Understanding how our brains work helps lawyers to appreciate how we make decisions, how we can influence others, and how we can be misled. We extract some of the very best recent insights and apply them to practical professional settings.
Developing critical thinking skills helps lawyers to challenge their own assumptions and evaluate information and data more accurately.
Course Information
Who is it for?
Suitable for lawyers, trainee solicitors and business services.
Course content
E-learning overview
Our critical thinking e-learning course is divided into five modules which explore some of the shortcuts that our brains have evolved over millennia in order to conserve energy and time. It explains where they come from, why the brain likes them, recognises their strengths, and, importantly, shows where they are vulnerable to error.
Each e-learning module provides tools and techniques to improve your critical thinking, and scenarios to practise applying the tools.
You can download PDFs with a reminder of the tools.
We offer the option of follow-on workshops to help embed the learning using case-studies which can be adapted for the audience.
Content
Confirmation bias explores five strands of bias and provides tools to help recognise and avoid them.
The influence of others looks at two of the more important ways in which the behaviour of others can influence us.
Developing expert judgement covers how to develop your unconscious thinking in a positive way, including assessing the reliability of your own judgement and that of others.
Easy v strategic thinking looks at how to think more critically about the purpose and outcome of our work. Our brains seek thinking shortcuts to conserve energy. These create a particular challenge when we are asked to think strategically and identify the outcomes which will be of most value to clients.
Detecting lies & misinformation examines our cognitive bias towards believing people and information. We take a practical look at how to evaluate information, and the source of that information, to help sift the reliable from the unreliable.
Outcomes
As a result of completing the e-learning you will:
- Better understand the brain’s two systems of thinking
- Be more aware of common thinking traps and be able to use tools to avoid them
- Better understand how we are influenced by others, and how we can influence them
- Know how to improve your expert judgement
- Be able to critically evaluate information
Duration
3 hours
Delegates
Perfect for lawyers at all levels who work in a team and directly manage or need to delegate to other members of staff.
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