Adaptive reasoning refers to a problem solving strategy that adapts thinking to address a problem as it changes and evolves.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adaptive_reasoning 

Consider this: Adaptive reasoning refers to the ability to think logically, flexibly, and critically in order to analyze problems, draw conclusions, and adapt to new information or changing conditions. It is a cognitive skill that involves the dynamic application of reasoning strategies to address a wide range of problems, often in complex or uncertain situations.

This skill is crucial in fields that require decision-making, problem-solving, and creative thinking, as it allows individuals to adapt their reasoning process when faced with new challenges or information.

Adaptive reasoning is a powerful cognitive skill that enables individuals to navigate complexity, uncertainty, and change effectively. Whether in academia, professional fields, or daily life, cultivating this skill leads to better decision-making, problem-solving, and adaptability. Would you like to explore how adaptive reasoning applies to a specific context?

When to use: Where there is a need to to use structured and coherent reasoning to arrive at valid conclusions. This comes in various, shapes sizes as colours, such as solving a mathematical proof following logical steps, changing strategies when initial plans are no longer viable, questioning the validity of a data source before using it in an argument, generalizing a solution from one context to another, analyzing why a previous approach failed and refining it for future use, and developing an alternative approach when the expected result does not materialize.

Challenges to its use: There are various obstacles that may have to be removed in order to encourage this approach:

Cognitive load: Adapting reasoning processes requires mental effort that can be taxing in complex or high-pressure situations.

Biases and rigidity: People may have difficulty overcoming biases or fixed patterns of thinking that make adaptability difficult.

Uncertainty: Adaptive reasoning requires comfort with ambiguity, which can be challenging for some people.

Skill development: Developing adaptive reasoning involves practice, exposure to a variety of problems, and feedback.

Strengths: This skill is crucial in fields that require decision making, problem solving, and creative thinking, as it allows people to adapt their reasoning process when faced with new challenges or information.

Adaptive reasoning’s strengths lie in its flexibility, critical thinking, creativity, and ability to thrive in uncertainty. It supports effective problem solving, fosters innovation, and prepares people to continually learn and grow. By leveraging these strengths, adaptive reasoning can be a powerful tool for navigating a complex and ever-changing world.

Specific strengths of this approach include facilitating flexibility in problem solving, enabling improvements in decision making, resilience to change – it does not block change or break into states of flow, leading to improved critical thinking, creativity, and innovation.

In addition, it supports learning from experience, better handling of complexity, improved collaboration, partnership, and use of resources. And it is applicable in many areas, such as education, science, business, and everyday life.

Weaknesses: It requires a high cognitive load, it’s success depends on the high quality of the input data, it introduces the risk of overthinking, it is susceptible to bias, its use requires expertise and experience, it’s weak in collaborative environments, and it’s difficult to scale.

By being aware of your limitations, adaptive reasoning can be used more effectively to balance flexibility, critical thinking, and practicality in decision making.  Passing comments: “You have to be fast on your feet and adaptive or else a strategy is useless.” – Charles de Gaulle