Metacognition

Metacognition

Metacognition is the capacity to do cognition about cognition. In other words, when your thoughts, emotions, or even just perception - any activity of your mind - is directed at some other activity of your mind, this is called metacognition. This is how we have 'self awareness'. This is when we know that we know things. The nature of metacognition and its implications are of central importance, I believe, to having any real understanding of how a human psyche works.

Never forget the ever present disclaimer: This is just me noting down my current understanding. It's subject to change!

Functioning

Metacognition appears to me to be the human mind's ability to correct itself. Primarily, a mind (including those of animals!) takes sense data and pleasure/pain as its 'inputs', and generates prediction and volition as an output, both of which give rise to a coordinated action that inanimate objects simply don't display. Only sense data and pleasure/pain, therefore, can have any 'corrective power' upon such a simple mind. However, when a brain/mind gains metacognition, this means it is able to take its own activities as an input, and in this way act upon itself, rather than the world. 

To me, it seems absolutely necessary that this process requires a relative division of mind that is not assumed by most of us - although it also requires a certain unity as well. From what I understand, the Default Mode Network is likely what is responsible for this, taking in and synthesising information from all the otherwise autonomous processes that occur in the brain.

Types of Metacognition

When the mind corrects itself in the pursuit of true beliefs and avoidance of false beliefs, this I call Rationality.

When the mind corrects itself in the pursuit of wise values and avoidance of foolish values, this I call Spirituality.

When the mind uses the faculty of attention on itself, paying attention to attention, it is called Mindfulness.

Presumption of Metacognition

It is quite common to presume metacognition in people, especially when condemning the motives of people one dislikes or disagrees with. We say they are being 'intentionally dishonest', or malicious rather than simply biased or misguided. This assumption is fundamentally unjustified. We are naturally not aware of or recognising what our mind is doing by default; it takes extra mental activity to become aware of one's own mind as much as it does to be aware of anything else, and as such it cannot be an absolute given, even if humans do it a lot (and can even develop various problems as a result). 


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