DEVELOPING CRITICAL AND LOGICAL THINKING SKILLS FOR BANKING PROFESSIONALS: CHALLENGES OF THE INFORMATION AGE
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Published:
Nov 21, 2025
Abstract
The modern era of digital transformation and information overload (Industry 4.0 and Industry 5.0) creates unprecedented challenges for banking sector professionals. The exponential growth of information volumes, spread of misinformation (manipulation), increasing complexity of financial instruments, and high level of market regulation demand that banking professionals develop strong critical and logical thinking skills. This study analyses key risks in the modern educational process for banking, including information overload, declining ability for deep analysis, and vulnerability to manipulative techniques. The systematic development of critical and logical thinking skills is essentially a strategic imperative for financial organizations and the government institutions that regulate them. A possible response (though not a panacea) could be implementing a comprehensive methodology for developing critical thinking, including practical tools for information verification, logical analysis techniques, and protection against cognitive biases. Special attention should be paid to specific risks in the banking sector related to making financial decisions under conditions of uncertainty and information asymmetry.
How to Cite
Aleksandrov, A. (Oleksii). (2025). DEVELOPING CRITICAL AND LOGICAL THINKING SKILLS FOR BANKING PROFESSIONALS: CHALLENGES OF THE INFORMATION AGE. Baltic Journal of Legal and Social Sciences, 156-168. https://doi.org/10.30525/2592-8813-2025-spec-12
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Keywords
critical thinking, logical thinking, banking education, information security, misinformation, financial risks, cognitive biases
References
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3. Nichols T. (2017). The death of expertise: the campaign against established knowledge and why it matters. Oxford University Press. 272p.
4. McSpadden, K. (2015). You Now Have a Shorter Attention Span Than a Goldfish. Time Magazine. Retrieved from: https://time.com/3858309/attention-spans-goldfish/
5. Toffler A. (1984) The Third Wave. The Classic Study of Tomorrow. Bantam Books. 560p.
6. Frumkin, K. (2010). Clip thinking and the fate of linear text. Retrieved from: http://www.topos.ru/article/7371
7. Mol, A. (1973). Sociodynamics of culture. Progress Publ. 406p.
8. Kara-Murza, S.G. (2005). Manipulation of consciousness. Eksmo. 832p.
9. Bukharbaeva A., Sergeeva L. (2020). Clip thinking of generation Z: methods of developing student’s creative potential. Journal of Studias in Literature and Journalism. p.791
10. Basel Committee on Banking Supervision. (2017). Basel III: Finalising post-crisis reforms. Bank for International Settlements. Retrieved from https://www.bis.org/bcbs/publ/d424.htm
11. Markets in Financial Instruments and Amending Directive MiFID II (2016). Retrieved from: https://www.esma.europa.eu/publications-and-data/interactive-single-rulebook/mifid-ii
12. Cybercrime Magazine (2023) Top 10 Cybersecurity Predictions and Statistics for 2023 Retrieved from www.bitsight.com/resources/gartner-predicts-2023-cybersecurity-industry-focuses-human-deal
13. IBM Security. (2021). Cost of a Data Breach Report 2021. Retrieved from https://www.ibm.com/security/data-breach
14. Chohan, U. W. (2021). The GameStop Short Squeeze and Its Implications. CASS Working Paper Series. Retrieved from: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/349076035_Counter-Hegemonic_Finance_The_Gamestop_Short_Squeeze
15. Andhov A. (2025) Presidential Powers Meet Crypto Powers: The Legal Paradox Of $TRUMP. Forbes. Retrieved from: https://www.forbes.com/sites/digital-assets/2025/01/19/presidential-powers-meet-crypto-powers-the-legal-paradox-of-trump/
16. Toffler, A. (1970). Future Shock. Random House.561p.
17. IBM Institute for Business Value. (2016). Analytics: The real-world use of big data in financial services. Retrieved from: https://www.ibm.com/downloads/cas/E9N8N0W7
18. Bawden, D., & Robinson, L. (2009). The dark side of information: Overload, anxiety and other paradoxes and pathologies. Journal of Information Science, 35(2), 180–191 Retrieved from: https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/0165551508095781
19. Bender, E. M., Gebru, T., McMillan-Major, A., & Shmitchell, S. (2021). On the dangers of stochastic parrots: Can language models be too big? In Proceedings of the 2021 ACM Conference on Fairness, Accountability, and Transparency (pp. 610–623). Retrieved from: https://doi.org/10.1145/3442188.3445922
20. Bradshaw, S., & Howard, P. N. (2019). The Global Disinformation Order: 2019 Global Inventory of Organised Social Media Manipulation. Oxford Internet Institute. Retrieved from: https://comprop.oii.ox.ac.uk/research/cybertroops2019/
21. Kahneman, D., & Tversky, A. (1974). Judgment under uncertainty: Heuristics and biases. Science, 185(4157), 1124–1131. Retrieved from: https://doi.org/10.1126/science.185.4157.1124
22. Svenson, O. (1981). Are we all less risky and more skillful than our fellow drivers? Acta Psychologica, 47(2), 143-148. Retrieved from : https://doi.org/10.1016/0001-6918(81)90005-6
23. Sweller, J. (1988). Cognitive load during problem solving: Effects on learning. Cognitive Science, 12(2), 257–285. Retrieved from : https://doi.org/10.1207/s15516709cog1202_4
24. Paas, F., & Sweller, J. (2012). An evolutionary upgrade of cognitive load theory: Using the human motor system and collaboration to support the learning of complex cognitive tasks. Educational Psychology Review, 24(1), 27–45. Retrieved from: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10648-011-9179-2
25. Raines, J. P., & Leathers, C. G. (2011). Behavioral finance and post-Keynesian-institutionalist theories of financial markets. Journal of Post Keynesian Economics, 33(4), 539–554. Retrieved from: https://doi.org/10.2753/PKE0160-3477330401
26. Tetlock, P. E., & Gardner, D. (2016). Superforecasting: The art and science of prediction. Crown Publishers. 352p.
27. Tiahlo, O. V. (2008). Critical thinking: Educational manual. Osnova.
28. Ennis, R. H. (1991). Critical thinking: A streamlined conception. Teaching Philosophy, 14(1), 5–24. Retrieved from: https://doi.org/10.5840/teachphil19911412
29. Facione, P. A. (1990). Critical thinking: A statement of expert consensus for purposes of educational assessment and instruction (The Delphi Report). California Academic Press
30. Konverskyi, A. Ye. (2020). Critical thinking: Textbook for students of higher educational institutions of all specialties. Tsentr uchbovoi literatury.
31. Popovych, M. V. (1975). Philosophical questions of semantics. Naukova dumka.
32. European Banking Authority. (2020). Guidelines on loan origination and monitoring. Retrieved from https://www.eba.europa.eu/regulation-and-policy/credit-risk/guidelines-on-loan-origination-and-monitoring
33. Financial Stability Board. (2021). Artificial intelligence and machine learning in financial services. Retrieved from https://www.fsb.org/2021/12/artificial-intelligence-and-machine-learning-in-financial-services/
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