Meta-cognition is the process of planning, monitoring and assessing one’s own thought processes and performance. In simple layman terms, it involves thinking about thinking. Meta-cognition is an adaptive process in many situations. We become aware of our strengths and weaknesses. However, it may also lead to a cyclical and vicious process of ruminating and obsessive thoughts. Let us dive in and look at a few definitions of meta-cognition. In addition, we will also take a process view of meta-cognition.
Definitions of Meta-cognition
Meta-cognition is the capacity to understand and examine how you interpret thoughts and feelings. Therefore, it is an important aspect of self-definition and self-awareness. Individuals who engage in frequent meta-cognition may benefit from deeper communication with themselves. For instance, an employee who thinks about his thoughts and feelings in the workplace is likely to have better control over situations in the future.
Meta-cognition can be thought of as a higher level of cognition about cognitive processes. John H Flavell coined the term meta-cognition for this process. The term meta means “on top of” or “beyond”. Therefore, we can engage in meta-cognition with respect to all cognitive processes. Meta-memory refers to memory about strategies to remember facts, events and objects.
Meta-cognitive knowledge
Meta-cognitive knowledge refers to knowledge about one’s cognitive processes and learning how to maximize resources for better self-regulation and control. Let us consider the case of an MBA aspirant. He or she would spend some time preparing the subjects. Then he or she would appear for a few mock tests. Based on the results of the mock test and one’s own self-analysis, the student would estimate his or her chances in the final examination. In addition, the student would also spend more or less time in certain subjects based on the outcome of the above assessment. It is common to have flawed meta-cognitive knowledge. This is because we often have an innate tendency to overestimate or underestimate our abilities. However, such knowledge greatly enhances our information-processing time and helps us adapt to situations.
Meta-cognitive knowledge also includes awareness about cognitive strategies. For instance, some of use know that we recall better when we visualize the object, fact or event. Therefore, in future we would try to visualize information that we wish to recall. Hence, meta-cognitive knowledge enhances our cognitive abilities.
Meta-cognitive Regulation
Meta-cognitive regulation is a combination of planning, monitoring and evaluation. Planning refers to the successful selection of strategies to reach the goal. Monitoring is the process of becoming aware of task performance. Evaluation refers to undergoing checks to make sure we are on the right track for goal attainment. It is the appraisal that the final task lived up to the expectations.
Focusing on the goal persistently is also a meta-cognitive regulation. We are constantly monitoring and evaluating whether we are reaching our goal. In addition, we are also actively filtering out distracting stimuli. For instance, while working, we have to filter out constant notifications from social media in order to finish the task on time.
Social Meta-cognition
Recently, researchers adopted an expansionist approach to study meta-cognition. They included aspects of social psychology into meta-cognition. Social meta-cognition simply refers to cognition and awareness about the perceptions and judgment of other people. Individuals with high emotional intelligence are likely to be good at social meta-cognition.
Social meta-cognition greatly influences one’s self-esteem. This is because we constantly seek social feedback about our beliefs, abilities and values. Such feedback greatly influences our self-perception and self-esteem. For instance, social stereotypes dictate that elderly people have weaker memory. This stereotype may be internalized by individuals who may believe that they have weaker memory despite not having any physiological damage.
Conclusion
Therefore, meta-cognition is an important process in adaptation and learning. However, too much meta-cognition can hamper with our day-to-day activities and increase anxiety, stress and depression.