Metacognition as a regulator of thinking and decision-making in complex cognitive contexts

Abstract

Abstract. Cognitive science, broadly understood as enabling one to reflect on and manage one's thinking, has emerged as an essential cornerstone of modern psychology, neuroscience, and educational science. This article provides an extensive theoretical review of metacognition as a regulator of intricate decisionmaking and learning activities. Based on recent multidisciplinary studies, the article examines the duality of metacognition—monitoring and control—and its functioning in regulating confidence, detecting errors, and adjusting to alter behaviour strategically. The article pays special attention to differences between metacognitive knowledge and metacognitive regulation and how these aspects facilitate cognitive flexibility in dynamic contexts. In addition, the article covers the recent neuroscientific literature that has implicated the prefrontal cortex, particularly the anterior and dorsolateral areas, as the crucial site of metacognitive ability. In educational settings, metacognition is an important determinant of academic achievement and knowledge transfer. Experiments dealing with measurement limitations are covered, including the shortcomings of tools that rely on the individuals themselves and the emergence of neurocognitive techniques. The article also discusses new models, including creative metacognition and domain-specialised frameworks that express the task-dependent nature of metacognitive management. Although it is beneficial, the article recognises cognitive cost and overconfidence as restrictions on the effectiveness of metacognitive ability. The review concludes by noting the necessity to develop metacognitive expertise through targeted training, particularly in professional and high-stakes decision-making contexts. Practically, these insights carry far-reaching implications that traverse classrooms, clinics, and corporate boardrooms alike. By delineating the neural and behavioural scaffolding of metacognitive skills, the review furnishes an evidencebased blueprint for designing interventions that enhance self-regulatory accuracy— whether in young learners grappling with mathematical abstraction, pilots executing real-time course corrections, or physicians weighing differential diagnoses under uncertainty. Embedding metacognitive prompts into adaptive learning platforms can amplify transfer of knowledge across domains, while neuro-feedback protocols targeting prefrontal circuitry promise to fine-tune confidence calibration where lives are on the line. In organisational spheres, cultivating cultures that reward reflective error-checking over blame may mitigate groupthink and catastrophic risk accumulation.