If I do it, it must be important
Gideon Anholt, Omer Linkovski, Eyal Kalantrof, Avishai Henik
Cognitive behavior accounts of obsessive-compulsive disorder ascertain that the catastrophic
interpretation of (normally occurring) intrusive thoughts as a sign of danger plays a major role in
the etiology and maintenance of OCD. Various researchers have placed particular importance on
metacognitive beliefs such as thought importance and control of thoughts as paramount forces
driving such interpretations. Obsessive-compulsive patients and their family members have been
found to show diminished capability of response inhibition relative to healthy controls. We propose
that deficits in response inhibition are related to the development and maintenance of obsessivecompulsive
metacognitive beliefs. We further suggest that patients observe their own behavioral
tendencies and subtle reactions associated with intrusions and interpret these as indicating that
the intrusions are important. Over time generalizations of this process are established in the form of
metacognitive beliefs. Specific hypotheses for future research and clinical implications are suggested.
Keywords
Metacognitive beliefs, obsessive-compulsive disorder, response inhibition.
