Age and gender differences in the factor structure of cognitive monitoring.

Abstract

Cognitive development during adolescence is arguably unmatched by any other period of life. Enhanced brain maturation, increased memory capacity, and the acquisition of new cognitive skills help prepare adolescents for adult social roles. Among these skills is cognitive monitoring, or the ability to reflect on one's own thinking-traditionally referred to as "metacognition." Using cross-sectional data from the first wave of a longitudinal panel cohort, we examined three facets of cognitive monitoring: decision-making (e.g., gathering information, evaluating alternatives), self-reinforcement (e.g., praise and encouragement), and affective self-regulation (e.g., emotional control) in four age groups of Czech high school students. Multiple-group confirmatory factor analysis tested primary, higher-order, age and gender-based models. Overall, model fit was acceptable, with only trivial differences in item intercepts, factor correlations, variances, and latent factor means. Primary factor models revealed gender differences favoring girls' use of decision-making strategies and older youth employing more decision-making skills. A higher-order metacognitive factor to account for correlations among the monitoring skills was supported across both age and gender groups. Results are discussed in terms of promoting cognitive monitoring as a key 21st-century skill and advancing higher-order reflective skills as a critical learning task during adolescence.