Metacognitive Control Strategies Research Articles

The Effects of Self-regulated Learning Strategies on Computer Programming Achievement in Teacher Education

This study investigates the effects of student use of self-regulated learning (SRL) strategies on their computer programming achievement. Ninety-six students from undergraduate teacher training programmes offered by a Hong Kong university voluntarily participated in the study. Sixty-six of them were first-year students enrolling on an introductory Java programming course, while 30 were second-year students enrolling on an advanced Java programming course. The SRL strategies adopted by participants were measured by the Motivated Strategies for Learning Questionnaire (MSLQ) and were exemplified from the reflective writing of their electronic portfolios. Their achievement in computer programming was evaluated using continuous and end of course assessments. The findings of this study suggest that higher-order cognitive strategies (i.e. elaboration, organization, critical thinking), metacognitive control strategies (i.e. self-regulation) and resource management strategies (i.e. time and study environment management, help seeking) are likely to facilitate a prolonged achievement of computer programming for both novices and non-novices. They can provide insights into designing adequate SRL strategy training to support student learning in computer programming.

The metacognitive model of post-traumatic stress disorder and metacognitive therapy for post-traumatic stress disorder: A systematic review.

The metacognitive model of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) implicates metacognitive beliefs, meta-memory beliefs and metacognitive control strategies in perpetuating and maintaining symptoms of PTSD. Despite this expanding area of research, the evidence for the metacognitive model of PTSD has not been reviewed. A systematic review according to the PRISMA statement was conducted. Searches across MEDLINE, PubMed and PsycNET, as well as reference lists of the included studies (2004 to March 2020), yielded 221 records. Two independent reviewers screened articles, which were included where the impact of the constructs of interest on PTSD symptoms was investigated within the framework of the metacognitive model for PTSD. Eighteen articles were included in the review. Eleven studies were determined to have good methodological robustness. Metacognitive therapy for PTSD demonstrated reductions in symptoms from pretreatment to post-treatment, which were maintained at follow-up. Predictors of greater PTSD symptom severity included metacognitive beliefs, meta-memory beliefs, and worry, punishment, thought suppression, experiential avoidance, and rumination. Overall, support was found for the validity of the metacognitive model of PTSD.

Examining the effect of list composition on monitoring and control processes in metamemory.

According to the widely accepted cue-utilization view, judgments of learning (JOLs) are thought to be comparative in nature, such that they are sensitive to the relative differences between stimuli. Here, we report the results of three experiments that both support and extend this tenet of the cue-utilization view by examining the impact of relative differences on metacognitive control strategies, including study-time allocation and re-study selection. By presenting word pairs of medium-difficulty intermixed with either easy or difficult word pairs we manipulated list composition to assess the impact of the relative difference between items on individuals' JOLs (Experiments 1 and 2a), study-time allocation (Experiment 1), and re-study selection (Experiments 2a and 2b). First, our manipulation of list composition demonstrated that stimuli of equal difficulty are judged to be more or less memorable depending on the context in which they are presented, thereby confirming previous findings that JOLs are sensitive to the relative differences among items. Second, with regard to metacognitive control strategies, our results indicated that list composition may not impact all control strategies in the same fashion. Specifically, the relative differences between items did not appear to influence the amount of study time allocated to a given item, but did affect which items were selected for re-study. These findings have important applied implications, and may assist in the development of more effective guidance on how to best engage in self-regulated learning.

Improving Metacognitive Abilities As An Important Prerequisite for Self-Regulated Learning in Preschool Children

Metacognition is a crucial prerequisite for self-regulated learning and refers to the knowledge and the regulation of cognitive processes. Several authors argue that children at preschool age can use initial metacognitive control strategies and monitor their learning activities. This fact will create the conditions for promoting metacognitive activities at an early stage. The development of these activities at this age is influenced by several contextual factors, such as home or school environments. Essential caregivers exert a strong influence in terms of the development of metacognitive abilities. In view of this above 137 children participated in an intervention study aiming to improve metacognitive skills, along with their important caregivers such as parents and kindergarten teachers. Training concepts were designed that combined different kinds of interventions: a direct age-appropriate training of the preschoolers and two indirect interventions catered to parents and kindergarten teachers. The aim of this study was to analyze which training condition is more effective in improving metacognitive skills. We assumed that preschoolers who are consistently supported in their self-regulated learning in kindergarten and at home would benefit the most. Based on our data, we could partly confirm this hypothesis.

Development and Validation of a Measure for Metacognitive Factors in Body Dysmorphic Disorder Patients

Background and Objectives: Recent studies explored the relationships between metacognitive beliefs and body dysmorphic disorder. The purpose of this study was to develop and validate one self-report scale of metacognitive factor about body dysmorphic. Methods: Development of this scale involved three steps: 1) items generated from a qualitative study with lecture and care professionals, 2) expert panel review, and 3) pilot test. A factor analysis of the responses from 600 participants suggested the creation of a 25-item scale. Results: Study showed that scores on the 25-item measure correlated with five theoretically related constructs, including positive and negative metacognitive beliefs about body dysmorphic, thought-fusion and metacognitive control strategies. Convergent validity of Body Dysmorphic Metacognitive Scale (BDMCS) with Yale-Brown Obsessive Compulsive Scale was modified for Body Dysmorphic Disorder (BDD) and Thought Fusion Instrument (r = 0.44, r = 0.52, P

The Combined Effects of Classroom Teaching and Learning Strategy Use on Students’ Chemistry Self-Efficacy

For students to be successful in school chemistry, a strong sense of self-efficacy is essential. Chemistry self-efficacy can be defined as students’ beliefs about the extent to which they are capable of performing specific chemistry tasks. According to Bandura (Psychol. Rev. 84:191–215, 1977), students acquire information about their level of self-efficacy from four sources: performance accomplishments, vicarious experiences, verbal persuasion, and physiological states. No published studies have investigated how instructional strategies in chemistry lessons can provide students with positive experiences with these four sources of self-efficacy information and how the instructional strategies promote students’ chemistry self-efficacy. In this study, questionnaire items were constructed to measure student perceptions about instructional strategies, termed efficacy-enhancing teaching, which can provide positive experiences with the four sources of self-efficacy information. Structural equation modeling was then applied to test a hypothesized mediation model, positing that efficacy-enhancing teaching positively affects students’ chemistry self-efficacy through their use of deep learning strategies such as metacognitive control strategies. A total of 590 chemistry students at nine secondary schools in Hong Kong participated in the survey. The mediation model provided a good fit to the student data. Efficacy-enhancing teaching had a direct effect on students’ chemistry self-efficacy. Efficacy-enhancing teaching also directly affected students’ use of deep learning strategies, which in turn affected students’ chemistry self-efficacy. The implications of these findings for developing secondary school students’ chemistry self-efficacy are discussed.

Promoting Self-Regulation in Vocabulary Learning among Chinese EFL Learners: A Needs Analysis

Promoting students’ self-regulatory capacity in vocabulary learning has been one of the instructional goals in language education. Learning strategies and motivational beliefs (e.g., self-efficacy) are the key, interrelated factors of self-regulated learning, which are crucial for learners’ academic performance. This study investigated Chinese English Foreign language (EFL) learners’ needs in terms of cognitive and metacognitive strategy use, as well as their perceptions and knowledge in vocabulary learning. Both qualitative and quantitative research techniques were applied to collect data with 38 preuniversity Chinese EFL learners studying at University of Malaya. The findings revealed that the students possessed insufficient knowledge of high-frequency words and were deficient in using cognitive deep processing strategies (e.g., semantic grouping, word structure) and metacognitive control strategies (e.g., goal-setting). It also indicated that learners’ low self-efficacy and motivation might be due to the lack of strategy knowledge, which in turn affects their strategy performance. The study suggests that there is a pressing need to enhance learners’ self-regulation in learning vocabulary through explicit strategy instruction, which emphasizes cognitive, metacognitive, and motivational aspects of learning.

Exploring the relationship between students' self-regulated learning ability and their ePortfolio achievement

This study explores the relationship between students' self-regulated learning (SRL) ability and their ePortfolio achievement in a language enhancement programme. Undergraduate students (N=26) were asked to create several ePortfolio showcases to demonstrate their English language learning experience over a period of three months. Upon completion of the programme, participants' SRL ability was measured by the Motivated Strategies for Learning Questionnaire (MSLQ) and their achievement was assessed using an ePortfolio scoring system. Our findings reveal that higher-order cognitive skills (i.e. elaboration, organization, critical thinking), metacognitive control strategies (i.e. self-regulation) and collaborative learning strategies (i.e. peer learning) were positively correlated with the ePortfolio achievement of participants. The results not only provide evidence to support that ePortfolio development is a complex process that cannot simply be driven by surface learning strategies, but also suggest that students should be equipped with appropriate SRL strategies to successfully participate in and benefit from ePortfolio activities.

Online learning: Are subjective perceptions of instructional context related to academic success?

This study explored the extent to which students' thoughts, feelings, and actions are associated with the nature of an online course and how that course relates to them personally. Following completion of an online course in aviation physiology, service academy undergraduates ( N = 481) completed a survey that assessed several motivational, emotional, and behavioral outcomes. Consistent with expectations, results from a logistic regression analysis revealed that students who said they were planning to become aviators upon graduation were more likely to report greater perceptions of task value and greater use of metacognitive control strategies than their non-aviator counterparts. On the other hand, after controlling for the other variables in the model, aviators were actually less likely to report being satisfied with the online course, an unexpected finding. Taken together, these results partially substantiate the social cognitive notion that subjective perceptions of the learning environment ultimately shape students' motivational and behavioral engagement in that environment. Implications for the theory and research of online learning are discussed.

Metacognition in patients with anorexia nervosa, dieting and non‐dieting women: a preliminary study

To explore metacognition in women with anorexia nervosa (AN), dieting and non-dieting women. A cross-sectional study between groups design compared women with AN (n = 15), normal dieters (n = 17) and non-dieters (n = 18). A semi-structured interview was used to explore presence and content of explicit metacognitions and use of metacognitive control strategies. Explicit metacognitions and metacognitive control strategies were present in all three groups of women. There were group differences in amount and function of metacognitive activity and trends in the qualitative data suggested participants with AN believed that their thoughts were abnormal and uncontrollable. They used six metacognitive strategies more than control groups and were less successful at using thought re-appraisal and attending to body and others. Half of participants with AN reported using these strategies to deliberately make themselves feel worse. It is suggested that metacognitive activity may play a role in the maintenance of AN, particularly in reinforcing negative self-evaluations.

Counterfactual thinking and posttraumatic stress reactions.

Preoccupation with alternative outcomes (counterfactual thinking) is a central component of the ruminations of trauma victims. The questions investigated were whether such thinking should be distinguished from general rumination and whether elements of counterfactual thinking might relate to the process of adjustment. A sample of assault victims was interviewed. They completed a battery of self-report scales and thought-listing procedures. Frequency of counterfactual thinking was closely associated with continuing levels of posttraumatic distress. However, high availability of counterfactuals (as indexed by verbal fluency) was related to potentially adaptive outcomes, such as the generation of behavioral plans. In addition, as expected, levels of different aspects of counterfactual thinking were moderated by metacognitive control strategies as a function of time since the trauma.

ACTIVITÉ MÉTACOGNITIVE DE L'ENFANT ET DIFFICULTÉ DE LA TÂCHE COGNITIVE

The influence of the type of difficulty of a cognitive task on metacognitive activity (metacognitive experiences and metacognitive strategies) was studied in six‐ and eight‐year‐old children. Children had to make decisions about the correspondence of statements and drawings presented in pairs one after the other, starting either with a statement, or with a picture. They encounter two kinds of difficulties: (1) one due to the information conveyed by drawing (non‐correspondence with the statement); (2) another due to the order in which the statements and drawings are presented: when the drawing comes first the child must retain it in his memory until a statement can guide him in his decoding of it; this difficulty is unexpected given the expectations the child has due to the cognitive task proposed.The principal findings were as follows: (1) Compared to the six‐year‐olds, the eight‐year‐olds demonstrated three times more metacognitive control strategies for expressing information, more cognitive skills (reasoning), and a higher level of performance (understanding and recall). (2) The two types of difficulties do not have the same effects: (a) the difficulty due to the information conveyed by the drawing leads to an increase in the latency time; the performance (understanding) is not as good; (b) in the case of difficulty due to the statement‐drawing order, twice as many verbalizations expressing metacognitive experiences and a decrease in the latency time were observed. The interpretation of the findings underscores the importance for the child of the indicators he has to orient him in mobilizing metacognitive and cognitive activities.