Metacognitive unawareness correlates with executive function impairment after severe traumatic brain injury

Abstract

A neuropsychological battery was used to evaluate attention, memory and executive functions. SA was assessed by the PCRS, which was administered to patients and close family members. Patients were divided into two groups representing those with and without SA. Patients with poor SA had more problems than those with good SA in some components of the executive system, as indicated by the high percentage of perseverative errors and responses they made on the Wisconsin Card Sorting Test. Moreover, a decrease in metacognitive SA correlated significantly with time to follow commands (TFC). This study suggests the importance of integrating an overall assessment of cognitive functions with a specific evaluation of SA to treat self-awareness and executive functions together during the rehabilitation process.