Critical Thinking. Understanding and Evaluating Dental Research

Reasons for Studying Critical Thinking
Scientific Method and the Behavior of Scientists
The Components of a Scientific Paper
Rhetoric
Searching the Dental Literature
Logic: The Basics
Introduction to Abductive and Inductive Logic: Analogy, Models, and Authority
Causation
Quacks, Cranks, and Abuses of Logic
Elements of Probability and Statistics, Part 1: Discrete Variables
Elements of Probability and Statistics, Part 2: Continuous Variables
The Importance of Measurement in Dentistry
Errors of Measurement
Presentation of Results
Diagnostic Tools and Testing
Research Strategies and Threats to Validity
Observation
Correlation and Association
Experimentation
Experiment Design
Statistics As an Inductive Argument and Other Statistical Concepts
Judgment
Introduction to Clinical Decision Making
Exercises in Critical Thinking

The Internet has given us access to an unprecedented amount of information, but this development also facilitates the spread of misinformation if we do not think critically and evaluate what we read. The third edition of this classic textbook has been revised based on developments in biomedical research practices over the past decade to provide readers with the most up-to-date resource for navigating the ever-expanding world of dental literature. The book covers rhetoric and logic, the scientific method, components of scientific papers, research strategies, probability and statistics, diagnostic tools and testing, and experiment design. The chapter about searching the dental literature has been updated with the most current resources and search techniques available. A new chapter about clinical decision making uses a decision tree analysis with worked-out calculations to show how critical thinking skills can be used to select the most appropriate treatment decision in a clinical scenario; this is followed by a whole chapter of exercises in critical thinking. This book emphasizes how readers can practically apply critical thinking skills to evaluate scientific literature and thereby make the most informed decisions for their patients and themselves.