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Metacognitive Self-Regulation : The Mediating Role of Emotion Oriented Coping between Positive and Negative Beliefs about Rumination amongst Pakistani Adults

OBJECTIVES: The study explored the moderated mediating role of gender on the relationship between positive and negative beliefs about rumination mediated by emotion oriented coping. METHODOLOGY: The research was a short survey. Data was collected from various institutes of Islamabad and Rawalpindi during 2015-2016. A total of 514 employed professionals from different organizations participated in the study. The questionnaires method was used. Responses were collected on Positive Beliefs about Rumination Scale, Negative Beliefs about Rumination Scales and Emotion Oriented Coping. Correlation analysis showed significant positive relationships among study variables (ranging from .32 to .40; p < .01). RESULTS: Results showed that direct path between negative beliefs about rumination and positive beliefs about rumination was found mediated by emotion oriented coping. The direct effects between positive beliefs about rumination and negative beliefs about rumination (β = .31, p < .01, ∆R= .23), and the indirect effects between positive and negative beliefs about rumination through emotionoriented coping (β = .10, p < .05, ∆R = .18) disclosing mediating effects of emotion oriented coping. CONCLUSION: Emotional coping was thus found to be a process through which individuals can ‘let go of’ factors that may be causing them stress and they can attain a temporary sense of calm. Previous research had hinted upon the cathartic nature of emotional coping but it wasn’t clear whether the relationship would be significant or not. The current research is step towards providing empirical evidence for this relationship. Secondly, the article specifies the direction of the relationship between positive beliefs about rumination, emotion oriented coping and negative beliefs about rumination.


INTRODUCTION
The Self-Regulatory Executive Function (S-REF) model conceptualizes rumination as a comprehensive cognitive mechanism that engages automatic processing, in terms of self-knowledge or beliefs we carry about our thoughts and voluntary conscious processing in form of choice of coping techniques. Wells and Mathews 1 suggest that beliefs, especially in emotionally vulnerable individuals may affect the choice of coping strategy; it may further fixate them into a thinking style that is repetitive, persistent and active about the causes and consequences of rumination triggering events. Here, the role of metacognitions (MC) is of particular importance. Metacognitions (MC) defined as the knowledge of the cognitive processes 2 play a vital role in forming beliefs, monitoring and allocating self-regulatory strategies.
Rumination is a way of coping that is employed in the presence of, a lack of action-oriented problem solving behavior 3 . It is typically guided by an emotion focused approach. The mechanism of rumination in S-REF model is grounded on a comprehensive architectural design consisting of both automated and voluntary processing 4 . Initially any event or triggering factor is automatically acknowledged by lower level networks for example, sensory mechanisms. Stimuli holding motivationally significant valence are then appraised by involving self-knowledge 5 and metacognitions for re -evaluating in the light of previous experiences and beliefs that are carried for the situation at hand. This re-evaluation is passed as a feedback to the supervisory executive systems that are responsible for making a decision on choosing an appropriate coping strategy. In emotionally vulnerable individuals coping is manifested in terms of ruminative style for self-regulation that interferes with problem solving 3 This design is also suggestive of a universal quality of rumination i.e., rumination occurs in both normal or healthy people and clinical patients. In normal individual this is usually observed into practice whenever there is a goal discrepancy 6,7 . Upon activation of the S-REF the executive mental functions start processing within a narrowed frame with attentional bias, ignoring the neutral, relevant information that contributes to the richness of the experience. This condition is referred to cognitive attentional syndrome (CAS), where multiple executive mental functions such as memory, attention and thinking etc. may be biased effecting the self-knowledge creating atypical perceptual tendencies. The atypical perceptions provide feedback to the supervisory executive system hence impacting the choice for coping strategy. The repetition of thoughts is attributed to the CAS 8 that prohibits the attention allocation to neutral information. Emotion oriented coping and lack of problem solving approach is anarchetypal feature of rumination, thus under these provisions a resort for coping would be in terms of emotional orientation. According to Wells A 2008 9 emotion oriented approach of a problematic situation in itself is a source of pathology. Individuals frequently using emotion and avoidance oriented coping can be assumed to be carrying pathological vulnerabilities. Thus it is absolutely necessary to investigate cognitive tendencies leading to choosing emotions as a coping mechanism. In the light of literature we argue that, behavior execution is guided by a belief system 10 , similar to this is the S-REF processing in which the self-knowledge constitutes our cognitions and metacognitions. The metacognitions for a behavior carries positive or negative beliefs that highlight the usefulness or dangers associated with that behavior, hence the choice of strategy in dealing with a situation at hand is most likely to be dependent on the beliefs one holds for those behaviors. Consequently, these positive beliefs are responsible for the choice of an emotion focused style 11 which contributes to perpetuating ruminative cycle. We sought to investigate if these positive beliefs are responsible for an emotion oriented strategies and serve as a precursor to negative beliefs about rumination. As stated by Wells A 2008 9 the emotion and avoidance focused coping may reflect source of pathological vulnerabilities, providing the indication that cognitions lead to such a choice of coping can be assumed to lie in similar directions depicting some usefulness of this choice. The questionnaire consisted of three subscales namely, task oriented, emotion oriented and avoidance oriented coping styles consisting of 16-items each. CISS assesses choice of coping strategies in stressful or challenging situations. Respondents rate each statement to the extent they approve of each item by using a 4-point Likert scale extending between Do not agree and Agree very much, with high scores representing the strength of the type or style of coping one frequently employs.

METHODOLOGY
The original internal consistency and test-retest reliability coefficients were reported between 0.89 and 0.85, respectively. For the present research we have considered emotion oriented subscale to fulfill the purpose of the study. The present study investigated the relationship between positive and negative beliefs about rumination mediated by emotion oriented coping. The beliefs serve as implicit planning, guides the self-regulation process therefore, positive beliefs serve to initiate ruminative processing and emotion oriented coping results into dysfunctional vulnerability reflected in terms of negative beliefs. To the best of our knowledge till date, a scarcity of research inquiry had independently explored this relationship despite literature suggesting their close association in the S-REF processing. We maintain that findings from the present study will provide valuable conclusions in understanding precursors to dysfunctional cognitive processing.

RESULTS
The data was collected using positive beliefs about rumination scale, emotion oriented coping, and negative beliefs about rumination to achieve the study objectives. The demographics show that present study included 514 professionals (males=76%; females=24%) from different fields of professions with a mean age of 32.56 years. Of the entire sample approximately 33% were unmarried, 65% married. On the professional front, the data indicated a mean experience of approximately 9 years and drawing a salary of Rs. 48,310 on the average. The results are presented in Table I. The reliability coefficients show the psychometric appropriateness of the scales used, results in Table II shows the appropriate magnitudes of internal consistency. Correlation analysis between variables was conducted (Table II) Table III shows the direct, indirect and total effects regression coefficients for the study variables. The independent variable should significantly correlate with the both mediator and dependent variable as a prerequisite to mediation analysis 14 . This has been observed in the present investigation and the change in R 2 was seen from .23 in direct effects to .18 after introducing the mediator.

DISCUSSION
Literature has highlighted an association between positive and negative beliefs about rumination and emotional coping 15 . Some authors have indicated that these beliefs are the cause for the initiation and maintenance of emotional disorders 16,1 . The Self-Regulatory Executive Function model of rumination explains an extensive cognitive architecture for cyclic repetition (rumination) of thoughts that leads to more preservative thinking, enhances emotional negativity and is associated with anxiety 17 . The literature about the relationship between metacognitive beliefs and coping strategies are still scarce, although coping research is elaborate    18,19 . The present research explored the relationship between metacognitive beliefs and emotion oriented coping. The perspective of present study is indicative of a ruminative cognitive processing that is initiated in the face of challenges or stress 20 . Similar to previous studies 21 , the results showed significantly positive relationships between PBRS and suggesting that elevation of either may contribute to the other. The previous literature submits PBRS and EOC to be positively correlated and this finding was corroborating in the present study disclosed by the correlations in similar directions. The mediating role of emotion oriented coping signifies that a parallel activation of positive and negative beliefs that has been previously associated with psychopathology can be intervened by an innate coping mechanism. This is further supported by the philosophy of Aristotle when he said "purging of the spirit of morbid and base ideas or emotions by witnessing the playing out of such emotions or ideas on stage" 22 .

CONCLUSION
Emotional coping is a type of catharsis that enables the discharge of certain strain factors thus facilitating a cognitive-emotional balance. Most of these associations have been implied and yet to be field tested, especially with respect to nonclinical population; the above relationships signpost towards the specification that beliefs underlie coping strategies. The positive relationship between positive beliefs about rumination, emotion oriented coping and negative beliefs about rumination specify that holding beliefs that rumination serves an advantage elevates the emotional content which is positively associated with an activation of the danger and uncontrollability of these thoughts.

RECOMMENDATIONS
Although the study attempted to include an elaborate sample yet some limitations must be highlighted. The cross sectional nature of the study confines concrete conclusions about the nature of the processing across time. Next, for future research attempts should include an exploration of individual differences which would further broaden the universality of the processing. It is thus recommended that the beliefs held for recurring thoughts should be explored before aiming at any cognitive intervention.

Conflict of interest: None
Funding: None