An investigation of the critical thinking skills of Dumlupınar University Faculty of Sports Sciences students in terms of various variables

The aim of this study is to examine the divergent thinking skill levels of the students studying at the Faculty of Sports Sciences of Dumlupınar University. The study group consists of 538 students selected through random sampling from a total of 1,365 students enrolled in the Faculty of Sports Sciences at Dumlupınar University. The research was conducted using the survey model, and the Divergent Thinking Scale, originally developed by Guilford (1967) and further refined by Torrance (1974), was used in its Turkish adaptation form. The independent variables included gender, grade level, age, sports branch, and academic achievement status. In line with the hypotheses formed based on these variables, a two-way ANOVA test (p<0.05) was applied to determine the statistical significance of the differences. As a result of the study, it was found that there were significant differences in divergent thinking skills according to the variables of gender and grade level, while no significant differences were observed in age, sports branch, and academic achievement variables. The findings indicate that the divergent thinking levels of students are influenced by certain demographic variables, though not all variables have the same level of effect. Keywords: Creativity, Cognitive Skills, Divergent Thinking, Sports Sciences, Students