A new meta-analysis by Thingbak and colleagues (2024) finds that metacognitive beliefs are related to emotional dysregulation in children and adolescents, aged 7-18 years, in a sample of almost 10,000 participants. The same has been found in adults.
The following quote may help you grasp the idea of metacognitions, and why they are so important in relation to emotional regulation.:
“Metacognitions predisposes individuals to develop response patterns to thoughts and internal events that are characterized by heightened self-focused attention, recyclical thinking patterns, avoidance and thought suppression, and threat monitoring.” (Tajrishi and colleagues, p. 531, 2011).
Also, consensus defines metacognition as (Tajrishi and colleagues, p. 530, 2011):
“… The knowledge and control individuals have over their own cognition and learning experiences.”
Our metacognitions guide us into different kinds of thinking styles and behaviors, some of which can prevent emotional healing.
Emotions that are passing by get stuck.
The meta-analysis found that “… Clinical samples endorsed significantly elevated metacognitive beliefs on four out of the five domains measured (i.e., negative beliefs about worry, cognitive confidence, need for control, and cognitive self-consciousness, with the only exception being positive beliefs about worry) compared to non-clinical samples with a small to large effect … Moreover, all five domains of metacognitive beliefs were significantly and positively correlated with symptoms of anxiety and depression of a small to large effect … Negative beliefs about worry showed the strongest relationship with … symptoms” (see abstract).
Therefore, changing metacognitive beliefs, as done in metacognitive therapy, seems like a useful focus in therapy to improve mental health in children.
The Five Metacognitive Beliefs
Metacognitive beliefs can be measured using the MCQ-30 questionnaire, which has good psychometric qualities (Spada, Mohiyeddini & Wells, 2008). The scale can also be found on in the handbook Metacognitive Therapy for Anxiety and Depression (p. 261). It consists of five sub-scales assessed by 30-items in total. The five sub-scales measure the following dimensions of metacognitions:
- Positive beliefs about worry
- Negative beliefs about worry, concerning uncontrollability and danger
- Cognitive confidence
- Beliefs about the need to control thoughts
- Cognitive self-consciousness
