METACOGNITION AS A PROTECTIVE PSYCHOLOGICAL FACTOR ACROSS DEVELOPMENT: A CRITICAL REVIEW OF ITS ROLE IN ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT AND SUBJECTIVE WELL-BEING

Abstract

Metacognition is widely recognized as a powerful driver of academic performance, yet this review argues that such a performance-centred framing overlooks a second, equally consequential dimension of the construct. Building on foundational work from Flavell, Brown, Schraw and Dennison, and Efklides' MASRL, the review advances the idea that metacognition may also function as a protective psychological factor, one that helps learners navigate stress, maintain emotional stability, and sustain well-being when academic demands intensify. By examining academic achievement and subjective well-being as parallel outcomes of the same regulatory-affective system, the analysis highlights a striking imbalance: achievement research rarely considers this protective role, while well-being research engages it only partially and with limited evidence for younger learners. As a result, metacognition's buffering function remains theoretically compelling but empirically under-tested. Closing this gap requires research that measures achievement and well-being together, within the same children, during the developmental period when metacognitive and affective regulation are still taking shape.