Schedule of Events | Symposia

Anxiety and stress symptoms are robustly associated with global negative metacognitive biases

Poster Session A - Saturday, March 29, 2025, 3:00 – 5:00 pm EDT, Back Bay Ballroom/Republic Ballroom

Obinna Megwa¹, Sam Agnoli^1,2,6, Catherine Fortier^1,5, William P. Milberg^1,5, Michael Esterman^1,2,3,4, Joseph DeGutis^1,2,5; ¹Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS), VA Boston Health Care System, ²Boston Attention and Learning Lab, VA Boston Health Care System, ³National Center for PTSD, VA Boston Health Care System, ⁴Boston University Chobanian and Avedisian School of Medicine, ⁵Harvard Medical School, ⁶Northwestern University

More negative metacognitive bias, the tendency to underestimate one’s abilities, has been associated with increased anxiety/stress, depressive, and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms. Studies often combine depressive and anxiety/stress symptoms into a single factor or focus exclusively on depressive symptoms. We sought to assess the unique contribution of depression, anxiety/stress, and PTSD to negative metacognitive bias in post-9/11, combat-deployed veterans. Participants (N=623, 90%-male, mean age=34.27 years) from the Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS) were administered the Depression Anxiety Stress Scale and Clinician-Administered PTSD Scale. Global metacognitive bias was calculated by subtracting self-reported cognitive ability (World Health Organization Disability Assessment Schedule-II Understanding and Communicating) from a global composite of validated neuropsychological assessments (executive function, memory, attention). 261 participants performed all assessments 2 years later to examine how longitudinal changes in symptoms related to changes in negative metacognitive bias. At baseline, more negative metacognitive bias was robustly associated with greater anxiety/stress (ρ=-.44), depressive (ρ=-.40), and PTSD symptoms (ρ=-.31). In a multiple regression, anxiety/stress (β=-.31, p<.001) and depressive symptoms (β =-.12, p=.045) predicted unique variance, though PTSD symptoms did not (β=-.03, p=.556). When examining 2-year changes in metacognitive bias, we found that changes in anxiety/stress symptoms (β=-0.32, p<.001) and changes in PTSD symptoms (β=-.18, p=.003) were significant unique predictors, while changes in depressive symptoms were not (β =-.10, p=.144). Anxiety/stress was uniquely associated with metacognitive bias relative to depression and PTSD, and changes in anxiety/stress predicted changes in bias over time.

Topic Area: EXECUTIVE PROCESSES: Other