The research reported here was designed to expand upon the understanding that cognitive and metacognitive theories each offer explanations for the development of obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) by contrasting predictions derived from these models. Undergraduate students at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (n=110) completed online surveys to facilitate this study. The Obsessive Beliefs Questionnaire (OBQ-44) was used to measure beliefs and appraisals which are considered to be critical to the etiology of OCD from the cognitive perspective, whereas the Metacognitive Beliefs Questionnaire (MCQ-30) was used to measure beliefs related to monitoring and evaluating thoughts, from the metacognitive perspective. Each of these models has support in that both cognitive and metacognitive beliefs are linked to OC symptoms, but the extent to which the OBQ and MCQ account for various obsessive-compulsive (OC) symptoms had not been compared previously. Partial correlations and hierarchical regression analyses provided a framework through which to compare the utility of these tools in predicting OC symptoms, while holding general distress constant. In final regression models the OBQ significantly predicted OC symptoms related to responsibility for harm whereas the MCQ significantly predicted OC symptoms related to unacceptable thoughts and symmetry. Neither the OBQ nor the MCQ significantly predicted OC contamination concerns in this study, however, across regression models the MCQ and OBQ differed in the amount of variance in OC symptoms that they could each explain. These findings demonstrate a lack of overlap between the OBQ (specifically the importance and control of thoughts domain) and the MCQ, as previously suggested. This study offers additional insight into how cognitive and metacognitive models align with various OC symptom domains, and indicates that each model has specific strengths in predicting certain kinds of OC symptoms.Bachelor of Art
