Primary Clinical Skills- Intro to Mental Status Practice Exam

Perception without any real external input is called a hallucination. In a hallucination the person experiences sensory events—such as hearing voices or seeing things—that others do not perceive. They can involve any sense and are common in psychotic disorders, delirium, substance-related states, or certain neurological conditions. This differs from an illusion, where there is a real external stimulus but it is misinterpreted. Insight is the person’s awareness that their experiences may not reflect reality, not a perceptual event. Compulsions are repetitive behaviors or mental acts driven by an urge, not perceptual phenomena.