<p>Mathematical correctness and applicability of the methods based on the general rate equation (GRE) are analyzed from the viewpoint of the new concept of understanding GRE as a formal mathematical tool. It is taken into account that, in kinetic analysis, it is necessary to discriminate between the kinetic and thermoanalytical degrees of conversion. In principle, all the methods based on GRE describe the kinetics of the change of thermoanalytical effects, i.e., the heat consumption/evolution for DSC or mass decrease for TG. For elementary processes, the kinetic and thermoanalytical degrees of conversion coincide so that conclusions on kinetics can be drawn from the thermoanalytical data. For complex processes, the kinetic and thermoanalytical degrees of conversion may differ considerably and they coincide only for special cases. Hence, for complex processes, the thermoanalytical kinetic data describe rather the change of the thermoanalytical effects than the mechanism of the process under study. No mechanistic conclusions should be drawn from the values of individual kinetic parameters, particularly from the values of activation energy.</p>