Lack of insight

What it means

Lack of insight (Anosognosia) is a neurological condition in which an individual is unaware of his or her own neurological deficit or psychiatric condition. Anosognosia can be associated with mental illness, dementia, and structural brain lesions and can affect an individual's conscious awareness of deficits involving judgment, emotions, memory, executive function, language skills, and motor ability.

Reduced insight distinguishes itself from other misconceptions of reality by typically stemming not from the presence of false beliefs or hallucinations, but rather from a deficiency in the cognitive capacity needed to accurately comprehend one's environment.

Rare diseases that can present with this1

The range is how often this sign appears among people diagnosed with each disease — it is not a probability of having any of them. Many of these signs also occur in common, non-rare conditions. A sign on this page is a conversation to have with a clinician, not a conclusion.

Part of the broader category

Also called: Anosognosia