Metacognition, Executive Control, Self-Regulation, and Other More Mysterious Mechanisms
Abstract
In this chapter, the historical roots and current status of the fashionable but complex, and often poorly understood, concept of metacognition and other topics with which it shares a family resemblance are described. Metacognition refers to understanding of knowledge, an understanding that can be reflected in either effective use or overt description of the knowledge in question. Various forms of metacognition have appeared in the literature, some of these instantiations are puzzling and mysterious. For example, Marshall and Morton, (1978 , p. 226) refer to the mechanism that permits the detection and correction of errors in speech production as an EMMA, or “even more mysterious apparatus,” that could be an “optional extra.” This researcher argues that far from being an optional extra, the processes that have recently earned the title metacognitive are central to learning and development. Although metacognitive concepts may appear mysterious, what is at issue is the concept of degree of understanding. Thus, a learner can be said to understand a particular cognitive activity if he or she can use it appropriately and discuss its use. Understanding admits of degrees, because learners can often use knowledge effectively without being able to explain how this can be so. Individuals, with severe learning problems in a domain, can neither apply nor discuss a piece of knowledge or a rule they have acquired.
Cite this
Ann L. Brown (2026). Metacognition, Executive Control, Self-Regulation, and Other More Mysterious Mechanisms. Routledge eBooks. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003758167-5
@article{l2026metacognition,
title = {Metacognition, Executive Control, Self-Regulation, and Other More Mysterious Mechanisms},
author = {Brown, Ann L.},
year = {2026},
journal = {Routledge eBooks},
doi = {10.4324/9781003758167-5}
}Citations in this library
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