What term describes a disturbance in higher-level cognitive functioning where an individual cannot recognize familiar objects?

The term that describes a disturbance in higher-level cognitive functioning characterized by an inability to recognize familiar objects is agnosia. Individuals with agnosia may have intact sensory functions but struggle to make sense of the sensations they experience, affecting their ability to identify objects, people, or sounds. This condition can occur due to damage in specific areas of the brain, particularly in the occipital or temporal lobes, where the processing of visual and auditory information takes place.

In contrast, alogia refers to an impoverished speech output often seen in conditions such as schizophrenia, indicating a lack of sufficient speech rather than a recognition issue. Apraxia involves difficulty with motor planning and executing tasks, where individuals understand what they want to do but cannot perform the movements necessary to carry out the action. Aphasia is a language disorder that affects a person's ability to communicate, impairing speech production or comprehension, but it does not primarily involve recognizing objects.