Why Study Philosophy?

 

Philosophy makes a central contribution to the educational enterprise through its demands upon intellectual activity.

As the recent blog post Insights From the Inside argues, philosophy serves as the backbone of higher education.

In addition to the many invaluable contributions discussed in the above-cited blog post, the study of philosophy also enhances the following skills:

Accuracy, Critical Thinking, and General Problem Solving Skills: Analysis of concepts, definitions, and problems and synthesis of varied perspectives into a unified whole.

Logic and Analytical Reasoning: Construction and analysis of arguments, ability to draw both deductive and inductive inferences, and ability to think objectively.

Effective Communication Skills: Enhancement of communicative powers and elimination of ambiguity and vagueness from writing and speech.

Persuasive Powers: Construction of clear formulations, good arguments, and appropriate examples.

Ethics and Empathy: Understanding the foundations of ethical principles, resolution of moral dilemmas, development of empathy, and ability to determine the relevant ethical principles that apply in a variety of contexts.

 

                                                           

 

 

Writing Skills: Enhancement of writing skills, in terms of syntax, clarity, proper argumentation, and organization.

Understanding Other Disciplines: Understanding of other disciplines and of the relation of philosophy to foundational issues in other fields.

Development of Sound Methods of Research and Analysis: Ability to frame hypotheses, to do research, and organize problems in manageable form.

 

For more information on philosophy in general, see the American Philosophical Association's Philosophy: A Brief Guide for Undergraduates and The Philosophy Major at www.apaonline.org