Adaptation, validity, and reliability of the metacognition questionnaire-30 for the Turkish population, and its relationship to anxiety and obsessive-compulsive symptoms

Abstract

Objective: The present study aimed to evaluate the psychometric properties of the short form of the Metacognition Questionnaire (MCQ-30) in a population of Turkish university students. The metacognitions questionnaire (MCQ) measures individual differences in a selection of metacognitive beliefs, judgments, and monitoring tendencies considered important in the metacognitive model of psychological disorders. Method: The study included 850 university students from 15 Turkish universities. Mean age age of the participants was 21.22 years, 282 (33.17%) were female, and 558 (66.82%) were male. Results: Construct validity was evaluated by exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis (CIA). Exploratory factor analysis revealed that the Turkish version of MCQ-30 has 5 components, which is some factor structure as the original form. In addition, the fit indices of CIA suggested an acceptable fit to a 5-factor model consistent with the original MCQ-30. The Turkish MCQ-30 showed acceptable to good test-retest reliability, internal consistency, and convergent validity. Significant positive relationships between the subscales of MCQ-30 and measures of anxiety and obsessive-compulsive symptoms provided further support for the convergent validity of the Turkish version. Moreover significant negative correlations were observed between age and the MCQ-30 subscales, and the effect of gender was significant on some of the subscales. Conclusion: The psychometric properties of the Turkish version of MCQ-30 showed that the instrument is a valuable additional tool for the assessment of metacognition in Turkey.