Identification and Explanation of Factors Influencing Critical Thinking in Chemical Engineering Graduates of the University of Tehran Using Interpretive Structural Modeling (ISM) and MICMAC Analysis

Objectives: Critical thinking is considered one of the most important competencies required for engineering graduates, especially in engineering fields. This skill enables individuals to identify and analyze problems with a logical and analytical perspective, and ultimately provide effective solutions. In today's complex world, the ability to make informed decisions and solve problems effectively is of great importance for success in work environments. Critical thinking not only improves the quality of decision-making, but also enables individuals to think creatively and logically when faced with challenges and problems. This competency allows graduates to be influential in industrial, manufacturing, and management processes, and contributes to improving the overall performance of the organization. However, studies show that there is insufficient attention to the development of this skill in engineering education programs. This lack of attention can have negative consequences on the quality of education and the efficiency of graduates. In this research, the researchers have tried to identify the factors affecting critical thinking and explain the relationships between these factors using analytical methods.
 
Materials and Methods: This research was conducted with a focus on engineering graduates from the University of Tehran. To achieve this goal, the researchers used a combination of qualitative and quantitative methods. In the qualitative part, document study was used to identify factors, and in the quantitative part, correlation method based on two methods of interpretive structural modeling (ISM) and MICMAC analysis was used. The statistical population of this research includes graduates of different engineering fields and majors of the University of Tehran who are employed in various industries and organizations.
 
Discussion and Conclusion: According to the findings, seven key factors that affect critical thinking include: 1- Problem-solving skills: the ability to analyze and solve problems logically and effectively. 2- Organizational support: financial and moral support that organizations provide to their employees. 3- Practical experience: real and practical experiences gained during the career. 4- Teamwork: cooperation and interaction with others to solve complex problems. 5- Reward system: incentive systems that recognize good performance. 6- Organizational culture: shared values, beliefs, and behaviors in an organization that affect people's behavior. 7- Interdisciplinary interactions: communication and cooperation between different scientific and professional disciplines.
Factors such as problem-solving skills, organizational support, practical experience, teamwork, and reward system are known as communication variables because they have high driving power and dependence. Changes in these variables can have a significant impact on critical thinking, and in addition, system feedback can re-influence these variables. Also, organizational culture was identified as an independent variable and one of the most important factors affecting critical thinking. This variable has high penetration power and low dependence; therefore, by changing it, the entire system can be affected. In other words, changes in organizational culture can strengthen critical thinking in employees and interdisciplinary interactions have been identified as a dependent variable that has low driving power and strong dependencies. Organizational culture has been identified as a key factor. In other words, if the organizational culture encourages critical thinking, other factors will naturally improve.
These results can provide a platform to remove obstacles to improving the quality of critical thinking education in training courses and improve the job performance of engineering graduates in work environments. The results can be used as a guide to improve the quality of critical thinking education in university education programs. It can also help managers and organizations to identify and remove obstacles to improving the quality of critical thinking, which will ultimately lead to improving the job performance of engineering graduates. In general, this research emphasizes the importance of organizational culture and other effective factors in strengthening critical thinking in graduates and provides solutions for its improvement.