Adaptation and validation of the Metacognition Questionnaire (MCQ-30) in Spanish clinical and nonclinical samples.

Background: The short form of the Metacognitions Questionnaire is a brief multidimensional measure of a range of metacognitive processes and metacognitive beliefs about worry and cognition relevant to vulnerability to and maintenance of emotional disorders. The aim of the study was adapt and validate a Spanish version of the short form of the Metacognitions Questionnaire (MCQ-30) and to evaluate its psychometric properties in clinical and nonclinical samples.

Method: The MCQ-30 was administered to a sample of 316 patients with psychiatric disorders (anxiety, depression, and eating disorders) and to a sample of 169 individuals belonging to the general population. Instrument reliability (internal consistency), construct validity (confirmatory factor analysis [CFA], convergent validity, known groups) and responsiveness were measured.

Results: The clinical sample scored the highest on all factors when compared to nonclinical sample. The exploratory factor analysis supported the MCQ׳s original five-factor solution. The CFA suggested a good fit of the model. Correlation with measure of worry demonstrated convergent validity. Known-groups validity was supported by significant differences in the MCQ-30 mean scores according to certain variables, such as educational level and employment status.

Limitations: This study did not assess the test-retest reliability.

Conclusions: The MCQ-30 has good psychometric properties and can be used to evaluate several dimensions of metacognition in both clinical and nonclinical samples.