments we normally encounter are often arguments where important assumptions are not made explicit. This is why it is an important part of critical thinking that we should be able to identify such hidden assumptions or implicit assumptions.