In this article, we will discuss Reflective and Relativistic Thinking.
Reflective and Relativistic Thinking Meaning:
William Perry said that adolescents often engage in dualistic and absolute thinking, whereas adults are more likely to engage in reflective and relativistic thinking.
The term dualistic thinking is used to describe an adolescent view of the world. Everything is seen in polar terms of opposites. Example, right/wrong or good/bad. As youth mature, dualistic thinking is replaced by multiple thinking. They gradually become aware of the diversity of opinion in other people and realise that authority may not have all the answers.
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Young adults begin to create their own style of thinking and believe that others are entitled to the opinion they hold and that one opinion is good as anyone’s else’s. This leads to the next form of thinking, Relative Thinking.
Here, personal opinions begin to be challenged by others, and a logical evaluation of knowledge is actively pursued. This leads to the final form of thinking, which is full Relativism Thinking.
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In this stage of thinking, young adults completely understand that truth is relative, and knowledge is constructed and not given, contextual and not absolute. Post formal thought is qualitatively different from Piaget’s formal operational thought. It involves understanding that the correct answer to a problem requires reflective thinking. It may vary from one situation to another and that the search for truth is often an ongoing, never-ending process. This is the belief that solutions to problems need to be realistic along with and that emotion and subjective factors can influence thinking.
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