Critical Thinking and Managerial Decision-Making: A Reflective Essay

This reflective essay examines critical thinking and its role in managerial decision-making, focusing on scientific knowledge, logical reasoning, and self-awareness. It delves into game theory, prospect theory, and psychological contract theory as frameworks for understanding decision-making processes. The essay explores how these concepts influence organizational performance and competitive advantage. The author reflects on their personal learning journey, highlighting the practical applications of the course material and discussing how the acquired knowledge will inform future decision-making in a professional context. The essay concludes by emphasizing the importance of critical thinking skills in enhancing managerial effectiveness and organizational success. The essay analyzes how the understanding of these concepts and theories can be used in the real world to solve complex problems and make decisions.

Running head: CRITICAL THINKING AND MANAGERIAL DECISION-MAKING
CRITICAL THINKING AND MANAGERIAL DECISION-MAKING – A REFLECTION
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author Note

1CRITICAL THINKING AND MANAGERIAL DECISION-MAKING – A REFLECTION
Introduction
The critical thinking refers to the various activities that are undertaken by people in
putting forth an enhancement in the matters that are related to the thought-processes that are
highlighted by the concerned organization. The implementation of the critical thinking skills
within the organization help in the overall development of the resolution of the problems that are
faced by the organization. The critical thinking skills on the part of the organizational
management and the workforce helps in the developing the viewpoint of the concerned
managerial body towards the various ways in which the issues within the organization might be
resolved (Kallet, 2014). The incorporation of the critical thinking on the part of the managerial
bodies tend to help in the organization of the thoughts of an employee as well as assists the
incorporation of the thoughts and resolutions that are provided by the various other employees of
the organization. The critical thinking on the part of the employees help in the prevention of the
distortion within the given situation as well as leads to the application of the newer perspectives
towards the resolution of the issues that are faced by the organization in the given markets.
Critical review
Scientific knowledge and logical reasoning
The scientific knowledge on the part of the given employees refer to the implementation
of the various issues that are related to the paradigm shifts within the organization in terms of the
decisions that are undertaken by the concerned organizational management. The organizational
management is known to experience greater periods of stability in terms of the decisions that are
undertaken in order to maintain a proper working condition within the organization (Howard,
Tang & Austin, 2015). It further highlights the various ways in which the implementation of the
strategies lead to the maintenance of the stability in the overall growth as have been experienced
by the concerned clientele. The scientific knowledge is developed through the process of
elimination of the theories and the propositions that are not true to the demands of the concerned
organizational situation (Eggers, Lovelace & Kraft, 2017). The application of the scientific
theory within the organizations therefore might be considered to be revolutionary due to the fact
that it leads to the conditions wherein the older theories are discarded in the process.

2CRITICAL THINKING AND MANAGERIAL DECISION-MAKING – A REFLECTION
The logical reasoning, on the other hand, follows from the application of the scientific
knowledge in the matters that are related to the organizational performance in the given markets.
The logical reasoning should be implemented within the operations of the organization in order
to put forth a proper development of the organizational performance (Mingers, 2015). The
implementation of the deductive reasoning within the given organization reveals that the
conclusion regarding a given solution might be drawn on the basis of the issues that are faced by
the organization in discussion (McPeck, 2016). The use of the deductive reasoning within the
organizational practices is observed to be helpful in the decision-making within the organization
on the basis of the issues faced by the organization in the given markets.
Importance of self-awareness
The concept of self-awareness within the organizational leaders and management is
observed to have been helping in the overall development of the various issues that are
highlighted in terms of the organizational performance in the given markets. The organizational
leaders who have been crucial to the success of the organization in the given markets are known
to have been dealing with the overall development of the awareness regarding their own selves.
The leaders are known to have been thriving on the proper understanding of their own selves
(Calabrese et al., 2018). The leaders within an organization are observed to have been following
the factors within the organizational progress that resonate with their values. The leaders are
further observed to have been dealing with the issues that are highlighted due to the overall
development in the matters that are related to the unhealthy and the blind spots that are present
within the organization as well .The understanding of the various unhealthy areas and the blind
spots within the organization further help in the understanding and the detection of the
weaknesses of the organization. The leaders are generally observed to deal in the development of
the organization in the weak areas in order to implement a proper improvement in the overall
performance of the organization (Yashkova et al., 2016). The leaders are observed to be engaged
in the matters that are related to the continuous state of learning and self-reflection. This in turn
helps in the matters that are related to the overall development of the organizational performance
in the given international markets as well as lead to the improvement in the popularity of the
organization among the clientele. This in turn assists in the development of the competitive
advantage that is enjoyed by the organization in the given markets as well.

3CRITICAL THINKING AND MANAGERIAL DECISION-MAKING – A REFLECTION
Decision making – Game Theory
The game theory as have been highlighted by the concerned organization in the given
markets refer to one of the most popular theories in the realm of decision-making within the
business organizations. The game theory had initially been proposed by John Neumann and
Oskar Morgenstern in the year 1944 (Eriksson & Kovalainen, 2015). The theory states that the
organizations might have to resort to the various modes of competition within the given markets.
The concerned organizations that have been operational within a given market tend to follow the
various methods for the establishment of the company within the international markets. This in
turn helps in the overall development of the issues that are highlighted in terms of the
organizational performance that is maintained by the given organization. The business
organizations are observed to be involved in the co-operative games as well as the competitive
games on the basis of the market environment wherein the company has been featuring. The
implementation of the game theory within the given organizational operations help in deciding
the business strategies that need to be implemented within the organization in order to deal with
the improvement of the performances that are demonstrated by the concerned business
organizations. The experts highlight the fact that the improvement of the performance of a
certain company is not essentially based on the failure of the other similar companies (Caldwell
& Hayes, 2016). The major challenge within the given markets as are faced by the organizations
reveal the fact that the organizational management as well as the leaders within the organization
would need to maintain a close observation of the given market scenarios in order to deal in the
matters that are competition that is faced by the organization in the given markets. This in turn
would help in the improvement of the competitive advantage of the company in the given
markets.
Decision making – Prospect theory and psychological contract theory
The prospect theory was initially developed by the eminent professors, Daniel Kahneman
and Amos Tversky in the year 1979 (Goleman, 2017). The prospect theory as have been
observed by the experts help in the understanding as well as the development of the behavioral
economics within the given market as well. the prospect theory states that the decisions that are
undertaken by the given organizational management as well as the other individuals are
generally based on the potential gains as well as the potential losses that are highlighted in lieu of

4CRITICAL THINKING AND MANAGERIAL DECISION-MAKING – A REFLECTION
a certain decision. The theory further suggests that the decision-makers tend not to consider the
final outcomes of the decision implementation while formulating a decision (Geckil & Anderson,
2016). This in turn might lead to the implementation of the irrationality within the decisions that
are undertaken by the concerned decision-making body active within the given organization.
The psychological contract theory is another theory that helps in the proper understanding
of the issues that are highlighted within the organizational performance in the given markets. The
psychological contract theory was proposed by Denise Rousseau in the year 2004 (Rosenbach,
2018). The psychological contracts refer to the various beliefs that are based on the implied or
the expressed promises in regards to the agreement of exchanges that take place between
individuals or the concerned business firms and the agents who have been involved in the firm.
The psychological contracts that are presented within the organization takes into account a huge
number of factors. These refer to the various voluntary choices, the faith in the mutual
agreements, the proper management of the incurred losses in case of the failure of the given
contracts as well as the management of the several contract makers who serve to be the sources
of information in this case (Webster, 2018). This in turn helps in the overall development of the
competitive advantage of the company in the given markets as well.
Reflection on personal decision making
The given course in discussion has helped me to gain knowledge on the various ways in
which the decision-making activities might be affected. The course has helped me gain major
insight into the importance of the critical thinking in the matters that are related to the decision
making on the part of the given person. The study on the subject has helped me learn that the
implementation of the critical thinking skills within the organization help in the overall
development of the resolution of the problems that are faced by the organization. I have further
gained insight on the fact that the critical thinking skills on the part of the organizational
management and the workforce helps in the developing the viewpoint of the concerned
managerial body towards the various ways in which the issues within the organization might be
resolved. Michael-Tsabari and Weiss (2015) opine that the incorporation of the critical thinking
on the part of the managerial bodies tend to help in the organization of the thoughts of an
employee as well as assists the incorporation of the thoughts and resolutions that are provided by
the various other employees of the organization.

5CRITICAL THINKING AND MANAGERIAL DECISION-MAKING – A REFLECTION
Reflection on future development
The knowledge that I have gained through the completion of this course will help me in
undertaking proper decisions within the organization. The implementation of the knowledge
within the future workplaces would help me in ensuring an overall improvement of the practices
that are highlighted by the organization in the given markets. The implementation of the game
theory within the given organizational operations, for example, would assist me in deciding the
strategies that need to be implemented within the organization in order to deal with the
improvement of the performances that are demonstrated by the concerned business organizations
(Lude & Prügl, 2019). The understanding of the various unhealthy areas and the blind spots
within the organization further help me in the understanding and the detection of the weaknesses
of the organization. The gained knowledge would further help me to deal in the development of
the organization in the weak areas in order to implement a proper improvement in the overall
performance of the organization. This would also guide me to be engaged in the matters that are
related to the continuous state of learning and self-reflection. This according to Soares and
Mosquera (2019) would help in ensuring the overall development of the organizational
performance in the given international markets as well as lead to the improvement in the
competitive advantage faced by the company in the given international markets.
Conclusion
Thus, in conclusion, it might be stated that the critical thinking skills are crucial to the
overall development of the decision-making skills that are undertaken by the concerned
management. The organizational management is known to experience greater periods of stability
in terms of the decisions that are undertaken in order to maintain a proper working condition
within the organization as well as highlight the various ways in which the implementation of the
strategies lead to the maintenance of the stability in the overall growth as have been experienced
by the concerned clientele. The critical thinking on the part of the employees help in the
prevention of the distortion within the given situation as well as leads to the application of the
newer perspectives towards the resolution of the issues that are faced by the organization in the
given markets. This in turn helps in the overall development of the organizational performance
of the company which leads to the increment of the competitive advantage in the given markets.

6CRITICAL THINKING AND MANAGERIAL DECISION-MAKING – A REFLECTION
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