Turkish Adaptation of the Metacognitions about Symptom Control Scale and Its Revised Form: Reliability and Validity Study

Objective: The relationship between metacognitions and mental health in different chronic physical illnesses is examined, and current studies focus on symptom control. The aim of this study is to adapt the Metacognitions about Symptom Control Scale (MaSCS) and its revised form (MaSCS-R) into Turkish and evaluate whether metacognitions can be measured in a similar way to people with chronic illnesses living in England, Germany, and Arabia. Method: The study sample (for both MaSCS and MaSCS-R) consisted of participants (81 and 80 respectively) with chronic physical illness. Participants' metacognition was assessed using the Metacognition Scale-30 (MCQ-30) and their general health was assessed using the Short Form-36 (SF-36). Results: Consistent with the English and original versions of the scale, the Turkish versions of MaSCS and MaSCS-R had a two-factor structure, and the item distributions were similar. Reliability analyses showed that internal consistency coefficients for subscales of both forms were mostly in the acceptable and good range (.66-.83). Subscales of the MaSCS and MaSCS-R were found to have moderate relationships with most of subscales of the MCQ-30 and SF-36. Conclusion: The subscale “negative metacognitions about symptom control” had cross-cultural and transdiagnostic convergent validity, while the subscale “positive metacognitions about symptom control” provided this to some extent. The results for both forms showed that positive metacognitions about symptom control are controversial and need further research. Also, the Turkish version of the MaSCS is more comprehensive and reliable than the short and revised versions.