The awareness and understanding of one's own thought processes, often described as thinking about thinking. The concept was formalized by developmental psychologist John Flavell in the 1970s and is a key component of self-regulated learning and emotional intelligence.
Metacognition refers to the capacity to observe, evaluate, and regulate one's own cognitive processes. John Flavell, a developmental psychologist at Stanford University, coined the term in 1979 and described it as encompassing both metacognitive knowledge (what you know about your own thinking) and metacognitive regulation (how you control your thinking processes).
Metacognitive skills include the ability to plan an approach to a task, monitor comprehension and progress, evaluate the effectiveness of strategies, and adjust behavior accordingly. These skills are strongly associated with academic achievement, problem-solving ability, and emotional regulation.
In the context of personal development and wellness, metacognition enables individuals to notice unhelpful thought patterns, question automatic assumptions, and choose more adaptive responses. It is a foundational skill in cognitive behavioral therapy, mindfulness practice, and many forms of self-reflection. Strengthening metacognitive awareness allows people to create space between stimulus and response, a capacity that underpins emotional intelligence and intentional living.
Regular journaling, mindfulness meditation, and reflective questioning are effective ways to strengthen metacognition. Practices like asking yourself what am I thinking right now and why, or reviewing your decision-making process after the fact, build metacognitive awareness over time.
Cognition refers to mental processes like thinking, remembering, and problem-solving. Metacognition is the awareness and regulation of those processes. For example, solving a math problem is cognition; noticing that your problem-solving strategy is not working and switching approaches is metacognition.
Metacognition enables you to observe your thought patterns rather than being controlled by them. This awareness is foundational for managing stress, challenging negative self-talk, making intentional choices, and developing emotional resilience.
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