It is worth remembering that evidence is not just the purely factual like my chemical flame tests. Much of the time of evidence is incomplete in that sense and then we have to rely on much less reliable stuff like balance of probabilities and interpretations based on empathetic judgements. We can still apply critical thinking but we need to recognise what it can and can't achieve in these circumstances.

Several members of my family have had CBT and they all found it incredibly helpful (as did those around them!) One, for example, was caught in a hurricane as a teenager and her quite understandable fears of that transferred themselves to any sort of bad weather for the rest of her adult life. CBT "cured" this for her, at least to a significant extent. You could say it was an example of critical thinking, as a significant part involved her recognising how often the roof didn't blow off, that the odd lost tile was replaced quickly and cheaply and so on. But I think that would be mistaken because it is all at the factual level and any "cure' must be at an emotional level because by definition the fear is an emotion.