Stuck in a Rut of Thought—That Is Just a Barrier: Dysfunctional Metacognitive Beliefs, Limitation on Individual Freedom and Well-Being of Adolescents during COVID-19 Lockdown

Abstract

The aim of the cross-sectional study was to conduct an exploratory analysis of identifying factors related to mood, metacognitive beliefs, and limitation on individual freedom associated with lockdown restrictions during COVID-19, and to determine whether they may be relevant to the deteriorating well-being of adolescents. A total of 387 adolescents (M = 15.37; SD = 1.62): 85 with depression (DG) and 302 without any psychiatric diagnosis group (WPDG) were examined using the health survey and the CDI-2 questionnaire to assess the symptoms and severity of depression and MCQ-A to measure the intensity of dysfunctional metacognitive beliefs. The feeling of restriction of freedom had an influence on worsened well-being in the whole group of responders OR = 4.15; p < 0.001 but was more in the DG than the WPDG (OR = 20.00; p < 0.001 vs. OR = 4.77; p < 0.001). Positive metacognitive beliefs were related to well-being (DG), but no effect was observed in the WPDG (OR = 0.88; p < 0.05 vs. OR = 1.05; p = 0.136). The lower age of the WPDG negatively impacted well-being (OR = 1.20; p < 0.05). Dysfunctional metacognitive beliefs and the feeling of restriction of freedom are important in the deterioration of adolescents' well-being, but these factors have a stronger impact on well-being in the DG.