Translational Aspects of the Multidisciplinary Study of Metacognition

Metacognition, self-awareness, self-knowledge, and insight each refer to the process by which individuals reflect upon and appraise their own abilities. Self-awareness is a complex, dynamic, and multifactorial construct that spans various domains such as motor, sensory, functional, and cognitive abilities. Various disciplines including cognitive psychology, neuropsychology, psychiatry, and neurology have attempted to understand healthy and pathologic self-awareness of cognition in particular. Although intrinsically connected, the study of healthy and pathologic states of self-awareness have remained relatively discrete from one another. Indeed, different disciplines examining self-awareness of cognition have operationalized and measured awareness through distinct theoretical frameworks. More recently, however, various authors have attempted to bridge constructs across disciplines in an effort to develop a unitary theoretical model for self-awareness of cognitive abilities. In this commentary, we summarize the study of self-awareness of cognitive abilities across various disciplines, highlighting translational aspects between them. What is the significance of this article for the general public? This commentary highlights the need for collaborative, interdisciplinary research on self-awareness of cognitive abilities (i.e., metacognition) in order to build an integrated model of self-awareness that guides the optimization of everyday functioning in healthy adults and guides therapeutic strategies for patients with disordered awareness and their caregivers.