Life Span and Disability XXI, 2 (2018), 117-141 117 Exploring meta-worry and perceived parenting behaviors in adolescents‟ anxiety Loredana Benedetto 1 , Elvira La Fauci 2 & Massimo Ingrassia 3 Abstract Background: This study explores how metacognitive beliefs about worry (Wells, 2005) and perceived parenting (e.g., psychological control, emotional availability and autonomy-granting) contribute to adolescents’ anxiety. Method: A sample of 191 community adolescents completed self- report questionnaires on anxiety levels (RCMAS), metacognitive beliefs about worry (MCQ-C) and maternal and paternal perceived parenting. The same procedure was replicated with a group (n = 14) of anxiety- referred adolescents. Results: Metacognitive beliefs were associated with adolescent’s reported anxiety, with girls reporting less positive beliefs and higher anxiety than boys. Anxiety-referred adolescents reported higher negative meta-worry (responsibility and harmful) and cognitive monitoring beliefs than non-clinical control. Correlations between anxiety and parenting change according to parents’ and adolescents’ gender. In regression analysis, negative meta-worry resulted the most robust predictor of anxiety, followed by low paternal emotional availability and high control for boys, and by low autonomy-granting and 1 Department of Clinical and Experimental Medicine, University of Messina, Italy. E-mail: loredana.benedetto@unime.it . 2 Department of Clinical and Experimental Medicine, University of Messina, Italy. E-mail: elvira.lafauci@gmail.com . 3 Department of Clinical and Experimental Medicine, University of Messina, Italy. E-mail: massimo.ingrassia@unime.it . Correspondence to: Loredana Benedetto, Department of Clinical and Experimental Medicine, AOU Policlinico “G. Martino”, Padiglione B, Via Consolare Valeria, 98125 Messina (Italy). Received: January 9, 2018; Revised: November 5, 2018; Accepted: November 25, 2018 © 2018 Associazione Oasi Maria SS. - IRCCS