Metacognitive Integration: The key to Self-Actualisation?

Mindfulness in Metacognition

Metacognition directly underpins the process of mindfulness (non-judgmental present-moment awareness) and related self-regulatory decisions. The PFC regions serve to monitor the individuals thoughts and emotions (metacognitive), which enables disidentification (“observing thoughts as thoughts”, “I am not my thoughts”, “the watcher and the thoughts”) enabling higher levels of behavioural control. This can be thought of as the application of wisdom, in order to over-ride an automatic response. It is a function of higher-level learning and adaptation.

Exact Neural Overlaps

“Mindfulness meditation… recruits the prefrontal cortex (PFC) and anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) to enhance metacognitive awareness and cognitive control.” Tang et al., Neuroscience & Biobehavioural Reviews (2015)

The posterior frontomedial cortex (PFC) / anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) circuit serves as a “metacognition hub” that modulates attention and is trained by mindfulness for self-regulation
This functional relationship is supported by extensive research in cognitive neuroscience.  pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih​

“Mindfulness meditation increases activity in the lateral PFC and anterior insula… regions associated with metacognitive monitoring of internal states.” Fox et al., Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews (2016)

Mindfulness meditation, particularly practices focused on present-moment awareness, has been consistently linked to increased activity and functional connectivity in brain regions that support attention and self-awareness These dlPFC/frontopolar regions have been shown from metacognition studies to be the centres activated during mindfulness. This serves to indicate that mindfulness is the application of metacognition for emotion regulation. sciencedirect​

“Mindfulness trait predicts metacognitive accuracy… via enhanced frontoparietal connectivity.” Malinowski, Neuroscience Letters (2013)

Researchers theorize that trait mindfulness reduces psychological distress by helping individuals observe their negative thoughts and emotions in a decentred and less judgmental manner, thereby reducing emotional reactivity, experiential avoidance, and over-engagement with negative emotions. pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih​

Metacognitive Processes & Concepts

Metamemory: Metamemory refers to an individual’s introspective knowledge of their own memory capabilities and processes, essentially “knowing about knowing” in a memory context. It involves the ability to monitor and control one’s own learning and remembering. This is metacognition that is specific to memory (e.g., “Do I know this?”). This process is centred in the precuneus/dlPFC. ​

Metadecision: Research indicates that the subjective feeling of confidence in perceptual and decision-making tasks, a form of metacognition, is associated with a specific brain network involving the lateral prefrontal cortex (lPFC) and the dorsal anterior cingulate cortex (dACC). This helps provide confidence in perceptual/decision tasks.​

Domain-General Metacognition: Research serves to show that metacognition involves both domain-general and domain-specific neural processes, with the prefrontal cortex (PFC) playing a key role in the abstract, domain-general aspects across tasks like perception and memory. PFC-led abstraction across tasks (perception, memory).​

Domain-Specific Metacognition: The precuneus, a posterior brain region, is causally and specifically involved in metacognition for the domain of memory (mnemonic metacognition), but not necessarily for other domains like perception. This supports the theory that metacognition has domain-specific neural substrates. These domains can be thought of as schemas, also as collections within Venn diagrams, they are dynamic, and often, their instantiation creates a symbolic, rather than a labelled relational link.

fMRI/NIBS: Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI) blood flow imaging and Non-Invasive Brain Stimulation (NIBS), which includes techniques like Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS) and Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation (tDCS), are powerful, complementary tools used in neuroscience to study brain function and connectivity. ​

Process Mapping for Mindfulness

Mindfulness Cycle via PFC Functions

Metacognitive Monitoring: Metacognitive monitoring involves the dorsal anterior cingulate cortex (dACC) and the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (dlPFC), which are key regions in the brain’s executive control network. Their role in relation to attention wandering is primarily one of detection and regulation, not usually the generation of the wandering itself.

Attention wandering, in relation to mindfulness, is the ability to spot it, and ask, “why is this happening?”, and to continue to observe that wandering, to see if a symbolic resonance has been detected, or, if a coping response is over-riding, distracting ones attention, in order to avoid the original intention. pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih​

Non-judgmental Awareness: In Carl Rogers‘ person-centred therapy, the concept that best aligns with “non-judgmental awareness” and “labelling thoughts without attachment” is Unconditional Positive Regard (UPR). This attitude in a therapist fosters an environment of complete acceptance, which allows the client to explore their inner experiences without fear of criticism or rejection. (frontopolar/insula): Label thoughts without attachment, Rogers core concepts. onlinelibrary.wiley

​”Labeling thoughts” is a technique often used in mindfulness meditation to observe thoughts without getting carried away by them or forming an emotional attachment. This practice helps individuals shift from a narrative self-focus to present-centered experiential awareness, which is associated with reduced activation in overactive self-referential brain regions.

We can therefore suggest that the insula, which is heavily involved in interoception (the conscious perception of internal bodily signals and emotional states) and the experience of emotional pain, works together with the frontopolar cortex (part of the prefrontal cortex, DLPFC) to allow cognitive control, and the ability to override negative emotional responses. Our symbolic access point to this process, is through mindfulness practices, where the brain learns to modulate the activity of these regions, leading to less emotional reactivity and greater cognitive control over one’s internal experience.

“Mindfulness enhances metacognitive awareness, which in turn improves emotion regulation via reappraisal.” Garland et al., Clinical Psychology Review (2015)

Self-Regulation: The orbitofrontal prefrontal cortex (OFC or orbitofrontal PFC) plays a critical role in self-regulation, primarily by evaluating rewards and punishments to help manage impulses and guide goal-directed behaviour. It helps an individual override immediate temptations in pursuit of long-term goals. (orbitofrontal PFC): Redirect attention/impulses. nature

This self-regulation component, then, is the core responses centre for behaviourist based learning. Based on our observations of human behaviour, we can suggest that the “unwise”, individual, is unaware of the nature of societies attempts to programme them through reward/punishment. And that the first gift of wisdom, may be when someone shares their knowledge of how to detect and diffuse that attempt to introject an external value.​​

Metacognitive Mindfulness Regulation Table