example of critical analysis psychology

33 Critical Analysis Examples

Critical analysis refers to the ability to examine something in detail in preparation to make an evaluation or judgment.

It will involve exploring underlying assumptions, theories, arguments, evidence, logic, biases, contextual factors, and so forth, that could help shed more light on the topic.

In essay writing, a critical analysis essay will involve using a range of analytical skills to explore a topic, such as:

• Evaluating sources
• Exploring strengths and weaknesses
• Exploring pros and cons
• Questioning and challenging ideas
• Comparing and contrasting ideas

If you’re writing an essay, you could also watch my guide on how to write a critical analysis essay below, and don’t forget to grab your worksheets and critical analysis essay plan to save yourself a ton of time:

Grab your Critical Analysis Worksheets and Essay Plan Here

Critical Analysis Examples

1. exploring strengths and weaknesses.

Perhaps the first and most straightforward method of critical analysis is to create a simple strengths-vs-weaknesses comparison.

Most things have both strengths and weaknesses – you could even do this for yourself! What are your strengths? Maybe you’re kind or good at sports or good with children. What are your weaknesses? Maybe you struggle with essay writing or concentration.

If you can analyze your own strengths and weaknesses, then you understand the concept. What might be the strengths and weaknesses of the idea you’re hoping to critically analyze?

Strengths and weaknesses could include:

• Does it seem highly ethical (strength) or could it be more ethical (weakness)?
• Is it clearly explained (strength) or complex and lacking logical structure (weakness)?
• Does it seem balanced (strength) or biased (weakness)?

You may consider using a SWOT analysis for this step. I’ve provided a SWOT analysis guide here .

2. Evaluating Sources

Evaluation of sources refers to looking at whether a source is reliable or unreliable.

This is a fundamental media literacy skill .

Steps involved in evaluating sources include asking questions like:

• Who is the author and are they trustworthy?
• Is this written by an expert?
• Is this sufficiently reviewed by an expert?
• Is this published in a trustworthy publication?
• Are the arguments sound or common sense?

For more on this topic, I’d recommend my detailed guide on digital literacy .

3. Identifying Similarities

Identifying similarities encompasses the act of drawing parallels between elements, concepts, or issues.

In critical analysis, it’s common to compare a given article, idea, or theory to another one. In this way, you can identify areas in which they are alike.

Determining similarities can be a challenge, but it’s an intellectual exercise that fosters a greater understanding of the aspects you’re studying. This step often calls for a careful reading and note-taking to highlight matching information, points of view, arguments or even suggested solutions.

Similarities might be found in:

• The key themes or topics discussed
• The theories or principles used
• The demographic the work is written for or about
• The solutions or recommendations proposed

Remember, the intention of identifying similarities is not to prove one right or wrong. Rather, it sets the foundation for understanding the larger context of your analysis, anchoring your arguments in a broader spectrum of ideas.

Your critical analysis strengthens when you can see the patterns and connections across different works or topics. It fosters a more comprehensive, insightful perspective. And importantly, it is a stepping stone in your analysis journey towards evaluating differences, which is equally imperative and insightful in any analysis.

4. Identifying Differences

Identifying differences involves pinpointing the unique aspects, viewpoints or solutions introduced by the text you’re analyzing. How does it stand out as different from other texts?

To do this, you’ll need to compare this text to another text.

Differences can be revealed in:

• The potential applications of each idea
• The time, context, or place in which the elements were conceived or implemented
• The available evidence each element uses to support its ideas
• The perspectives of authors
• The conclusions reached

Identifying differences helps to reveal the multiplicity of perspectives and approaches on a given topic. Doing so provides a more in-depth, nuanced understanding of the field or issue you’re exploring.

This deeper understanding can greatly enhance your overall critique of the text you’re looking at. As such, learning to identify both similarities and differences is an essential skill for effective critical analysis.

My favorite tool for identifying similarities and differences is a Venn Diagram:

To use a venn diagram, title each circle for two different texts. Then, place similarities in the overlapping area of the circles, while unique characteristics (differences) of each text in the non-overlapping parts.

6. Identifying Oversights

Identifying oversights entails pointing out what the author missed, overlooked, or neglected in their work.

Almost every written work, no matter the expertise or meticulousness of the author, contains oversights. These omissions can be absent-minded mistakes or gaps in the argument, stemming from a lack of knowledge, foresight, or attentiveness.

Such gaps can be found in:

• Missed opportunities to counter or address opposing views
• Failure to consider certain relevant aspects or perspectives
• Incomplete or insufficient data that leaves the argument weak
• Failing to address potential criticism or counter-arguments

By shining a light on these weaknesses, you increase the depth and breadth of your critical analysis. It helps you to estimate the full worth of the text, understand its limitations, and contextualize it within the broader landscape of related work. Ultimately, noticing these oversights helps to make your analysis more balanced and considerate of the full complexity of the topic at hand.

You may notice here that identifying oversights requires you to already have a broad understanding and knowledge of the topic in the first place – so, study up!

7. Fact Checking

Fact-checking refers to the process of meticulously verifying the truth and accuracy of the data, statements, or claims put forward in a text.

Fact-checking serves as the bulwark against misinformation, bias, and unsubstantiated claims. It demands thorough research, resourcefulness, and a keen eye for detail.

Fact-checking goes beyond surface-level assertions:

• Examining the validity of the data given
• Cross-referencing information with other reliable sources
• Scrutinizing references, citations, and sources utilized in the article
• Distinguishing between opinion and objectively verifiable truths
• Checking for outdated, biased, or unbalanced information

If you identify factual errors, it’s vital to highlight them when critically analyzing the text. But remember, you could also (after careful scrutiny) also highlight that the text appears to be factually correct – that, too, is critical analysis.

8. Exploring Counterexamples

Exploring counterexamples involves searching and presenting instances or cases which contradict the arguments or conclusions presented in a text.

Counterexamples are an effective way to challenge the generalizations, assumptions or conclusions made in an article or theory. They can reveal weaknesses or oversights in the logic or validity of the author’s perspective.

Considerations in counterexample analysis are:

• Identifying generalizations made in the text
• Seeking examples in academic literature or real-world instances that contradict these generalizations
• Assessing the impact of these counterexamples on the validity of the text’s argument or conclusion

Exploring counterexamples enriches your critical analysis by injecting an extra layer of scrutiny, and even doubt, in the text.

By presenting counterexamples, you not only test the resilience and validity of the text but also open up new avenues of discussion and investigation that can further your understanding of the topic.

See Also: Counterargument Examples

9. Assessing Methodologies

Assessing methodologies entails examining the techniques, tools, or procedures employed by the author to collect, analyze and present their information.

The accuracy and validity of a text’s conclusions often depend on the credibility and appropriateness of the methodologies used.

Aspects to inspect include:

• The appropriateness of the research method for the research question
• The adequacy of the sample size
• The validity and reliability of data collection instruments
• The application of statistical tests and evaluations
• The implementation of controls to prevent bias or mitigate its impact

One strategy you could implement here is to consider a range of other methodologies the author could have used. If the author conducted interviews, consider questioning why they didn’t use broad surveys that could have presented more quantitative findings. If they only interviewed people with one perspective, consider questioning why they didn’t interview a wider variety of people, etc.

See Also: A List of Research Methodologies

10. Exploring Alternative Explanations

Exploring alternative explanations refers to the practice of proposing differing or opposing ideas to those put forward in the text.

An underlying assumption in any analysis is that there may be multiple valid perspectives on a single topic. The text you’re analyzing might provide one perspective, but your job is to bring into the light other reasonable explanations or interpretations.

Cultivating alternative explanations often involves:

• Formulating hypotheses or theories that differ from those presented in the text
• Referring to other established ideas or models that offer a differing viewpoint
• Suggesting a new or unique angle to interpret the data or phenomenon discussed in the text

Searching for alternative explanations challenges the authority of a singular narrative or perspective, fostering an environment ripe for intellectual discourse and critical thinking . It nudges you to examine the topic from multiple angles, enhancing your understanding and appreciation of the complexity inherent in the field.

A Full List of Critical Analysis Skills

• Exploring Strengths and Weaknesses
• Evaluating Sources
• Identifying Similarities
• Identifying Differences
• Identifying Biases
• Hypothesis Testing
• Fact-Checking
• Exploring Counterexamples
• Assessing Methodologies
• Exploring Alternative Explanations
• Pointing Out Contradictions
• Challenging the Significance
• Cause-And-Effect Analysis
• Assessing Generalizability
• Highlighting Inconsistencies
• Reductio ad Absurdum
• Comparing to Expert Testimony
• Comparing to Precedent
• Reframing the Argument
• Pointing Out Fallacies
• Questioning the Ethics
• Clarifying Definitions
• Challenging Assumptions
• Exposing Oversimplifications
• Highlighting Missing Information
• Demonstrating Irrelevance
• Assessing Effectiveness
• Assessing Trustworthiness
• Recognizing Patterns
• Differentiating Facts from Opinions
• Analyzing Perspectives
• Prioritization
• Making Predictions
• Conducting a SWOT Analysis
• PESTLE Analysis
• Asking the Five Whys
• Correlating Data Points
• Finding Anomalies Or Outliers
• Comparing to Expert Literature
• Drawing Inferences
• Assessing Validity & Reliability

Analysis and Bloom’s Taxonomy

Benjamin Bloom placed analysis as the third-highest form of thinking on his ladder of cognitive skills called Bloom’s Taxonomy .

This taxonomy starts with the lowest levels of thinking – remembering and understanding. The further we go up the ladder, the more we reach higher-order thinking skills that demonstrate depth of understanding and knowledge, as outlined below:

Here’s a full outline of the taxonomy in a table format:

Chris Drew (PhD)

Dr. Chris Drew is the founder of the Helpful Professor. He holds a PhD in education and has published over 20 articles in scholarly journals. He is the former editor of the Journal of Learning Development in Higher Education. [Image Descriptor: Photo of Chris]

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2 thoughts on “33 Critical Analysis Examples”

THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU! – I cannot even being to explain how hard it has been to find a simple but in-depth understanding of what ‘Critical Analysis’ is. I have looked at over 10 different pages and went down so many rabbit holes but this is brilliant! I only skimmed through the article but it was already promising, I then went back and read it more in-depth, it just all clicked into place. So thank you again!

You’re welcome – so glad it was helpful.

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How to demonstrate critical evaluation in your psychology assignments

Thinking critically about psychology research

Critical thinking is often taught in undergraduate psychology degrees, and is a key marking criteria for higher marks in many assignments. But getting your head around how to write critically can sometimes be difficult. It can take practice. The aim of this short blog is to provide an introduction to critical evaluation, and how to start including evidence of critical evaluation in your psychology assignments.

So what does “critical evaluation” really mean?

Broadly speaking, critical evaluation is the process of thinking and writing critically about the quality of the sources of evidence used to support or refute an argument. By “ evidence “, I mean the literature you cite (e.g., a journal article or book chapter). By “ quality   of the evidence “, I mean thinking about whether this topic has been tested is in a robust way. If the quality of the sources is poor, then this could suggest poor support for your argument, and vice versa. Even if the quality is poor, this is important to discuss in your assignments as evidence of critical thinking in this way!

In the rest of this blog, I outline a few different ways you can start to implement critical thinking into your work and reading of psychology. I talk about the quality of the evidence, a few pointers for critiquing the methods, theoretical and practical critical evaluation too. This is not an exhaustive list, but hopefully it’ll help you to start getting those higher-level marks in psychology. I also include an example write-up at the end to illustrate how to write all of this up!

The quality of the evidence

There are different types of study designs in psychology research, but some are of higher quality than others. The higher the quality of the evidence, the stronger the support for your argument the research offers, because the idea has been tested more rigorously. The pyramid image below can really help to explain what we mean by “quality of evidence”, by showing different study designs in the order of their quality. 

Not every area of psychology is going to be full of high quality studies, and even the strongest sources of evidence (i.e., systematic reviews and/or meta-analyses) can have limitations! Because no study is perfect, it can be a good habit to tell the reader, in your report, (i) what the  design  of the study is that you’re citing, AND, (ii)  how  this affects your argument. Doing so would be evidence of critical thought. (See an example write-up below for implementing this, but do not copy and paste it!) 

But first, what do I mean by “design”? The design of the study refers to  how  the study was carried out. There are sometimes broad categories of design that you’ll have heard of, like a ‘survey design’, ‘a review paper’, or an ‘experimental design’. Within these categories, though, there can be more specific types of design (e.g. a  cross-sectional  survey design, or a  longitudinal  survey design; a  randomised controlled  experiment or a  simple pre-post  experiment). Knowing these specific types of design is a good place to start when thinking about how to critique the evidence when citing your sources, and the image below can help with that. 

Image source: https://thelogicofscience.com/2016/01/12/the-hierarchy-of-evidence-is-the-studys-design-robust/

In summary, there are various types of designs in psychology research. To name a few from the image above, we have: a meta-analysis or a systematic review (a review paper that summarises the research that explores the same research question); a cross-sectional survey study (a questionnaire that people complete once – these are really common in psychology!). If you’re not familiar with these, I would  highly suggest  doing a bit of reading around these methods and some of their general limitations – you can then use these limitation points in your assignments! To help with this, you could do a Google Scholar search for ‘limitations of a cross-sectional study’, or ‘why are randomised control trials gold standard?’. You can use any published papers as further support as a limitation.

Methodological critical evaluation

• Internal validity: Are the findings or the measures used in the study reliable (e.g., have they been replicated by another study, and is the reliability high)? 
• External validity: Are there any biases in the study that might affect generalisability(e.g., gender bias, where one gender may be overrepresented for the population in the sample recruited)?  Lack of generalisability is a common limitation that undergraduates tend to use by default as a limitation in their reports. It’s a perfectly valid limitation, but it can usually be made much more impactful by explaining exactly  how  it’s a problem for the topic of study. In some cases, this limitation may not be all that warranted; for example, a female bias may be expected in a sample of psychology students, because undergraduate courses tend to be filled mostly with females! 
• What is the design of the study, and how it a good or bad quality design (randomised control trial, cross-sectional study)? 

Theoretical critical evaluation

• Do the findings in the literature support the relevant psychological theories?
• Have the findings been replicated in another study? (If so, say so and add a reference!)

Practical critical evaluation

• In the real world, how easy would it be to implement these findings?
• Have these findings been implemented? (If so, you could find out if this has been done well!)

Summary points

In summary, there are various types of designs in psychology research. To name a few from the image above, we have: a meta-analysis or a systematic review (a review paper that summarises the research that explores the same research question); a cross-sectional survey study (a questionnaire that people complete once – these are really common in psychology!). If you’re not familiar with these, I would highly suggest doing a bit of reading around these methods and some of their general limitations – you can then use these limitation points in your assignments! To help with this, I would do a Google Scholar search for ‘limitations of a cross-sectional study’, or ‘why are randomised control trials gold standard?’. You can use these papers as further support as a limitation.

You don’t have to use all of these points in your writing, these are just examples of how you can demonstrate critical thinking in your work. Try to use at least a couple in any assignment. Here is an example of how to write these up:

An example write-up

“Depression and anxiety are generally associated with each other (see the meta-analysis by [reference here]). For example, one of these studies was a cross-sectional study [reference here] with 500 undergraduate psychology students. The researchers found that depression and anxiety (measured using the DASS-21 measure) were correlated at  r  = .76, indicating a strong effect. However, this one study is limited in that it used a cross-sectional design, which do not tell us whether depression causes anxiety or whether anxiety causes depression; it just tells us that they are correlated. It’s also limited in that the participants are not a clinical sample, which does not tell us about whether these are clinically co-morbid constructs. Finally, a strength of this study is that it used the DASS-21 which is generally found to be a reliable measure. Future studies would therefore benefit from using a longitudinal design to gain an idea as to how these variables are causally related to one another, and use more clinical samples to understand the implications for clinical practice. Overall, however, the research generally suggests that depression and anxiety are associated. That there is a meta-analysis on this topic [reference here], showing that there is lots of evidence, suggests that this finding is generally well-accepted.”

• Notice how I first found a review paper on the topic to broadly tell the reader how much evidence there is in the first place. I set the scene of the paragraph with the first sentence, and then the last sentence I brought it back, rounding the paragraph off. 
• Notice how I then described one study from this paper in more detail. Specifically, I mentioned the participants, the design of the study and the measure the researchers used to assess these variables. Critically, I then described  how  each of these pieces of the method are disadvantages/strengths of the study. Sometimes, it’s enough to just say “the study was limited in that it was a cross-sectional study”, but it can really show that you are thinking critically, if you also add “… because it does not tell us….”. 
• Notice how I added a statistic there to further illustrate my point (in this case, it was the correlation coefficient), showing that I didn’t just read the abstract of the paper. Doing this for the effect sizes in a study can also help demonstrate to a reader that you understand statistics (a higher-level marking criteria). 

Are these points you can include in your own work?

Thanks for reading,

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• Teaching Tips

A Brief Guide for Teaching and Assessing Critical Thinking in Psychology

In my first year of college teaching, a student approached me one day after class and politely asked, “What did you mean by the word ‘evidence’?” I tried to hide my shock at what I took to be a very naive question. Upon further reflection, however, I realized that this was actually a good question, for which the usual approaches to teaching psychology provided too few answers. During the next several years, I developed lessons and techniques to help psychology students learn how to evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of scientific and nonscientific kinds of evidence and to help them draw sound conclusions. It seemed to me that learning about the quality of evidence and drawing appropriate conclusions from scientific research were central to teaching critical thinking (CT) in psychology.

In this article, I have attempted to provide guidelines to psychol­ogy instructors on how to teach CT, describing techniques I devel­oped over 20 years of teaching. More importantly, the techniques and approach described below are ones that are supported by scientific research. Classroom examples illustrate the use of the guidelines and how assessment can be integrated into CT skill instruction.

Overview of the Guidelines

Confusion about the definition of CT has been a major obstacle to teaching and assessing it (Halonen, 1995; Williams, 1999). To deal with this problem, we have defined CT as reflective think­ing involved in the evaluation of evidence relevant to a claim so that a sound or good conclusion can be drawn from the evidence (Bensley, 1998). One virtue of this definition is it can be applied to many thinking tasks in psychology. The claims and conclusions psychological scientists make include hypotheses, theoretical state­ments, interpretation of research findings, or diagnoses of mental disorders. Evidence can be the results of an experiment, case study, naturalistic observation study, or psychological test. Less formally, evidence can be anecdotes, introspective reports, commonsense beliefs, or statements of authority. Evaluating evidence and drawing appropriate conclusions along with other skills, such as distin­guishing arguments from nonarguments and finding assumptions, are collectively called argument analysis skills. Many CT experts take argument analysis skills to be fundamental CT skills (e.g., Ennis, 1987; Halpern, 1998). Psychology students need argument analysis skills to evaluate psychological claims in their work and in everyday discourse.

Some instructors expect their students will improve CT skills like argument analysis skills by simply immersing them in challenging course work. Others expect improvement because they use a textbook with special CT questions or modules, give lectures that critically review the literature, or have students complete written assignments. While these and other traditional techniques may help, a growing body of research suggests they are not sufficient to efficiently produce measurable changes in CT skills. Our research on acquisition of argument analysis skills in psychology (Bensley, Crowe, Bernhardt, Buchner, & Allman, in press) and on critical reading skills (Bensley & Haynes, 1995; Spero & Bensley, 2009) suggests that more explicit, direct instruction of CT skills is necessary. These results concur with results of an earlier review of CT programs by Chance (1986) and a recent meta-analysis by Abrami et al., (2008).

Based on these and other findings, the following guidelines describe an approach to explicit instruction in which instructors can directly infuse CT skills and assessment into their courses. With infusion, instructors can use relevant content to teach CT rules and concepts along with the subject matter. Directly infus­ing CT skills into course work involves targeting specific CT skills, making CT rules, criteria, and methods explicit, providing guided practice in the form of exercises focused on assessing skills, and giving feedback on practice and assessments. These components are similar to ones found in effective, direct instruc­tion approaches (Walberg, 2006). They also resemble approaches to teaching CT proposed by Angelo (1995), Beyer (1997), and Halpern (1998). Importantly, this approach has been successful in teaching CT skills in psychology (e.g., Bensley, et al., in press; Bensley & Haynes, 1995; Nieto & Saiz, 2008; Penningroth, Despain, & Gray, 2007). Directly infusing CT skill instruction can also enrich content instruction without sacrificing learning of subject matter (Solon, 2003). The following seven guidelines, illustrated by CT lessons and assessments, explicate this process.

Seven Guidelines for Teaching and Assessing Critical Thinking

1. Motivate your students to think critically

Critical thinking takes effort. Without proper motivation, students are less inclined to engage in it. Therefore, it is good to arouse interest right away and foster commitment to improving CT throughout a course. One motivational strategy is to explain why CT is important to effective, professional behavior. Often, telling a compelling story that illustrates the consequences of failing to think critically can mo­tivate students. For example, the tragic death of 10-year-old Candace Newmaker at the hands of her therapists practicing attachment therapy illustrates the perils of using a therapy that has not been supported by good empirical evidence (Lilienfeld, 2007).

Instructors can also pique interest by taking a class poll posing an interesting question on which students are likely to have an opinion. For example, asking students how many think that the full moon can lead to increases in abnormal behavior can be used to introduce the difference between empirical fact and opinion or common sense belief. After asking students how psychologists answer such questions, instructors might go over the meta-analysis of Rotton and Kelly (1985). Their review found that almost all of the 37 studies they reviewed showed no association between the phase of the moon and abnormal behavior with only a few, usually poorly, controlled studies supporting it. Effect size over all stud­ies was very small (.01). Instructors can use this to illustrate how psychologists draw a conclusion based on the quality and quantity of research studies as opposed to what many people commonly believe. For other interesting thinking errors and misconceptions related to psychology, see Bensley (1998; 2002; 2008), Halpern (2003), Ruscio (2006), Stanovich (2007), and Sternberg (2007).

Attitudes and dispositions can also affect motivation to think critically. If students lack certain CT dispositions such as open-mindedness, fair-mindedness, and skepticism, they will be less likely to think critically even if they have CT skills (Halpern, 1998). Instructors might point out that even great scientists noted for their powers of reasoning sometimes fail to think critically when they are not disposed to use their skills. For example, Alfred Russel Wallace who used his considerable CT skills to help develop the concept of natural selection also believed in spiritualistic contact with the dead. Despite considerable evidence that mediums claiming to contact the dead were really faking such contact, Wallace continued to believe in it (Bensley, 2006). Likewise, the great American psychologist William James, whose reasoning skills helped him develop the seeds of important contemporary theories, believed in spiritualism despite evidence to the contrary.

2. Clearly state the CT goals and objectives for your class

Once students are motivated, the instructor should focus them on what skills they will work on during the course. The APA task force on learning goals and objectives for psychology listed CT as one of 10 major goals for students (Halonen et al., 2002). Under critical thinking they have further specified outcomes such as evaluating the quality of information, identifying and evaluating the source and credibility of information, recognizing and defending against think­ing errors and fallacies. Instructors should publish goals like these in their CT course objectives in their syllabi and more specifically as assignment objectives in their assignments. Given the pragmatic penchant of students for studying what is needed to succeed in a course, this should help motivate and focus them.

To make instruction efficient, course objectives and lesson ob­jectives should explicitly target CT skills to be improved. Objectives should specify the behavior that will change in a way that can be measured. A course objective might read, “After taking this course, you will be able to analyze arguments found in psychological and everyday discussions.” When the goal of a lesson is to practice and improve specific microskills that make up argument analysis, an assignment objective might read “After successfully completing this assignment, you will be able to identify different kinds of evidence in a psychological discussion.” Or another might read “After suc­cessfully completing this assignment, you will be able to distinguish arguments from nonarguments.” Students might demonstrate they have reached these objectives by showing the behavior of correctly labeling the kinds of evidence presented in a passage or by indicating whether an argument or merely a claim has been made. By stating objectives in the form of assessable behaviors, the instructor can test these as assessment hypotheses.

Sometimes when the goal is to teach students how to decide which CT skills are appropriate in a situation, the instructor may not want to identify specific skills. Instead, a lesson objective might read, “After successfully completing this assignment, you will be able to decide which skills and knowledge are appropriate for criti­cally analyzing a discussion in psychology.”

3. Find opportunities to infuse CT that fit content and skill requirements of your course

To improve their CT skills, students must be given opportunities to practice them. Different courses present different opportunities for infusion and practice. Stand-alone CT courses usually provide the most opportunities to infuse CT. For example, the Frostburg State University Psychology Department has a senior seminar called “Thinking like a Psychologist” in which students complete lessons giving them practice in argument analysis, critical reading, critically evaluating information on the Internet, distinguishing science from pseudoscience, applying their knowledge and CT skills in simula­tions of psychological practice, and other activities.

In more typical subject-oriented courses, instructors must find specific content and types of tasks conducive to explicit CT skill instruction. For example, research methods courses present several opportunities to teach argument analysis skills. Instructors can have students critically evaluate the quality of evidence provided by studies using different research methods and designs they find in PsycINFO and Internet sources. This, in turn, could help students write better critical evaluations of research for research reports.

A cognitive psychology teacher might assign a critical evalu­ation of the evidence on an interesting question discussed in text­book literature reviews. For example, students might evaluate the evidence relevant to the question of whether people have flashbulb memories such as accurately remembering the 9-11 attack. This provides the opportunity to teach them that many of the studies, although informative, are quasi-experimental and cannot show causation. Or, students might analyze the arguments in a TV pro­gram such as the fascinating Nova program Kidnapped by Aliens on people who recall having been abducted by aliens.

4. Use guided practice, explicitly modeling and scaffolding CT.

Guided practice involves modeling and supporting the practice of target skills, and providing feedback on progress towards skill attainment. Research has shown that guided practice helps student more efficiently acquire thinking skills than unguided and discovery approaches (Meyer, 2004).

Instructors can model the use of CT rules, criteria, and proce­dures for evaluating evidence and drawing conclusions in many ways. They could provide worked examples of problems, writing samples displaying good CT, or real-world examples of good and bad thinking found in the media. They might also think out loud as they evaluate arguments in class to model the process of thinking.

To help students learn to use complex rules in thinking, instruc­tors should initially scaffold student thinking. Scaffolding involves providing product guidelines, rules, and other frameworks to support the process of thinking. Table 1 shows guidelines like those found in Bensley (1998) describing nonscientific kinds of evidence that can support student efforts to evaluate evidence in everyday psychologi­cal discussions. Likewise, Table 2 provides guidelines like those found in Bensley (1998) and Wade and Tavris (2005) describing various kinds of scientific research methods and designs that differ in the quality of evidence they provide for psychological arguments.

In the cognitive lesson on flashbulb memory described earlier, students use the framework in Table 2 to evaluate the kinds of evidence in the literature review. Table 1 can help them evaluate the kinds of evidence found in the Nova video Kidnapped by Aliens . Specifically, they could use it to contrast scientific authority with less credible authority. The video includes statements by scientific authorities like Elizabeth Loftus based on her extensive research contrasted with the nonscientific authority of Bud Hopkins, an artist turned hypnotherapist and author of popular books on alien abduction. Loftus argues that the memories of alien abduction in the children interviewed by Hopkins were reconstructed around the suggestive interview questions he posed. Therefore, his conclu­sion that the children and other people in the video were recalling actual abduction experiences was based on anecdotes, unreliable self-reports, and other weak evidence.

Modeling, scaffolding, and guided practice are especially useful in helping students first acquire CT skills. After sufficient practice, however, instructors should fade these and have students do more challenging assignments without these supports to promote transfer.

5. Align assessment with practice of specific CT skills

Test questions and other assessments of performance should be similar to practice questions and problems in the skills targeted but differ in content. For example, we have developed a series of practice and quiz questions about the kinds of evidence found in Table 1 used in everyday situations but which differ in subject matter from practice to quiz. Likewise, other questions employ research evidence examples corresponding to Table 2. Questions ask students to identify kinds of evidence, evaluate the quality of the evidence, distinguish arguments from nonarguments, and find assumptions in the examples with practice examples differing in content from assessment items.

6. Provide feedback and encourage students to reflect on it

Instructors should focus feedback on the degree of attainment of CT skill objectives in the lesson or assessment. The purpose of feedback is to help students learn how to correct faulty thinking so that in the future they monitor their thinking and avoid such problems. This should increase their metacognition or awareness and control of their thinking, an important goal of CT instruction (Halpern, 1998).

Students must use their feedback for it to improve their CT skills. In the CT exercises and critical reading assignments, students receive feedback in the form of corrected responses and written feedback on open-ended questions. They should be advised that paying attention to feedback on earlier work and assessments should improve their performance on later assessments.

7. Reflect on feedback and assessment results to improve CT instruction

Instructors should use the feedback they provide to students and the results of ongoing assessments to ‘close the loop,’ that is, use these outcomes to address deficiencies in performance and improve instruction. In actual practice, teaching and assessment strategies rarely work optimally the first time. Instructors must be willing to tinker with these to make needed improvements. Reflec­tion on reliable and valid assessment results provides a scientific means to systematically improve instruction and assessment.

Instructors may find the direct infusion approach as summarized in the seven guidelines to be efficient, especially in helping students acquire basic CT skills, as research has shown. They may especially appreciate how it allows them to take a scientific approach to the improvement of instruction. Although the direct infusion approach seems to efficiently promote acquisition of CT skills, more research is needed to find out if students transfer their skills outside of the class­room or whether this approach needs adjustment to promote transfer.

Table 1. Strengths and Weaknesses of Nonscientific Sources and Kinds of Evidence

Table 2. Strengths and Weaknesses of Scientific Research Methods/Designs Used as Sources of Evidence

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Bensley, D.A. (2006). Why great thinkers sometimes fail to think critically. Skeptical Inquirer, 30, 47–52.

Bensley, D.A. (2008). Can you learn to think more like a psychologist? The Psychologist, 21, 128–129.

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Chance, P. (1986) Thinking in the classroom: A review of programs . New York: Instructors College Press.

Ennis, R.H. (1987). A taxonomy of critical thinking dispositions and abilities. In J. B. Baron & R. F. Sternberg (Eds.). Teaching thinking skills: Theory and practice (pp. 9–26). New York: Freeman.

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About the Author

D. Alan Bensley is Professor of Psychology at Frostburg State University. He received his Master’s and PhD degrees in cognitive psychology from Rutgers University. His main teaching and research interests concern the improvement of critical thinking and other cognitive skills. He coordinates assessment for his department and is developing a battery of instruments to assess critical thinking in psychology. He can be reached by email at [email protected] Association for Psychological Science December 2010 — Vol. 23, No. 10

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How to Write an Article Critique

Tips for Writing a Psychology Critique Paper

Kendra Cherry, MS, is a psychosocial rehabilitation specialist, psychology educator, and author of the "Everything Psychology Book."

Emily is a board-certified science editor who has worked with top digital publishing brands like Voices for Biodiversity, Study.com, GoodTherapy, Vox, and Verywell.

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• Steps for Writing a Critique

Evaluating the Article

• How to Write It
• Helpful Tips

An article critique involves critically analyzing a written work to assess its strengths and flaws. If you need to write an article critique, you will need to describe the article, analyze its contents, interpret its meaning, and make an overall assessment of the importance of the work.

Critique papers require students to conduct a critical analysis of another piece of writing, often a book, journal article, or essay . No matter your major, you will probably be expected to write a critique paper at some point.

For psychology students, critiquing a professional paper is a great way to learn more about psychology articles, writing, and the research process itself. Students will analyze how researchers conduct experiments, interpret results, and discuss the impact of the results.

At a Glance

An article critique involves making a critical assessment of a single work. This is often an article, but it might also be a book or other written source. It summarizes the contents of the article and then evaluates both the strengths and weaknesses of the piece. Knowing how to write an article critique can help you learn how to evaluate sources with a discerning eye.

Steps for Writing an Effective Article Critique

While these tips are designed to help students write a psychology critique paper, many of the same principles apply to writing article critiques in other subject areas.

Your first step should always be a thorough read-through of the material you will be analyzing and critiquing. It needs to be more than just a casual skim read. It should be in-depth with an eye toward key elements.

To write an article critique, you should:

• Read the article , noting your first impressions, questions, thoughts, and observations
• Describe the contents of the article in your own words, focusing on the main themes or ideas
• Interpret the meaning of the article and its overall importance
• Critically evaluate the contents of the article, including any strong points as well as potential weaknesses

The following guidelines can help you assess the article you are reading and make better sense of the material.

Read the Introduction Section of the Article

Start by reading the introduction . Think about how this part of the article sets up the main body and how it helps you get a background on the topic.

• Is the hypothesis clearly stated?
• Is the necessary background information and previous research described in the introduction?

In addition to answering these basic questions, note other information provided in the introduction and any questions you have.

Read the Methods Section of the Article

Is the study procedure clearly outlined in the methods section ? Can you determine which variables the researchers are measuring?

Remember to jot down questions and thoughts that come to mind as you are reading. Once you have finished reading the paper, you can then refer back to your initial questions and see which ones remain unanswered.

Read the Results Section of the Article

Are all tables and graphs clearly labeled in the results section ? Do researchers provide enough statistical information? Did the researchers collect all of the data needed to measure the variables in question?

Make a note of any questions or information that does not seem to make sense. You can refer back to these questions later as you are writing your final critique.

Read the Discussion Section of the Article

Experts suggest that it is helpful to take notes while reading through sections of the paper you are evaluating. Ask yourself key questions:

• How do the researchers interpret the results of the study?
• Did the results support their hypothesis?
• Do the conclusions drawn by the researchers seem reasonable?

The discussion section offers students an excellent opportunity to take a position. If you agree with the researcher's conclusions, explain why. If you feel the researchers are incorrect or off-base, point out problems with the conclusions and suggest alternative explanations.

Another alternative is to point out questions the researchers failed to answer in the discussion section.

Begin Writing Your Own Critique of the Paper

Once you have read the article, compile your notes and develop an outline that you can follow as you write your psychology critique paper. Here's a guide that will walk you through how to structure your critique paper.

Introduction

Begin your paper by describing the journal article and authors you are critiquing. Provide the main hypothesis (or thesis) of the paper. Explain why you think the information is relevant.

Thesis Statement

The final part of your introduction should include your thesis statement. Your thesis statement is the main idea of your critique. Your thesis should briefly sum up the main points of your critique.

Article Summary

Provide a brief summary of the article. Outline the main points, results, and discussion.

When describing the study or paper, experts suggest that you include a summary of the questions being addressed, study participants, interventions, comparisons, outcomes, and study design.

Don't get bogged down by your summary. This section should highlight the main points of the article you are critiquing. Don't feel obligated to summarize each little detail of the main paper. Focus on giving the reader an overall idea of the article's content.

Your Analysis

In this section, you will provide your critique of the article. Describe any problems you had with the author's premise, methods, or conclusions. You might focus your critique on problems with the author's argument, presentation, information, and alternatives that have been overlooked.

When evaluating a study, summarize the main findings—including the strength of evidence for each main outcome—and consider their relevance to key demographic groups.  

Organize your paper carefully. Be careful not to jump around from one argument to the next. Arguing one point at a time ensures that your paper flows well and is easy to read.

Your critique paper should end with an overview of the article's argument, your conclusions, and your reactions.

More Tips When Writing an Article Critique

• As you are editing your paper, utilize a style guide published by the American Psychological Association, such as the official Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association .
• Reading scientific articles can be challenging at first. Remember that this is a skill that takes time to learn but that your skills will become stronger the more that you read.
• Take a rough draft of your paper to your school's writing lab for additional feedback and use your university library's resources.

What This Means For You

Being able to write a solid article critique is a useful academic skill. While it can be challenging, start by breaking down the sections of the paper, noting your initial thoughts and questions. Then structure your own critique so that you present a summary followed by your evaluation. In your critique, include the strengths and the weaknesses of the article.

Archibald D, Martimianakis MA. Writing, reading, and critiquing reviews .  Can Med Educ J . 2021;12(3):1-7. doi:10.36834/cmej.72945

Pautasso M. Ten simple rules for writing a literature review . PLoS Comput Biol . 2013;9(7):e1003149. doi:10.1371/journal.pcbi.1003149

Gülpınar Ö, Güçlü AG. How to write a review article?   Turk J Urol . 2013;39(Suppl 1):44–48. doi:10.5152/tud.2013.054

Erol A. Basics of writing review articles .  Noro Psikiyatr Ars . 2022;59(1):1-2. doi:10.29399/npa.28093

American Psychological Association.  Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association  (7th ed.). Washington DC: The American Psychological Association; 2019.

By Kendra Cherry, MSEd Kendra Cherry, MS, is a psychosocial rehabilitation specialist, psychology educator, and author of the "Everything Psychology Book."

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Writing in Psychology

For most (if not all) your psychology assignments, you'll be required to critically analyse relevant psychological theory and research. If you're just starting out in psychology, you might not know what this involves. This guide will give you an idea of what it means to critically analyse research, along with some practical suggestions for how you can demonstrate your critical-thinking skills. 

What is critical analysis, and why is it important?

Critical analysis involves thinking about the merits and drawbacks of what you're reading. It doesn't necessarily mean tearing apart what you've read-it could also involve highlighting what an author or researcher has done well, and thinking through the implications of a study on the broader research area.

Critical analysis is extremely important in evaluating published research: Psychology studies often build on the limitations of others, and it's important to assess the merits of a study before accepting its conclusions. Furthermore, as a student, your critical analysis of the literature is a way of showing your marker that you've engaged with the field.

What makes critical analysis in psychology different, and how do I critically analyse the literature?

In psychology, critical analysis typically involves evaluating both theory and empirical research (i.e., scientific studies). When critically analysing theory , relevant questions include:

• Does the theory make sense (i.e., is it logical)?
• Can the theory explain psychological phenomena (i.e., what we actually observe in terms of people's behaviour), or does it leave some things unexplained?
• Have any studies been conducted to specifically test this theory, and if so, what did they find? Can we believe this study's conclusions?

In terms of evaluating empirical research , relevant questions include:

• Does the study's research question come logically from the literature the authors have reviewed?
• Are there any issues with the participant sample (e.g., not representative of the population being studied)?
• Do the measures (e.g., questionnaires) actually assess the process of interest?
• Have the appropriate statistical analyses been conducted?
• Do the authors make appropriate conclusions based on their findings, or do they go beyond their findings (i.e., overstate their conclusions)?

Before you critically analyse research, it's important to make sure that you understand what is being argued. We have some resources that can help you get the most out of your reading ( R eading strategies ), as well as some note-taking strategies ( N ote-taking ). The Cornell method might be especially useful, since it involves jotting down your own thoughts/opinions as you're reading, rather than simply summarising information.

As you get more practise critically analysing the literature, you'll find that it starts to feel more natural, and becomes something that you engage in automatically. However, as you're starting out, deliberately thinking through some of the questions in the previous section can help add structure to this process.

What does critical analysis look like?

After you've had a think about the merits and drawbacks of a published piece of work, how do you actually show that you've engaged in critical analysis? Below are some examples of sentences where critical analysis has been demonstrated:

• "Although Brown's (1995) theory can account for [abc], it cannot explain [xyz]."
• "This study is a seminal one in the area, given that it was the first to investigate...".
• "In order to clarify the role of [abc], the study could have controlled for...".
• "This study was a significant improvement over earlier efforts to investigate this topic because...".

What these statements have in common is that they are evaluative : They show that you're making a judgment about the theory or empirical study you're discussing. In general, your marker will be able to tell whether you have engaged in critical analysis by seeing if you've made such statements throughout your work.

Critical analysis in psychology: Some common pitfalls

"The sample size of the study was too small."

Your critiques need to have evidence behind them. Making statements such as this is fine, as long as you follow them up with your reasoning (in this case, on what basis have you decided that the study didn't have enough participants?).

" The study didn't look at participants of [this age/this gender/this ethnic group]."

Traditionally, the area of psychology has tended to focus on WEIRD (white, educated, industrialised, rich, and democratic) individuals. This is certainly an issue for the generalisability of research findings. However, if you make this type of statement, you can further demonstrate your critical-thinking skills by talking about why you think this is an issue for the particular topic you're researching: For example, how might the results of a study differ if a non-WEIRD participant sample had been recruited instead?

Being too critical.

Chances are that if a study is a highly cited one in your area, it probably has some merits (even if it's just that it drew attention to an important topic). You should always be on the lookout for strengths as well as limitations, be they theoretical (i.e., a cohesive, well-elaborated theory) or experimental (i.e., a clever study design).

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Home » Critical Analysis – Types, Examples and Writing Guide

Critical Analysis – Types, Examples and Writing Guide

Table of Contents

Critical Analysis

Definition:

Critical analysis is a process of examining a piece of work or an idea in a systematic, objective, and analytical way. It involves breaking down complex ideas, concepts, or arguments into smaller, more manageable parts to understand them better.

Types of Critical Analysis

Types of Critical Analysis are as follows:

Literary Analysis

This type of analysis focuses on analyzing and interpreting works of literature , such as novels, poetry, plays, etc. The analysis involves examining the literary devices used in the work, such as symbolism, imagery, and metaphor, and how they contribute to the overall meaning of the work.

Film Analysis

This type of analysis involves examining and interpreting films, including their themes, cinematography, editing, and sound. Film analysis can also include evaluating the director’s style and how it contributes to the overall message of the film.

Art Analysis

This type of analysis involves examining and interpreting works of art , such as paintings, sculptures, and installations. The analysis involves examining the elements of the artwork, such as color, composition, and technique, and how they contribute to the overall meaning of the work.

Cultural Analysis

This type of analysis involves examining and interpreting cultural artifacts , such as advertisements, popular music, and social media posts. The analysis involves examining the cultural context of the artifact and how it reflects and shapes cultural values, beliefs, and norms.

Historical Analysis

This type of analysis involves examining and interpreting historical documents , such as diaries, letters, and government records. The analysis involves examining the historical context of the document and how it reflects the social, political, and cultural attitudes of the time.

Philosophical Analysis

This type of analysis involves examining and interpreting philosophical texts and ideas, such as the works of philosophers and their arguments. The analysis involves evaluating the logical consistency of the arguments and assessing the validity and soundness of the conclusions.

Scientific Analysis

This type of analysis involves examining and interpreting scientific research studies and their findings. The analysis involves evaluating the methods used in the study, the data collected, and the conclusions drawn, and assessing their reliability and validity.

Critical Discourse Analysis

This type of analysis involves examining and interpreting language use in social and political contexts. The analysis involves evaluating the power dynamics and social relationships conveyed through language use and how they shape discourse and social reality.

Comparative Analysis

This type of analysis involves examining and interpreting multiple texts or works of art and comparing them to each other. The analysis involves evaluating the similarities and differences between the texts and how they contribute to understanding the themes and meanings conveyed.

Critical Analysis Format

Critical Analysis Format is as follows:

I. Introduction

• Provide a brief overview of the text, object, or event being analyzed
• Explain the purpose of the analysis and its significance
• Provide background information on the context and relevant historical or cultural factors

II. Description

• Provide a detailed description of the text, object, or event being analyzed
• Identify key themes, ideas, and arguments presented
• Describe the author or creator’s style, tone, and use of language or visual elements

III. Analysis

• Analyze the text, object, or event using critical thinking skills
• Identify the main strengths and weaknesses of the argument or presentation
• Evaluate the reliability and validity of the evidence presented
• Assess any assumptions or biases that may be present in the text, object, or event
• Consider the implications of the argument or presentation for different audiences and contexts

IV. Evaluation

• Provide an overall evaluation of the text, object, or event based on the analysis
• Assess the effectiveness of the argument or presentation in achieving its intended purpose
• Identify any limitations or gaps in the argument or presentation
• Consider any alternative viewpoints or interpretations that could be presented
• Summarize the main points of the analysis and evaluation
• Reiterate the significance of the text, object, or event and its relevance to broader issues or debates
• Provide any recommendations for further research or future developments in the field.

VI. Example

• Provide an example or two to support your analysis and evaluation
• Use quotes or specific details from the text, object, or event to support your claims
• Analyze the example(s) using critical thinking skills and explain how they relate to your overall argument

VII. Conclusion

• Reiterate your thesis statement and summarize your main points
• Provide a final evaluation of the text, object, or event based on your analysis
• Offer recommendations for future research or further developments in the field
• End with a thought-provoking statement or question that encourages the reader to think more deeply about the topic

How to Write Critical Analysis

Writing a critical analysis involves evaluating and interpreting a text, such as a book, article, or film, and expressing your opinion about its quality and significance. Here are some steps you can follow to write a critical analysis:

• Read and re-read the text: Before you begin writing, make sure you have a good understanding of the text. Read it several times and take notes on the key points, themes, and arguments.
• Identify the author’s purpose and audience: Consider why the author wrote the text and who the intended audience is. This can help you evaluate whether the author achieved their goals and whether the text is effective in reaching its audience.
• Analyze the structure and style: Look at the organization of the text and the author’s writing style. Consider how these elements contribute to the overall meaning of the text.
• Evaluate the content : Analyze the author’s arguments, evidence, and conclusions. Consider whether they are logical, convincing, and supported by the evidence presented in the text.
• Consider the context: Think about the historical, cultural, and social context in which the text was written. This can help you understand the author’s perspective and the significance of the text.
• Develop your thesis statement : Based on your analysis, develop a clear and concise thesis statement that summarizes your overall evaluation of the text.
• Support your thesis: Use evidence from the text to support your thesis statement. This can include direct quotes, paraphrases, and examples from the text.
• Write the introduction, body, and conclusion : Organize your analysis into an introduction that provides context and presents your thesis, a body that presents your evidence and analysis, and a conclusion that summarizes your main points and restates your thesis.
• Revise and edit: After you have written your analysis, revise and edit it to ensure that your writing is clear, concise, and well-organized. Check for spelling and grammar errors, and make sure that your analysis is logically sound and supported by evidence.

When to Write Critical Analysis

You may want to write a critical analysis in the following situations:

• Academic Assignments: If you are a student, you may be assigned to write a critical analysis as a part of your coursework. This could include analyzing a piece of literature, a historical event, or a scientific paper.
• Journalism and Media: As a journalist or media person, you may need to write a critical analysis of current events, political speeches, or media coverage.
• Personal Interest: If you are interested in a particular topic, you may want to write a critical analysis to gain a deeper understanding of it. For example, you may want to analyze the themes and motifs in a novel or film that you enjoyed.
• Professional Development : Professionals such as writers, scholars, and researchers often write critical analyses to gain insights into their field of study or work.

Critical Analysis Example

An Example of Critical Analysis Could be as follow:

Research Topic:

The Impact of Online Learning on Student Performance

Introduction:

The introduction of the research topic is clear and provides an overview of the issue. However, it could benefit from providing more background information on the prevalence of online learning and its potential impact on student performance.

Literature Review:

The literature review is comprehensive and well-structured. It covers a broad range of studies that have examined the relationship between online learning and student performance. However, it could benefit from including more recent studies and providing a more critical analysis of the existing literature.

Research Methods:

The research methods are clearly described and appropriate for the research question. The study uses a quasi-experimental design to compare the performance of students who took an online course with those who took the same course in a traditional classroom setting. However, the study may benefit from using a randomized controlled trial design to reduce potential confounding factors.

The results are presented in a clear and concise manner. The study finds that students who took the online course performed similarly to those who took the traditional course. However, the study only measures performance on one course and may not be generalizable to other courses or contexts.

Discussion :

The discussion section provides a thorough analysis of the study’s findings. The authors acknowledge the limitations of the study and provide suggestions for future research. However, they could benefit from discussing potential mechanisms underlying the relationship between online learning and student performance.

Conclusion :

The conclusion summarizes the main findings of the study and provides some implications for future research and practice. However, it could benefit from providing more specific recommendations for implementing online learning programs in educational settings.

Purpose of Critical Analysis

There are several purposes of critical analysis, including:

• To identify and evaluate arguments : Critical analysis helps to identify the main arguments in a piece of writing or speech and evaluate their strengths and weaknesses. This enables the reader to form their own opinion and make informed decisions.
• To assess evidence : Critical analysis involves examining the evidence presented in a text or speech and evaluating its quality and relevance to the argument. This helps to determine the credibility of the claims being made.
• To recognize biases and assumptions : Critical analysis helps to identify any biases or assumptions that may be present in the argument, and evaluate how these affect the credibility of the argument.
• To develop critical thinking skills: Critical analysis helps to develop the ability to think critically, evaluate information objectively, and make reasoned judgments based on evidence.
• To improve communication skills: Critical analysis involves carefully reading and listening to information, evaluating it, and expressing one’s own opinion in a clear and concise manner. This helps to improve communication skills and the ability to express ideas effectively.

Importance of Critical Analysis

Here are some specific reasons why critical analysis is important:

• Helps to identify biases: Critical analysis helps individuals to recognize their own biases and assumptions, as well as the biases of others. By being aware of biases, individuals can better evaluate the credibility and reliability of information.
• Enhances problem-solving skills : Critical analysis encourages individuals to question assumptions and consider multiple perspectives, which can lead to creative problem-solving and innovation.
• Promotes better decision-making: By carefully evaluating evidence and arguments, critical analysis can help individuals make more informed and effective decisions.
• Facilitates understanding: Critical analysis helps individuals to understand complex issues and ideas by breaking them down into smaller parts and evaluating them separately.
• Fosters intellectual growth : Engaging in critical analysis challenges individuals to think deeply and critically, which can lead to intellectual growth and development.

Advantages of Critical Analysis

Some advantages of critical analysis include:

• Improved decision-making: Critical analysis helps individuals make informed decisions by evaluating all available information and considering various perspectives.
• Enhanced problem-solving skills : Critical analysis requires individuals to identify and analyze the root cause of a problem, which can help develop effective solutions.
• Increased creativity : Critical analysis encourages individuals to think outside the box and consider alternative solutions to problems, which can lead to more creative and innovative ideas.
• Improved communication : Critical analysis helps individuals communicate their ideas and opinions more effectively by providing logical and coherent arguments.
• Reduced bias: Critical analysis requires individuals to evaluate information objectively, which can help reduce personal biases and subjective opinions.
• Better understanding of complex issues : Critical analysis helps individuals to understand complex issues by breaking them down into smaller parts, examining each part and understanding how they fit together.
• Greater self-awareness: Critical analysis helps individuals to recognize their own biases, assumptions, and limitations, which can lead to personal growth and development.

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What Is a Critical Analysis Essay: Definition

Have you ever had to read a book or watch a movie for school and then write an essay about it? Well, a critical analysis essay is a type of essay where you do just that! So, when wondering what is a critical analysis essay, know that it's a fancy way of saying that you're going to take a closer look at something and analyze it.

So, let's say you're assigned to read a novel for your literature class. A critical analysis essay would require you to examine the characters, plot, themes, and writing style of the book. You would need to evaluate its strengths and weaknesses and provide your own thoughts and opinions on the text.

Similarly, if you're tasked with writing a critical analysis essay on a scientific article, you would need to analyze the methodology, results, and conclusions presented in the article and evaluate its significance and potential impact on the field.

The key to a successful critical analysis essay is to approach the subject matter with an open mind and a willingness to engage with it on a deeper level. By doing so, you can gain a greater appreciation and understanding of the subject matter and develop your own informed opinions and perspectives. Considering this, we bet you want to learn how to write critical analysis essay easily and efficiently, so keep on reading to find out more!

Meanwhile, if you'd rather have your own sample critical analysis essay crafted by professionals from our custom writings , contact us to buy essays online .

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Critical Analysis Essay Topics by Category

If you're looking for an interesting and thought-provoking topic for your critical analysis essay, you've come to the right place! Critical analysis essays can cover many subjects and topics, with endless possibilities. To help you get started, we've compiled a list of critical analysis essay topics by category. We've got you covered whether you're interested in literature, science, social issues, or something else. So, grab a notebook and pen, and get ready to dive deep into your chosen topic. In the following sections, we will provide you with various good critical analysis paper topics to choose from, each with its unique angle and approach.

Critical Analysis Essay Topics on Mass Media

From television and radio to social media and advertising, mass media is everywhere, shaping our perceptions of the world around us. As a result, it's no surprise that critical analysis essays on mass media are a popular choice for students and scholars alike. To help you get started, here are ten critical essay example topics on mass media:

• The Influence of Viral Memes on Pop Culture: An In-Depth Analysis.
• The Portrayal of Mental Health in Television: Examining Stigmatization and Advocacy.
• The Power of Satirical News Shows: Analyzing the Impact of Political Commentary.
• Mass Media and Consumer Behavior: Investigating Advertising and Persuasion Techniques.
• The Ethics of Deepfake Technology: Implications for Trust and Authenticity in Media.
• Media Framing and Public Perception: A Critical Analysis of News Coverage.
• The Role of Social Media in Shaping Political Discourse and Activism.
• Fake News in the Digital Age: Identifying Disinformation and Its Effects.
• The Representation of Gender and Diversity in Hollywood Films: A Critical Examination.
• Media Ownership and Its Impact on Journalism and News Reporting: A Comprehensive Study.

Critical Analysis Essay Topics on Sports

Sports are a ubiquitous aspect of our culture, and they have the power to unite and inspire people from all walks of life. Whether you're an athlete, a fan, or just someone who appreciates the beauty of competition, there's no denying the significance of sports in our society. If you're looking for an engaging and thought-provoking topic for your critical analysis essay, sports offer a wealth of possibilities:

• The Role of Sports in Diplomacy: Examining International Relations Through Athletic Events.
• Sports and Identity: How Athletic Success Shapes National and Cultural Pride.
• The Business of Sports: Analyzing the Economics and Commercialization of Athletics.
• Athlete Activism: Exploring the Impact of Athletes' Social and Political Engagement.
• Sports Fandom and Online Communities: The Impact of Social Media on Fan Engagement.
• The Representation of Athletes in the Media: Gender, Race, and Stereotypes.
• The Psychology of Sports: Exploring Mental Toughness, Motivation, and Peak Performance.
• The Evolution of Sports Equipment and Technology: From Innovation to Regulation.
• The Legacy of Sports Legends: Analyzing Their Impact Beyond Athletic Achievement.
• Sports and Social Change: How Athletic Movements Shape Societal Attitudes and Policies.

Critical Analysis Essay Topics on Literature and Arts

Literature and arts can inspire, challenge, and transform our perceptions of the world around us. From classic novels to contemporary art, the realm of literature and arts offers many possibilities for critical analysis essays. Here are ten original critic essay example topics on literature and arts:

• The Use of Symbolism in Contemporary Poetry: Analyzing Hidden Meanings and Significance.
• The Intersection of Art and Identity: How Self-Expression Shapes Artists' Works.
• The Role of Nonlinear Narrative in Postmodern Novels: Techniques and Interpretation.
• The Influence of Jazz on African American Literature: A Comparative Study.
• The Complexity of Visual Storytelling: Graphic Novels and Their Narrative Power.
• The Art of Literary Translation: Challenges, Impact, and Interpretation.
• The Evolution of Music Videos: From Promotional Tools to a Unique Art Form.
• The Literary Techniques of Magical Realism: Exploring Reality and Fantasy.
• The Impact of Visual Arts in Advertising: Analyzing the Connection Between Art and Commerce.
• Art in Times of Crisis: How Artists Respond to Societal and Political Challenges.

Critical Analysis Essay Topics on Culture

Culture is a dynamic and multifaceted aspect of our society, encompassing everything from language and religion to art and music. As a result, there are countless possibilities for critical analysis essays on culture. Whether you're interested in exploring the complexities of globalization or delving into the nuances of cultural identity, there's a wealth of topics to choose from:

• The Influence of K-Pop on Global Youth Culture: A Comparative Study.
• Cultural Significance of Street Art in Urban Spaces: Beyond Vandalism.
• The Role of Mythology in Shaping Indigenous Cultures and Belief Systems.
• Nollywood: Analyzing the Cultural Impact of Nigerian Cinema on the African Diaspora.
• The Language of Hip-Hop Lyrics: A Semiotic Analysis of Cultural Expression.
• Digital Nomads and Cultural Adaptation: Examining the Subculture of Remote Work.
• The Cultural Significance of Tattooing Among Indigenous Tribes in Oceania.
• The Art of Culinary Fusion: Analyzing Cross-Cultural Food Trends and Innovation.
• The Impact of Cultural Festivals on Local Identity and Economy.
• The Influence of Internet Memes on Language and Cultural Evolution.

How to Write a Critical Analysis: Easy Steps

When wondering how to write a critical analysis essay, remember that it can be a challenging but rewarding process. Crafting a critical analysis example requires a careful and thoughtful examination of a text or artwork to assess its strengths and weaknesses and broader implications. The key to success is to approach the task in a systematic and organized manner, breaking it down into two distinct steps: critical reading and critical writing. Here are some tips for each step of the process to help you write a critical essay.

Step 1: Critical Reading

Here are some tips for critical reading that can help you with your critical analysis paper:

• Read actively : Don't just read the text passively, but actively engage with it by highlighting or underlining important points, taking notes, and asking questions.
• Identify the author's main argument: Figure out what the author is trying to say and what evidence they use to support their argument.
• Evaluate the evidence: Determine whether the evidence is reliable, relevant, and sufficient to support the author's argument.
• Analyze the author's tone and style: Consider the author's tone and style and how it affects the reader's interpretation of the text.
• Identify assumptions: Identify any underlying assumptions the author makes and consider whether they are valid or questionable.
• Consider alternative perspectives: Consider alternative perspectives or interpretations of the text and consider how they might affect the author's argument.
• Assess the author's credibility : Evaluate the author's credibility by considering their expertise, biases, and motivations.
• Consider the context: Consider the historical, social, cultural, and political context in which the text was written and how it affects its meaning.
• Pay attention to language: Pay attention to the author's language, including metaphors, symbolism, and other literary devices.
• Synthesize your analysis: Use your analysis of the text to develop a well-supported argument in your critical analysis essay.

Step 2: Critical Analysis Writing

Here are some tips for critical analysis writing, with examples:

• Start with a strong thesis statement: A strong critical analysis thesis is the foundation of any critical analysis essay. It should clearly state your argument or interpretation of the text. You can also consult us on how to write a thesis statement . Meanwhile, here is a clear example:
• Weak thesis statement: 'The author of this article is wrong.'
• Strong thesis statement: 'In this article, the author's argument fails to consider the socio-economic factors that contributed to the issue, rendering their analysis incomplete.'
• Use evidence to support your argument: Use evidence from the text to support your thesis statement, and make sure to explain how the evidence supports your argument. For example:
• Weak argument: 'The author of this article is biased.'
• Strong argument: 'The author's use of emotional language and selective evidence suggests a bias towards one particular viewpoint, as they fail to consider counterarguments and present a balanced analysis.'
• Analyze the evidence : Analyze the evidence you use by considering its relevance, reliability, and sufficiency. For example:
• Weak analysis: 'The author mentions statistics in their argument.'
• Strong analysis: 'The author uses statistics to support their argument, but it is important to note that these statistics are outdated and do not take into account recent developments in the field.'
• Use quotes and paraphrases effectively: Use quotes and paraphrases to support your argument and properly cite your sources. For example:
• Weak use of quotes: 'The author said, 'This is important.'
• Strong use of quotes: 'As the author points out, 'This issue is of utmost importance in shaping our understanding of the problem' (p. 25).'
• Use clear and concise language: Use clear and concise language to make your argument easy to understand, and avoid jargon or overly complicated language. For example:
• Weak language: 'The author's rhetorical devices obfuscate the issue.'
• Strong language: 'The author's use of rhetorical devices such as metaphor and hyperbole obscures the key issues at play.'
• Address counterarguments: Address potential counterarguments to your argument and explain why your interpretation is more convincing. For example:
• Weak argument: 'The author is wrong because they did not consider X.'
• Strong argument: 'While the author's analysis is thorough, it overlooks the role of X in shaping the issue. However, by considering this factor, a more nuanced understanding of the problem emerges.'
• Consider the audience: Consider your audience during your writing process. Your language and tone should be appropriate for your audience and should reflect the level of knowledge they have about the topic. For example:
• Weak language: 'As any knowledgeable reader can see, the author's argument is flawed.'
• Strong language: 'Through a critical analysis of the author's argument, it becomes clear that there are gaps in their analysis that require further consideration.'

Master the art of critical analysis with EssayPro . Our team is ready to guide you in dissecting texts, theories, or artworks with depth and sophistication. Let us help you deliver a critical analysis essay that showcases your analytical prowess.

Creating a Detailed Critical Analysis Essay Outline

Creating a detailed outline is essential when writing a critical analysis essay. It helps you organize your thoughts and arguments, ensuring your essay flows logically and coherently. Here is a detailed critical analysis outline from our dissertation writers :

I. Introduction

A. Background information about the text and its author

B. Brief summary of the text

C. Thesis statement that clearly states your argument

II. Analysis of the Text

A. Overview of the text's main themes and ideas

B. Examination of the author's writing style and techniques

C. Analysis of the text's structure and organization

III. Evaluation of the Text

A. Evaluation of the author's argument and evidence

B. Analysis of the author's use of language and rhetorical strategies

C. Assessment of the text's effectiveness and relevance to the topic

IV. Discussion of the Context

A. Exploration of the historical, cultural, and social context of the text

B. Examination of the text's influence on its audience and society

C. Analysis of the text's significance and relevance to the present day

V. Counter Arguments and Responses

A. Identification of potential counterarguments to your argument

B. Refutation of counterarguments and defense of your position

C. Acknowledgement of the limitations and weaknesses of your argument

VI. Conclusion

A. Recap of your argument and main points

B. Evaluation of the text's significance and relevance

C. Final thoughts and recommendations for further research or analysis.

This outline can be adjusted to fit the specific requirements of your essay. Still, it should give you a solid foundation for creating a detailed and well-organized critical analysis essay.

Useful Techniques Used in Literary Criticism

There are several techniques used in literary criticism to analyze and evaluate a work of literature. Here are some of the most common techniques:

• Close reading: This technique involves carefully analyzing a text to identify its literary devices, themes, and meanings.
• Historical and cultural context: This technique involves examining the historical and cultural context of a work of literature to understand the social, political, and cultural influences that shaped it.
• Structural analysis: This technique involves analyzing the structure of a text, including its plot, characters, and narrative techniques, to identify patterns and themes.
• Formalism: This technique focuses on the literary elements of a text, such as its language, imagery, and symbolism, to analyze its meaning and significance.
• Psychological analysis: This technique examines the psychological and emotional aspects of a text, including the motivations and desires of its characters, to understand the deeper meanings and themes.
• Feminist and gender analysis: This technique focuses on the representation of gender and sexuality in a text, including how gender roles and stereotypes are reinforced or challenged.
• Marxist and social analysis: This technique examines the social and economic structures portrayed in a text, including issues of class, power, and inequality.

By using these and other techniques, literary critics can offer insightful and nuanced analyses of works of literature, helping readers to understand and appreciate the complexity and richness of the texts.

Sample Critical Analysis Essay

Now that you know how to write a critical analysis, take a look at the critical analysis essay sample provided by our research paper writers and better understand this kind of paper!

Final Words

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Writing a Critical Analysis

What is in this guide, definitions, putting it together, tips and examples of critques.

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This guide is meant to help you understand the basics of writing a critical analysis. A critical analysis is an argument about a particular piece of media. There are typically two parts: (1) identify and explain the argument the author is making, and (2), provide your own argument about that argument. Your instructor may have very specific requirements on how you are to write your critical analysis, so make sure you read your assignment carefully.

Critical Analysis

A deep approach to your understanding of a piece of media by relating new knowledge to what you already know.

Part 1: Introduction

• Identify the work being criticized.
• Present thesis - argument about the work.
• Preview your argument - what are the steps you will take to prove your argument.

Part 2: Summarize

• Provide a short summary of the work.
• Present only what is needed to know to understand your argument.

Part 3: Your Argument

• This is the bulk of your paper.
• Provide "sub-arguments" to prove your main argument.
• Use scholarly articles to back up your argument(s).

Part 4: Conclusion

• Reflect on  how  you have proven your argument.
• Point out the  importance  of your argument.
• Comment on the potential for further research or analysis.
• Cornell University Library Tips for writing a critical appraisal and analysis of a scholarly article.
• Queen's University Library How to Critique an Article (Psychology)
• University of Illinois, Springfield An example of a summary and an evaluation of a research article. This extended example shows the different ways a student can critique and write about an article
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• Last Updated: Feb 14, 2024 4:33 PM
• URL: https://libguides.pittcc.edu/critical_analysis

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Writing in Psychology Overview

Welcome to the Purdue OWL

This page is brought to you by the OWL at Purdue University. When printing this page, you must include the entire legal notice.

Copyright ©1995-2018 by The Writing Lab & The OWL at Purdue and Purdue University. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, reproduced, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed without permission. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our terms and conditions of fair use.

Written for undergraduate students and new graduate students in psychology (experimental), this handout provides information on writing in psychology and on experimental report and experimental article writing.

Psychology is based on the study of human behaviors. As a social science, experimental psychology uses empirical inquiry to help understand human behavior. According to Thrass and Sanford (2000), psychology writing has three elements: describing, explaining, and understanding concepts from a standpoint of empirical investigation.

Discipline-specific writing, such as writing done in psychology, can be similar to other types of writing you have done in the use of the writing process, writing techniques, and in locating and integrating sources. However, the field of psychology also has its own rules and expectations for writing; not everything that you have learned in about writing in the past works for the field of psychology.

Writing in psychology includes the following principles:

• Using plain language : Psychology writing is formal scientific writing that is plain and straightforward. Literary devices such as metaphors, alliteration, or anecdotes are not appropriate for writing in psychology.
• Conciseness and clarity of language : The field of psychology stresses clear, concise prose. You should be able to make connections between empirical evidence, theories, and conclusions. See our OWL handout on conciseness for more information.
• Evidence-based reasoning: Psychology bases its arguments on empirical evidence. Personal examples, narratives, or opinions are not appropriate for psychology.
• Use of APA format: Psychologists use the American Psychological Association (APA) format for publications. While most student writing follows this format, some instructors may provide you with specific formatting requirements that differ from APA format .

Types of writing

Most major writing assignments in psychology courses consists of one of the following two types.

Experimental reports: Experimental reports detail the results of experimental research projects and are most often written in experimental psychology (lab) courses. Experimental reports are write-ups of your results after you have conducted research with participants. This handout provides a description of how to write an experimental report .

Critical analyses or reviews of research : Often called "term papers," a critical analysis of research narrowly examines and draws conclusions from existing literature on a topic of interest. These are frequently written in upper-division survey courses. Our research paper handouts provide a detailed overview of how to write these types of research papers.

3 Activities to Enhance Your Analysis in Critical Thinking

Here is a second set of exercises to help enhance critical thinking..

Posted April 16, 2021 | Reviewed by Davia Sills

At the beginning of the calendar year, I posted a piece on this blog asking if any readers wanted to develop their critical thinking as a kind of New Year’s Resolution. Over the past few months, I’ve received some positive feedback about the post and decided that continuing with the proposed series of exercises seems warranted!

So, if you’re interested in enhancing your critical thinking skills, please start with the first set of exercises in that previous post . If you have already completed those, please find the second set below. Remember, when we are given opportunities to think about our thinking , we are engaging our metacognitive processes, and that’s a foundational part of critical thinking !

We are almost always sure to come across a topic that requires critical thinking within newspapers, magazines, social media posts, and web articles. For these exercises, find such an article and analyze the structure of the argument presented within the article. Please note, almost any long text reflects an argument in the sense that it is trying to convey a point in light of either reasons or objections. An easy way of identifying whether or not an argument is present is by seeing if the piece includes words like: because, but, however, yet, therefore, or thus.

Identify the role that each statement, or proposition, plays in the piece—for example, the central claim, core reasons and core objections (for the central claim), as well as supporting reasons (i.e., reasons for reasons or reasons for objections), rebuttals (i.e., objections to objections).

Re-construct the argument using only propositions that are appropriately signaled within the article through relational cues—words like because, but, however, yet, therefore, and/or thus.

Following this re-construction, ask yourself:

1. What kind of argument structure do these propositions create?

2. What is the central claim in the argument?

3. What are the primary supports and objections?

Finish your analysis by asking yourself:

1. Was the author of the original article, for the most part, being subjective or objective?

2. If any objective propositions were presented, what evidence is provided to support them?

3. If there was subjectivity, how was the author biased?

4. Can you offer any credible reasons to dispute the author’s judgments or claims?

5. Can you offer any credible reasons to further support the author’s judgments or claims?

These activities are a great way to start working on the critical thinking skill of analysis, as they help you to identify the structure of an argument and, subsequently, construct or deconstruct arguments for the purpose of developing your own lines of reasoning. They also usher in the concept of evaluating arguments, particularly with respect to bias , which we discussed in the first post . In the following post, we will delve further into the skill of evaluation.

Christopher Dwyer, Ph.D., is a lecturer at the Technological University of the Shannon in Athlone, Ireland.

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Critical Narrative Analysis in Psychology

A Guide to Practice

• Peter Emerson 0 ,
• Stephen Frosh 1

Unthank Family Centre, Norwich, UK

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Centre for Psychosocial Studies, Birkbeck College, University of London, UK

1723 Accesses

63 Citations

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Table of contents (6 chapters)

Front matter, introduction — psychosocial studies and critical narrative analysis.

• Peter Emerson, Stephen Frosh

Questioning and Transcribing: How to Gain Access to Personal Narratives

Linguistic tools and interpretive levels: beginning interpretation, building a rabbit run: doing thematic interpretation, canonical narratives and cultural orders: moving analysis to a more molar level, claims and counterclaims: working critically with narratives, back matter.

• Interpretation

'If you are interested in conducting psychosocial research and curious about what the study of narrative offers, then this is the book for you. Emerson and Frosh provide a lucid and fluent account of the techniques of narrative analysis complete with highly accessible examples illustrating different levels of analysis. Their book, however, is much more than a simple 'how to' guide. It is a truly fine theoretical exegesis presenting the latest trends in discursive research and critical psychosocial thinking in ways which will inspire and intrigue clinical and psychotherapeutic practitioners as well as social science audiences.' - Professor Margaret Wetherell, Director ESRC Identities Programme, Open University, UK

Peter Emerson

Stephen Frosh

Book Title : Critical Narrative Analysis in Psychology

Book Subtitle : A Guide to Practice

Authors : Peter Emerson, Stephen Frosh

DOI : https://doi.org/10.1057/9780230000674

Publisher : Palgrave Macmillan London

eBook Packages : Palgrave Social & Cultural Studies Collection , Social Sciences (R0)

Copyright Information : Palgrave Macmillan, a division of Macmillan Publishers Limited 2004

Hardcover ISBN : 978-1-4039-0568-0 Published: 19 April 2004

Softcover ISBN : 978-0-230-59540-8 Published: 19 April 2004

eBook ISBN : 978-0-230-00067-4 Published: 19 April 2004

Edition Number : 1

Number of Pages : VII, 170

Topics : Social Work , Clinical Psychology , Methodology of the Social Sciences , Psychological Methods/Evaluation , Literary Theory , Psychology Research

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Psychoanalysis: Freud’s Psychoanalytic Approach to Therapy

Saul Mcleod, PhD

Editor-in-Chief for Simply Psychology

BSc (Hons) Psychology, MRes, PhD, University of Manchester

Saul Mcleod, PhD., is a qualified psychology teacher with over 18 years of experience in further and higher education. He has been published in peer-reviewed journals, including the Journal of Clinical Psychology.

Learn about our Editorial Process

Olivia Guy-Evans, MSc

Associate Editor for Simply Psychology

BSc (Hons) Psychology, MSc Psychology of Education

Olivia Guy-Evans is a writer and associate editor for Simply Psychology. She has previously worked in healthcare and educational sectors.

On This Page:

Psychoanalysis is a therapeutic approach and theory, founded by Sigmund Freud , that seeks to explore the unconscious mind to uncover repressed feelings and interpret deep-rooted emotional patterns, often using techniques like dream analysis and free association.

The primary assumption of psychoanalysis is the belief that all people possess unconscious thoughts, feelings, desires, and memories.

According to Freud, neurotic problems in later life are a product of the conflicts that arise during the Oedipal phase of development. These conflicts may be repressed because the immature ego is unable to deal with them at the time.

Basic Assumptions

• Psychoanalytic psychologists see psychological problems as rooted in the unconscious mind.
• Manifest symptoms are caused by latent (hidden) disturbances.
• Typical causes include unresolved issues during development or repressed trauma.
• Freud believed that people could be cured by making conscious their unconscious thoughts and motivations, thus gaining insight.
• Treatment focuses on bringing the repressed conflict to consciousness, where the client can deal with it.

Psychoanalytic therapy aims to create the right sort of conditions so that the patient can bring these conflicts into the conscious mind, where they can be addressed and dealt with.  Only by having a cathartic (i.e., healing) experience is the person helped and “cured.”

How Can We Understand The Unconscious Mind?

Remember, psychoanalysis is a therapy as well as a theory. Psychoanalysis is commonly used to treat depression and anxiety disorders.

In psychoanalysis (therapy), Freud would have a patient lie on a couch to relax, and he would sit behind them taking notes while they told him about their dreams and childhood memories.  Psychoanalysis would be a lengthy process, involving many sessions with the psychoanalyst.

During analysis, the analyst interprets the patient’s thoughts, actions and dreams , and points out their defenses. By carefully waiting until the patient himself is about to gain the same insight the analyst can maximize the impact of the interpretation.

Related to these interpretations is the problem of the patient’s denial. The analyst may well have reason to believe that a patient’s denial of an interpretation offered by the analyst is another example of the defensive process.

Analysis of defenses is emphasized by contemporary psychoanalysts (known as ego analysts) who dispute the relatively weak role that Freud assigned the ego (Davison & Neale, 1994). They argue that defence mechanisms are the ego’s unconscious tools for warding off a confrontation with anxiety.

Due to the nature of defense mechanisms and the inaccessibility of the deterministic forces operating in the unconscious, psychoanalysis in its classic form is a lengthy process, often involving 2 to 5 sessions per week for several years.

Of particular significance during psychoanalysis are the patient’s attempts at resistance. They may attempt to block discussion by changing the subject quickly, for example, or even neglecting to turn up for therapy. Freud considered these resistances a valuable insight into uncovering sensitive areas in the patient’s unconscious mind.

This approach assumes that the reduction of symptoms alone is relatively inconsequential, as if the underlying conflict is not resolved, more neurotic symptoms will be substituted.

The analyst typically is a “blank screen,” disclosing very little about themselves in order that the client can use the space in the relationship to work on their unconscious without interference from outside.

The psychoanalyst uses various techniques as encouragement for the client to develop insights into their behavior and the meanings of symptoms, including inkblots, parapraxes, free association, interpretation (including dream analysis ), resistance analysis and transference analysis.

1) Rorschach inkblots

Due to the nature of defense mechanisms and the inaccessibility of the deterministic forces operating in the unconscious,

The Rorschach inkblot itself doesn”t mean anything, it’s ambiguous (i.e., unclear). It is what you read into it that is important. Different people will see different things depending on what unconscious connections they make.

The inkblot is known as a projective test as the patient “projects” information from their unconscious mind to interpret the inkblot.

However, behavioral psychologists such as B.F. Skinner have criticized this method as being subjective and unscientific.

2) Freudian Slip

Unconscious thoughts and feelings can transfer to the conscious mind in the form of parapraxes, popularly known as Freudian slips or slips of the tongue. We reveal what is really on our mind by saying something we didn’t mean to.

Freud believed that these were no accidents but were due entirely to the workings of the unconscious. As such, they were a valuable source of insight into this part of the human mind. These are more technically known as parapraxes.

For example, a nutritionist giving a lecture intended to say we should always demand the best in bread, but instead said bed. Another example is where a person may call a friend’s new partner by the name of a previous one, whom we liked better.

Freud believed that slips of the tongue provided an insight into the unconscious mind and that there were no accidents, every behavior (including slips of the tongue) was significant (i.e., all behavior is determined).

3) Free Association

A key part of learning to conduct psychoanalytic psychotherapy involves developing skills and techniques aimed at accessing and understanding unconscious processes.

This includes facilitating the client’s free association, where the client expresses whatever thoughts or feelings come to mind without censorship. As unconscious ideas and emotions emerge, the therapist helps the client explore and make meaning of them.

Free association is a psychoanalytic term used to describe the free association of ideas that can give an insight into the unconscious mind of the patient.

In free association, the patient is encouraged to speak freely and to verbalize anything that comes to mind. In this way the patient may be able to bring content to the surface that has previously been censored by the ego.

This technique involves a therapist giving a word or idea, and the patient immediately responds in an unconstrained way with the first word that comes to mind. The analyst then offers an interpretation of the relationship observed.

It is hoped that fragments of repressed memories will emerge in the course of free association, giving an insight into the unconscious mind.

Free association may not prove useful if the client shows resistance, and is reluctant to say what he or she is thinking.

On the other hand, the presence of resistance (e.g., an excessively long pause) often provides a strong clue that the client is getting close to some important repressed idea in his or her thinking, and that further probing by the therapist is called for.

Freud reported that his free-associating patients occasionally experienced such an emotionally intense and vivid memory that they almost relived the experience.  This is like a “flashback” from a war or a rape experience.

Such a stressful memory, so real it feels like it is happening again, is called an abreaction.  If such a disturbing memory occurred in therapy or with a supportive friend and one felt better–relieved or cleansed–later, it would be called a catharsis .

Frequently, these intensely emotional experiences provided Freud a valuable insight into the patient’s problems.

4) Dream Analysis

According to Freud, the analysis of dreams is “the royal road to the unconscious.” He argued that the conscious mind is like a censor, but it is less vigilant when we are asleep.

In dream analysis , the analyst attempts to unravel and interpret the symbolic nature of the patient’s dreams. The true concerns of the patient are often disguised in their dreams and may be experienced symbolically, i.e. they dream about something that represents their concern, rather than dreaming directly about the concern itself. The true concerns of the patient are often disguised in this symbolic form to protect the conscious mind from developing full awareness of the underlying concern.

As a result, repressed ideas come to the surface – though what we remember may well have been altered during the dream process.

As a result, we need to distinguish between the manifest content and the latent content of a dream. The former is what we actually remember.

The latter is what it really means. Freud believed that very often the real meaning of a dream had a sexual significance and in his theory of sexual symbolism, he speculates on the underlying meaning of common dream themes.

5) Transference Analysis

Another core technique is examining transference, which refers to how the client relates to the therapist in ways that unconsciously reflect early important relationships, and countertransference, the therapist’s own unconscious reactions to the client that can give insight into the therapeutic relationship dynamics.

So, trainees learn to attend carefully to the emotional interchanges within the therapy relationship as a source of insight into both parties’ unconscious relational patterns stemming from their developmental histories.

Of key importance in psychoanalytic therapy is transference . Freud had originally noticed that his patients sometimes felt and acted toward him as if he were an important person from the patient’s past.

Sometimes, these feelings were positive, but sometimes they were negative and hostile. Freud assumed these were relics of attitudes held toward these important persons in the patient’s past.

Freud felt that this transference was an inevitable aspect of psychoanalysis, and used it to explain to patients the childhood origins of many of the concerns and fears.

In psychoanalysis, transference is seen as essential to a complete cure. Analysts use the fact that transference is developing as a sign that an important repressed conflict is nearing the surface.

Countertransference

In psychoanalysis, countertransference refers to the emotional reactions and unconscious biases a therapist might have towards a patient, often influenced by the therapist’s own past experiences or unresolved feelings.

It’s the therapist’s emotional response to the patient’s transference.

Clinical Applications

Psychoanalysis (along with Rogerian humanistic counseling) is an example of a global therapy (Comer, 1995, p. 143) which has the aim of helping clients bring about a major change in their whole perspective on life.

This rests on the assumption that the current maladaptive perspective is tied to deep-seated personality factors. Global therapies stand in contrast to approaches which focus mainly on a reduction of symptoms, such as cognitive and behavioral approaches, so-called problem-based therapies.

Psychoanalytic therapy has been seen as appropriate mainly for the neurotic disorders (e.g. anxiety and eating disorders) rather than for psychotic disorders such as schizophrenia. It is also used for depression although its effectiveness in this area is more questionable because of the apathetic nature of the depressive patients.

A related problem is the greater likelihood of transference in depressive patients undergoing psychoanalysis. They are likely to show extreme dependency upon important people in their life (including their therapist) and more likely to develop transference (Comer, 1995).

Anxiety disorders such as phobias, panic attacks, obsessive-compulsive disorders and post-traumatic stress disorder are obvious areas where psychoanalysis might be assumed to work.

The aim is to assist the client in coming to terms with their own id impulses or to recognize the origin of their current anxiety in childhood relationships that are being relived in adulthood.  Svartberg and Stiles (1991) and Prochaska and DiClemente (1984) point out that the evidence for its effectiveness is equivocal.

Salzman (1980) suggests that psychodynamic therapies generally are of little help to clients with specific anxiety disorders such as phobias or OCDs but may be of more help with general anxiety disorders.

Salzman (1980)  expresses concerns that psychoanalysis may increase the symptoms of OCDs because of the tendency of such clients to be overly concerned with their actions and to ruminate on their plight (Noonan, 1971).

Comer also suggests that psychoanalysis may not be appropriate for patients suffering from obsessive-compulsive disorder in that it may inadvertently increase their tendency to over-interpret events in their life.

Depression may be treated with a psychoanalytic approach to some extent.  Psychoanalysts relate depression back to the loss every child experiences when realizing our separateness from our parents early in childhood.  An inability to come to terms with this may leave the person prone to depression or depressive episodes in later life.

Treatment then involves encouraging the client to recall that early experience and to untangle the fixations that have built up around it.  Particular care is taken with transference when working with depressed clients due to their overwhelming need to be dependent on others.

The aim is for clients to become less dependent and to develop a more functional way of understanding and accepting loss/rejection/change in their lives.

Shapiro and Emde (1991) report that psychodynamic therapies have been successful only occasionally.  One reason might be that depressed people may be too inactive or unmotivated to participate in the session.  In such cases a more directive, challenging approach might be beneficial.

Another reason might be that depressives may expect a quick cure and as psychoanalysis does not offer this, the client may leave or become overly involved in devising strategies to maintain a dependent transference relationship with the analyst.

Critical Evaluation

• Therapy is very time-consuming and is unlikely to provide answers quickly.
• People must be prepared to invest a lot of time and money into the therapy; they must be motivated.
• They might discover some painful and unpleasant memories that had been repressed, which causes them more distress.
• This type of therapy does not work for all people and all types of disorders.
• The nature of Psychoanalysis creates a power imbalance between therapist and client that could raise ethical issues.

There has been criticism in recent years that if psychoanalysis is of benefit to people, it is only of benefit to those who possess certain qualities. The acronym YAVIS has been used to indicate that patients who are young, attractive, verbal, intelligent, and successful would be the ones most likely to benefit from psychoanalysis.

Few studies appear to support the first three of these suggestions, although as well as the latter two suggestions there is evidence that psychoanalysis also works best with those clients who are highly motivated and have a positive attitude towards therapy.

Eysenck (1952) delivered the most damaging indictment of psychoanalysis when he reviewed studies of therapeutic outcomes for neurotic patients. He found that about half recovered within two years. What was so damning for psychoanalysis was that for similar patients who received no treatment at all (waiting list controls), the figure was about two thirds.

Critics of Eysenck’s findings discovered that he had made a number of arbitrary judgements about ‘recoveries’ that were unfavorable to the groups that received psychoanalytic treatments.

Bergin (1971) found that by selecting different outcome criteria, improvement in the psychoanalytically treated group rose to 83% whilst the percentage of control group patients showing significant improvement dropped to 30%.

Fisher and Greenberg (1977), in a review of the literature, conclude that psychoanalytic theory cannot be accepted or rejected as a package, “it is a complete structure consisting of many parts, some of which should be accepted, others rejected and the others at least partially reshaped.”

Eysenck’s claims against the effectiveness of psychoanalysis showed the difficulties of evaluation in this area. Individual differences in patients and therapists, and the relationship between them, might confound attempts to measure the effectiveness of a particular type of treatment. Measuring the outcome of treatment may also present problems in defining what is meant by ‘cure’.

Corsini and Wedding (1995, 2013) claim that, depending on the criteria involved, estimates of ‘cure’ as a result of psychoanalysis range from 30% to 60%.

Although changes in the occurrence of symptoms might be a suitable way of measuring the effectiveness of behaviorist techniques, the effectiveness of psychoanalytic therapy, which typically spans several years, is more subjective, measurable only by the extent to which the clients themselves feel that their condition has improved .

Fonagy (1981) questions whether attempts to validate Freud’s approach through laboratory tests have any validity themselves.

Freud’s theory questions the very basis of a rationalist, scientific approach and could well be seen as a critique of science, rather than science rejecting psychoanalysis because it is not susceptible to refutation.

The case study method is criticized as it is doubtful that generalizations can be valid since the method is open to many kinds of bias (e.g., Little Hans ).

However, psychoanalysis is concerned with offering interpretations to the current client, rather than devising abstract dehumanized principles.

Anthony Storr (1987), the well-known psychoanalyst appearing on TV and Radio 4’s “All in the Mind”, holds the view that whilst a great many psychoanalysts have a wealth of “data” at their fingertips from cases, these observations are bound to be contaminated with subjective personal opinion and should not be considered scientific.

Neo Freudians

Subsequent psychoanalytic theorists built upon but also challenged Freud’s drive theory.

Object relations theory shifted focus to relationships and attachment , with key figures like Melanie Klein , Donald Winnicott, and John Bowlby emphasizing how internal working models of self/other based on early caretaker relationships shape personality and relational patterns.

Harry Stack Sullivan and interpersonal psychoanalysis highlighted social and cultural factors influencing mental health. Heinz Kohut’s self-psychology focused on empathy, attunement, and disorders of the self like narcissism.

Intersubjective and relational psychoanalysis theories view the client’s and therapist’s subjectivities as co-created in an intersubjective field, with attention to enactments and dissociated self states, especially for trauma survivors.

Attachment Theory vs Psychoanalysis

Attachment theory , developed by John Bowlby, and psychoanalytic theory, developed by Sigmund Freud, offer complementary perspectives on human development and relationships.

While attachment theory reacted against some psychoanalytic views , like drive theory, the two approaches converge on many topics. Both see early childhood experiences as shaping internal models that influence adult relationships and behavior.

Attachment research provides empirical evidence that unresolved issues from childhood perpetuate across generations, a key psychoanalytic claim. Concepts like internal working models and secure base align with psychoanalytic ideas like transference and the therapeutic relationship fostering insight.

However, attachment theory more strongly emphasizes the impact of actual childhood events, whereas psychoanalysis highlights inner reality and fantasy.

Both offer useful frameworks for understanding how relational patterns persist or change across the lifespan. Their differences can spark productive dialogue on the roles of inner and outer reality in development. 

Psychoanalytic education also involves the trainee undergoing extensive personal therapy, where through experiencing the therapy process directly they gain firsthand insight into their own psychological conflicts, attachment history, unconscious reactions , and clinical blind spots.

This helps develop self-awareness and attunement needed to understand and respond helpfully to clients’ unconscious communications.

Finally, cultural competence requires analysts to engage in ongoing self-examination around differences and power dynamics related to their own and their clients’ sociocultural identities and experiences.

Unconscious assumptions, biases, stereotypes etc. rooted in culture and privilege/oppression influence clinical perceptions and relationships, so their ongoing reflection upon is considered imperative.

The multiple layers of self-exploration around unconscious processes in one’s personal therapy, clinical work, supervision, and sociocultural context form the bedrock of psychoanalytic clinical education and skill development.

Learning Check: You are the Therapist

Read through the notes below. Identify the methods the therapist is using. What do you think Albert’s problem is?

A young man, 18 years old, is referred to a psychoanalyst by his family doctor. It seems that, for the past year, the young man (Albert) has been experiencing a variety of symptoms such as headaches, dizziness, palpitations, sleep disturbances – all associated with extreme anxiety.

The symptoms are accompanied by a constant, but periodically overwhelming fear of death. He believes that he has a brain tumor and is, therefore, going to die.

However, in spite of exhaustive medical tests, no physical basis for the symptoms can be identified. The doctor finally concludes that Albert’s symptoms are probably psychologically based.

Albert arrives at the analyst’s office accompanied by his parents. He describes his problems and depicts his relationship with his parents as “rosy” – though admitting that his father may be “a little on the strict side.”

It emerges that his father will not permit Albert to go out during the week, and he must be home by 11 pm at weekends.

Additionally, he successfully broke up a relationship between Albert and a girlfriend because he thought they were getting “too close.” In describing this, Albert shows no conscious resentment, recounting the events in an emotional, matter of fact manner.

During one session, in which Albert is encouraged to free associate, he demonstrated a degree of resistance in the following example:

“I remember one day when I was a little kid, and my mother and I were planning to go out shopping together. My father came home early, and instead of my mother taking me out, the two of them went out together leaving me with a neighbor. I felt……for some reason my mind has gone completely blank.”

This passage is fairly typical of Albert’s recollections.

Occasionally, Albert is late for his appointments with the therapist, and less often he misses an appointment, claiming to have forgotten.

ALBERT’S DREAM

During one session, Albert reports a dream in which his father is leaving on a train, while Albert remains on the platform holding hands with both his mother and his girlfriend. He feels both happy and guilty at the same time.

Sometime later, after the therapy sessions have been going on for several months, the analyst takes a two weeks holiday. During a session soon afterward Albert speaks angrily to the therapist.

“Why the hell did you decide to take a holiday with your damned wife just as we were beginning to get somewhere with my analysis.”

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the difference between psychoanalysis and other forms of talk therapy.

Psychoanalysis differs from other forms of talk therapy in its emphasis on unconscious processes and childhood experiences.

Unlike shorter-term therapies, psychoanalysis typically involves several sessions per week and continues for an extended duration. Other talk therapies, such as cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) or humanistic therapy , focus more on conscious thoughts, present problems, and symptom relief.

While psychoanalysis delves into the unconscious mind and explores long-standing patterns, other therapies may prioritize practical strategies and immediate symptom management.

Are the concepts and techniques of psychoanalysis still relevant today?

Freud’s ideas about the unconscious mind, defense mechanisms, and the influence of early experiences continue to shape modern psychology.

While some aspects of Freud’s work have been refined or challenged, psychoanalysis remains valuable for understanding human behavior, emotions, and relationships.

The emphasis on self-reflection, insight, and uncovering hidden motivations can help individuals gain a deeper understanding of themselves. However, it’s important to note that other therapeutic approaches have also emerged, offering alternative perspectives and methods for addressing mental health concerns.

Is psychoanalysis only effective for specific types of mental disorders?

Psychoanalysis is not necessarily limited to specific types of mental disorders. While it was originally developed for treating neurotic disorders, its principles can be applied to a wide range of mental health concerns.

Psychoanalysis focuses on understanding the underlying emotional conflicts and unconscious processes that contribute to psychological distress. It can be helpful for various conditions, including anxiety , depression , personality disorders, and relationship difficulties.

Additionally, psychoanalysis can also be beneficial for personal growth and self-exploration, even if someone doesn’t have a specific mental disorder. The approach aims to enhance self-awareness and foster a deeper understanding of one’s emotions, thoughts, and behaviors.

What are some of the defence mechanisms Freud described?

Freud described several defense mechanisms that people unconsciously use to cope with anxiety or distress. Some of these mechanisms include:

1. Repression: Pushing distressing thoughts or memories out of awareness. 2. Denial: Refusing to acknowledge or accept a painful reality. 3. Projection: Attributing one’s own unacceptable thoughts or feelings to someone else. 4. Displacement: Redirecting emotions from their original source to a less threatening target. 5. Rationalization: Creating logical explanations or justifications to make unacceptable behaviors or thoughts seem more acceptable. 6. Sublimation: Channeling unacceptable impulses into socially acceptable activities or outlets. 7. Regression: Reverting to an earlier stage of development in the face of stress or conflict. 8. Reaction Formation: Expressing the opposite of one’s true feelings or desires.

These defense mechanisms serve to protect the ego from overwhelming anxiety, but they can also distort reality and hinder personal growth and self-awareness.

Is transactional analysis a psychoanalytic theory?

Transactional analysis (TA) is a psychotherapeutic approach developed by Eric Berne. While it incorporates certain elements of psychoanalytic theory, especially regarding early childhood experiences, it distinctively emphasizes the “transactions” or interactions between people and introduces concepts like the Parent, Adult, and Child ego states. So, while influenced by psychoanalysis, TA stands as its unique approach.

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