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525. In terms of genetics, Roe's theory would assert that.
a. genetics play a very minor role in career choice.
b. genetics help to determine intelligence and education, and hence this influences one's career choice.
c. genetics are important while upbringing is not.
d. genetics are important while the unconscious is not.
B. Time for a Roe Review (hey was that great alliteration or what?): career choice is influenced by genetics, parent/child interaction, unconscious motivators, current needs, interests (people/things), education, and intelligence.
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526. According to Anne Roe, who categorized occupations by fields and levels.
a. the decision to pursue a career is purely a conscious decision.
b. using the Strong is the best method of explaining career choice.
c. early childhood experiences are irrelevant in terms of career choice.
d. the choice of a career helps to satisfy an individual's needs.
D. Roe determined that choice a was incorrect and early childhood experiences are indeed important.
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527. A 37-year-old Caucasian male states during a counseling session that he is working as a clerk at Main Street Plumbing. This verbalization depicts the client's.
a. career.
b. lifestyle.
c. job or position.
d. occupation.
C. Technically, a job refers to a given position or similar positions within an organization. An occupation is broader and refers to similar jobs occupied via different people in different settings (e.g., psychotherapists). Career is the broadest category because it depicts a person;s lifetime positions plus leisure. Possible memory device to recall the order from most specific to most general: Joc (which sounds like the word Jock).
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528. Roe recognized the role of the unconscious mind in terms of career choice. Another theorist who emphasized the unconscious processes in this area of study was.
a. Krumboltz.
b. Parsons.
c. Super.
d. Bordin.
D. Choice a is decidedly incorrect as Krumboltz worked with a behavioristic model. Bordin, though, felt that career choices could be used to solve unconscious conflicts. Psychoanalytic approaches used in regard to career choice or other issues have never been extremely popular with helpers trained in counseling departments since short-term, time efficient modalities are stressed.
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529. Edwin Bordin felt that difficulties related to job choice.
a. are indicative of neurotic symptoms.
b. are indicative of inappropriate reinforcers in the environment.
c. are related to a lack of present moment awareness.
d. are the result of irrational cognitions.
A. This is the kind of exam question you literally could answer correctly via the process of elimination. In the previous question, it was noted that Bordin analyzed career choices using the unconscious mind. Needless to say, this is a psychoanalytic assumption. Hence, choice b can be eliminated since reinforcers are seen as modifiers in the behaviorist school. Choice c also can be eliminated inasmuch as analysis is not a present moment approach. Lastly, irrational cognitions are stressed in rational-emotive behavior therapy and some related cognitive schools of intervention. Krumboltz's approach to career counseling is considered a cognitive approach.
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530. Another career theorist who drew upon psychoanalytic doctrines was A. A. Brill. Brill emphasized _______ as an ego-defense mechanism.
a. subliminal.
b. sublimation.
c. repression.
d. rationalization.
B. Choice a is not a defense mechanism. Sublimation occurs when an individual expresses an unacceptable need in a socially acceptable manner. A person, for example, who likes to cut things up might pursue a career as a butcher or perhaps a surgeon. Review the counseling theories and helping relationship section if you do not know the definitions of the four alternatives.
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531. A client who becomes a professional football player because he unconsciously likes to hurt people would be utilizing _______ according to Brill's theory of career choice.
a. subliminal.
b. sublimation.
c. suppression.
d. introjection.
B. See the explanation to the previous question.
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532. Today, the most popular approach to career choice reflects.
a. the work of Anne Roe.
b. the work of Donald Super.
c. the work of John Holland.
d. the work of Jane Loevinger.
C. Choice d is the most outlandish at least, if you marked any other choice you chose a career theorist. Loevinger is noted for her seven stage transition continuum theory of ego development. John Holland's theory can be best described by his four assumptions. First, in our culture, there are six basic personality types: realistic, investigative, artistic, social, enterprising, or conventional. Second, most work environments correspond to six personality types. Third, people search out an agreeable environment which lets them express their personality type. Fourth, the individual's behavior is determined by an interaction of the personality and the environment. Possible memory device for the six types of personality/environments: as rice. Holland's Self-Directed Search (SDS) is designed to measure the six personality types.
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533. Holland categorized _______ personality orientations which correspond to analogous work environments.
a. two.
b. five.
c. three.
d. six.
D. In this theory the counselor attempts to find a job for the client in which the personality/environment interaction is congruent. Holland felt that people try to avoid environments which are disagreeable. A host of studies lends support to his theory of personality types.
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534. Most experts in the field of career counseling would classify Roe, Brill, and Holland as _______ theorists.
a. behavior modification.
b. ego psychologists.
c. experiential.
d. personality.
D. Remember: your exam could use the term structural theory in place of the term personality theory. Don't let it throw you!
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535. Counselors who support John Holland's approach believe that.
a. an appropriate job allows one to express his or her personality.
b. stereotypes cannot be considered relevant.
c. four major personality categories exist.
d. sublimation is the major factor in job selection.
A. Choice b is incorrect: Holland did indeed believe in stereotypes, and some critics have thus said his theory is too simplistic and somewhat sexist. Choice c would need to read six major personality categories to be accurate.
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536. Holland mentioned six modal orientations: artistic, conventional, enterprising, investigative, realistic, and social. A middle school counselor is most likely.
a. artistic.
b. social.
c. enterprising.
d. realistic.
B. Teachers, counselors, speech therapists, and social workers would fit into the social category. Holland said that the person in the social category prefers to solve problems using interpersonal skills and feelings.
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537. Holland's theory would predict that the vice president of the United States would be.
a. artistic.
b. social.
c. enterprising
d. realistic.
C. The enterprising person likes to sell to others or perform leadership tasks. He or she tends to value power and status. Other enterprising occupations would include real estate agents, business owners, television producers, and hotel managers.
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538. A client who wishes to work on an assembly line would fit into Holland's _______ typology.
a. artistic.
b. conventional.
c. social.
d. realistic.
D. The realistic or motoric person likes machines. This individual might become a truck driver, an auto mechanic, or might fancy plumbing.
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539. Holland's psychological needs career personality theory would say that a research chemist is primarily the _______ type.
a. investigative.
b. social.
c. enterprising.
d. artistic.
A. The investigative personality type likes to think his or her way through a problem. Occupations congruent with this type include scientists, design engineers, geologists, mathematicians, and philosophers. Reader generated super cool memory device: Most textbooks recommend the memory device RIASEC to recall the six vocational personalities/work environments, but right before this book went to press a clever reader suggested Rosenthal Is A Successful Educator Counselor. You've got to love it! (Turn to the Graphical Representations section of the text for a visual picture of this paradigm.)
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540. Holland's artistic type seems to value feelings over pure intellect or cognitive ability. Which of the following clients would not be best described via the artistic typology?
a. A 72-year-old part-time male ballet instructor.
b. A 29-year-old female fiction writer.
c. A 33-year-old female drill press operator.
d. A 41-year-old singer for a heavy metal rock band.
C. Hint: The typist on the NCE or other major exam will probably not be kind enough to type the word not in italics, so read the questions carefully. The artistic type shuns conformity as well as structure. The emphasis is on self-expression. The drill press operator would be a realistic type who likes physical labor and enjoys working with tools.
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541. Holland did indeed believe in career stereotypes. In other words the person psychologically defines himself or herself via a given job. Thus, a bookkeeper or a clerical worker would primarily fit into the _______ category.
a. artistic.
b. conventional.
c. realistic.
d. social.
B. The conventional type values conformity, structure, rules, and feels comfortable in a subordinate role. Statisticians, bank clerks, and controllers fit this stereotype. By the way, conventional and �conformity� both begin with a �c.� Nice memory device, huh? Although Holland�s theory is usually dubbed as a personality theory, it has been viewed as a trait-and-factor approach. Since most exams won�t mention the trait-and-factor category, the answer they are usually looking for is that Holland created a personality approach to career counseling.
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542. In regard to an individual�s behavioral style or so-called modal orientation, Holland believed that.
a. every person has a pure or discrete orientation that fits perfectly into one of the six categories.
b. occupational measures like the Strong Vocational are for the most part useless.
c. most people are not pure personality types and thus can best be described by a distribution of types such as Realistic, Social, Investigative (RSI).
d a and b.
C. If you marked �b� try again; the Strong Interest Inventory (SII) is based on Holland�s model. Although each individual has a primary direction or type, the person can be described best using a �profile� over three areas. Graphically, the six types generally are placed on a hexagon such that adjacent or consistent types are next to each other on the geometric figure. Thus RIA would be �consistent� while RAE would be �inconsistent� (see �Graphical Representations� section of this book).
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543. Holland believed that.
a. a given occupation will tend to attract persons with similar personalities.
b. a given occupation will tend to attract persons with a very wide range of personality attributes.
c. one�s personality is, for the most part, unrelated to one�s occupational choice.
d. b and c.
A. Like Roe, Holland felt that early childhood development influences adult personality characteristics.
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544. Holland relied on a personality theory of career choice. Hoppock�s theory, based on the work of _______ is also considered a personality approach.
a. Donald Super.
b. Robert Rosenthal.
c. David Wechsler.
d. Henry Murray.
D. Henry Murray created the �needs-press� theory and the TAT (along with Christina Morgan) projective test. The occupation is used to meet a person�s current need. Rosenthal (choice �b,� no relation to me) is famous for his research regarding the �experimenter effect,� while David Wechsler (choice �c�) is well-known for creating the Wechsler intelligence scales.
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545. Developmental career theorists view career choice as an ongoing or so-called longitudinal process rather than a single decision made at one point in time. The pioneer theorists in this area� who were the first to forsake the matching models�were.
a. Super and Roe.
b. Hoppock and Holland.
c. Ginzberg, Ginsburg, Axelrad, and Herma.
d. Brill and Bordin.
C. Until 1950 the trait-and-factor or matching model was king. Then in early 1951 Ginzberg and his associates began to emphasize developmental factors related to occupational choice. Based on a small research sample they concluded that occupational choice takes place over a 6 to 10-year period; the choice is irreversible; and always has the quality of compromise. The theory postulated three stages: fantasy�until age 11, based strongly on impulses; tentative�ages 11 to 17, where interests and abilities are examined; and the realistic period�age 17, where a choice is made by weighing abilities and needs and making a compromise. Exploration was said to lead to crystallization. By 1972, Ginzberg modified his position by stating that the process of choice is open-ended and lifelong. This, of course, refuted the notion of irreversibility. He also replaced �compromise� with the concept of �optimization,� meaning that individuals try to make the best of what they have to offer and what is available in the job market.
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546. Ginzberg and his colleagues now believe in a development model of career choice which asserts that.
a. the process of choosing a career does not end at age 20 or adulthood.
b. career choice decisions are really made throughout the life span.
c. career choice is reversible.
d. all of the above.
D. See the question and answer to 545.
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547. Initially, Ginzberg and his associates viewed career choice as irreversible and the result of compromises between wishes and realistic possibilities. This theory identified three stages of career development.
a. informal, formal, and concrete.
b. fantasy (birth to age 11), tentative (ages 11 to 17), and realistic (age 17 to early 20s).
c. sensorimotor, formal, and concrete.
d. oral, anal, and phallic.
B. See the question and answer to 545.
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548. The most popular developmental career theorist is Donald Super. Super emphasizes.
a. id impulses.
b. the critical parent.
c. the self-concept.
d. ego strength.
C. Super and self-concept both begin with an �s.� How convenient! The assumption here is that the individual chooses a career which allows the self-concept to be expressed.
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549. Super�s theory emphasizes _______ life stages.
a. five.
b. four.
c. three.
d. nine.
A. The stages are: first, Growth (birth to 14); second, Exploration (15�24); third, Establishment (24�44), fourth, Maintenance (44�64); and fifth, Decline (65+). Suggested memory device: GEE MD. (Note, so far as the two �Es� are concerned, common sense would dictate that exploration would come before establishment.) Developmental theories like Donald Super�s emphasize longitudinal career-related behavior.
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550. Super�s theory includes.
a. the life-career rainbow.
b. the life-career stars.
c. the life-career moon.
d. the life-career psychosis.
A. The person can play a number of potential roles as he or she advances through the five stages mentioned in the previous question; they are parent, homemaker, worker, citizen, leisurite, student, or child. Super called the graphic display of the roles unfolding over the life span, the �career rainbow.� The roles are played out in the �theaters� of the home, community, school, and work. So far as Super is concerned career can include student, employee, pensioner, retirement, civic duties, avocations and even family roles.
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551. Research into the phenomenon of career maturity reflects the work of.
a. John Crites.
b. Roe.
c. Holland.
d. Schlossberg.
A. Career maturity might be referred to as �vocational maturity� on your exam. Choice �d� mentions the work of Schlossberg who has focused heavily on adult career development. She suggested five noteworthy factors: behavior in the adult years is primarily determined by social rather than biological factors; behavior can either be a function of one�s life stage or one�s age at other times; sex differences are actually more powerful than age or stage differences; adults continually experience transitions which require adaptation and self-assessment; identity, intimacy, and generativity are recurring themes in adulthood.
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552. The decision-making theory, which refers to periods of anticipation and implementation/adjustment, was proposed by.
a. Crites.
b. Holland.
c. David Tiedeman and Robert O�Hara.
d. Super.
C. Tiedman and O�Hara suggested that the decision process is best explained by breaking it down into a two-part process. In the anticipation stage the individual imagines himself or herself in a given career. In the implementation phase (also sometimes called accommodation or induction) the person engages in reality testing regarding his or her expectations concerning the occupation. All decision-making theories contend that the individual has the power to choose from the various career options.
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553. John Krumboltz postulated a social learning approach to career choice. This model is based mainly on the work of.
a. Joseph Wolpe.
b. Albert Bandura.
c. Donald Super.
d. Karen Homey.
B. The purpose of this question is straightforward: You must know something about the concept of social learning theory in order to do well on your exam! Anita Mitchell, G. Brian Jones, and John Krumboltz utilized the work of Albert Bandura to explain career choice. Bandura emphasized the role of modeling in the acquisition of new behaviors. The theory states that people learn not only from the consequences of their own behavior but also from observing the consequences of others. Learning which takes place by watching others is sometimes called �vicarious learning.� Krumboltz felt that interests are the result of �learning,� such that changes in interests can be �learned.� Thus, actual exposure to a wide range of work settings (i.e., site visits) is highly desirable. Occupational indecisiveness is seen as an indication of an information deficit rather than a lack of career maturity. Two popular behavioral techniques (though they are not necessarily just related to the work of Krumboltz) include the RJP or realistic job preview and guided imagery. To conduct a RJP the student, usually in college, would contact a worker in the field and then interview the worker. Guided imagery, effective for adults and adolescents, can be implemented by having the client imagine a day in the future working in the job or even receiving an award for outstanding performance in the position.
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554. The model Krumboltz suggested is.
a. a human capital theory.
b. an accident theory of career development.
c. a status attainment theory.
d. a behavioristic model of career development.
D. Okay, let�s review the incorrect choices (i.e., �a,� �b,� and�c�) since they are terms that could conceivably pop up on your exam. The human capital theory purports that individuals secure training and education to get the best possible income. This theory, however, doesn�t seem valid when applied to folks of lower economic status. The accident theory simply suggests that chance factors influence one�s career. For example, a student liked his history teacher so he decided to become a history teacher himself. The so-called status attainment theory posits that the child will eventually secure a job commensurate with his or her family status. This notion will not hold water with a child who has exceptionally low or high career aspirations (e.g., a lower-class child who insists she will become a physician). Some textbooks and exams may categorize Krumboltz�s theory as a decision-making theory or even a cognitive one. Krumboltz believed that decision making�in terms of career options as well as noncareer options�is a skill which can be learned. Krumboltz acknowledged the role of genetics and the environment but focused on what can be changed via learning.
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555. A counselor who favors a behavioristic mode of career counseling would most likely.
a. analyze dreams related to jobs and/or occupations.
b. give the client a standardized career test.
c. suggest a site visit to a work setting.
d. a and b.
C. Choice �a,� come on�you didn�t really choose it, did you? It sounds like something out of a primer on Freudian analysis. Ideally, all individuals should be exposed to as many learning experiences as possible. Another behavioristic strategy known as the �job club� has been suggested by Nathan Azrin who created the approach in the 1970s to help returning Vietnam Vets and went on to write the book Job Club Counselor�s Manual: A Behaviorial Approach to Vocational Counseling. The job club operates like a behaviorist group in which members share job leads and discuss or role-play specific behaviors (e.g., interviewing skills) necessary for job acquisition. The club helps members learn from each other. The original model also utilized a classroom model for dispensing information. You may recall from grad school that Azrin was one of the leading pioneers who created the specific guidelines for running a behavior modification token economy (i.e., giving plastic tokens which could be turned in for actual reinforcers such as food).
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556. A fairly recent model to explain career development is the decision approach. The Gelatt Decision Model created by Harry B.
Gelatt refers to information as �the fuel of the decision.� The Gelatt Model asserts that information can be organized into three systems.
a. predictive, value, and decision.
b. internal, external, and in between.
c. predictive, external, and internal.
d. internal and external.
A. Decision-making theory asserts that although occupational choice is an ongoing process, there are times when a key decision must be made. In the Gelatt Model the predictive system is concerned with the probable alternatives, actions, and possibilities. The person�s value system is concerned with one�s relative preferences regarding the outcomes, while the decision system provides rules and criteria for evaluating the outcome.
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557. In the Gelatt Model the predictive system deals with.
a. personal likes, dislikes, and preferences.
b. personal rules.
c. alternatives and the probability of outcomes.
d. the self-directed search.
C. Choice �a� would be the value system while choice �b� refers to the decision system. Prediction focuses on the probability of an outcome. Choice �d,� abbreviated SDS, is a self-administered, self-scored interest inventory based on John Holland�s theoretical notions.
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558. Linda Gottfredson�s developmental theory of career focuses on.
a. fields and levels.
b. circumscription and compromise theory.
c. the career rainbow.
d. mainly on the concept of career maturity.
B. Choice �a� is associated with Roe, choice �c� with Super, and choice �d� with Crites, leaving �b� as the only valid choice. You won�t find tons of information on this theory yet, and thus I wouldn�t expect more than a question or so related to this modality. According to Gottfredson people do restrict choices (circumscription) and when people do compromise in regard to picking a job (and indeed she feels they do) they will often sacrifice the field of work before they sacrifice sextype or prestige.
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559. The leading method adults use to find career information in the United States is.
a. to see a state employment counselor.
b. to visit a private practice career counselor.
c. to undergo counseling with a counselor with NCCC credentials.
d. by securing information via the newspaper.
D. According to a report for the National Institute of Education, newspaper ads ranked first, the U.S. Employment Service was second, while postsecondary institutions snared the number three spot. Private employment agencies ranked fifth, while high-school counselors and teachers ranked ninth. One estimate is that 80% of all jobs are still filled via classified ads from newspapers. What about the Internet? Well, career experts still aren�t sure! One estimate is that there are already over 25,000 recruiting websites that list over 28 million jobs. Some research indicates that only 5.5% of the population has found a job from the Internet. Some exams are calling the process of finding a job on the Internet �job-netting.� At this time younger, lower paid workers are more apt to search for a job on the Internet than those who are more mature or making high salaries. This is the type of question that could change rapidly. I suggest you do your own research prior to taking the exam.
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560. When career counselors speak of the OOH they are referring to.
a. the Occupational Options Handbook.
b. the Occupational Outlook Handbook.
c. the Career Options Occupational Titles.
d. the Optional Occupations Handbook.
B. The OOH, originally published by the U.S. Department of Labor in 1946 to aid war veterans, is still used by about 9 out of 10 high schools since it is so easy to comprehend. In fact, the OOH, which is revised every two years, highlights the salient factors of the job, necessary training, earnings, and even advancement opportunities. Many sources cite the OOH as the most popular source used by career counselors especially since it discusses job prospects for the future. The text is not expensive and can also be secured on a CD-ROM. The Occupational Outlook Handbook Online is available by going to the government�s O*NET site discussed in other questions of this text http://www.online. onecenter.org or by going to http://www.bls.gov.oco/. Both versions are published via the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) of the U.S. Department of Labor.
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561. At its zenith the DOT listed.
a. approximately 10,000 job titles.
b. nearly 5,000 job titles.
c. approximately 30,000 job titles.
d. nearly 100,000 job titles.
C. This is the largest, most comprehensive source and it was used more than any other printed resource in the field. As with the OOH, you can thank the U.S. Department of Labor, which began publishing the DOT in 1939. The Occupational Information Network O*NET (http://www.online.onecenter. org) is a new automated replacement for the DOT. The new O*NET lists far fewer occupations than the old DOT. Many highly specialized jobs that only a small number of individuals worked in were dropped. Since O*NET is an online program it will have the advantage of being easier and quicker to update. There are current books using DOT in the title; however, at this point in time these works do not appear to be published by the U.S. Department of Labor.
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562. In the Dictionary of Occupational Titles each job was given a _______ digit code.
a. nine.
b. eight.
c. six.
d. five.
A. The first three digits designated the occupational category and divisions, whereas the middle three described tasks in relation to data, people, and things respectively. The final digits helped alphabetize the titles.
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563. The DOT was first published by the Department of Labor in 1939. The first three digits in a DOT code referred to.
a. an occupational group.
b. career options.
c. OOH data.
d. the transfer of skills.
A. The first digit in the DOT designated one of nine occupational categories: 0/1 Professional, Technical, and Managerial Careers; 2 Clerical and Sales Careers; 3 Service Careers; 4 Agricultural, Fishery, Forestry, and Related Careers; 5 Processing Careers; 6 Machine Trade Careers; 7 Bench Work Careers; 8 Structural Work Careers; and 9 Miscellaneous. Thus, in the code for counselor (045.107-010) the first digit (0) is from the Professional, Technical, and Managerial Occupations category. The second digit, for example 04, refers to occupations in life sciences; while the third digit defines the occupational group. In this case, 045 is �Occupations in psychology.� The final three digits alphabetize titles designated by the first six-digit code groups. Choices �b� and �d� would require information from the middle three digits of the code.
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564. You are working as a counselor for a major university. A student wants detailed statistics about the average wages in her state. The best resource would be.
a. Richard N. Bolles�s book What Color Is Your Parachute?
b. The Bureau of Labor Statistics website.
c. Any professional journal related to career counseling is inundated with articles of this nature.
d. DISCOVER and the System of Interactive Guidance and Information known as Sigi Plus.
B. Choice �a� depicts the bestselling job hunting book of all time while choice �d� mentions two of the most popular computer-assisted career guidance programs. Choices is a software program for high school students that provides information to help them make informed decisions about career and transition planning. A middle school edition, Choices Explorer, is also available. SIGI Plus is lauded because it is updated yearly. If you go to the Bureau of Labor Statistics website (the correct answer) at http://www.stats.bls.gov you will truly be amazed at the amount of career data you can find.
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565. A counselor who is interested in trends in the job market should consult the.
a. State Department of Economic Regulation.
b. SOC.
c. SIC.
d. OOH.
D. Choice �a� is the state department that often handles counselor licensing. The other division that might handle mental health licensing would be the board of healing arts. Remember that licenses are conferred by each state and not the federal government. Next, let�s look at choices �b� and �c,� which are incorrect in terms of this answer yet excellent resources for the adept career counselor. The SOC (choice �b�) is the Standard Occupational Classification Manual, which codes job clusters (e.g., teachers, librarians, and counselors) via similar worker function. Thus, it is very useful for a counselor who wants to find additional occupations that a worker might already be trained for or could consider with additional training. The SIC (choice �c�), the Standard Industrial Classification Manual, classifies businesses in regard to the type of activity they are engaged in (i.e., the type of service or product). �Hopefully, working in industry won�t make you sic,� is a rather pessimistic, yet useful memory device here! Industry growth is often computed on SIC codes. The OOH as its name implies focuses on �outlook� and useful trends or predictions (hence the word Outlook in the title) in the labor market.
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566. A counselor wants to suggest an easy-to-read source for a client in search of career information. The counselor should recommend.
a. DOT.
b. SOC.
c. SIC.
d. OOH.
D. Most counselors consider the OOH the easiest guide to read and understand. It has been said that statistically speaking high schools are more apt to rely on the OOH than the DOT, face-to-face career counseling, or career days. Hint: A few questions on the classic DOT might still show up on the exam despite the fact that it has been replaced with O*NET.
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567. A counselor with a master�s degree who is working for minimum wage at a fast-food restaurant due to a lack of jobs in the field is a victim of.
a. unemployment.
b. underemployment.
c. the phi phenomenon.
d. the risky shift phenomenon.
B. Underemployment occurs when a worker is engaged in a position which is below his or her skill level. This phenomenon can occur when an abundance of educated people floods a labor market that does not have enough jobs that require a high level of training. Hence, as more people go to college the rate of underemployment is expected to increase.
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568. The OOH contains approximately 800 job descriptions. Job trends suggest that.
a. less women will be employed.
b. less minorities will be employed.
c. service jobs will account for virtually all the job growth.
d. jobs dealing with computers have peaked and will rapidly decline.
C. The 10 fastest growing occupations (from 1998 to 2008) are (a) computer engineers; (b) computer support specialists; (c) systems analysts; (d) database administrators; (e) desktop publishing specialists; (f) paralegals and legal assistants; (g) personal care and home health aides; (h) medical assistants; (i) social and human service assistants; and (j) physician�s assistants. The labor force will continue to grow, though a tad slower than in the late 1990s. The labor force for women will increase faster than men with the projection that 48% of the work force will be women by 2008 (compare that to just 29.6% in 1950!) As mentioned earlier, women earn approximately 75 cents for every dollar men earn. The figure for Asian-American women is about 67 cents; Hispanic-American women approximately 48 cents- and African-American women about 58 cents. Asian and Hispanic Americans will experience faster labor force growth than other groups. The African-American/Black labor force will grow about 20% or twice as fast as the White labor force. A word to the wise: Although this is the type of question you could encounter, don�t count on this answer since labor patterns are hardly static. Consult the current edition of the OOH before sitting for your exam.
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569. The Guide for Occupational Exploration (GOE) was published by the U.S. Department of Labor. The guide lists groups of jobs listed in.
a. 14 interest areas.
b. 6 interest areas.
c. 3 interest areas.
d. 175 interest areas.
A. Interest areas (recently bumped up from 12 to 14) include (a) Arts, Entertainment, and Media; (b) Science, Math, and Engineering; (c) Plants and Animals; (d) Law, Law Enforcement, and Public Safety; (e) Mechanics, Installers, and Repairs; (f) Construction, Mining, and Drilling; (g) Transportation; (h) Industrial Production; (i) Business Detail; (j) Sales and Marketing; (k) Recreation, Travel, and Other Personal Services; (l) Education and Social Service; (m) General Management and Support; (n) Medical and Health Services. Unless your life is boring beyond belief, I wouldn�t even think of memorizing these, I just wanted you to get an idea of the categories. The GOE helps job seekers �explore� jobs that are slanted toward a given �interest area.�
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570. Self-efficacy theory is based on the work of.
a. Roe.
b. Holland.
c. H. B. Gelatt.
d. Albert Bandura.
D. Bandura proposed that one�s belief or expectation of being successful in an occupation causes the individual to gravitate toward that particular occupation. Bandura felt that �chance factors,� such as accidentally being exposed to certain situations, influence career development.
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571. SIGI Plus, Choices, and Discover are.
a. Computer Assisted Career Guidance Systems (CACG).
b. paper and pencil career tests.
c. career theories proposed in the 1940s.
d. computer systems which are slower to use than traditional texts such as the DOT or the OOH.
A. Note: Your exam could use Computer-based Career Information Systems (CBCISs) in place of CACG. Choice �d� is obviously incorrect since computer programs often speed up information retrieval.
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572. A client who likes her flower arranging job begins doing flower arranging in her spare time on weekends and after work. This phenomenon is best described as.
a. the contrast effect.
b. sublimation.
c. the compensatory effect.
d. spillover.
D. Let me introduce you to three key terms in the field of career counseling: the contrast effect (choice �a�), the compensatory effect (choice �c�), and spillover (choice �d�). In psychology, contrast refers to a heightened sense of awareness regarding the difference between the successive juxtapositions of two stimuli. The word juxtaposition simply means to put side by side. Hence, in career placement settings the term has been used to suggest that an interviewer�s impression of an interviewee is often affected by previous interviewees. Thus, a typical applicant would look more impressive if she is interviewed after a string of applicants who are ill qualified for the job. Unfortunately, the converse is also true. An average applicant whose interview comes after several highly qualified (or overqualified) applicants will not be judged as favorably by the person who is doing the interviewing. The �compensatory effect� suggests that a worker compensates or makes up for things he or she can�t do on the job. Thus, a librarian who must be quiet from 8 to 5 may go out after work and get wild, crazy, and most importantly loud. �Spillover� on the other hand is like a glass of water spilling over onto the table. Here, the individual�s work spills over, if you will, into his or her time off the job. When spillover takes place the person engages in activities similar to work during periods of leisure. The aforementioned florist or an engineer who is building a satellite in his or her basement would be a victim of spillover.
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573. A male client who hates his job is trying desperately to be the perfect father, husband, and family man. This phenomenon is best described as.
a. the recency effect.
b. the leniency/strictness bias.
c. the compensatory effect.
d. spillover.
C. In some instances, textbooks and exams will refer to the compensatory effect in a psychodynamic fashion, which infers that an individual might tend to compensate for poor job satisfaction by excelling in his or her activities outside of work. My advice: although the definition given in the previous question is the most common, you should read questions of this ilk very carefully to ascertain the context in which the term compensatory effect is being used. Choices �a� and �b� are terms utilized to describe subjective biases of individuals who rate employee performance. The �recency effect� occurs when a rater�s judgment of an employee reflects primarily his or her most recent performance. This is, of course, undesirable inasmuch as the employee�s performance over the entire rating period should be duly noted. The term was borrowed from memory experiments in psychology demonstrating that numbers toward the end of a list are more likely to be recalled than those in the middle. The �leniency/strictness bias� occurs when a rater tends to give employees very high/lenient or very low/strict ratings while avoiding the middle or so-called average range. Raters who do the opposite (i.e., rate almost everybody in the average range) are said to display a �central tendency bias.�
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574. The National Vocational Guidance Association was founded in 1913. It was fused with other organizations in 1952 to become.
a. the American Psychological Association.
b. AACD.
c. APGA.
d. NASW.
C. Did you choose alternative �b�? If so, give yourself a pat on the back for an A� answer. You see, AACD was actually the American Personnel and Guidance Association (APGA) until 1983, making choice �c� an even better response�say an A+. In 1983 APGA changed its name to AACD (American Association for Counseling and Development) which was changed in 1992 to ACA (American Counseling Association).
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575. Lifestyle includes.
a. work.
b. leisure.
c. style of living.
d. all of the above.
D. Lifestyle is a broad term which describes the overall balance of work, leisure, family, and social activities. Some exams will use the term avocational in place of the term leisure.
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576. The Strong Interest Inventory (SCII) is based on John Holland�s theory. The test assumes that a person who is interested in a given subject will experience.
a. satisfaction in a job with workers who have different interests.
b. satisfaction in a job in which those working in the occupation have similar interests.
c. generalized anxiety if he or she is placed in a job where people have similar interests.
d. the best results if he or she finishes the inventory in one hour or less.
B. The interest inventory first appeared on the scene in 1927 when E. K. Strong, Jr., developed the Strong Vocational Interest Blank (SVIB) for men. The test indicated how an examinee�s likes and dislikes were similar to the likes and dislikes of workers in various occupations. Later, in 1933, women�s occupations were examined in the same manner using the SVIB for women. Strong died in 1963, and in 1974 the inventory was expanded by David P. Campbell. The inventory has been the subject of over 1700 papers and studies. Recent efforts have focused on eliminating sex bias from the instrument. The test, which consists of 291 items, is based on John Holland�s typology (discussed earlier), and is untimed (in other words choice �d� is incorrect). The examinee responds to questions using a forced choice format of �strongly like� �like,� �indifferent,� or �dislike� or �strongly dislike� to each item. (Each occupational scale for the inventory was created by examining 200 to 300 happily employed men and women in an occupation.) It takes most adults about 30 minutes to finish the inventory. The inventory is suited to high school, college, and adult populations and must be computer scored. Keep in mind that the SII measures interests, not abilities.
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577. The Self-Directed Search (SDS) is.
a. based on the work of Holland and yields scores on his six types.
b. self-administered.
c. self-scored and self-interpreted.
d. all of the above.
D. John Holland introduced the SDS in 1970 to help those who did not have access (or could not afford) professional career counseling. The test takes about 40 minutes and is suitable for ages 15 and older. Holland warned that the test is not suitable for grossly disturbed, uneducated, or illiterate persons, although an easy form (known as Form �E�) is available for those with limited reading skills or those who lack a high school education. Form �E� is shorter than the regular SDS and uses no words beyond the fourth-grade level. The SDS is specifically not recommended for those who have a great deal of difficulty making decisions.
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578. At a case staffing, one career counselor says to another, �The client�s disability suggests she can only physically handle sedentary work.� This technically implies.
a. the client will not need to lift over 10 pounds.
b. the client will not need to lift over 100 pounds.
c. the client will be standing a lot.
d. the client could walk or stand up to six hours daily.
A. Sedentary: maximum lifting is 10 pounds. Light work: maximum lifting is up to 20 pounds. Medium work: maximum lifting is 50 pounds. Heavy work: maximum lifting is up to 100 pounds. Very heavy work: maximum lifts exceed 100 pounds. The stipulation in choice �d� applies to the �light work� category.
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579. The notion of the hidden job market would suggest that.
a. most jobs will appear on college bulletin boards.
b. most jobs will appear in supermarket tabloids.
c. most jobs will appear in daily newspaper classified ads.
d. most jobs are not advertised.
D. Perhaps you�re shocked but experts say it is true! A high percentage of jobs (over 76%!) are not advertised!
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580. An SDS score will reveal.
a. career aptitude.
b. the personality via projective measures.
c. the individual�s three highest scores based on Holland�s personality types.
d. spillover personality tendencies.
C. The SDS provides the user with a three-letter code that indicates the three personality types the examinee most resembles. An Occupational Finder booklet then describes over 1,300 occupations in order to ascertain which occupations best match the personality type. As of late, the SDS sports a computer version (Form �R�) as well as a version for those who speak Spanish.
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581. As you walk into a professional seminar on career counseling you note that the instructor is drawing a hexagon on the blackboard. The instructor is most likely discussing.
a. David Tiedeman.
b. John Holland.
c. Anne Roe.
d. John Crites.
B. Was this just an easy question, or could it be that now you really know this material? Come on, how about giving yourself credit for all your knowledge! (See the �Graphical Representations� section of this book for a pictorial display of the hexagon.)
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582. The Strong is considered an Interest inventory. So is.
a. the Kuder, created by George Frederic Kuder.
b. the Wechsler.
c. the Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test.
d. the MMPI-2.
A. The Kuder Occupational Interest Survey (KOIS) is now the Kuder Career Search with Person Match set up so individuals can complete it online in 20 to 30 minutes. It is written at the sixth-grade reading level and is said to be effective for seventh grade through adulthood. The original version of the Kuder appeared during the 1930s, so the measure has 50 years of research behind it. Over 100 million people worldwide have used this career tool. The PPVT-III noted in choice �c� is a measure of hearing vocabulary and a screening test of verbal ability.
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583. The U.S. Employment Service created the.
a. ASVAB.
b. DAT.
c. GATB.
d. SCII.
C. Choice �a� is an abbreviation of the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery, often administered at recruiting stations or to high school seniors interested in the military. The reliability and validity of this measure have recently come under fire despite the fact that over one million ASVABs are given yearly. Choice �b� is the Differential Aptitude Test first published in 1947 and revised three times since. This measure helps students decide whether a student should attend college, and if so, where he or she might excel the most. It is suitable for students in grades 8 through 12 and takes about three hours to complete. The GATB or General Aptitude Test Battery is the test utilized by state employment security offices, Veterans Administration hospitals, and related government agencies. The battery measures 12 job-related aptitudes including intelligence/general learning ability, verbal aptitude, numerical aptitude, spatial aptitude, clerical perception, form perception, motor coordination, manual dexterity, and finger dexterity.
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584. Occupational aptitude tests such as the Differential Aptitude Test (DAT), the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Test Battery (ASVAB), and the O*NET Ability Profiler grew out of the.
a. cognitive therapy movement.
b. humanistic psychology movement.
c. individual psychology movement.
d. trait-and-factor movement related to career counseling.
D. The primary purpose of any aptitude test is to predict future performance, though career placement should never rest solely on a single source of data such as the aforementioned tests. Must know fact: An aptitude test does not imply that you are adept at the skill (say math, music, or principles taught in law school) at the present moment. That, my dear reader, is the province of an achievement test. The aptitude test merely speculates about whether or not you could capture these skills with proper training and experience. Aptitude tests attempt to measure potential.
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585. A client says she has always stayed home and raised her children. Now the children are grown and she is seeking employment. She is best described.
a. as a displaced homemaker.
b. as a victim of underemployment.
c. by a DSM diagnosis.
d. as a victim of the hidden job market.
A. This is the definition of a displaced homemaker who also could be divorced or widowed. Gender bias (i.e., any factor that might rule out a job or career choice due to gender) must be avoided when conducting career counseling with women.
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586. According to the concept of wage discrimination.
a. women make more than men for doing the same job.
b. women make less than men for doing the same job.
c. men and women make identical salaries thanks to legislation.
d. women who are seen as attractive still make 6% more than men for doing the same job.
B. Although in a fair world choice �c� would be true, choice �b� still depicts reality.
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587. According to the concept of occupational sex segregation.
a. most women hold high paying executive jobs.
b. most women hold low paying jobs with low status.
c. most women hold jobs which require a college degree.
d. men still make considerably less than women.
B. The concept of �occupational sex segregation� suggests that female occupations generally pay less and lack the status of male occupations.
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588. A counselor advises a female to steer clear of police work as he feels this is a male occupation. This suggests.
a. positive transference.
b. negative transference.
c. counselor bias based on gender bias.
d. sex wage discrimination.
C. But wait, don�t jump to conclusions here. It�s not just male counselors who are the culprit here! Not by a long shot. Research indicates that female counselors urge females to seek out traditionally feminine occupations, and worse yet some tests in the area of career counseling are guilty of gender bias!
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589. Most research would suggest that a woman who has the same intelligence, skills, and potential as a man will often.
a. make the same job choice as a man.
b. choose a supervisory position more often than a man.
c. have lower career aspirations than a man.
d. choose a career well above her ability level.
C. Fitzgerald and Crites discovered that even when girls manifest higher career maturity than boys, their aspirations are lower.
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590. A displaced homemaker might have grown children or.
a. be widowed and seeking employment.
b. be divorced and seeking employment.
c. a and b.
d. none of the above.
C. See question 585. The high divorce rate and the declining birthrate have increased the number of women seeking employment in recent years. Another related exam term is dislocated worker. It refers to an individual who loses his or her job because a company downsizes or relocates. It can also refer to a person who has an obsolete set of job skills.
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591. Midlife career change.
a. is not that unusual.
b. is often discussed, but in reality is very rare.
c. would be extremely rare after the death of a spouse.
d. would be extremely rare after all the children leave home.
A. This generally takes place between ages 35 and 45 and additional training is often needed. Precipitating factors for the change include divorce, having a baby, caring for a disabled child, empty nest syndrome, and perhaps most important, job dissatisfaction. Choices �c� and �d� are typical motivators and thus constitute incorrect answer choices.
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592. The term reentry woman would best describe.
a. a 32-year-old female police officer promoted to sergeant.
b. a 22-year-old female teacher who becomes a school counselor.
c. a59-year-old female administrative assistant who switched positions for two years and will return to her job.
d. a 29-year-old female who was babysitting in her home but is currently working at a fast-food restaurant.
D. The term reentry women refers to women who go from working within the home to working outside the home. Counselors need to be aware of the fact that reentry women typically experience an extremely high degree of career indecision. My prediction: In the coming years expect to see more and more questions on the career area of comprehensive and licensing exams related to women, older adults, minority groups, and disabled persons.
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593. A counselor doing multicultural career counseling should be aware.
a. of his or her own ethnocentric biases.
b. that Asian Americans rarely choose scientific careers.
c. that Black males will often choose enterprising jobs in terms of Holland�s typology.
d. that career inventories have eliminated cultural biases.
A. Actually, Asian Americans (see choice �b�) are the only minority that has a large number of individuals in the scientific community. Black males are highly represented in realistic rather than enterprising occupations (see choice �c�). Thus the counselor has to be aware of his or her own stereotypical attitudes (e.g., African/Black American women make good housekeepers or Hispanic/Latino women are best off working in secretarial jobs).
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594. In terms of the labor market.
a. music is very effective in terms of increasing the workers� output.
b. the number of employees employers want to hire goes down as salary goes up.
c. the number of employees willing to work for you goes up as the salary increases.
d. b and c.
D. Choice �a� is false. Music is generally ineffective in terms of significantly boosting a worker�s level of production. The lack of effectiveness is thought to be the result of �habituation.� Habituation�which will be referred to as �adaptation� on some exams�indicates a decrease in response to a constant stimulus or a stimulus that is repeated too frequently. Thus, as the music becomes a familiar stimulus, the employees will not really notice it, and its positive effects are minimal. Career counselors often refer to the phenomenon described in choices �b� and �c� as the �supply and demand curve,� a concept borrowed from economics.
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595. SIGI Plus is.
a. an achievement test.
b. a personality test used in career counseling.
c. a computer career program known as the System of Interactive Guidance and Information that allows students to conduct a self-assessment and explore career options.
d. a computerized projective test for career counseling.
C. SIGI Plus, or the System of Interactive Guidance and Information, created by the Educational Testing Service, is intended for college students, and even assists with up-to-date information on colleges and graduate schools. DISCOVER (named after its inventor, the DISCOVER Foundation in Maryland) and CHOICES are two other well-known computerized career development programs.
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596. A career counselor who is helping a client design a resume.
a. should downplay the value of the cover letter.
b. should emphasize that a lengthy resume is invariably more effective.
c. should emphasize the importance of listing height and weight data.
d. should emphasize the importance of a cover letter.
D. Choices �a,� �b,� and �c� all would be considered counterproductive. The resume should always be accompanied by a cover letter. Many personnel workers will not read a resume which is received without a cover letter. The letter should be brief (i.e., generally about three short paragraphs) and ideally the paper and type should match the resume and be of excellent quality. Counselors routinely recommend the best-selling job hunting book of all time What Color Is Your Parachute? by Richard Bolles, to clients who are seeking employment or a change in employment.
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597. Most experts would agree that a resume.
a. is like an art project and must look good.
b is not an art project and looks have little if anything to do with effectiveness.
c. need not utilize bold headings as personnel officers often spend an extensive amount of time reading them.
d. contrary to popular opinion, can sport typos and spelling errors yet still have a powerful impact on future employers.
A. Just in case good old common sense failed you here, your advice to clients preparing a resume should be: make it look good, use bold headings or fonts which catch the eye whenever possible, and avoid typos and spelling errors because they can greatly reduce the impact of a resume even if everything else is up to snuff. And if you chose alternative �d,� let�s at least keep it a secret from your former English teachers!
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598. The concept of job clubs as promoted by Azrin et al.
a. is very behavioristic.
b. is indicative of a client-centered approach.
c. is psychodynamic.
d. is appropriate, but not with disabled populations.
A. Choice �b� is roughly the opposite of the so-called selective placement philosophy. In the client-centered approach to career counseling the counselor lets the client find his or her own leads and job contacts. A counselor who believes in the �selective placement� philosophy may give the client job leads and may take an active stance in terms of working with the client. The selective approach is preferable with clients who lack the concrete skills necessary to land a job. The job-finding club is an example of a behavioristic group strategy in that the clients share job leads and work on actual skills (e.g., interviewing) which are necessary in order to secure work. Job clubs are highly recommended for the disabled.
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599. Which counselor would most likely say that we choose a job to meet our needs?
a. Albert Ellis.
b. John O. Crites.
c. John Krumboltz
d. Robert Hoppock.
D. Crites (choice �b�) is well-known for his Career Maturity Inventory (CMI) that measures attitudes and competencies related to the career choice process. Hoppock, the correct theorist here, feels that to make an accurate career decision you must know your personal needs and then find an occupation that meets a high percentage of the needs. Lastly, as your personal needs change you might need to secure a different occupation.
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600. All of the following are difficulties with career testing except.
a. stereotyping.
b. the tests all take at least three hours to administer.
c. the counselor may rely too heavily on test results.
d. many tests are biased in favor of White middle-class clients.
B. With the exception of the DAT, which is quite lengthy and may take three hours to complete, most of the other tests utilized take an hour or less.
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601. Appraisal can be defined as.
a. the process of assessing or estimating attributes.
b. testing which is always performed in a group setting.
c. testing which is always performed on a single individual.
d. a pencil and paper measurement of assessing attributes.
A. Appraisal is a broad term which includes more than merely �testing clients.� Appraisal could include a survey, observations, or even clinical interviews. Choices �b,� �c,� and �d� are thus too limited. A test is simply an instrument which measures a given sample of behavior. When we use the term measure it merely connotes that a number or score has been assigned to the person�s attribute or performance. An effective counselor will always inform clients about the limitations of any test that he or she administers. Some evidence indicates that neophyte counselors are sometimes tempted to administer tests merely to boost their credibility. I think it is safe to say this is not a desirable practice.
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602. A test can be defined as a systematic method of measuring a sample of behavior. Test format refers to the manner in which test items are presented. The format of an essay test is considered a(n) _______ format.
a. subjective.
b. objective.
c. very precise.
d. concise.
A. A �subjective� paradigm relies mainly on the scorer�s opinion. If the rater knows the test taker�s attributes, the rater�s �personal bias� can significantly impact upon the rating. For example, an attractive examinee or an individual of the same race might be given a higher rating. (This is the so-called halo effect.) In job settings, peers generally rate their colleagues higher than do their supervisors. In an �objective� test (choice �b�) the rater�s judgment plays little or no part in the scoring process.
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603. The National Counselor Exam (NCE) is a(n) _______ test because the scoring procedure is specific.
a. subjective.
b. objective.
c. projective.
d. subtest.
B. Since the NCE uses an a, b, c, d alternative format the rater�s �subjective� feelings and thoughts would not be an issue.
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604. A short answer test is a(n) _______ test.
a. objective.
b. culture free.
c. forced choice.
d. free choice.
D. Some exams will call this a �free response� format. In any case, the salient point is that the person taking the test can respond in any manner he or she chooses. Although free choice response patterns can yield more information, they often take more time to score and increase subjectivity (i.e., there is more than one correct answer). I should mention that although testing is often controversial, schools now employ psychoeducational tests more than at any time in history.
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605. The NCE is a(n) _______ test.
a. free choice.
b. forced choice.
c. projective.
d. intelligence.
B. �Forced choice� items are sometimes known as �recognition items.� This book is composed of forced choice/recognition items. On some tests this format is used to control for the �social desirability phenomenon� which asserts that the person puts the answer he or she feels is socially acceptable (i.e., the test provides alternatives that are all equal in terms of social desirability). The MMPI-2 or Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory, for example, uses forced choices to create a �lie scale� composed of human frailties we all possess. This scale, therefore, ferrets out those individuals who tried to make themselves look good (i.e., the way they believe they �should� be).
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606. The _______ index indicates the percentage of individuals who answered each item correctly.
a. difficulty.
b. critical.
c. intelligence.
d. personal.
A. The higher the number of people who answer a question correctly, the easier the item is�and vice versa. A .5 difficulty index (also called a difficulty value) would suggest that 50% of those tested answered the question correctly, while 50% did not. Most theorists agree that a �good measure� provides a wide range of items that even a poor performer will answer correctly.
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607. Short answer tests and projective measures utilize free response items. The NCE and the CPCE uses forced choice or so-called _______ items.
a. vague.
b. subjective.
c. recognition.
d. numerical.
C. See the answer to question 605. Recognition items give the examinee two or more alternatives.
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608. A true/false test has _______ recognition items.
a. similar.
b. free choice.
c. dichotomous.
d. no.
C. �Dichotomy� simply means that you are presented with two opposing choices. This explains why choice �a� is definitely incorrect. When a test gives the person taking the exam three or more forced choices (e.g., the NCE, the CPCE, or this book) then psychometricians call it a �multipoint item.� Choice �b� describes a situation in which the examinee can respond in any way he or she chooses.
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609. A test format could be normative or ipsative. In the normative format.
a. each item depends on the item before it.
b. each item depends on the item after it.
c. the client must possess an IQ within the normal range.
d. each item is independent of all other items.
D. Ipsative measures compare traits within the same individual, they do not compare a person to other persons who took the instrument. The Kuder Occupational Interest Survey (KOIS), now called the Kuder Career Search with Person Match is one such example. The ipsative test allows the person being tested to compare items.
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610. A client who takes a normative test.
a. cannot legitimately be compared to others who have taken the test.
b. can legitimately be compared to others who have taken the test.
c. could not have taken an IQ test.
d. could not have taken a personality test.
B. First, forget about choice �a,� it�s ipsative. Technically, a normative interpretation is one in which the individual�s score is evaluated by comparing it to others who took the same test. A percentile rank is an excellent example. Say your client scores an 82 on a nationally normed test and this score corresponds to the percentile rank of 60. This tells you that 60% of the individuals who took the test scored 82 or less. If it�s still a bit fuzzy don�t sweat it! There�s more where this one came from in the next section!
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611. In an ipsative measure the person taking the test must compare items to one another. The result is that.
a. an ipsative measure cannot be utilized for career guidance.
b. you cannot legitimately compare two or more people who have taken an ipsative test.
c. an ipsative measure is never valid.
d. an ipsative measure is never reliable.
B. Since the ipsative measure does not reveal absolute strengths, comparing one person�s score to another is relatively meaningless. The person is measured in response to his or her own standard of behavior. The ipsative measure points out the highs and lows that exist within a single individual. Hence, when a colleague tells you that Mr. Johnson�s anxiety is improving, she has given you an ipsative description. This description, however, would not lend itself to comparing Mr. Johnson�s anxiety to Mrs. McBee�s.
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612. Tests are often classified as speed tests versus power tests. A timed typing test used to hire secretaries would be.
a. a power test.
b. neither a speed test nor a power test.
c. a speed test.
d. a fine example of an ipsative measure.
C. In terms of difficulty, a speed test is really intended to be fairly easy. The difficulty is induced by time limitations, not the difficulty of the tasks or the questions themselves. (Try giving your secretary a timed keyboarding test and give him or her three hours to complete it and you�ll see what I mean.) A good timed/ speed test is purposely set up so that nobody finishes it. A �power test� (see choice �a�) is designed to evaluate the level of mastery without a time limit. A timed test is really a type of speed test, but a high percentage of the test takers complete it and it is usually more difficult and has a time limit (think NCE).
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613. A counseling test consists of 300 forced response items. The person taking the test can take as long as he or she wants to answer the questions.
a. This is most likely a projective measure.
b. This is most likely a speed test.
c. This is most likely a power test.
d. This is most likely an invalid measure.
C. Like the speed test, it will ideally be designed so that nobody receives a perfect score. Choice �a,� projective measure, stands incorrect since the projective tests rely on a �free response� format.
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614. An achievement test measures maximum performance while a personality test or interest inventory measures.
a. typical performance.
b. minimum performance.
c. unconscious traits.
d. self-esteem by always relying on a Q-Sort design.
A. I�m not crazy about the terms typical and minimal performance, but hey don�t blame me, I�m just the messenger of what is often cited in the counseling literature. Interest inventories are popular with career counselors because such measures focus on what the client likes or dislikes. The Strong Interest Inventory (SII) is an excellent example. Choice �d,� the Q-Sort, often used to investigate personality traits, involves a procedure in which an individual is given cards with statements and asked to place them in piles of �most like me� to �least like me.� Then the subject compiles them to create the �ideal self.� The ideal self can then be compared to his or her current self-perception in order to assess self-esteem.
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615. In a spiral test.
a. the items get progressively easier.
b. the difficulty of the items remains constant.
c. the client must answer each question in a specified period of time.
d. the items get progressively more difficult.
D. Just remember that a spiral staircase seems to get more difficult to climb as you walk up higher.
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616. In a cyclical test.
a. the items get progressively easier.
b. the difficulty of the items remains constant.
c. you have several sections which are spiral in nature.
d. the client must answer each question in a specified period of time.
C. In each section the questions would go from easy ones to those which are more difficult.
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617. A test battery is considered.
a. a horizontal test.
b. a vertical test.
c. a valid test.
d. a reliable test.
A. In a test battery, several measures are used to produce results that could be more accurate than those derived from merely using a single source. Say, this can get confusing. Remember, that in the section on group processes I talked about vertical and horizontal interventions. In testing, a vertical test would have versions for various age brackets or levels of education (e.g., a math achievement test for preschoolers and a version for middle-school children). A horizontal test measures various factors (e.g., math and science) during the same testing procedure.
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618. In a counseling research study two groups of subjects took a test with the same name. However, when they talked with each other they discovered that the questions were different. The researcher assured both groups that they were given the same test. How is this possible?
a. The researcher is not telling the truth. The groups could not possibly have taken the same test.
b. The test was horizontal.
c. The test was not a power test.
d. The researcher gave parallel forms of the same test.
D. When a test has two versions or forms that are interchangeable they are termed parallel forms or equivalent forms of the same test. From a statistical/psychometric standpoint each form must have the same mean, standard error, and other statistical components.
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619. The most critical factors in test selection are.
a. the length of the test and the number of people who took the test in the norming process.
b. horizontal versus vertical.
c. validity and reliability.
d. spiral versus cyclical format.
C. Validity refers to whether the test measures what it says it measures while reliability tells how consistent a test measures an attribute.
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620. Which is more important, validity or reliability?
a. Reliability.
b. They are equally important.
c. Validity.
d. It depends on the test in question.
C. Experts nearly always consider validity the number one factor in the construction of a test. A test must measure what it purports to measure. Reliability, choice �a,� is the second most important concern. A scale, for example, must measure body weight accurately if it is a valid instrument. In order to be reliable, it will need to give repeated readings which are nearly identical for the same person if the person keeps stepping on and off the scale.
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621. In the field of testing, validity refers to.
a. whether the test really measures what it purports to measure.
b. whether the same test gives consistent measurement.
c. the degree of cultural bias in a test.
d. the fact that numerous tests measure the same traits.
A. To be valid the test must measure what you want it to measure! Incidentally, a test which is valid for one population is not necessarily valid for another group. There are five basic types of validity you should familiarize yourself with for your exam: First, content validity or what is sometimes called rational or logical validity. Does the test examine or sample the behavior under scrutiny? An IQ test, for example, that did not sample the entire range of intelligence (say the test just sampled memory and not vocabulary, math, etc.) would have poor content validity. In this case a savant might truly score higher than a well-rounded individual with genius level mentality. Second, construct validity, which refers to a test�s ability to measure a theoretical construct like intelligence, self-esteem, artistic talent, mechanical ability, or managerial potential. Third is concurrent validity, which deals with how well the test compares to other instruments that are intended for the same purpose. Fourth, predictive validity, also known as empirical validity, which reflects the test�s ability to predict future behavior according to established criteria. On some exams, concurrent validity and predictive validity are often lumped under the umbrella of �criterion validity,� since concurrent validity and predictive validity are actually different types of criterion-related validity. Fifth, a small body of literature speaks of consequential validity, which simply tries to ascertain the social implications of using tests.
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622. A counselor peruses a testing catalog in search of a test which will repeatedly give consistent results. The counselor.
a. is interested in reliability.
b. is interested in validity.
c. is looking for information which is not available.
d. is magnifying an unimportant issue.
A. Beware: A test can indeed be reliable yet not valid. A highly reliable test could conceivably prove invalid. A scale that invariably reads 109 lb when you weigh 143 lb would hardly be providing you with a valid assessment of your true weight! The score, nevertheless, is consistent (reliable). Thus, a test can have a high reliability coefficient but still have a low validity coefficient. Reliability places a ceiling on validity, but validity does not set the limits on reliability.
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623. Which measure would yield the highest level of reliability?
a. A TAT, projective test popular with psychodynamic helpers.
b. The WAIS-III, a popular IQ test.
c. The MMPI-2, a popular personality test.
d. A very accurate scale.
D. In the real world physical measurements are more reliable than psychological ones.
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624. Construct validity refers to the extent that a test measures an abstract trait or psychological notion. An example would be.
a. height.
b. weight.
c. ego strength.
d. the ability to name all men who have served as U.S. presidents.
C. Any trait you cannot �directly� measure or observe can be considered a construct.
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625. Face validity refers to the extent that a test.
a. looks or appears to measure the intended attribute.
b. measures a theoretical construct.
c. appears to be constructed in an artistic fashion.
d. can be compared to job performance.
A. Okay, so I lied�well, kind of lied on the answer to question 621 when I told you there were five basic types of validity. You see most experts technically no longer list �face validity� as a sixth type of validity. Face validity�like a person�s face�merely tells you whether the test looks like it measures the intended trait. Does your therapist look like a therapist? Does the Wechsler appear to be an IQ test? The obvious answer is �In most cases who cares, it�s not that important�! And if a therapist looks like a good therapist, does that necessarily mean he is an adept therapist? Of course not. And the same is true of testing. Face validity is not required test information according to the 1974 committee that drafted Standards for Educational and Psychological Tests.
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626. A job test which predicted future performance on a job very well would.
a. have high criterion/predictive validity.
b. have excellent face validity.
c. have excellent construct validity.
d. not have incremental validity or synthetic validity.
A. Here you are concerned that the test will measure an independent or external outside �criterion,� in this case the �future prediction� of the job performance. (Note: Choice �a� would be incorrect on a question such as this if the question specified current job performance. If this were the case then technically only the term criterion would apply.) Choice �d� introduces you to the terms incremental validity and synthetic validity. Although incremental validity and synthetic validity are not considered two of the five or six major types of validity, don�t be too surprised if they pop up on an advanced exam question. The term incremental validity has been used to describe a number of testing phenomena. First and foremost, incremental validity has been used to describe the process by which a test is refined and becomes more valid as contradictory items are dropped. Incremental validity also refers to a test�s ability to improve predictions when compared to existing measures that purport to facilitate selection in business or educational settings. When a test has incremental validity, it provides you with additional valid information that was not attainable via other procedures. Synthetic validity is derived from the word synthesized. Synthetic validity was popularized by industrial organizational (I/O) psychologists who felt the procedure had merit, especially when utilized for smaller firms who did not hire a large number of workers. In synthetic validity, the helper or researcher looks for tests that have been shown to predict each job element or component (e.g., typing, filing, etc.). Tests that predict each component (criterion) can then be combined to improve the selection process.
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627. A new IQ test which yielded results nearly identical to other standardized measures would be said to have.
a. good concurrent validity.
b. good face validity.
c. superb internal consistency.
d. all of the above.
A. Criterion validity could be �concurrent� or �predictive.� Concurrent validity answers the question of how well your test stacks up against a well-established test that measures the same behavior, construct, or trait. Evidence for reliability and validity is expressed via correlation coefficients. Suffice to say that the closer they are to 1.00 the better. You also should be familiar with the terms convergent and discriminant validity. These terms relate to both criterion validity and construct validity. The relationship or correlation of a test to an independent measure or trait is known as convergent validity. Convergent validity is actually a method used to assess a test�s construct/criterion validity by correlating test scores with an outside source. Say, for example, that a measure purports to measure phobic responses. A client, who has a snake phobia, is then exposed to a snake and experiences extreme panic. If the client scores higher on the test than he would in a relaxed state, then this would display convergent validity. The test also should show discriminant validity. This means the test will not reflect unrelated variables. Hence, if phobias are unrelated to IQ, then when one correlates clients� IQ scores to their scores on the test for phobias, this should produce a near zero correlation. Similarly, if discriminant validity is evident, a counselor who is genuinely qualified to sit for a state licensing exam should score higher on the exam than a student who flunked an introductory counseling course. When a researcher is engaged in test validation, both convergent and discriminant validity should be thoroughly examined.
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628. When a counselor tells a client that the Graduate Record Examination (GRE) will predict her ability to handle graduate work, the counselor is referring to.
a. good concurrent validity.
b. construct validity.
c. face validity.
d. predictive validity.
D. The Graduate Record Examination (GRE), the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT), the American College Test (ACT), and public opinion polls are effective only if they have high predictive validity, which is the power to accurately describe future behavior or events. Again the subtypes of criterion validity are concurrent and predictive.
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629. A reliable test is _______ valid.
a. always.
b. 90%.
c. not always.
d. 80%.
C. Again shout this one out loud: A reliable test is not always valid. Reliability, nonetheless, determines the upper level of validity.
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630. A valid test is _______ reliable.
a. not always.
b. always.
c. never.
d. 80%.
B. A valid test is always reliable. Choice �b� is correct because a test that measures a given trait well does so repeatedly. Remember that a reliable test, however, is not necessarily always valid. After all, a depression scale that was invalid and really measured anxiety could produce consistent reliable anxiety data.
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631. One method of testing reliability is to give the same test to the same group of people two times and then correlate the scores. This is called.
a. test�retest reliability.
b. equivalent forms reliability.
c. alternate forms reliability.
d. the split-half method.
A. All right, I�ve got to hand it to you�you�re very perceptive. You�ve figured out that I�m banking on the fact that your exam will spring a few reliability or validity questions on you. The well-known test�retest method discussed here tests for �stability,� which is the ability of a test score to remain stable or fluctuate over time when the client takes the test again. When using the test�retest paradigm the client generally takes the same test after waiting at least seven days. The test�retest procedure is only valid for traits such as IQ which remain stable over time and are not altered by mood, memory, or practice effects.
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632. One method of testing reliability is to give the same population alternate forms of the identical test. Each form will have the same psychometric/statistical properties as the original instrument. This is known as.
a. test�retest reliability.
b. equivalent or alternate forms reliability.
c. the split-half method.
d. internal consistency.
B. Here a single group of examinees takes parallel forms of a test and a reliability correlation coefficient is figured on the two sets of scores. Counterbalancing is necessary when testing reliability in this fashion. That is to say, half of the individuals get parallel form A first and half get form B initially. This controls for variables such as fatigue, practice, and motivation.
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633. A counselor doing research decided to split a standardized test in half by using the even items as one test and the odd items as a second test and then correlating them. The counselor.
a. used an invalid procedure to test reliability.
b. was testing reliability via the split-half method.
c. was testing reliability via the equivalent forms method.
d. was testing reliability via the inter-rater method.
B. In this situation the individual takes the entire test as a whole and then the test is divided into halves. The correlation between the half scores yields a reliability coefficient. When a researcher does not use even versus odd questions to split the test, he or she may do so using random numbers (merely dividing a test according to first half versus second half could confound the data due to practice and fatigue effects).
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634. Which method of reliability testing would be useful with an essay test but not with a test of algebra problems?
a. test�retest.
b. alternate forms.
c. split-half.
d. interrater/interobserver.
D. Using choice �d,� several raters assess the same performance. This method has been called �scorer reliability� and is utilized with subjective tests such as projectives to ascertain whether the scoring criteria are such that two persons who grade or assess the responses will produce roughly the same score.
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635. A reliability coefficient of 1.00 indicates.
a. a lot of variance in the test.
b. a score with a high level of error.
c. a perfect score which has no error.
d. a typical correlation on most psychological and counseling tests.
C. As stated earlier, this generally occurs only in physical measurement.
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636. An excellent psychological or counseling test would have a reliability coefficient of
a. 50.
b. .90.
c. 1.00.
d. -.90.
B. Ninety percent of the score measured the attribute in question, while 10% of the score is indicative of error.
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637. A researcher working with a personality test discovers that the test has a reliability coefficient of .70 which is somewhat typical. This indicates that.
a. 70% of the score is accurate while 30% is inaccurate.
b. 30% of the people who are tested will receive accurate scores.
c. 70% of the people who are tested will receive accurate scores.
d. 30% of the score is accurate while 70% is inaccurate.
A. Seventy percent of the obtained score on the test represented the true score on the personality attribute, while 30% of the obtained score could be accounted for by error. Seventy percent is true variance while 30% constitutes error variance.
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638. A career counselor is using a test for job selection purposes. An acceptable reliability coefficient would be _______ or higher.
a. .20.
b. .55.
c. .80.
d. .70.
C. This is a tricky question. Although .70 is generally acceptable for most psychological attributes, for admissions for jobs, schools, and so on, it should be at least .80 and some experts will not settle for less than .90.
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639. The same test is given to the same group of people using the test�retest reliability method. The correlation between the first and second administration is .70. The true variance (i.e., the percentage of shared variance or the level of the same thing measured in both) is.
a. 70%.
b. 100%.
c. 50%.
d. 49%.
D. Here�s the key to simplifying a question such as this. To demonstrate the variance of one factor accounted for by another you merely square the correlation (i.e., reliability coefficient). So .70 � .70 = .49. .49 � 100 = 49%. Your exam could refer to this principle as the coefficient of determination.
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640. IQ means.
a. a query of intelligence.
b. indication of intelligence.
c. intelligence quotient.
d. intelligence questions for test construction.
C. A quotient is the result when you perform division. The early ratio formula for the Binet IQ score was MA/CA (i.e., mental age divided by your chronological age) � 100. The score indicated how you compared to those in your age group. Memory device: An MA is a high degree so put it on top of the equation as the numerator. IQ testing has been the center of more heated debates among experts than any other type of testing.
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641. _______ did research and concluded that intelligence was normally distributed like height or weight and that it was primarily genetic.
a. Spearman.
b. Guilford.
c. Williamson.
d. Francis Galton.
D. Galton felt intelligence was a single or so-called unitary factor.
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642. Francis Galton felt intelligence was.
a. a unitary faculty.
b. best explained via a two factor theory.
c. best explained via the person�s environment.
d. fluid and crystallized in nature.
A. Sir Francis Galton of England has been recognized as one of the major pioneers in the study of individual differences. A half-cousin of Charles �Origin of Species� Darwin, he believed that exceptional mental abilities were genetic and ran in families, and said just that in his 1869 work Hereditary Genius. Choice �b� illuminates the position of Charles Spearman who in 1904 postulated two factors�a general ability G and a specific ability S which were thought to be applicable to any mental task. (Wasn�t psychological theory simple in those days?) As for choice �d,� it pops up on exams from time to time. Fluid intelligence is flexible (terrific they both begin with an F), culture-free, and adjusts to the situation, while crystallized is rigid and does not change or adapt.
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643. J. P. Guilford isolated 120 factors which added up to intelligence. He also is remembered for his.
a. thoughts on convergent and divergent thinking.
b. work on cognitive therapy.
c. work on behavior therapy.
d. work to create the first standardized IQ test.
A. Using factor analysis Guilford determined that there were 120 elements/abilities which added up to intelligence. Two of the dimensions�convergent and divergent thinking�are still popular terms today. Convergent thinking occurs when divergent thoughts and ideas are combined into a singular concept. Divergent thinking is the ability to generate a novel idea. Choice �d� would reflect primarily the work of Alfred Binet and Theodore Simon.
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644. A counselor is told by his supervisor to measure the internal consistency reliability (i.e., homogeneity) of a test but not to divide the test in halves. The counselor would need to utilize.
a. the split-half method.
b. the test�retest method.
c. the Kuder-Richardson coefficients of equivalence.
d. cross-validation.
C. Internal consistency or homogeneity of items also is known as �interitem consistency.� In plain everyday verbiage, the supervisor wants the counselor to find out if each item on the test is measuring the same thing as every other item. Is performance on one item truly related to performance on another? This can be done by using the Kuder-Richardson estimates, which are often denoted on exams as the KR-20 or KR-21 formulas. Another statistic, Lee J. Cronbach�s alpha coefficient, also has been used in this respect. Choice �a� is incorrect. Yes, the split-half method does investigate internal consistency reliability, but it relies on (as its name implies) splitting the test in halves (e.g., even versus odd scores). Cronbach�s alpha and the KR-20 or KR-21 are alternatives to the split-half method. Choice �d,� �cross-validation,� is another popular term used in this area of study. Cross-validation takes place when a researcher further examines the criterion validity (and in rarer instances, the construct validity) of a test by administering the test to a new sample. This procedure is necessary to ensure that the original validity coefficient is applicable to others who will take the exam. This method helps guard against error factors, which are likely to be present if the original sample size is small. In most cases a cross-validation coefficient is indeed smaller than the initial validity coefficient. This phenomenon is called �shrinkage.�
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645. The first intelligence test was created by.
a. David Wechsler.
b. J. P. Guilford.
c. Francis Galton.
d. Alfred Binet and Theodore Simon.
D. The year was 1904 and the French Government appointed a commission to ferret out feeble-minded Parisian children from those who were normal. Alfred Binet led the committee and the rest is history. By 1905, Binet, along with his coworker Simon, created a 30-question test with school-related items of increased difficulty. Binet used his own daughters as test subjects in order to investigate mental processes and also is cited as one of the pioneers in projective testing based on his work with inkblots. After testing nearly 3,000 children in the United States in 1916, Lewis M. Terman of Stanford University published an American version of the Binet that was translated into English and adapted to American children. And in case you haven�t already guessed, the word �Stanford� was added to the name.
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646. Today, the Stanford-Binet IQ test is.
a. a nonstandardized measure.
b. a standardized measure.
c. a projective measure.
d. b and c.
B. The Stanford-Binet is standardized because the scoring and administration procedures are formal and well delineated. Measures which are not standardized (choice �a�) lack procedural guidelines for scoring or administration and do not include quantitative information related to �standards� of performance.
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647. IQ stands for intelligence quotient, which is expressed by.
a. CA/MA � 100.
b. CA/MA � 100.
c. MA/CA � 50.
d. MA/CA � 100.
D. The test is Binet�s, but the famous formula was created by the German, Wilhelm Stern. The formula produced what is known as a �ratio IQ.� Today, a �deviation IQ� is utilized which compares the individual to a norm (i.e., the person is compared to others in his or her age group). Thus, the present score indicates �deviation� from the norm. Okay, now just to be sure that you are really picking this up let me say it in a slightly different way: Although we still use the term IQ, the Binet today actually relies on a standard age score (SAS) with a mean of 100 and a standard deviation of 16. So then you see, the IQ isn�t really an IQ after all�right?
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648. The Binet stressed age-related tasks. Utilizing this method, a 9year-old task would be one which.
a. only a 10-year-old child could answer.
b. only an 8-year-old child could answer.
c. 50% of the 9-year-olds could answer correctly.
d. 75% of the 9-year-olds could answer correctly.
C. A 9-year-old task was defined as one in which 1/2 of the 9-year-olds tested could answer successfully.
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649. Simon and Binet pioneered the first IQ test around 1905. The test was created to.
a. assess high school seniors in America.
b. assess U.S. military recruits.
c. discriminate normal from retarded Parisian children.
d. measure genius in the college population.
C. The Minister of Public Instruction for the Paris schools wanted a test to identify mentally retarded children so that they could be taught separately. The assumption was made that intelligence was basically the ability to understand school-related material. In regard to choice �d,� some experts believe that the Wechsler is a better test for those who fall in the average range, while the Stanford-Binet is more accurate for assessing extremes of intellect.
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650. Today the Stanford-Binet is used from ages 2 to adulthood. The IQ formula has been replaced by the.
a. SAS.
b. SUDS.
c. entropy.
d. ACPA.
A. Review question 647. SAS stands for �standard age score.� Choice �c,� entropy, is a popular family therapy/systems theory term that means that dysfunctional families are either too open or too closed (i.e., letting too much information in or not enough information in). The healthy family is said to be in a balanced state known as negative entropy.
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651. Most experts would agree that the Wechsler IQ tests gained popularity, as the Binet.
a. must be administered in a group.
b. favored the geriatric population.
c. didn�t seem to be the best test for adults.
d. was biased toward women.
C. Choice �a� is incorrect�both the Binet and the Wechsler are individual tests which require specific training beyond that required for a group IQ test. David Wechsler felt the Binet was slanted toward verbal skills and thus he added �performance� skills to ascertain attributes which might have been cultivated in a background which did not stress verbal proficiency. The Wechsler yields a verbal IQ, performance IQ, and a full-scale IQ. The WAIS-III has 7 verbal scales and 7 performance scales.
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652. The best IQ test for a 22-year-old single male would be the
a. WPPSI-III.
b. WAIS-III.
c. WISC-IV.
d. Computer-based testing.
B. Choice �a,� the WPPSI or the Wechsler Preschool and Primary Scale of Intelligence, is suitable for children ages 2 years 6 months to 7 years, three months. Choice �b,� the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale is intended for ages 16 and beyond. Choice �c,� the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children , is appropriate for kids 6 to 16 years, 11 months. Choice �d� is indicative of a paper and pencil test that has been modified so that the client can take the test via computer.
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653. The best intelligence test for a sixth-grade girl would be the.
a. WPPSI-III.
b. WAIS-III.
c. WISC-IV.
d. Merrill-Palmer.
C. Review the answer to the previous question. The Merrill-Palmer Scale of Mental Tests is an intelligence test for infants.
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654. The best intelligence test for a kindergartner would be the.
a. WPPSI-III.
b. WAIS-III.
c. WISC-IV.
d. Myers-Briggs Type Indicator.
A. Since the child most likely would be between 3 and 7 years, 3 months, the WPPSI would be the only possible choice. Choice �d,� the MBTI is based on Carl Jung�s analytic psychology. The MBTI uses dichotomous types: extraversion versus introversion, sensing versus intuition, thinking versus feeling, and judging versus perceiving. The test results in a four-letter type score such as ISFJ (i.e., introversion, sensing, feeling, judging). (Note: Intuition, though it begins with an �I� is coded using an �N� since Introversion begins with an �I.�) Important exam hint: When a test is guided via a theory it is known as a theory-based test or inventory.
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655. The mean on the Wechsler and the Binet is _______ and the standard deviation is _______.
a. 100; 100.
b. 100; 15 Wechsler, 16 Stanford-Binet.
c. 100; 20.
d. 100; 1.
B. IQs above 100 are above average and those shy of 100 are below average.
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656. Group IQ tests like the Otis Lennon, the Lorge-Thorndike, and the California Test of Mental Abilities are popular in school settings. The advantage is that.
a. group tests are quicker to administer.
b. group tests are superior in terms of predicting school performance.
c. group tests always have a higher degree of reliability.
d. individual IQ tests are not appropriate for school children.
A. World War I provided the impetus for the group testing movement. Approximately 2 million men were tested using the Army Alpha for literates and the Army Beta for illiterates and those from other countries. School districts, government, and industry prefer tests which can be administered to many individuals simultaneously. The catch is that group tests are less accurate and have lower reliability.
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657. The group IQ test movement began.
a. in 1905.
b. with the work of Binet.
c. with the Army Alpha and Army Beta in World War I.
d. with the AGCT in World War II.
C. Note the word group.
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658. In a culture-fair test.
a. items are known to the subject regardless of his or her culture.
b. the test is not standardized.
c. culture-free items cannot be utilized.
d. African Americans generally score higher than Whites.
A. The culture-fair test attempts to expunge items which would be known only to an individual due to his or her background. Key exam hint: New ACA ethics now consider it unethical to administer a test to a client from a given population unless that particular test or inventory has been normed on that specific population! As an example, if you gave an African-American client a test that had not been normed on African Americans this would be considered a violation of ethics.
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659. The Black versus White IQ controversy was sparked mainly by a 1969 article written by _______.
a. John Ertl.
b. Raymond B. Cattell.
c. Arthur Jensen.
d. Robert Williams.
C. Here are four names with which to be familiar. Choice �a,� John Ertl, claimed he invented an electronic machine to analyze neural efficiency and take the place of the paper and pencil IQ test. The device relies on a computer, an EEG, a strobe light, and an electrode helmet. The theory is that the faster one processes the perception, the more intelligence he or she has. I might add that thus far, counselors don�t seem to be buying the idea! Choice �b,� Raymond B. Cattell, is responsible for the fluid (inherited neurological that decreases with age and is not very dependent on culture) and crystallized intelligence (intelligence from experiential, cultural, and educational interaction). Crystallized intelligence is measured by tests that focus on content. Fluid intelligence is tested by what has been called �content-free reasoning� such as a block design or a pictorial analogy problem. Jensen, choice �c� mentioned earlier, sparked tremendous controversy�actually that�s putting it mildly�when he suggested in a 1969 Harvard Educational Review article (�How Much Can We Boost IQ and Scholastic Performance?�) that the closer people are genetically, the more alike their IQ scores. Adopted children, for example, will sport IQs closer to their biological parents than to their adopted ones. Jensen then leveled the charge that Whites score 11 to 15 IQ points higher than Blacks (regardless of social class). His theory stated that due to slavery it was possible that Blacks were bred for strength rather than intelligence. He estimated that heredity contributed 80%, while environment influenced 20% of the IQ. Uri Bronfenbrenner, who could be included here if we had a choice �e,� claimed that Jensen relied on twin studies with poor internal validity. Other researchers (e.g., Newman, Freeman, and Holzinger; Fehr) felt that genetic influences contributed less than 50% to IQ. In the final choice, the African-American psychologist Robert Williams created the Black Intelligence Test of Cultural Homogeneity (BITCH) to demonstrate that Blacks often excelled when given a test laden with questions familiar to the Black community. Williams charged that tests like the Binet and the Wechsler were part of �scientific racism.� Williams�a victim of the system himself�scored an 82 on an IQ test at age 15 and his counselor suggested bricklaying since he was good with his hands! Williams rejected the advice and went on to put PhD after his name! IQ tests are, however, excellent predictors of school success in most cases since schools emphasize �White values.�
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660. The MMPI-2 is.
a. an IQ test.
b. a neurological test.
c. a projective personality test.
d. a standardized personality test.
D. The original version of this instrument was created in 1940. The Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory-2, the current version used since 1989, is known as a �self-report� personality inventory. The client can respond with �true,� �false,� or �cannot say� to 567 questions (10 more than the traditional MMPI which was the most researched test in history as well as the most useful for assessing emotional disturbance). The �new� MMPI, designated via the 2, is intended to help clinicians diagnose and treat patients. The test is said to have retained the best factors of the MMPI, while updating the test and eliminating sexist wording. The MMPI-2 is suitable for those over 18. A sixth-grade reading level is required and testing time varies from 60 to 90 minutes. The test restandardization committee reported that the norming sample for the MMPI-2 is larger and more representative than the old measure. The MMPI offers computer report packages for specialized settings such as college counseling, chronic pain programs, or outpatient mental health centers. The MMPI-A is a 478 question version suitable for 14-18-year-old adolescents. My advice: Thumb through a few major testing catalogs before taking the exam. The major testing catalogs are available online on the Internet.
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661. The word psychometric means.
a. a form of measurement used by a neurologist.
b. any form of mental testing.
c. a mental trait which cannot be measured.
d. the test relies on a summated or linear rating scale.
B. Psychometrics literally refers to the branch of counseling or psychology which focuses on testing. Choice �d� is used to describe answer scales in which various values are given to different responses. For example, on a Likert Scale a �strongly agree� might be given a 5, yet an �agree response� might be rated a 4. The clients score is the �sum� of all the items.
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662. In a projective test the client is shown.
a. something which is highly reinforcing.
b. something which is highly charged from an emotional standpoint.
c. a and b.
d. neutral stimuli.
D. The idea here is that the client will �project� his or her personality if given an unstructured task. More specifically, there are several acceptable formats for projective tests: First, Association�such as �What comes to mind when you look at this inkblot?� Second, Completion��Complete these sentences with real feelings�; third, Construction�such as drawing a person. The theory is that self-report inventories like the MMPI do not reveal hidden unconscious impulses. In order to accomplish this the client is shown vague, ambiguous stimuli such as a picture or an inkblot. Some counselors believe that by using projective measures a client will have more difficulty faking his or her responses and that he or she will be able to expand on answers. It should be noted that examiner bias is common when using projectives and a therapist using projectives needs more training than one who merely works with self-report tests.
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663. The 16 PF reflects the work of.
a. Raymond B. Cattell.
b. Carl Jung.
c. James McKeen Cattell.
d. Oscar K. Buros.
A. The 16 Personality Factor Questionnaire is suitable for persons 16 and above and has been the subject of over 2,000 papers or other communications! The test measures key personality factors such as assertiveness, emotional maturity, and shrewdness. A couple can even decide that each party will take the 16 PF, and an individual as well as a joint profile will be compiled which can be utilized for marital counseling. Choice �c� is another Cattell, who coined the term mental test and spent time researching mental assessment and its relation to reaction time at the University of Pennsylvania. James McKeen Cattell had originally worked with Wundt and later Galton. Tests and inventories like the 16 PF that analyze data outside of a given theory are called factor-analytic tests or inventories rather than theory-based tests.
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664. The Myers-Briggs Type Indicator reflects the work of.
a. Raymond B. Cattell.
b. Carl Jung.
c. William Glasser.
d. Oscar K. Buros.
B. Review question 654. Buros, mentioned in choice �d� of this question as well as the last, is noted for his Mental Measurements Yearbook, which was the first major publication to review available tests. After his death, the University of Nebraska set up the Oscar K. Buros Center, which continued his valuable contribution to the field.
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665. The counselor who favors projective measures would most likely be a.
a. Rogerian.
b. strict behaviorist.
c. TA therapist.
d. psychodynamic clinician.
D. Choices �a,� �b,� and �c� all reflect positions that do not rely heavily on the unconscious mind (especially the behaviorists who believe that if you can�t directly measure the behavior, it is not meaningful). Some theorists (e.g., Allport) would contend that even if it is true that unconscious impulses exist, they are not very important.
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666. An aptitude test is to _______ as an achievement test is to ____ ___.
a. what has been learned; potential.
b. potential; what has been learned.
c. profit from learning; potential.
d. a measurement of current skills; potential.
B. An aptitude test assesses �potential� and �predicts.� An achievement test examines what you know (e.g., the NCE). Predictive validity is particularly important when choosing an aptitude test.
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667. Both the Rorschach and the Thematic Apperception Test (TAT) are projective tests. The Rorschach uses 10 inkblot cards while the TAT uses.
a. a dozen inkblot cards.
b. verbal and performance IQ scales.
c. pictures.
d. incomplete sentences.
C. The TAT consists of 30 cards plus one blank card. The test, which is intended for ages 4 and beyond, uses up to 20 cards when administered to any given individual (i.e., 19 selected to fit the age and sex of the client, plus one blank card). The pictures on each card are intentionally ambiguous, and the client is asked to make up a story for each of them. Choice �d� would describe a projective test such as the Rotter Incomplete Sentence Blank (RISB) in which the subject completes an incomplete sentence with a real feeling.
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668. Test bias primarily results from.
a. a test being normed solely on White middle-class clients.
b. the use of projective measures.
c. using Whites to score the test.
d. using IQ rather than personality tests.
A. This bias should be communicated to the client when the results are explained.
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669. A counselor who fears the client has an organic, neurological, or motoric difficulty would most likely use the.
a. Bender Gestalt.
b. Rorschach.
c. Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory.
d. Thematic Apperception Test.
A. The Bender Visual Motor Gestalt Test (named after Lauretta Bender) is actually an expressive projective measure, though first and foremost it is known for its ability to discern whether brain damage is evident. Suitable for ages 4 and beyond the client is instructed to copy nine geometric figures which the client can look at while constructing his or her drawing.
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670. An interest inventory would be least valid when used with.
a. a first-year college student majoring in philosophy.
b. a third-year college student majoring in physics.
c. an eighth-grade male with an IQ of 136.
d. a 46-year-old White male construction worker.
C. Interest inventories work best with individuals who are of high-school age or above inasmuch as interests are not extremely stable prior to that time. Interests become quite stable around age 25.
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671. One major criticism of interest inventories is that.
a. they have far too many questions.
b. they are most appropriate for very young children.
c. they emphasize professional positions and minimize blue-collar jobs.
d. they favor female pursuits.
C. Also take note of the fact that contrary to popular opinion interests and abilities are not�that�s right, not�highly correlated. A client, for example, could have tremendous musical ability yet could thoroughly dislike being a musician.
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672. Interest inventories are positive in the sense that.
a. they are reliable and not threatening to the test taker.
b. they are always graded by the test taker.
c. they require little or no reading skills.
d. they have high validity in nearly all age brackets.
A. Generally, an interest inventory would be the least threatening variety of test.
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673. A counselor who had an interest primarily in testing would most likely be a member of.
a. ASGW.
b. AMECD.
c. NASW.
d. AHEAD.
B. This ACA Division is the Association for Measurement and Evaluation in Counseling and Development. Can you name the other choices?
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674. The NCE is.
a. an intelligence test.
b. an aptitude test.
c. a personality test.
d. an achievement test.
D. The NCE is testing your knowledge and application of material in the counseling profession.
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675. The _______ are examples of aptitude tests.
a. GATB, the O*NET Ability Profiler, and the MCAT.
b. GZTS and the MMPI.
c. CPI and the MMPI.
d. Strong and the LSAT.
A. Plenty of alphabet soup here! The new O*NET Ability Profiler is not literally a replacement for the General Aptitude Test Battery (which was found at your friendly neighborhood State Employment Office in years past, to help you secure an appropriate job), since it does not replace the GATB in every respect. Nevertheless, since the GATB is dated, newer instruments might be more appropriate. Here I�ve teamed O*NET Ability Profiler created for career exploration, counseling, and planning, and the GATB, up with the new Medical College Admission Test. Choice �b,� the Guilford-Zimmerman Temperament Survey, is a personality measure for persons who do not have severe psychiatric disabilities. Lastly, the final alternative introduces you to the new Law School Admission Test which of course qualifies as a bona fide aptitude test. So why is choice �d� incorrect? Well, if any portion of a response is incorrect, then the entire choice is erroneous. If you marked choice �d� you can blame it on the Strong! Exam Hint: School selection tests assess aptitude.
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676. One problem with interest inventories is that the person often tries to answer the questions in a socially acceptable manner. Psychometricians call this response style phenomenon
a. standard error.
b. social desirability (the right way to feel in society).
c. cultural bias.
d. acquiescence.
B. The converse of choice �b� occurs when an individual purposely, or when in doubt, gives unusual responses. This phenomenon is known as �deviation.� Choice �d� manifests itself when a client always agrees with something.
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677. An aptitude test predicts future behavior while an achievement test measures what you have mastered or learned. In the case of a test like _______ the distinction is unclear.
a. Binet.
b. Wechsler.
c. GRE.
d. Bender.
C. Sure, the GRE attempts to predict graduate school performance, but it also tests your level of knowledge. Some exams will refer to tests like the GRE, MAT, MCAT, SAT, etc., as �aptitude-achievement tests.� Now here�s where a counselor�s life gets really complicated. Say your exam presents you with one of the aforementioned tests and gives you �aptitude� as one choice, and �achievement� as another, but does not give you �aptitude achievement� as an alternative (yipes!). Well, I certainly won�t condone the practice, but based on my investigation of the textbook taxonomy of tests I�d opt for the �aptitude� option and latch onto the first good four-leaf clover I could get my hands on.
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678. Your supervisor wants you to find a new personality test for your counseling agency. You should read.
a. professional journals.
b. the Buros Mental Measurements Yearbook.
c. classic textbooks in the field as well as test materials produced by the testing company.
d. all of the above.
D. Moreover, it has been discovered that if the counselor involves the client in the process of test selection it will improve his or her cooperation in the counseling process.
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679. The standard error of measurement tells you.
a. how accurate or inaccurate a test score is.
b. what population responds best to the test.
c. the accuracy for personality but not IQ tests.
d. the number of people used in norming the test.
A. If a client decided to take the same test over and over and over again you could plot a distribution of scores. This would be the standard error of measurement for the instrument in question. Suffice it to say, the lower the better. A low standard error means high reliability. Say, that�s a pretty important concept; I better explain it again with a slightly different twist in the �Research and Evaluation� section of this book.
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680. A new IQ test has a standard error of measurement of 3. Tom scores 106 on the test. If he takes the test a lot, we can predict that about 68% of the time.
a. Tom will score between 100 and 103.
b. Tom will score between 100 and 106.
c. Tom will score between 103 and 109.
d. Tom will score higher than Betty who scored 139.
C. Calculated simply by taking: 106-3=103 and 106+3=109. Hint: Your exam could refer to this as the 68% confidence interval (i.e., 103 to 109). Classical test theory suggests the formula, X=T+E, where X is the obtained score, T is the true score, and E is the error. Hence, psychometricians know that if a client takes the same test over and over, random error (i.e., E in the formula) will cause the score to fluctuate.
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681 A counselor created an achievement test with a reliability coefficient of .82. The test is shortened since many clients felt it was too long. The counselor shortened the test but logically assumed that the reliability coefficient would now.
a. be approximately .88.
b. remain at .82.
c. be at least 10 points higher or lower.
d. be lower than .82.
D. Increasing a test�s length raises reliability. Shorten it and the antithesis occurs. Note: The Spearman Brown formula is used to estimate the impact that lengthening or shortening a test will have on a test�s reliability coefficient.
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682. A counselor can utilize psychological tests to help secure a ____ ___ diagnosis if third party payments are necessary.
a. AACD.
b. DSM or ICD.
c. percentile.
d. standard error.
B. Diagnosis is a medical term which asserts that you classify a disease based on symptomatology.
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683. A colleague of yours invents a new projective test. Seventeen counselors rated the same client using the measure and came up with nearly identical assessments. This would indicate
a. high validity.
b. high reliability.
c. excellent norming studies.
d. culture fairness.
B. This is known as �interrater� reliability.
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684. Counselors often shy away from self-reports since.
a. clients often give inaccurate answers.
b. ACA ethics do not allow them.
c. clients need a very high IQ to understand them.
d. they are generally very lengthy.
A. Say a client is monitoring her behavior and does not wish to disappoint her therapist. The report could be biased. This is a �reactive effect� of the self-monitoring.
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685. In most instances, who would be the best qualified to give the Rorschach Inkblot Test?
a. A counselor with NCC, NCCC after his or her name.
b. A clinical psychologist.
c. A D.O. psychiatrist.
d. A social worker with ACSW after his or her name.
B. Generally, a clinical psychologist would have the most training in this area while the social worker would have the least education regarding tests and measurements.
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686. Your client, who is in an outpatient hospital program, is keeping a journal of irrational thoughts. This would be.
a. an unethical practice based on NBCC ethical guidelines.
b. considered a standardized test.
c. an informal assessment technique.
d. an aptitude measure.
C. Self-reports, case notes, checklists, sociograms of groups, interviews, and professional staffings would also fall into this category.
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687. You are uncertain whether a test is intended for the population served by your not-for-profit agency. The best method of researching this dilemma would be to.
a. contact a local APA clinical psychology graduate program.
b. make a long distance call to the person who created the test.
c. read the test manual included with the test.
d. give the test to six or more clients at random.
C. The manual should specify the target population for the test in question.
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688. Clients should know that
a. validity is more important than reliability.
b. projective tests favor psychodynamic theory.
c. face validity is not that important.
d. a test is merely a single source of data and not infallible.
D. Although the first three choices are important to the counselor, the final statement should be explained to the client. An extremely high score�say on a mechanical aptitude test�does not automatically imply that the client will prosper as a mechanic.
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689. One major testing trend is.
a. computer-assisted testing and computer interpretations.
b. more paper and pencil measures.
c. to give school children at least three IQ tests per year.
d. to train pastoral counselors to do projective testing.
A. But don�t take my word for it. Pick up any modern testing catalog and you might erroneously think you�ve picked up a computer software directory!
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690. One future trend which seems contradictory is that some experts are pushing for.
a. a greater reliance on tests while others want to rely on them less.
b. social workers to do most of the testing.
c. psychiatrists to do most of the testing.
d. counselors to ban all computer-assisted tests.
A. It seems we counselors just can�t agree on anything. Many counselors would like to see a greater emphasis in the future on tests which assess creative and motivational factors.
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691. Most counselors would agree that.
a. more preschool IQ testing is necessary.
b. teachers need to give more personality tests.
c. more public education is needed in the area of testing.
d. the testing mystique has been beneficial to the general public.
C. Again, the public needs to know the limitations of testing (i.e., that they are fallible). If you�ve been doing counseling for any length of time then you�ve surely come in contact with clients who have been harmed by hearing a score (e.g., their IQ) and then reacting to it such that it becomes a negative, self-fulfilling prophecy.
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692. _______ would be an informal method of appraisal.
a. IQ testing.
b. Standardized personality testing.
c. GRE scores.
d. A checklist.
D. Unlike choices �a,� �b,� and �c,� the informal method does not use standard administration or scoring procedures. I might tell a client to do her checklist or diary one way and you would go about it in a totally different manner.
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693. The WAIS-III is given to 100,000 individuals in the United States who are picked at random. A counselor would expect that.
a. approximately 68% would score between 85 and 115.
b. approximately 68% would score between 70 and 130.
c. the mean IQ would be 112.
d. 50% of those tested would score 112 or above.
A. I know, I see it too, a question with numbers�lots of numbers, but don�t panic. Let�s walk through this one together. First, the Wechsler IQ test has been administered to a very large group of people so chances are the distribution of scores will be normal. This tells you that the mean score will be 100 (i.e., the average IQ) and the standard deviation will be 15 (if the question were asked about the Binet you�d use 16 as the standard deviation). In a normal distribution approximately 68% of the population will fall between plus/minus 1 standard deviation of the mean. With a standard deviation of 15 you simply subtract 15 from 100 to get the low score (i.e., 85) and add 15 to 100 to get 115. Choice �b� would be correct if the 68% was changed to 96%, since about 96% of the people in a normal distribution fall between plus/minus 2 standard deviations of the mean. (You simply subtract 30 from 100 to get 70 and add 30 to 100 to yield the upper IQ score of 130.) Keep in mind that choice �c� should read 100 while choice �d� ought to indicate that 50% would score above 100.
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694. A word association test would be an example of.
a. a neuropsychological test.
b. a motoric test.
c. an achievement test.
d. a projective test.
D. Although it is rare, some texts and exams take issue with the archaic word projective and refer to such tests as �self-expressive.�
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695. Infant IQ tests are.
a. more reliable than those given later in life.
b. more unreliable than those given later in life.
c. not related to learning experiences.
d. never used.
B. These �toddler tests� are sometimes capable of picking up gross abnormalities such as serious mental retardation.
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696. A good practice for counselors is to.
a. always test the client yourself rather than referring the client for testing.
b. never generalize on the basis of a single test score.
c. stay away from culture-free tests.
d. stay away from scoring the test yourself.
B. Also, although choice �c� represents an ideal measure, most experts believe that as of this date no such animal exists.
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697. You want to admit only 25% of all counselors to an advanced training program in psychodynamic group therapy. The item difficulty on the entrance exam for applicants would be best set at.
a. 0.0.
b. .5 regardless of the admission requirement.
c. 1.0.
d. .25.
D. In most tests the level is set at .5 (i.e., 50% of the examinees will answer correctly while 50% will not). However, in this case the .25 level would allow you to ferret out the lower 75% you do not wish to admit. Item difficulty ranges from 0.0 (choice �a�) to 1.0 (choice �c�).
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698. According to Public Law 93�380, also known as the Buckley Amendment, a 19-year-old college student attending college.
a. could view her record, which included test data.
b. could view her daughter�s infant IQ test given at preschool.
c. could demand a correction she discovered while reading a file.
d. all of the above.
D. Persons over 18 can inspect their own records and those of their children. The Family Education Rights and Privacy Act also stipulates that information cannot be released without adult consent.
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699. Lewis Terman.
a. constructed the Wechsler tests.
b. constructed the initial Binet prior to 1910.
c. constructed the Rorschach.
d. Americanized the Binet.
D. Since Terman was associated with Stanford University the test became the Stanford-Binet.
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700. In constructing a test you notice that all 75 people correctly answered item number 12. This gives you an item difficulty of.
a. 1.2.
b. .75.
c. 1.0.
d. 0.0.
C. The item difficulty index is calculated by taking the number of persons tested who answered the item correctly/total number of persons tested. Hence, in this case 75/75=1.0. This maximum score for item 12 tells you it is probably much too easy for your examinees.
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701. The most valuable type of research is.
a. always conducted using a factor analysis.
b. conducted using the chi-square.
c. the experiment, used to discover cause-and-effect relationships.
d. the quasi-experiment.
C. A mini pep talk from me to you: Just think of statistics and research as another area on the test�no easier and no harder. Most of the students I�ve spoken to who used this book to study for major exams were surprised to find that questions related to this section of the test were not that difficult! I shall try to keep my explanations simple and will vary the presentation of the material so that if you don�t understand it in one way, you�ll comprehend it when it is explained in a different manner. And lastly, I promise repetition, repetition, and more repetition!
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Experimental research is the process of gathering data in order to make evaluative comparisons regarding different situations. An experiment must have the conditions of treatment controlled via the experimenter and random assignments (also called randomization) used in the groups. An experiment attempts to eliminate all extraneous variables. In the quasi-experiment (choice �d�) the researcher uses preexisting groups, and hence the IV (independent variable) cannot be altered (e.g., gender or ethnicity). In a quasi-experiment you cannot state with any degree of statistical confidence that the IV caused the DV (dependent variable). One popular type of quasi-experiment is known as the �ex post facto study.� Ex post facto literally means �after the fact,� connoting a correlational study or research in which intact, preexisting groups are utilized. In the case of the ex post facto study, the IV was administered before the research began. When conducting or perusing a research study a counselor is very concerned with �internal and external validity.� Threats to internal validity include maturation of subjects (psychological and physical changes including fatigue due to the time involved), mortality (i.e., subjects withdrawing), instruments used to measure the behavior or trait, and statistical regression (i.e., the notion that extremely high or low scores would move toward the mean if the measure is utilized again). Internal validity refers to whether the DVs were truly influenced by the experimental IVs or whether other factors had an impact. External validity, on the other hand, refers to whether the experimental research results can be generalized to larger populations (i.e., other people, settings or conditions). Thus, if the results of the study only apply to the population in the study itself then the external validity is said to be low. P.S.: If it�s been a while and you�ve forgotten terms like IV and DV just hold your pants on; we�ll get to you in a minute. As for the other incorrect choices, a �factor analysis� (choice �a�) refers to statistical procedures that use the important or underlying �factors� in an attempt to summarize a lot of variables. Hence, a test which measures a counselor�s ability may try to describe the three most important variables (factors) that make an effective helper, although literally hundreds of factors may exist. Using factor analysis procedures, a brief test that measures the three major factors maybe able to predict who will be an effective counselor as accurately as 10 other tests that examine hundreds of variables or so-called factors. Choice �b� mentions the �chi-square.� The chi-square is a nonparametric statistical measure that tests whether a distribution differs significantly from an expected theoretical distribution.
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702. Experiments emphasize parsimony, which means.
a. interpreting the results in the simplest way.
b. interpreting the results in the most complex manner.
c. interpreting the results using a correlation coefficient.
d. interpreting the results using a clinical interview.
A. Parsimonious literally means a tendency to be miserly and not overspend. A parsimonious individual is said to be overly economical and stingy. In research, we strive for parsimony in the sense that the easiest and less complex explanation is said to be the best; an economical description if you will. Simply put, the simplest explanation of the findings is always preferred. The factor analysis mentioned in the previous answer is parsimonious in the sense that 10 tests which measure the dimensions of an effective counselor can be explained via a short measure which describes three underlying variables. Factor analysis then, is concerned with data reduction.
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703. Occam�s Razor suggests that experimenters.
a. interpret the results in the simplest manner.
b. interpret the results in the most complex manner.
c. interpret the results using a correlation coefficient.
d. interpret the results using a clinical interview.
A. A word to the wise: Exams often refer to parsimony as Occam�s Razor, the principle of economy, or Lloyd Morgan�s 1894 Canon (canon in this sense means �law�). Conway Lloyd Morgan was an English psychologist/physiologist, while William of Occam was a 14th-century philosopher and theologian. The early behaviorists (e.g., Watson) adhered closely to this principle. Key point: Have you ever placed a sticker on your car and tried to smooth it out? No matter how many times you attempt to do this the sticker usually retains a few trapped air bubbles. This analogy has often been used in conjunction with research, in the sense that flaws in research are often called bubbles.
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704. A counselor educator is running an experiment to test a new form of counseling. Unbeknownst to the experimenter one of the clients in the study is secretly seeing a gestalt therapist. This experiment.
a. is parsimonious.
b. is an example of Occam�s Razor.
c. is confounded/flawed.
d. is valid and will most likely help the field of counseling.
C. The experiment is said to be invalid (so much for choice �d�) due to an extraneous independent variable (IV) (e.g., the gestalt therapy). Variables which are undesirable confound or �flaw� the experiment. The only experimental variable should be the independent variable�in this case the new form of counseling. The IV must have the effect on the dependent variable (here the DV would be some measure of the client�s mental health). In this experiment any changes could not be attributed with any degree of certainty to the new form of counseling since dependent variable changes could be due to the gestalt intervention (an extraneous confounding variable). All correlational research is said to be confounded.
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705. Nondirective is to person-centered as.
a. psychological testing is to counseling.
b. confounding is to experimenting.
c. appraisal is to research.
d. parsimony is to Occam�s Razor.
D. A simple analogy question. Nondirective and person-centered therapy are synonymous; both refer to names given to Rogerian counseling. Parsimony is roughly synonymous with Occam�s Razor. Important exam reminder: Most counselors see themselves as practitioners rather than researchers. Research, nevertheless, helps the entire field of counseling advance. It has been pointed out that we know about the work of many famous counselors and career counselors because of their published research not because of what transpired in their sessions. Test hint: The American Psychological Association�s Journal of Counseling Psychology publishes more counseling research articles than any other periodical in our field.
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706. An experiment is said to be confounded when.
a. undesirable variables are not kept out of the experiment.
b. undesirable variables are kept out of the experiment.
c. basic research is used in place of applied research.
d. the sample is random.
A. I hope you didn�t mark choices �b� and �d� since they are necessary for a proper experiment. Confounding is said to occur when a undesirable variable which is not controlled by the researcher is introduced in the experiment. Hint: Your exam could refer to this as a contaminating variable. If you missed this one, fess up and review question 704. Take a good hard look at choice �c.� Basic research is conducted to advance our understanding of theory, while applied research (also called action research or experience-near research) is conducted to advance our knowledge of how theories, skills, and techniques can be used in terms of practical application. Often counselors assert that much of the research is not relevant to the actual counseling process and indeed they are correct.
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707. In experimental terminology IV stands for _______ and DV stands for _______.
a. independent variable; dependent variable.
b. dependent variable; independent variable.
c. individual variable; dependent variable.
d. independent variable; designer variable.
A. Variables in an experiment are categorized as independent variables (IVs) or dependent variables (DVs). A variable is merely a behavior or a circumstance that can exist on at least two levels or conditions. In plain, simple, everyday English, a variable is a factor that �varies� or is capable of change. In an experiment the IV is the variable that the researcher manipulates, controls, alters, or wishes to experiment with. A neat little memory device is that IV begins with an �I,� so imagine yourself as the researcher and remember �I manipulate the IV� or �I experiment with the IV.� The DV expresses the outcome or the data. Here the memory device is a cinch: DV begins with a �D� and so does the word data. The DV expresses the data regarding factors you wish to measure. IVs and DVs�the variables of the experimental trade�can be discrete (e.g., a brand of counseling or occupation) or continuous (e.g., height or weight). Exam score booster: If your exam describes a true experiment�such as the biofeedback research described in the next several questions�except for the fact that the groups were not randomly assigned, then the new exams are calling this a causal comparative design. Expect to see this term on the exam. Data gleaned from the causal comparative ex-post facto or after the fact design can be analyzed with a test of significance (e.g., a t test or ANOVA) just like any true experiment.
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708. A professor of counselor education hypothesized that biofeedback training could reduce anxiety and improve the average score on written board exams. If this professor decides to conduct a formal experiment the IV will be the _______, and the DV will be the _______.
a. professor; anxiety level.
b. anxiety level; board exam score.
c. biofeedback; board exam score.
d. board exam score; biofeedback.
C. Ah, here we have it: the old standby in the field of comprehensive exams. The examinee is given an experiment to ferret out the IV and DV. Now I�ve got this uncanny feeling that you won�t be caught by surprise when you see it! Okay, time to plug in your memory devices. �I manipulate...or I experiment with, well, the biofeedback training, of course.� The �I� statement here gives you your �IV.� For your �DV� (remember DV begins with a �D� like �data�) your data is provided by the board exam score. True, the researcher here hypothesized that the training lowers anxiety, but you won�t have any direct data regarding this trait. Hence it will not be your DV in this experiment.
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709. Experimenters should always abide by a code of ethics. The variable you manipulate/control in an experiment is the.
a. DV.
b. dependent variable.
c. the variable you will measure to determine the outcome.
d. IV or independent variable.
D. Again, repeat after me: �I am the researcher so I manipulate or experiment with the IV.� Choices �a,� �b,� and �c� all mention the DV, which deals with outcome �data.� Now, in any experiment the counselor researcher is guided by ethics: this suggests first, that subjects are informed of any risks; second, that negative after effects are removed; third, that you will allow subjects to withdraw at any time; fourth, that confidentiality of subjects will be protected; fifth, that research report results will be presented in an accurate format that is not misleading; and sixth, that you will use only techniques that you are trained in. Research is considered a necessary factor for professionalism in counseling.
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710. In order for the professor of counselor education (see question 708) to conduct an experiment regarding his hypothesis he will need a(n) _______ and a(n) _______.
a. biofeedback group; systematic desensitization group.
b. control group; systematic desensitization group.
c. control group; experimental group.
d. at least 60 subjects in the control group; at least 60 subjects in the experimental group.
C. The control group and the experimental group both have the same characteristics except that members of the control group will not have the experimental treatment applied to them. In this case, for example, the control group will not receive the biofeedback training. The control group does not receive the IV. The experimental group receives the IV. The basic presupposition is that the averages (or means) of the groups do not differ significantly at the beginning of the experiment. Choice �d� would also be a correct answer if it said 15 per group instead of 60. Remember that if you cannot randomly assign the subjects to the two groups then your exam will consider the research a quasi-experiment. Most experts suggest that you need at least 30 people to conduct a true experiment. Correlational research requires 30 subjects per variable while a survey should include at least 100 people.
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711. In order for the professor of counselor education to conduct the experiment suggested in question 708 the experimental group would need to receive.
a. the manipulated IV.
b. the biofeedback training.
c. a and b.
d. the organismic IV.
C. The experimental group receives the IV, which in this case is the biofeedback training. An organismic variable is one the researcher cannot control yet exists such as height, weight, or gender. To determine whether an organismic IV exists you simply ask yourself if there is an experimental variable being examined which you cannot manipulate. In most cases, when you are confronted with IV/DV identification questions, the IV will be of the �manipulated variety.�
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712. Hypothesis testing is most closely related to the work of.
a. Hoppock.
b. Freud.
c. Lloyd Morgan.
d. R. A. Fisher.
D. Hypothesis testing was pioneered by R. A. Fisher. A hypothesis is a hunch or an educated guess which can be tested utilizing the experimental model. A hypothesis might be that biofeedback raises board exam scores; or that reality therapy reduces dysfunctional classroom behavior in high school students; or perhaps that cognitive therapy relieves depression in males in the midst of a divorce. A hypothesis is a statement which can be tested regarding the relationship of the IV and the DV.
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713. The null hypothesis suggests that there will not be a significant difference between the experimental group which received the IV and the control group which did not. Thus, if the experiment in question 708 was conducted, the null hypothesis would suggest that.
a. all students receiving biofeedback training would score equally well on the board exam.
b. systematic desensitization might work better than biofeedback.
c. biofeedback will not improve the board exam scores.
d. meta-analysis is required.
C. The null hypothesis asserts that the samples will not change (i.e., they will still be the same) even after the experimental variable is applied. Let me say that in a slightly different way: according to the null hypothesis the control group and the experimental group will not differ at the end of the experiment. The null hypothesis is simply that the IV does not affect the DV. Null means �nil� or �nothing.� Null is a statement of �no difference.� Choice �d� introduces the term meta-analysis, which is a study that analyzes the findings of numerous studies. Hence, a study of reality therapy that looked at the results of 20 reality therapy studies would be a meta-analysis.
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714. The hunch is known as the experimental or alternative hypothesis. The experimental hypothesis suggests that a difference will be evident between the control group and the experimental group (i.e., the group receiving the IV). Thus, if the experiment in question 708 were conducted, the experimental hypothesis would suggest that.
a. the biofeedback would raise board scores.
b. the control group will score better on the board exam.
c. there will be no difference between the experimental and the control groups.
d. the experiment has been confounded.
A. An alternative hypothesis�which may be called the �affirmative hypothesis� on your exam�asserts that the IV has indeed caused a change.
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715. From a purely statistical standpoint, in order to compare a control group (which does not receive the IV or experimental manipulation) to the experimental group the researcher will need.
a. a correlation coefficient
b. only descriptive statistics.
c. percentile rank.
d. a test of significance.
D. Let�s go through each possible alternative here. Choice �a� or correlational research does not make use of the paradigm in which an IV is experimentally introduced. Descriptive statistics (choice �b�), as the name implies, merely describes data (e.g., the mean, the median, or the mode). In order to compare two groups, �inferential statistics,� which infer something about the population, are necessary. Choice �c,� percentile rank, is a descriptive statistic that tells the counselor what percentage of the cases fell below a certain level. Hence, if Joe�s score puts him at the 50th percentile, than 50 percent of the people had raw scores lower than his particular score. Do not confuse percentiles with percentage scores. A percentage score is just another way of stating a raw score. A percentage score of 50 could be a very high, a very low, or an average score on the test. It merely says that the examinee got half of the answers correct. Graphically speaking, a distribution of percentile scores will always appear rectangular and flat. The correct answer is that the researcher in this experiment will need a test of significance. Such statistical tests are used to determine whether a difference in the groups� scores is �significant� or just due to chance factors. In this case a t test would be used to determine if a significant difference between two means exists. This has been called the �two-groups� or �two-randomized-groups� research design. In this study, the two groups were independent of each other in the sense that the change (or lack of it) in one group did not influence the other group. Thus, this is known as an �independent group comparison design.� If the researcher had measured the same group of subjects without the IV and with the IV, then the study would be a �repeated-measures comparison design.� Exam hint: When a research study uses different subjects for each condition, some exams refer to the study as a �between-subjects design.� If the same subjects are employed (e.g., such as in repeated measures), your exam could refer to it as a �within-subjects design.� To state it in a different manner: In a between-subjects design, each subject receives only one value of the IV. In a within-subjects design, two or more values or levels of the IV are administered to each subject.
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716. When you see the letter P in relation to a test of significance it means.
a. portion.
b. population parameter.
c. probability.
d. the researcher is using an ethnographic qualitative approach.
C. Don�t be surprised if the word parameter makes its way into your exam. A parameter is technically a value obtained from a population while a statistic is a value drawn from a sample. A parameter summarizes a characteristic of a population (e.g., the average male�s height is 5�11�). The correct answer is choice �c� which refers to the probability or the level of significance. Traditionally, the probability in social science research (often indicated by a P) has been set at .05 or lower (i.e., 01 or .001). The .05 level indicates that differences would occur via chance only 5 times in 100. The significance level must be set before the experiment begins! And oh yes, ethnographic research involves research that is collected via interviews, observations, and inspection of documents.
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717. In the social sciences the accepted probability level is usually.
a. point 05 or less.
b. 1 point 0 or higher.
c. point 0001 or less.
d. 5 point 0
A. point 05 and point 01 are the two most popular levels of significance.
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718. P = point 05 really means that.
a. five subjects were not included in the study.
b. there is only a 5% chance that the difference between the control group and the experimental groups is due to chance factors.
c. the level of significance is point 01.
d. no level of significance has been set.
B. Important note: Many experts in the field feel it is misleading when many exams still refer to this as the �95% confidence interval,� meaning that the results would be due to chance only five times out of 100. When P=.05, differences in the experimental group and the control group are evident at the end of the experiment, and the odds are only one in 20 that this can be explained by chance. So once more for good measure (no pun intended!), your exam could refer to the �level of significance� as the level of confidence or simply the confidence level. The meaning is intended to be the same.
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719. P = point 05 really means that
a. differences truly exist; the experimenter will obtain the same results 95 out of 100 times.
b. differences truly exist; the experimenter will obtain the same results 99 out of 100 times.
c. there is a 95% error factor.
d. there is a 10% error factor.
A. Review the previous three questions and answers if you missed this question.
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720. The study that would best rule out chance factors would have a significance level of P =
a. point 05.
b. point 01.
c. point 001.
d. point 08.
C. The smaller the value for P the more stringent the level of significance. Here, the point 001 level is the most stringent level listed, indicating that there is only one chance in 1,000 that the results are due to chance, versus one in 20 for point 05, and one in 100 for point 01. In plain, everyday English it is easier to get significant results using point 08, point 05, or point 01, than it is using point 001.
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721. Type I and Type II errors are called _______ and _______ respectively.
a. beta; alpha.
b. point 01; point 05.
c. a and b.
d. alpha; beta.
D. If it sounds a little like Greek, that�s because it is. Alpha and beta are the first and second letters of the Greek alphabet. A Type I (alpha error) occurs when a researcher rejects the null hypothesis when it is true; and a Type II error (beta error) occurs when you accept null when it is false. The memory device RA (as in �residence advisor�) works well here so you can remember the principle as well as the sequence. Let �R� signify �reject when true� and �A��which comes after �R��signify �accept when false.� If that memory device leaves you feeling apprehensive, here�s another one using the �RA� abbreviation. Let �RA� be your first error (i.e., alpha, Type I) and remember this error occurs when you �R� (reject) null when you should �A� for accept it. Or better still use both �RA� devices. The probability of committing a Type I error equals the level of significance mentioned earlier. Therefore, the level of significance is often referred to as the �alpha level.� 1 minus beta is called �the power of a statistical test.� In this respect, power connotes a statistical test�s ability to reject correctly a false null hypothesis. Parametric tests have more power than nonparametric statistical tests. Parametric tests are used only with interval and ratio data.
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722. A Type I error occurs when.
a. you have a beta error.
b. you accept null when it is false.
c. you reject null when it is true.
d. you fail to use a test of significance.
C. Okay, here it is: Time to plug in your handy dandy memory formula��RA� or �reject when applicable/true.� Since all statistical tests rely on probability there is always the chance that the results were merely chance occurrences. Researchers call these chance factors �errors.�
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723. A Type II error.
a. is also called a beta error.
b. means you reject null when it is applicable.
c. means you accept null when it is false.
d. a and c.
D. Although lowering the significance level (e.g., .01 to .001) lowers Type I errors, it �raises� the risk of committing a Type II or beta error. Simply think of the Type I/Type II relationship as a seesaw in the sense that when one goes up the other goes down. Hence, in determining an alpha level, the researcher needs to decide which error results in the most serious consequences. The safest bet is to set alpha at a very stringent level and then use a large sample size. If this can be accomplished, it is possible to make the correct decision (i.e., accept or reject null) the majority of the time.
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724. Assume the experiment in question 708 is conducted. The results indicate that the biofeedback helped raise written board exam scores but in reality this is not the case. The researcher has made a.
a. Type I error.
b. Type II error.
c. beta error.
d. b and c.
A. Questions like this can be very difficult. Be sure to utilize scratch paper to write down your thoughts if your exam allows you to do so! First, write down (or mentally picture) the null hypothesis regarding the experiment in question. In this case null would mean that biofeedback did not raise board exam scores. This question tells you that the experimental results revealed that biofeedback did raise board scores, so you will reject the null hypothesis. The question then goes on to say that in reality the biofeedback did not really cause the results. Therefore, you have rejected null when it is true/applicable. This is the definition of a Type I or alpha error. Since the experimenter sets the alpha level, he or she is always cognizant of the probability of making a Type I error.
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725. A counselor educator decides to increase the sample size in her experiment. This will.
a. confound the experiment in nearly every case.
b. raise the probability of Type I and Type II errors.
c. have virtually no impact on Type I and Type II errors.
d. reduce Type I and Type II errors.
D. Raising the size of a sample helps to lower the risk of chance/error factors. Simply put: differences revealed via large samples are more likely to be genuine than differences revealed using a small sample size.
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726. If a researcher changes the significance level from point 05 to point 001, then.
a. alpha and beta errors will increase.
b. alpha errors increase but beta errors decrease.
c. alpha errors decrease; however, beta errors increase.
d. This will have no impact on Type I and Type II errors.
C. Review question 723. Let me mention as an aside that research can evoke fear, hostility, and anxiety in counselors. Why? Well, many counselors view research as cold, sterile, impersonal, and not related to the actual counseling process. There is also the fear of negative results related to the way one practices his or her craft.
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727. A counselor believes that clients who receive assertiveness training will ask more questions in counseling classes. An experimental group receives assertiveness training while a control group does not. In order to test for significant differences between the groups the counselor should utilize
a. the student�s t test.
b. a correlation coefficient.
c. a survey.
d. an analysis of variance or ANOVA.
A. When comparing two sample groups the t test, which is a simplistic form of the analysis of variance, is utilized. The t test is used to ascertain whether two sample means are significantly different. The researcher sets the level of significance and then runs the experiment. The t test is computed and this yields a t value. The researcher then goes to a t table found in the index of most statistics� texts. If the t value obtained statistically is lower than the t value (sometimes called �critical t�) in the table, then you accept the null hypothesis. Your computation must exceed the number cited in the table in order to reject null. If there are more than two groups, then the analysis of variance (choice �d�) is utilized. The results of an ANOVA yield an F-statistic. The researcher then consults an F table for a critical value of F. If F obtained (i.e., computed) exceeds the critical F value in the table, then the null hypothesis is rejected. The other major statistical tests likely to show up on your exam include the following six: the analysis of covariance or ANCOVA, which tests two or more groups while controlling for extraneous variables that are often called �covariates�; the Kruskal-Wallis, which is used instead of the one-way ANOVA when the data are nonparametric; the Wilcoxon signed rank test, used in place of the t test when the data are nonparametric and you wish to test whether two correlated means differ significantly (use the �co� to remind you of �correlated�); the Mann-Whitney U-Test, to determine whether two uncorrelated means differ significantly when data are nonparametric (the �u� can remind you of �uncorrelated�); the Spearman correlation or Kendall�s tau, which is used in place of the Pearson r when parametric assumptions cannot be utilized; and the Chi-Square nonparametric test, which examines whether obtained frequencies differ significantly from expected frequencies. Note that statisticians have created nonparametric tests that parallel the popular parametric measures.
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728. The researcher in question 727 now attempts a more complex experiment. One group receives no assertiveness training, a second group receives four assertiveness training sessions, and a third receives six sessions. The statistic of choice would.
a. be the mean.
b. be the t test.
c. be the two-way ANOVA
d. be the ANOVA
D. This is a tough question. A one-way analysis of variance is used for testing one independent variable, while a two-way analysis of variance is used to test two independent variables. When a study has more than one DV the term multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) is utilized. The answer is choice �d� since the simple ANOVA or one-way analysis of variance is used when there is more than one level of a single IV, which in this case is the assertiveness training.
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729. If the researcher in the previous question utilized two IVs then the statistic of choice would be.
a. the median.
b. the t test.
c. the two-way ANOVA or MANOVA.
d. the ANOVA.
C. Two IVs requires a two-way ANOVA, three IVs, a three-way ANOVA, etc.
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730. To complete a t test you would consult a tabled value of t. In order to see if significant differences exist in an ANOVA you would.
a. consult the mode.
b. consult a table for t values.
c. consult a table for F values.
d. compute the chi-square.
C. More elaborate tests (e.g., Tukey�s, Duncan�s multiple range, and Scheffe�s test) can determine whether a significant difference exists between specific groups. Group comparison tests such as these are called �post hoc� or �a posteriori� tests for ANOVA calculations.
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731. Which level of significance would best rule out chance factors?
a. point 05
b. point 01
c. point 2
d. point 001
D. Some researchers refer to the level of significance as where �one draws the line� or the �cutoff point� between findings that should or should not be ascribed to chance factors. The significance level must be set low. If, for example, a researcher foolishly set the level at .50, then the odds would be 50�50 that the results were due to pure chance. I guarantee you a reputable journal would never touch an article with statistics like that! if you marked anything other than choice �d,� you also should review question 720.
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732. When a researcher uses correlation, then there is no direct manipulation of the IV. A researcher might ask, for example, how IQ correlates with the incidence of panic disorder. Again, nothing is manipulated; just measured. In cases such as this a correlation coefficient will reveal.
a. the relationship between IQ and panic disorder.
b. the probability that a significant difference exists.
c. an F test.
d. percentile rank.
A. A statistic that indicates the degree or magnitude of relationship between two variables is known as a �correlation coefficient� and is often abbreviated using a lower-case r. A coefficient of correlation makes a statement regarding the association of two variables and how a change in one is related to the change in another. Correlations range from 0.00, no relationship, to 1.0 or �1.0 which signify perfect relationships. Important: A positive correlation is not a stronger relationship than a negative one of the same numerical value. A correlation of -.70 is still indicative of a stronger relationship than a positive correlation of .60. The minus sign merely describes the fact that as one variable goes up the other goes down.
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733. If data indicate that students who study a lot get very high scores on state counselor licensing exams, then the correlation between study time and LPC exam scores would be.
a. positive.
b. negative.
c. 0 point 00.
d. impossible to ascertain.
A. A positive correlation is evident when both variables change in the same direction. A negative correlation is evident when the variables are inversely associated; one goes up and the other goes down. In this case the relationship is positive since as study time increases, LPC exam scores also increase. A negative correlation (choice �b�) would be expected when correlating an association like the number of dental cavities and time spent brushing one�s teeth; as brushing time goes up dental cavities probably go down. Choice �c� or a zero correlation indicates an absence of a relationship between the variables in question. Note: Your exam could throw the term biserial correlation at you. This merely indicates that one variable is continuous (i.e., measured using an interval scale) while the other is dichotomous. An example would be evident if you decided to correlate state licensing exam scores to NCC status (here the dichotomy is licensed/unlicensed). If both variables are dichotomous (i.e., two valued) then a phi-coefficient correlation is necessary. Imagine a researcher who wants to correlate NCC status with CCMHC status or perhaps gender with certification status (has certification/does not have certification).
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734. Which of the following would most likely yield a perfect correlation of 1 point 00?
a. IQ and salary.
b. ICD diagnosis and salary.
c. length in inches and length in centimeters.
d. height and weight.
C. In the real world, correlations may be strong (e.g., choice �d�), yet they are rarely 1 point 00. Correlation is concerned with what statisticians call �covariation.� When two variables vary together statisticians say the variables �covary positively,� and when one increases while the other decreases they are said to �covary negatively.�
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735. A good guess would be that if you would correlate the length of CACREP graduates� baby toes with their NCE scores the result would.
a. be close to 0 point 00.
b. be close to a perfect 1 point 00.
c. be close to a perfect negative correlation of �1 point 00.
d. be about + point 70.
A. There is an absence of association here because as one variable changes the other variable varies randomly. The variation of one variable is most likely totally unrelated to the variation of the other.
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736. Dr. X discovered that the correlation between therapists who hold NCC status and therapists who practice systematic desensitization is .90. A student who perused Dr. X�s research told his fellow students that Dr. X had discovered that attaining NCC status causes therapists to become behaviorally oriented. The student is incorrect because.
a. systematic desensitization is clearly not a behavioral strategy.
b. this can only be determined via a histogram.
c. the study suffers from longitudinal and maturational effects.
d. correlation does not imply causal.
D. Correlation does not mean causal! Correlational research is quasi-experimental, and hence, it does not yield cause�effect data. A major research study, for example, might discover a very high correlation between the number of college students in a given geographical area and number of writing utensils owned. Yet it would certainly be misleading to conclude that owning a lot of writing utensils causes one to become a college student. Exam hint: When correlational data describe the nature of two variables, the term bivariate is utilized. If more than two variables are under scrutiny, then the term multivariate is used to describe the correlational paradigm.
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737. Behaviorists often utilize N=1, which is called intensive experimental design. The first step in this approach would be to.
a. consult a random number table.
b. decide on a nonparametric statistical test.
c. take a baseline measure.
d. compute the range.
C. �N,� or the number of persons being studied, is one. This is a �case study� of one approach. This method is popular with behaviorists who seek overt (measurable) behavioral changes. The client�s dysfunctional behavior is measured (this is called a baseline measure), the treatment is implemented, and then the behavior is measured once again (i.e., another baseline is computed). Exams sometimes delineate this paradigm using upper case As and Bs and Cs such that As signify baselines, Bs intervention implementation, and Cs a second or alternative form of intervention. Single case investigations are often called �idiographic studies� or �single-subject designs.� The original case study methodology was popularized by Freud, though needless to say, unlike the behaviorists, Freud did not rely on numerical baseline measures. Case studies are often misleading because the results are not necessarily generalizable.
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738. In a new study the clients do not know whether they are receiving an experimental treatment for depression or whether they are simply part of the control group. This is, nevertheless, known to the researcher. Thus, this is a.
a. double-blind study.
b. single-blind study.
c. baseline for an intensive N=1 design.
d. participant observer model.
B. In the single-blind study the subject would not know whether he or she is a member of the control group or the experimental group. This strategy helps eliminate �demand characteristics� which are cues or features of a study which suggest a desired outcome. In other words a subject can manipulate and confound an experiment by purposely trying to confirm or disprove the experimental hypothesis. Let us say that in the above-referenced experiment a subject is fond of the researcher. And let us further assume that a score on a standardized depression inventory will be used as the DV. Our subject might purposely answer the questions as if he is less depressed than he really is. A subject who disliked the researcher could present himself as even more depressed. Just in case you erroneously chose choice �c,� please notice that the question used the word clients which is plural. N=1 designs rely on a single individual for investigation purposes. Choice �d� describes a study in which the researcher actually participates in the study, while making observations about what transpired.
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739. A large study at a major university gave an experimental group of clients a new type of therapy that was intended to ameliorate test anxiety. The control group did not receive the new therapy. Neither the clients nor the researchers knew which students received the new treatment. This was a.
a. double-blind study.
b. single-blind study.
c. typical AB design.
d. case of correlational research.
A. A double-blind study goes one step beyond the single-blind version by making certain that the experimenter is also unaware of the subjects� status. In fact, in the double-blind situation the persons assigned to rate or judge the subjects are often unaware of the hypothesis. This procedure helps eliminate confounding caused by �experimenter effects.� Experimenter effects can flaw an experiment because the experimenter might unconsciously communicate his or her intent or expectations to the subjects. Choice �c,� though incorrect, is a must know concept. An AB or ABA time-series design is the simplest type of single-subject research and was initially popularized by behavior modifiers in the 1960s and 1970s. (You will recall that Freud used the case study paradigm, but needless to say, did not rely on the AB or ABA model.) Single subject case studies of various types are once again gaining in popularity. Okay, back to the AB and ABA models that rely on �continuous-measurement.� A baseline is secured (A); intervention is implemented (B); and the outcome is examined via a new baseline (A) in the case of the ABA design. In order to improve the research process, an ABAB design can be utilized to better rule out extraneous variables. If the pattern for the second AB administration mimics that of the first AB, then the chances increase that B (the intervention or so-called treatment) caused the changes rather than an extraneous variable. Some exams will refer to ABA or ABAB paradigms as �withdrawal designs.� The rationale is that the behavior will move in the direction of the initial baseline each time the treatment is withdrawn if the treatment IV is responsible for the change. The ethical counselor must forego using a withdrawal or reversal design (as they are sometimes called) if the removal of the treatment variable could prove harmful to the subject or those who come in contact with the individual. Here, a simple AB must suffice. Remember that when a researcher employs more than one target behavior, the term multiple-baseline design probably will be used on your exam.
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740. Experimental is to cause and effect as correlational is to.
a. blind study.
b. double-blind study.
c. N = 1 design.
d. degree of relationship.
D. A correlation coefficient is a descriptive statistic which indicates the degree of �linear relationship� between two variables. Statisticians use the phrase �linear relationship� to indicate that when a perfect relationship exists (i.e., a correlation of 1.0 or �1.0) and it is graphed, a straight line is formed (see chapter 13,�Graphical Representations�). The Pearson Product-Moment correlation r is used for interval or ratio data while the Spearman rho correlation is used for ordinal data. Correlational research is not experimental and hence does not imply causality. So what do you do if your exam sneaks in a question regarding the type of data which must be used with the Pearson r versus the Spearman rho? I�d opt for a memory device. Pearson r, the most common correlation coefficient, uses I and R (interval and ratio data) as in �information and referral.� Spearman rho ends in �o� as in ordinal. Yes you can do well on questions related to this section of the exam!
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741. In a normal curve the mean, the median, and the mode all fall precisely in the middle of the curve. From a graphical standpoint the so-called normal or Gaussian curve (named after the astronomer/mathematician K. F. Gauss) looks like.
a. a symmetrical bell.
b. the top half of a bowling ball.
c. the top half of a hot dog.
d. a mountain which is leaning toward the left.
A. The normal curve is a theoretical notion often referred to as a �bell-shaped curve.� The bell is symmetrical. Most physical and psychological traits are normally distributed. In other words, if enough data are collected in regard to a given trait, and a frequency polygon is constructed, it will resemble the bell-shaped curve. Curves that are not symmetrical (i.e., those which are asymmetrical) are called �skewed distributions.� (See the �Graphical Representations� section of this book.) Hot hint: I want you to commit to memory the fact that the 68-95-99.7 rule or empirical rule states that in a normal distribution 68% of the scores fall within plus/minus 1 standard deviation (SD) of the mean; 95% within 2 SDs of the mean; and 99.7% within 3 SDs of the mean. The verdict: almost all the scores will fall between 3 SDs of the mean.
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742. The most common measures of central tendency are the mean, the median, and the mode. The mode is.
a. the most frequently occurring score and the least important measure of central tendency.
b. always 10% less than the mean.
c. the arithmetic average.
d. the middle score in the distribution of scores.
A. The mode is the highest or maximum point of concentration. The French phrase � la mode means �in style� or �in vogue.� The mode is the score that is most �in style� or occurs the most. Just remember that pie � la mode has a �high concentration of calories.� The modal score is the highest point on the curve. Hence, a test might tell you that a population of schizophrenics consists of 400 Caucasians, 60 Asian Americans, and 100 African Americans and ask you to pick out the so-called modal category, rather than the modal score. In this case the highest value is held by the Caucasian population. Statisticians refer to choice �c� as the �mean� and choice �d� as the �median.�
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743. A bimodal distribution has two modes (i.e., most frequently occurring scores). Graphically, this looks roughly like.
a. a symmetrical bell-shaped curve.
b. a camel�s back with two humps.
c. the top half of a bowling ball.
d. a mountain which is leaning toward the left.
B. Come on, admit it now, the camel�s back makes a nice little memory device doesn�t it? If you decided to give the NCE to first-year counseling students and counselor educators teaching in CACREP programs the distribution of scores would probably be bimodal. So would a distribution of men and women�s weights. Chances are that in both of the aforementioned situations two peaks would be evident. When a curve exhibits more than two peaks it is known as a �multimodal� distribution. This can be contrasted to the curve with just a single peak (e.g., the normal curve) which is said to be �unimodal� (see the �Graphical Representations� section of this book).
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744. In a basic curve or so-called frequency polygon the point of maximum concentration is the.
a. mean.
b. median.
c. mode.
d. range.
C. Say your exam provides you with a list of test scores such as this: 1, 10, 19, 1, 10, 19, 19, 19, 6, 54. You are then asked to delineate the mode. Your answer will simply be determined by finding the score that appears the most, which in this example would be 19 since four individuals scored 19. The mean, choice �a,� would be computed by adding the numbers provided (i.e., the scores) and then dividing by the number of scores which in this case is 10. Here the sum of the scores equals 158 divided by 10 which yields a mean value of 15.8. The median, choice �b,� is defined as the score which is the exact middle of the distribution. (Just remember that the median is in the middle of the highway.) Choice �d,� the range, which is a measure of variability, is the distance between the largest and the smallest scores (i.e., 54 and 1). To compute the range you would take 54 minus 1 and get a range of 53. The larger the range the greater the dispersion or spread of scores from the mean. Since the computation of the range is based solely on the computation of two scores, the variance and the standard deviation (the square root of the variance) are more stable statistics.
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745. The most useful measure of central tendency is the.
a. mean often abbreviated by an X with a bar over it.
b. median often abbreviated by Md. or Mdn.
c. mode often abbreviated by Mo.
d. point of maximum concentration.
A. In everyday life when we use the word average we are referring to the �mean.� Perhaps this is because in most instances it is the most useful of the three measures of central tendency. Nevertheless, if a distribution is plagued with extreme scores then the �median� is the statistic of choice. The median is best for skewed distributions. If a counselor decides to figure the average income of incoming undergraduate freshmen in a crisis intervention class, and one of the students is a millionaire, then the median will be a more valuable statistic than the mean since the mean would be raised significantly by the millionaire�s income. And of course, you were able to discern that choice �d� is a definition of choice �c,� mode, which researchers consider the least important measure of central tendency.
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746. In a career counseling session an electrical engineer mentions three jobs he has held. The first paid $10 per hour, the second paid $30 per hour, and the third paid a higher rate of $50 per hour. The counselor responds that the client is averaging $30 per hour. The counselor is using.
a. a Pearson product-moment correlation coefficient.
b. a factorial design.
c. the harmonic mean.
d. the mean.
- D. The mean is the sum of scores divided by the number of scores. $10+$30+$50=$90. $90 divided by three jobs=$30. A factorial design has virtually nothing to do with this question! The term
- factorial design�which can easily be confused with the term factor analysis�can be used when there are two or more independent variables. Choice �c,� the harmonic mean, refers to a central tendency statistic that is the reciprocal of the arithmetic mean of the reciprocals of the set of values. Say, for example, that your exam asks you to calculate the harmonic mean for three scores of: 2, 2, and 4. First you would convert them to reciprocals: 1/2, 1/2, and 1/4. The arithmetic mean then is 1/2+1/2+1/4=11/4 or 1.25/3=.4166. The reciprocal of this gives you a harmonic mean of 1/.4166. The statistic has limited usage; however, it is occasionally called for if measurements were not made on an appropriate scale (e.g., data revealed the number of behaviors per hour, when the number of minutes per behavior would be more useful). The harmonic cannot be utilized with negative numbers or if the data include a score of zero.
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747. From a mathematical standpoint, the mean is merely the sum of the scores divided by the number of scores. The mean is misleading when.
a. the distribution is skewed.
b. the distribution has no extreme scores.
c. there are extreme scores.
d. a and c.
D. See question 745 for an explanation.
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748. When a distribution of scores is not distributed normally statisticians call it.
a. Gauss�s curve.
b. a symmetrical bell-shaped curve.
c. a skewed distribution.
d. an invalid distribution.
C. Your exam might show you a graphic representation of a distribution and ask you whether the distribution is skewed. In a skewed distribution the left and right side of the curve are not mirror images. In a skewed distribution the mean, the median, and the mode fall at different points. In a normal curve they will fall at the same point (see the �Graphical Representations� section of this book).
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749. The median is.
a. the middle score when the data are arranged from highest to lowest.
b. the arithmetic average.
c. the most frequent value obtained.
d. never more useful than the mean.
A. Use your memory device: the median is the exact �middle of the highway��it is the �middle score.� In studies measuring variables with extreme scores (e.g., family size or income), the median would be the best statistic. Your exam could specify a distribution of scores and ask you to name the median score. Say, for example, your exam provides these scores: 1, 90, 12, 90, 6, 8, 7. First rank the scores from the lowest to the highest: 1, 6, 7, 8, 12, 90, 90. In this case, the median score is 8 since there are three scores above 8 (12, 90, 90) and three scores below it (1, 6, 7). Now let�s assume that the test construction committee isn�t so kind. In fact, maybe they are feeling a little sadistic that day. This time they add another score so there are eight scores rather than seven in the distribution. Now the distribution has an even rather than an odd number of scores. Assume the score of 10 was added. Thus when you rank order the distribution, it now looks like this: 1, 6, 7, 8, 10, 12, 90, 90. Do I hear some head-scratching here�maybe even a tinge of panic? What�s that you say? You can�t find a value that has an equal number of scores above and below it. Well you�re correct�it doesn�t exist. The trick here is to know that the median is a score or a �potential score� that divides the distribution in half. Therefore, when a distribution has an even number of scores, you take the arithmetic mean of the two middle scores and use this as the median. In this case: 8+10=18 and 18/2=9. The median of 9 lies midway between the middle scores of 8 and 10. In some cases, your computation could legitimately yield a fraction (e.g., 91/2).
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750. In a new experiment, a counselor educator wants to ferret out the effects of more than one IV. She will use a _______ design.
a. Pearson product-moment r
b. Spearman rank order rho
c. factorial
d. Solomon four-group design created by psychologist Richard L. Solomon.
C. In a factorial experiment, several experimental variables are investigated and interactions can be noted. Factorial designs, therefore, include two or more IVs. Sometimes the IVs in a factorial design are called levels. Experts admonish you not to let the term levels throw you. It does not connote hierarchy. You could have two levels of the IV such as �individual therapy� and �group therapy� but this does not mean that one is better than another. Choices �a� and �b� are not considered pure experimental. Now even though choice �d� is incorrect, it is indeed a must know term. In the Solomon four-group design, the researcher uses two control groups. Only one experimental group and one control group are pretested. The other control group and experimental group are merely post-tested. The genius of the design is that it lets the researcher know if results are influenced by pretesting. The two control groups as well as the two experimental groups can then be compared.
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751. Regardless of the shape, the _______ will always be the high point when a distribution is displayed graphically.
a. df.
b. mean.
c. median.
d. mode.
D. The mode will be highest because it is the point where the most frequently occurring score falls.
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752. If a group of first semester graduate students in counseling took the NCE exam, a distribution of scores would be.
a. a bell-shaped curve.
b. positively skewed.
c. negatively skewed.
d. more information obviously is needed.
B. Try to imagine this in your mind or roughly graph it on scratch paper. First semester students (assuming they were allowed to take the NCE, which they are not) would probably have little information on the more advanced points of counseling; and thus, we would expect them to score very poorly. Hence, most of the scores would fall on the left or the low side of the distribution. Graphically then, the �tail� of the distribution would point to the right or the positive side. Memory device: The tail indicates whether the distribution is positively or negatively skewed (see the �Graphical Representations� section of this book).
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753. Nine of the world�s finest counselor educators are given an elementary exam on counseling theory. The distribution of scores would most likely be.
a. a bell-shaped curve.
b. positively skewed.
c. negatively skewed.
d. more information would be necessary.
C. We would expect these folks to score really high; and thus, the right side of the curve would be packed with high values. This gives you a long tail that points to the left, which indicates a negative skew. The tail points you in the direction of the correct answer! (see chapter 13, �Graphical Representations�).
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754. Billy received an 82 on his college math final. This is Billy�s raw score on the test. A raw score simply refers to the number of items correctly answered. A raw score is expressed in the units by which it was originally obtained. The raw score is not altered mathematically. Billy�s raw score indicates that.
a. he is roughly a B student.
b. he answered 82% correctly.
c. his percentile rank is 82.
d. more information is obviously necessary.
D. Don�t get burnt on a question like this; the fact that Billy scored an 82 tells you next to nothing. Raw data is like a raw piece of meat; it is uncooked and nothing has been done to it. How many questions are on the test? Well, you don�t know, do you? So, you couldn�t choose choice �b� since you don�t have enough information to figure out the percentage. The question doesn�t specify this critical fact. You see, if Billy scored an 82 on a test with 82 questions, then he had a perfect score. If, however, the exam had several thousand items, his score may not have been all that high. I say �may not have been all that high,� since a raw score of 82 might have been the highest score of anybody tested. You would need a �transformed score� or �standard score� (such as choice �c�) to make this determination. Okay, now memorize this: The benefit of standard scores such as percentiles, t-scores, z-scores, stanines, or standard deviations over raw scores, is that a standard score allows you to analyze the data in relation to the properties of the normal bell shaped curve.
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755. A distribution with class intervals can be graphically displayed via a bar graph also called a.
a. histogram.
b. sociogram.
c. genogram.
d. genus.
A. Most bar graphs are drawn in a vertical fashion. When the bars are drawn horizontally it is sometimes called a �horizontal bar chart.� A �double-barred histogram� can be used to compare two distributions of scores such as pre- and posttest scores (see chapter 13 �Graphical Representations�).
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756. When a horizontal line is drawn under a frequency distribution it is known as.
a. mesokurtic.
b. the y axis.
c. the ordinate.
d. the x axis.
D. Choice �a� is from the Latin root �meso� or middle, and kurtic refers to the peakedness of a curve. The normal Gaussian curve is said to be mesokurtic since the peak is in the middle. When graphically representing data, the �x axis� (also called the abscissa) is used to plot the independent variable. The x axis is the horizontal axis. The �y axis� (also called the ordinate) is the vertical axis which is used as a scale for the dependent variable.
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757. The x axis is used to plot the IV scores. The x axis is also known as.
a. the y axis.
b. the abscissa.
c. the DV.
d. the vertical axis.
B. Again, it is the horizontal axis which plots the IV�the factor manipulated via the experimenter.
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758. The y axis is used to plot the frequency of the DVs. The y axis is also known as the.
a. ordinate.
b. abscissa.
c. the IV.
d. the horizontal axis.
A. The ordinate plots the DV or experimental data. A simple memory device might be that the y axis is vertical like the letter �y.�
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759. If a distribution is bimodal, then there is a good chance that.
a. the curve will be normal.
b. the curve will be shaped like a symmetrical bell.
c. the researcher is working with two distinct populations.
d. the research is useless in the field of counseling.
C. Imagine if you will that you are plotting the average weights of adult men and women. In all probability, two distinct points of concentration would be evident on the curve (see chapter 13, �Graphical Representations�).
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760. If an experiment can be replicated by others with almost identical findings, then the experiment.
a. is impacted by the observer effect.
b. is said to be a naturalistic observation.
c. is the result of ethological observation.
d. is said to be reliable.
D. Choice �a� refers to a situation in which the person observing in a participant-observer research study influences/alters the situation. You will recall that the term reliability in the social sciences is also used in regard to testing to indicate consistency in measurement. Choice �b� occurs when clients are observed in a �natural� setting or situation. Choice �c� relates to the observation of animals.
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761. The range is a measure of variance and usually is calculated by determining the difference between the highest and the lowest score. Thus, on a test where the top score was a 93 and the lowest score was a 33 out of 100, the range would be.
a. 61.
b. 77.
c. 59.
d. more information is necessary.
A. The range is the simplest way to measure the spread of scores. Technically, statistics that measure the spread of scores are known as �measures of variability.� The range is usually calculated by subtracting the lowest score from the highest score (e.g., 93�33 = 60). But wait: 60 is not a choice! Well, I purposely gave you this example to point out that some tests and statistics books define the range as the highest score minus the lowest score plus 1. If the test specifies the �inclusive range� then use the formula with plus 1. If not, I�d go with the �exclusive range� formula which does not include it. My guess is that most counseling tests would give you either 60 or 61 as a choice (probably 60) but not both.
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762. A sociogram is to a counseling group as a scattergram is to.
a. the normal curve.
b. the range.
c. a correlation coefficient.
d. the John Henry Effect.
C. A scattergram�also known as a scatterplot�is a pictorial diagram or graph of two. variables being correlated (see the �Graphical Representations� section of this book). And yes, my dear reader, choice �d� is for real. There really is a John Henry Effect. The John Henry Effect (also called compensatory rivalry of a comparison group) is a threat to the internal validity of an experiment that occurs when subjects strive to prove that an experimental treatment that could threaten their livelihood really isn�t all that effective. (An old railroad song asserts that John Henry died with a steam drill in his hand to prove he could outwork the machine.) Say, for example, that counselor educators were asked to use computers as part of the teaching experience but were worried that the computers might ultimately take their jobs! The counselor educators in the comparison control group might purposely spend more time preparing their materials and give students more support than they normally would. One way for the researcher to handle this problem is to make observations before the experiment begins. Another control group phenomenon that threatens internal validity in research is the �Resentful Demoralization of the Comparison Group� (as called �compensatory equalization�). Here, the comparison group lowers their performance or behaves in an inept manner because they have been denied the experimental treatment. When this occurs, the experimental group looks better than they should. If the comparison group deteriorates throughout the experiment while the experimental group does not, then demoralization could be noted. This could be measured via a pretest and a posttest.
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763. A counselor educator is teaching two separate classes in individual inventory. In the morning class the counselor educator has 53 students and in the afternoon class she has 177 students. A statistician would expect that the range of scores on a test would be.
a. greater in the afternoon class than the morning class.
b. smaller in the afternoon class.
c. impossible to speculate about without more data.
d. nearly the same in either class.
A. The range generally increases with sample size.
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764. The variance is a measure of dispersion of scores around some measure of central tendency. The variance is the standard deviation squared. A popular IQ test has a standard deviation (SD) of 15. A counselor would expect that if the mean IQ score is 100, then.
a. the average score on the test would be 122.
b. 95% of the people who take the test will score between 85 and 115.
c. 99% of the people who take the test will score between 85 and 115.
d. 68% of the people who take the test will score between 85 and 115.
D. Statistically speaking 68.26% of the scores fall within plus or minus 1 SD of the mean. 95.44% of the scores fall within plus or minus 2 SD of the mean, and 99.74% of the scores fall within plus or minus 3 SD of the mean.
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765. Using the data in question 764 one could say that a person with an IQ score of 122 would fall within.
a. plus or minus 1 SD of the mean.
b. the average IQ range.
c. an IQ score which is more that 2 SD above the mean.
d. plus or minus 2 SD of the mean.
D. Two SD would be IQs from 70 to 130 since 2 SD would be 30 IQ points. Please note that if everybody scored the same on the test then the SD would be zero. An SD, for example, of 1.8 has scores closer to the mean (i.e., not as spread out or scattered) than an SD of 2.8. The greater the SD, the greater is the spread.
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766. The standard deviation is the square root of the variance. A z-score of +1 would be the same as.
a. one standard deviation above the mean.
b. one standard deviation below the mean.
c. the same as a so-called T-score.
d. the median score if the population is normal.
A. Z-scores are the same as standard deviations! In fact, z-scores are often called standard scores. Write it on your wrist and don�t wash it off for a week. A z-score is the most elementary type of standard score. It is possible your exam will refer to it merely as a standard score. Just say it in slang: �z-score� (sounds rather like saying �the score�) is simply the SD. A z-score of plus one or 1 SD would include about 34% of the cases in a normal population. For those with a fear of negative integers, the normal distribution also can be described using T-scores sometimes called �transformed scores.� The T-score uses a mean of 50 with each SD as 10. Hence, a z-score of �1.0 would be a T-score of 40. A z-score of �1.5 would be a T-score of 35 and so on. If double digit figures intimidate you, then you might want to analyze the normal distribution using a �stanine� score which divides the distribution into nine equal parts with 1 the lowest and 9 the highest portion of the curve.
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767. Z-scores (also called standard scores) are the same as standard deviations, thus a z-score of �2.5 means.
a. 2.5 SD below the mean.
b. 2.5 SD above the mean.
c. a CEEB score of 500.
d. �.05% of the population falls within this area of the curve.
A. This would be a T-score of 25. Now, let�s examine choice �c� which expresses the abbreviation for the �College Entrance Examination Board� scores by the Educational Testing Service (ETS) of Princeton, New Jersey. This standard score is used for tests such as the GRE or the SAT. The scale ranges from 200 to 800 with a mean of 500. CEEB scores use a standard deviation of 100. Scores lower than 200 or above 800 are simply rated as end point scores. A score of 200 corresponds to 3 SD below the mean with 800 landing at a point 3 SD above the mean. Therefore, in this case, choice �c� would need to read �a CEEB score of 250� to be accurate. (That is to say, you would take the CEEB mean of 500 and subtract 21/2 SD. Since each SD on the CEEB scale is 100 you would subtract 250 from 500 which gives you a CEEB score of 250.) It is conceivable that your exam could refer to a CEEB score as an ETS score.
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768. A T-score is different from a z-score. A z-score is the same as the standard deviation. A T-score, however, has a mean of 50 with every 10 points landing at a standard deviation above or below the mean. Thus a T-score of 60 would equal +1 SD while a T-score of 40 would.
a. be �2 SD.
b. be�1SD.
c. be a z-score of +2.
d. be a z-score of +1.
B. Note that the T-score isn�t as mathematically threatening since it is never expressed as a negative number. Choice �a� would be a T-score of 30, choice �c� a T-score of 70, and choice �d� a T-score of 60. Here again, a look at the normal curve displayed in the Graphical Representations section of the text should be helpful.
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769. An IQ score on an IQ test which was three standard deviations above the mean would be.
a. about average.
b. slightly below the norm for adults.
c approximately 110.
d. near the genius level.
D. Think of it this way. Over 99% of the population will score between plus or minus 3 SD of the mean. Therefore, less than 1% of the population would score at a level 3 SD above the mean. Now that would be a very high IQ score; 145 on the WAIS-III to be exact. Lewis M. Terman, a pioneer in the study of intelligence, classified any children with IQs over 140 as �geniuses.�
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770. A platykurtic distribution would look approximately like.
a. the upper half of a bowling ball.
b. the normal distribution.
c. the upper half of a hot dog, lying on its side over the abscissa.
d. a camel�s back.
C. If you see the word kurtosis on your exam, it refers to the peakedness of a frequency distribution. A �platykurtic� distribution is flatter and more spread out than the normal curve. This is easy to remember if you consider that �plat� sounds rather like �flat.� When a curve is very tall, thin, and peaked it is considered �leptokurtic.� Suggested memory device: A leptokurtic distribution leaps tall buildings in a single bound. Well, Superman fans, how about it; does that do it justice?
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771. Test scores on an exam that fell below three standard deviations of the mean or above three standard deviations of the mean could be described as.
a. extreme.
b. very typical or within the average range.
c. close to the mean.
d. very low scores.
A. If you graph this situation you will note that these scores would be unusually high (which negates choices �b,� �c,� and �d�) or very low.
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772. In World War II the Air Force used stanine scores as a measurement. Stanine scores divide the distribution into nine equal intervals with stanine 1 as the lowest ninth and 9 as the highest ninth. In this system 5 is the mean. Thus a Binet IQ score of 101 would fall in stanine.
a. 1.
b. 9.
c. 5.
d. 7.
C. Stanine is the contraction of the words standard and nine. The mean or average score on the Binet is 100.
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773. There are four basic measurement scales: the nominal, the ordinal, the interval, and the ratio. The nominal scale is strictly a qualitative scale. It is the simplest type of scale. It is used to distinguish logically separated groups. Which of the following illustrates the function of the nominal scale?
a. A horse categorized as a second place winner in a show.
b. A DSM or ICD diagnostic category.
c. An IQ score of 111.
d. The weight of an Olympic barbell set.
B. The order of complexity of S. S. Steven�s four types of measurement scales can be memorized by noting the French word noir meaning black. Parametric tests rely strictly on interval and ratio data, while nonparametric tests are designed only for nominal or ordinal information. The nominal scale is the most elementary as it does not provide �quantitative� (measurable) information. The nominal scale merely classifies, names, labels, or identifies by group. A nominal scale has no true zero point and does not indicate order. Other examples would be a street address, telephone number, political party affiliation, gender, brand of therapy, or number on a player�s uniform. Adding, subtracting, multiplying, or dividing the aforementioned nominal categories would prove meaningless.
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774. The ordinal scale rank-orders variables, though the relative distance between the elements is not always equal. An example of this would be.
a. a horse categorized as a second place winner in a race.
b. an IQ score of 111.
c. the weight of an Olympic barbell set.
d. a temperature of 78 degrees Fahrenheit.
A. This is the second level of measurement. Nominal data does not rank-order the data like ordinal data. The rank does not indicate absolute differences. Thus, you could not say that the first, second, and third place horses were equidistant apart. The ordinal scale provides relative placement or standing but does not delineate absolute differences. Again, adding, subtracting, multiplying, or dividing is a no-no with this scale. Ordinal sounds like �order� so you should have no problem committing this scale to memory.
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775. The interval scale has numbers scaled at equal distances but has no absolute zero point. Most tests used in school fall into this category. You can add and subtract using interval scales but cannot multiply or divide. An example of this would be.
a. that an IQ of 70 is 70 points below an IQ of 140, yet a counselor could not assert that a client with an IQ of 140 is twice as intelligent as a client with an IQ of 70.
b. that a 20 lb weight is half as heavy as a 40 lb weight.
c. that a first-place runner is three times as fast as the third-place finisher.
d. that a baseball player with number 9 on his uniform can get 9 times more hits than player number 1.
A. Since the intervals are the same, the amount of difference can be stipulated (e.g., 3 IQ points). Using this scale, distances between each number are equal yet it is unclear how far each number is from zero. Division is not permissible inasmuch as division assumes an absolute zero. (If you had an absolute zero then you could in fact assert that a person with an IQ of 140 would be twice as smart as someone with an IQ of 70. But of course, zero on an IQ test does not equal zero knowledge; hence, IQ tests provide interval measurement.)
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776. A ratio scale is an interval scale with a true zero point. Ratio measurements are possible using this scale. Addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division all can be utilized on a ratio scale. In terms of counseling research.
a. the ratio scale is the most practical.
b. all true studies utilize the ratio scale.
c. a and b.
d. most psychological attributes cannot be measured on a ratio scale.
D. If you remember your memory device �noir� you�ll recall that the final letter �r� stands for the ratio scale, which is the highest level of measurement. Time, height, weight, temperature on the Kelvin scale, volume, and distance meet the requirements of this scale. Please note the word most in the correct choice (i.e., choice �d�). Occasionally, a trait such as GSR (galvanic skin response) biofeedback could be classified as a ratio scale measurement. Since most measurements used in counseling studies do not qualify as ratio scales, choices �a� and �b� are misleading.
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777. Researchers often utilize naturalistic observation when doing ethological investigations or studying children�s behavior. In this approach.
a. the researcher manipulates the IV.
b. the researcher manipulates the IV and the DV.
c. the researcher does not manipulate or control variables.
d. the researcher will rely on a 2�3 factorial design
C. When utilizing naturalistic observation the researcher does not intervene. Preferably, the setting is �natural� rather than an artificial laboratory environment. Historically speaking, this is the oldest method of research. Choice �d� indicates a study using two independent variables. The 2�3 is called factorial notation.
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The first variable has two levels (e g, male or female) and the second independent variable has three levels.
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778. The simplest form of descriptive research is the _______, which requires a questionnaire return rate of _______ to be accurate.
a. survey; 5%.
b. survey; 10% TO 25%.
c. survey; 50 TO 75%.
d. survey; 95%.
C. Unfortunately, it has been estimated that in most surveys the return rate hovers around the 40% mark. In a survey, the researcher attempts to gather large amounts of data, often utilizing a questionnaire or an interview, in order to generate generalizations regarding the behavior of the population as a whole. Ideally, the sample size will be at least 100. (Compare this to an experimental study which can generally get by with a sample size of 15 per group.) A public opinion poll such as the Gallup is an example of a survey. Survey problems include: poor construction of the instrument, a low return rate, and the fact that often subjects are not picked at random and thus are not representative of the population.
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779. A researcher gives a depressed patient a sugar pill and the individual�s depression begins to lift. This is known as.
a. the Hawthorne effect.
b. the Halo effect.
c. the placebo effect.
d. the learned helplessness syndrome.
C. A student once told me that while he was preparing for final exams his roommate suggested that he �pop a couple uppers� for energy. The student did indeed pop the pills, studied like a whirlwind, and aced all his finals. He was sold on the pills until his roommate discovered that the two amphetamine capsules were still sitting on the table�the student had swallowed two ordinary breath mints lying next to the drugs! The student thought the pills would work and so they did. Researchers often give clients involved in studies an inert substance (i.e., a placebo) so it can be compared with the real drug or treatment procedure. A nocebo, on the other hand, has a negative effect such as when a doctor comments that a person with such and such condition has only six weeks to live. If this happens to you or one of your clients always remember that a statistic may not apply to you personally. The fact that the average counselor at your agency wears a size 9 shoe is meaningless to you if you wear a size 7.
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780. A researcher notes that a group of clients who are not receiving counseling, but are observed in a research study, are improving. Her hypothesis is that the attention she has given them has been curative. The best explanation of their improvement would be.
a. the Hawthorne effect.
b. the Halo Effect.
c. the Rosenthal effect.
d. a Type II error in the research.
A. Ah yes, this relates to the famous study that took place from 1924 to 1932 at the Hawthorne Works of the Western Electric Company, Cicero, Illinois, which indicated that work production tended to increase with better lighting or worse lighting conditions. The verdict: simply that if subjects know they are part of an experiment�or if they are given more attention because of the experiment�their performance sometimes improves. When observations are made and the subjects� behavior is influenced by the very presence of the researcher, it is often called a �reactive effect� of observation/experimentation. The subject is said to be reacting to the presence of the investigator. As I mentioned in question 760 this is sometimes known as an observer effect. A comprehensive test without at least one question on the Hawthorne effect�no way!
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781. An elementary school counselor tells the third-grade teacher that a test revealed that certain children will excel during the school year. In reality, no such test was administered. Moreover, the children were unaware of the experiment. By the end of the year, all of the children who were supposed to excel did excel! This would best be explained via.
a. the Hawthorne effect.
b. the Halo effect.
c. the Rosenthal effect or the experimenter expectancy effect.
d. observer bias.
C. Well, forget the Hawthorne effect this time around since the kids don�t even know an experiment is in progress. Here the �Rosenthal effect� or experimenter expectancy effect is probably having the impact. The Rosenthal effect, named after noted psychologist Robert Rosenthal and no relation to this author, asserts that the experimenter�s beliefs about the individual may cause the individual to be treated in a special way so that the individual begins to fulfill the experimenter�s expectations. Hint: When you see the Hawthorne effect question on your exam you can bet that the Rosenthal effect question is within shouting distance. Choice �d� is self-explanatory. The observer has perceptions regarding the research that are not accurate.
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782. A panel of investigators discovered that a researcher who completed a major study had unconsciously rated attractive females as better counselors. This is an example of.
a. the Hawthorne effect.
b. the Halo effect.
c. the Rosenthal effect.
d. trend analysis.
B. The Halo effect occurs when a trait which is not being evaluated (e.g., attractiveness or how well he or she is liked) influences a researcher�s rating on another trait (counseling skill). Choice �d,� trend analysis, refers to a statistical procedure performed at different times to see if a trend is evident. Some exams use the term to describe an application of the ANOVA to see if performance on one variable mimics the same trend on a second variable. Say you have arranged three groups of subjects in regard to their ability to respond to reality therapy (i.e., poor clients, average clients, and good clients). Your hypothesis is that clients at each level also will respond better to REBT than will those on the level below them. (For example, good reality therapy clients will be better REBT clients than average or poor reality therapy clients.) Here the ANOVA allows you to statistically test this hypothesis.
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783. All of the following describe the analysis of covariance technique except.
a. it is a correlation coefficient.
b. it controls for sample differences which exist.
c. it helps to remove confounding, extraneous variables.
d. it statistically eliminates differences in average values influenced by covariates.
A. Just what is the analysis of covariance or the ANCOVA/ANACOVA as they say in statistical circles? First and foremost, the ANCOVA is similar to the ANOVA yet more powerful because it can help to eliminate differences between groups which otherwise could not be solely attributed to the experimental IVs. In other words, although ideally each random sample will be equal to every other random sample this is not always the case. A so-called COVARIATE, which correlates with the DV, could be present. Let�s take this very simple example. Imagine that you are using an ANOVA to test the null hypothesis regarding three groups of college students. First, a random sample of college students is selected. Next, the sample is randomly divided into three groups. Group A receives biofeedback, Group B receives meditation, and Group C receives instruction in self-hypnosis. All are intended to reduce test anxiety. At the end of the semester a test which measures test anxiety will be administered to all three groups. The ANOVA would then be applied to test the null hypothesis. Null, of course, would be rejected if a significant difference between the three groups� means was evident on the test anxiety measure. Here comes the problem, however; your random groups, as pointed out earlier, may not really be all that identical. You might suspect, for example, that athletic training is a covariate and thus impacts upon the measure of test anxiety; your DV. The ANCOVA allows you to correct for the differences in the groups (possibly due to prior athletic training). By making the groups more alike upfront, it will enhance the possibility that the IVs (biofeedback, meditation, and self-hypnosis instruction) rather than a covariate, such as athletic training, caused the differences (i.e., the DVs) in the groups. In summary, the ANCOVA tests a null hypothesis regarding the means of two or more groups after the random samples are adjusted to eliminate average differences. It is often referred to as an �adjusted average� statistical procedure. The ANCOVA is an advanced technique and thus there might be one question on it on an exam like the NCE or CPCE hence, I wouldn�t waste a great deal of time attempting to master all the nuances of this procedure.
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784. Three years ago an inpatient chemical dependency center in a hospital asked their clients if they would like to undergo an archaic form of therapy created by Wilhem Reich known as �vegotherapy.� Approximately half of the clients stated they would like try the treatment while the other 50% stated that they would stick with the tried-and-true program of the center. Outcome data on their drinking was compiled at the end of seven weeks. Today�three years later�a statistician compared the two groups based on their drinking behavior at the end of the seven weeks using a t test. This study could best be described as.
a. correlation research.
b. a true experiment.
c. a cohort study.
d. causal comparative research.
D. Since the groups were not randomly assigned and the current researcher did not truly control the IV in the study (since it took place three years ago), �d� is the best answer. Just for the record a cohort study examines people who were born at the same time (or shared an event; for example, fought in Vietnam) in regard to a given characteristic. For example, one might wish to discover how many women born during the Great Depression that began in1929 committed suicide.
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785. The WAIS-III IQ test is given to 100 adults picked randomly. How many of the adults most likely would receive an IQ score between 85 and 115?
a. 7 people.
b. 99 people.
c. 95 people.
d. 68 people.
D. This is really an easy question to answer if you remember that in a normal distribution approximately 68% of the population will fall between plus/minus 1 SD of the mean. One SD on most popular IQ tests is 15 or 16, and the mean score is generally 100. Choice �c� is indicative of plus/minus 2 SD, while choice �b� approximates plus/minus 3 SD.
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786. A researcher creates a new motoric test in which clients throw a baseball at a target 40 feet away. Each client is given 100 throws, and the mean on the test is 50. (In other words, out of 100 throws the mean number of times the client will hit the target is 50 times.) Sam took the test and hit the target just two times out of the 100 throws allowed. Jeff, on the other hand, hit the target an amazing 92 out of 100 trials. Using the concept of statistical regression toward the mean the research would predict that.
a. Sam and Jeff�s scores will stay about the same if they take the test again.
b. Sam and Jeff will both score over 95 next time.
c. Sam�s score will increase while Jeff�s will go down.
d. Sam will beat Jeff if they both are tested again.
C. Statistical regression is a threat to internal validity. Statistical regression predicts that very high and very low scores will move toward the mean if a test is administered again. This concept is based on �the law of filial regression,� which is a genetic principle that asserts that generational traits move toward the mean. If a father is 7 feet tall, then the chances are that his son will be shorter (though still much taller than the average person), whereas if a father is 4 foot, 10 inches, the chances are his son will have a few inches on his father. The statistical analogy suggests that extremely low scores on an exam or a pretest will improve while the unusually high scores will get lower. Statistical regression results from errors (i.e., lack of reliability) in measurement instruments and must be taken into account when interpreting test data. Now as for alternative �d� I can only say don�t bet on it. Most scores don�t change that much, and although Sam�s score will probably inch up a bit and Jeff�s will lose a little ground, Sam will probably still be in the lower quartile and Jeff the upper quartile. You must know the statistical lingo: the term quartile is common and refers to the points that divide a distribution into fourths. This indicates that the 25th percentile is the first quartile, the second quartile is the median, and the third lies at the 75th percentile. The score distance between the 25th percentile and the 75th percentile is called the interquartile range.
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787. Standardized tests always have.
a. formal procedures for test administration and scoring.
b. a mean of 100 and an SD of 15.
c. a mean of 100 and a standard error of measurement of 3.
d. a reliability coefficient of +.90 or above.
A. Standardization implies that the testing format, the test materials, and the scoring process are consistent.
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788. There are two distinct types of developmental studies. In a cross-sectional study, clients are assessed at one point in time. In a longitudinal study, however.
a. the researcher has an accomplice pose as a client.
b. the same people are studied over a period of time.
c. the researcher relies on a single observation of a variable being investigated.
d. all of the above.
B. Some exams refer to the cross-sectional method as the �synchronic method� and the longitudinal as the �diachronic method.� The longitudinal study is beneficial in the sense that age itself can be used as an IV. In a longitudinal study data are collected at different points in time. In the cross-sectional method, data are indicative of measurements or observations at a single point in time, and thus it is preferable in terms of time consumption. The person in choice �a� is known as a �confederate� or a �stooge.� Social psychology studies routinely employ �confederates� or �stooges� who are not real subjects.
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789. A counselor educator, Dr. Y, is doing research on his classes. He hypothesizes that if he reinforces students in his morning class by smiling each time a student asks a relevant question, then more students will ask questions and exam grades will go up. Betty and Linda accidentally overhear Dr. Y discussing the experiment with the department chairman. Betty is a real people pleaser and decides that she will ask lots of questions and try to help Dr. Y confirm his hypothesis. Linda, nevertheless, is angry that she is being experimented on and promises Betty that Dr. Y could smile until the cows came in but she still wouldn�t ask a question. Both Linda and Betty exemplify.
a. internal versus external validity.
b. ipsative versus normative interpretation of test scores.
c. the use of the nonparametric chi-square test.
d. demand characteristics of experiments.
D. Ipsative implies a within person analysis rather than a normative analysis between individuals. In other words, whether you are looking at an individual�s own patterns revealed via measurement (e.g., highs and lows) or whether his or her score is compared to others evaluated by the same measure. The former is �ipsative� while the latter is �normative.� Choice �c� mentions what is perhaps the most popular nonparametric (i.e., a distribution which is not normal) statistical test, the chi-square. The chi-square�threatening as it sounds�is merely used to determine whether an obtained distribution differs significantly from an expected distribution. A chi-square might answer the question whether being a man or a woman determines whether you will seek therapy for an elevator phobia. You must be able to have mutually exclusive categories to use the chi-square (such as �will seek therapy� or �won�t seek therapy�). The answer to this question, nevertheless, is choice �d.� A demand characteristic relates to any bit of knowledge�correct or incorrect�that the subject in an experiment is aware of that can influence his or her behavior. Demand characteristics can confound an experiment. Deception has been used as a tactic to reduce this dilemma.
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790. If an ANOVA yields a significant F value, you could rely on ____ ___ to test significant differences between group means.
a. one- and two-tailed t tests.
b. percentile rank.
c. Duncan�s multiple-range, Tukey�s, or Scheffe�s test.
d. summative or formative evaluation.
C. Choice �a� refers to whether a statistical test places the rejection area at one end of the distribution (one-tailed) or both ends of the distribution curve (two-tailed). A two-tailed test is often called a �nondirectional experimental hypothesis,� while a one-tailed test is a �directional experimental hypothesis.� In a one-tailed test your hypothesis specifies that one average mean is larger than another. So, a two-tailed hypothesis would be, �The average patient who has completed psychoanalysis will have a statistically different IQ from the average patient who has not received analysis.� The one-tailed hypothesis would be, �The average patient who has completed psychoanalysis will have a statistically significantly higher IQ than the average patient who has not received analysis.� When appropriate, one-tailed tests have the advantage of having more �power� than the two-tailed design (i.e., the statistical ability to reject correctly a false hypothesis). In choice �d� you should be aware that summative evaluation is used to assess a final product (e.g., How many high school students are not indulging in alcoholic beverages after completing a yearly program focusing on drug awareness education?). Summative research attempts to ascertain how well the goal has been met. Formative process research, on the other hand, is ongoing while the program is underway (e.g., After three weeks of a proposed year-long drug awareness education program how many high school students are taking drugs?). The correct answer to this question, of course, is alternative �c.� An F test for the ANOVA is analogous to the student�s t test table when performing a t test. In order to further discriminate between the ANOVA groups the post hoc measures mentioned in choice �c� would be appropriate.
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791. Switching the order in which stimuli are presented to a subject in a study is known as.
a. the Pygmalion effect.
b. counterbalancing.
c. ahistoric therapy.
d. multiple treatment interference.
B. Let choice �a� come as no surprise if it shows up on your exam. The Rosenthal/Experimenter effect often shows up wearing this name tag. The experimenter falls in love with his or her own hypothesis and the experiment becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy. Choice �b,� the correct answer, is used to control for the fact that the order of an experiment could impact upon its out-come. The solution is merely to change the order of the experimental factors. Choice �c,� �ahistoric therapy,� connotes any psychotherapeutic model that focuses on the here-and-now rather than the past. This of course has nothing to do with answering the question. Choice �d� warns us that if a subject receives more than one treatment, then it is often tough to discern which modality truly caused the improvements.
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792. A doctoral student who begins working on his bibliography for his thesis would most likely utilize.
a. SPSS.
b. ERIC, for primary and secondary resources.
c. O*NET.
d. a random number table or random number generation computer program.
B. Here�s a must know question for anyone seriously contemplating a thesis or dissertation. The Educational Resources Information Center (ERIC), http://www.eric.ed.gove/, is a resource bank of scholarly literature and resources to help you complete your literature search before you begin writing. As of this writing it contains 1.2 million citations from journals and bibliographic resources. So what�s the scoop on the primary and secondary stuff? Glad you asked! If you say that Ellis said such and such and reference a book Ellis wrote then the resource or documentation is primary. If you say that Ellis said such and such and quote a general counseling text then the resource is considered secondary. The Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS), is a popular computer software program that can ease the pain of computing your statistics by hand in case you happen to have an aversion to numbers (e.g., a t test, correlation, or ANOVA). Actually, most large studies do rely on computers since they are faster and more accurate than scratch paper calculations. There are many other similar programs, yet at this point in time SPSS is still the most popular. And if you marked choice �c� then you must have slept through my chapter on career development!
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793. In a random sample each individual in the population has an equal chance of being selected. Selection is by chance. In a new study, however, it will be important to include 20% African Americans. What type of sampling procedure will be necessary?
a. Standard (i.e., simple) random sampling is adequate.
b. Cluster sampling is called for.
c. Stratified sampling would be best.
d. Horizontal sampling is required.
C. Remember: Random sampling (choice �a�) is like sticking your hand in a fish bowl to pick a winning ticket. In the random sample each subject has the same probability of being selected, and the selection of one subject does not affect the selection of another subject. The simple random sampling procedure eliminates the researcher�s tendency to pick a biased sample of subjects. In this case, nevertheless, a simple random sampling procedure will not suffice, since a �stratum� (plural �strata�) or a �special characteristic� needs to be represented. In this case it is race. In other studies it might be gender, educational degree, age, or perhaps therapeutic affiliation. The stratification variable in your sample should mimic the population at large. Thus, if 20% of all Rogerian counselors are African Americans, then your study on Rogerian counselors should have 20% African-American counselors in your sample. In a research situation where a specific number of cases are necessary from each stratum, the procedure often is labeled as �quota sampling.� Quota sampling is merely a type of stratified sampling procedure. The �cluster sample� (choice �b�) is utilized when it is nearly impossible to find a list of the entire population. The cluster sample solves the problem by using an existing sample or cluster of people or selects a portion of the overall sample. A cluster sample will not be as accurate as a random sample yet it is often used due to time and practical considerations. Imagine trying to secure a list of everybody in the United States who is securing treatment for heroin addiction so you can pick a random sample utilizing a random number generator. Instead, you might rely on the population in your home town chemical dependency unit. And yes there really is a procedure called �horizontal sampling,� mentioned in choice �d.� Horizontal sampling occurs when a researcher selects subjects from a single socioeconomic group. Horizontal sampling can be contrasted with �vertical sampling,� which occurs when persons from two or more socioeconomic classes are utilized. Since this question does not specify socioeconomic factors, you could have eliminated choice �d.�
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794. A researcher wants to run a true experiment but insists she will not use a random sample. You could safely say that.
a. she absolutely, positively cannot run a true experiment.
b. her research will absolutely, positively be casual comparative research.
c. she could accomplish this using systematic sampling.
d. her research will be correlational.
C. All good things come to an end. For years and years researchers relied on random sampling. Today researchers are slowly but surely embracing systematic sampling, since it is often easier to use. Here�s how it works. With this approach you take every nth person. Say you have a list of 10,000 folks. You want 1,000 in your study. You pick the first person between one and 10 at random and then use every 10th person. According to some statisticians your results will be virtually the same as if you used good old random sampling. Still the random versus systematic sampling debate rages on with the majority embracing the old tried and true random approach.
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795. An operational definition.
a. outlines a procedure.
b. is theoretical.
c. outlines a construct.
d. is synonymous with the word axiom.
A. It is very important that researchers �operationally define� procedures so that other researchers can attempt to �replicate� an experimental procedure. Replication implies that another researcher can repeat the experiment exactly as it was performed before. In most cases, counselors would not accept a finding as scientific unless an experiment has been replicated. This means that a researcher should never say something like, �we reinforced children for good classroom behavior.� Instead, the procedure must be carefully delineated into terms of the exact terms and actions. For example: �We reinforced each child with twenty-five cents within 30 seconds after he or she answered five addition problems on the ABC Test correctly.�
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796. In a parametric test the assumption is that the scores are normally distributed. In nonparametric testing the curve is not a normal distribution. Which of these tests are nonparametric statistical measures?
a. Mann-Whitney U-test, often just called the U-test.
b. Wilcoxon signed-rank test for matched pairs.
c. Soloman and the Kruskal-Wallis H-test.
d. All of the above are nonparametric measures.
D. All of the above referenced tests are categorized as �nonparametric.� Many exams refer to nonparametric statistical tests as �distribution-free� tests. Before I explicate their differences I want to familiarize you with the term matched design. In a matched design the subjects are literally �matched� in regard to any variable that could be �correlated� with the DV, which is really the postexperimental performance. If you wanted to test a hypothesis concerning a new treatment for bipolar disorder but felt that IQ might be correlated with the DV, then you would try to match subjects based on IQ. This procedure is logically termed �matched sampling.� Hence, whether the experiment concluded that the IV did or did not have an impact, the researcher could breathe a little easier knowing that the IQ variable did not confound the study. A special kind of �matched subjects design� is the �repeated-measures� or �within-subjects� design in which the same subjects are used, once for the control condition and again for the experimental IV conditions. The theory here is that ultimately a subject is best matched by him- or herself assuming that counterbalancing is implemented. Now the Mann-Whitney U-test (choice �a�) is used to determine whether two uncorrelated/unmatched means differ significantly, while the Wilcoxon signed-rank test examines whether two correlated means differ significantly from each other. By employing ranks, it is a good alternative to the correlated t test. Why not remind yourself that the Uin Mann-Whitney U is like the u in uncorrelated/unmatched to help you distinguish it from the Wilcoxon? (Note: Unmatched/uncorrelated groups could be termed independent groups on your exam.) The U test, like the Wilcoxon, is an alternative to the t test when parametric precepts cannot be accepted. Now think back for just a moment and you will recall that if you were using a parametric test to examine a null hypothesis for two means, you could rely on the t test. If, however, you had three or more groups, then the ANOVA and the F test would be required. A similar situation is in order here. If parametric assumptions are in doubt, the Mann-Whitney U test or the Wilcoxon can be used for two groups; however, when the number of groups reaches three or above, the Kruskal-Wallis one-way ANOVA H test noted in choice �c� is utilized. The Soloman, you will recall, controls for pretest effects. Hint: Most comprehensive counseling exams will have several questions in which the examinee is given the basic factors concerning a research study and then is asked to pick the appropriate statistical test.
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797. A researcher studies a single session of counseling in which a counselor treats a client�s phobia using a paradoxical strategy. He then writes in his research report that paradox is the treatment of choice for phobics. This is an example of.
a. deductive logic or reasoning.
b. inductive logic or reasoning.
c. attrition or so-called experimental mortality.
d. construct validity.
B. This is inductive since the research goes from the specific to a generalization. Deductive�which sounds a bit like �reductive��reduces the general to the specific. This question would have been answered using �deductive� if the researcher observed many clients being cured of their phobias via paradox and so he assumed that Mr. Smith�s phobia would be cured in the same manner. Choice �c� refers to subjects that drop out of a study.
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798. A client goes to a string of 14 chemical dependency centers that operate on the 12-step model. When his current therapist suggests a new inpatient program the client responds with, �What for, I already know the 12 steps?� This client is using.
a. deductive logic.
b. inductive logic.
c. an empathic assertion.
d. an I statement.
A. Review the previous question if you missed this one. Here the client assumes that the general (his experience in 14 treatment facilities) can be reduced (deduction� remember your memory device) to the specific (the new treatment program).
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799. Mike takes a math achievement test. In order to predict his score if he takes the test again the counselor must know.
a. the range of scores in his class.
b. the standard deviation.
c. the standard error of measurement (SEM).
d. the mode for the test.
C. The standard error is all you need to know. The SEM tells the counselor what would most likely occur if the same individual took the same test again. The question does not ask how well he did on the test, nor does it ask you to compare him to others.
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800. A researcher performs a study that has excellent external or so-called population validity, meaning that the results have generalizability. To collect his data the researcher gave clients a rating scale in which they were to respond with strongly agree, somewhat agree, neutral, somewhat disagree, or strongly disagree. This is.
a. a projective measure.
b. unacceptable for use in standardized testing.
c. a speed test.
d. a Likert scale.
D. Created by Rensis Likert in the early 1930s, this scale helps improve the overall degree of measurement. Response categories include such choices as strongly agree, agree, disagree or strongly disagree. (Hmmm, that�s easy enough to remember: How much do you like/Likert something?)
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801. Which group has been most instrumental in opposing counselor licensure?
a. Social workers.
b. Psychiatrists.
c. Psychologists.
d. AAMFT members.
C. We have seen the opponents to counselor licensure, and they call themselves psychologists. Some hypothesize that psychologists wanted a monopoly on nonmedical mental health services, especially the right to collect third-party payments. Others point out that at one time psychologists were debased and called �Junior psychiatrists,� and now the psychologists are doing to counselors what psychiatrists did to them. In any case, the tide appears to be changing as �mental health coalitions� are popping up in which psychiatrists, psychologists, counselors, social workers, and related specialists (e.g., choice �d,� The American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy) meet to discuss mutual professional concerns. Psychologists have now secured prescription medication privileges in several parts of the country and both psychologists and social workers in some states are challenging counselors� rights to diagnose clients and perform other services.
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802. In the late 1970s, AACD ( known as ACA since 1992) began to focus very heavily on professional credentialing. This led to the formation of the.
a. CCMHC.
b. NBCC.
c. CACREP, formed in 1981.
d. APGA, formed in 1952.
B. In 1982, the American Association for Counseling and Development (AACD), now the American Counseling Association, formed the National Board for Certified Counselors (NBCC). If you meet the educational/skill requirements and pass an exam (come on now you remember, probably the exam you are studying for this very minute!) you can use the title NCC �National Certified Counselor. This is a generic certification. The designation lasts for five years at which time the counselor must have 100 approved hours of continued professional development (e.g., workshops) or sit for the test again. (For some strange reason, I�m guessing you�ll choose the first option.) Other alphabet soup acronyms include choice �a,� Certified Clinical Mental Health Counselor; a specialty certification you might wish to snare by taking another exam (!). �Choice �c,� the Council for the Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs, which is an ACA affiliate formed in 1981 that certifies counselor programs rather than individual counselors; and choice �d,� the major counseling organization, the American Personnel and Guidance Association, which later became the AACD and is now the ACA.
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803. By passing the NCE, a counselor can attain _______, given via NBCC.
a. NCC, a generic certification for counselors.
b. NCC, a specialty mental health certification for counselors.
c. NCC, national certification for school counselors.
d. MAC, master addictions counselor.
A. Again, here is one of those must-know concepts, especially since many readers are striving to put NCC after their names. The NCC credential constitutes a �generic� certification. The word generic literally means �general� or �referring to all types of counselors.� Look at choice �c� and ask yourself: What is incongruent about this item? The answer is simply that the acronym for National Certified School Counselor is NCSC. NBCC offers another specialty certification, the MAC (see choice �d�). Key reminder: You can only secure specialty certificates such as CCMHC, NCSC, and CCMHC after you secure the NCC credential. And, oh yes, one more very, very important point: just because you are certified does not mean you can call yourself a licensed counselor. National certifications can (as the name suggests) be used on a national basis unlike licenses which tend to be state specific. Licenses are conferred by the individual state and not the federal government.
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804. Which choice would most likely violate the counseling ethic or law termed �scope of practice�?
a. A counselor who is using good accurate empathy with a client, but fails to confront her about her excessive drinking.
b. A licensed counselor who gives the client a DSM diagnostic code for insurance.
c. A counselor who is too active-directive with a client.
d. A counselor who is conducting a strict Freudian psychoanalysis with the client.
D. The �scope of practice� concept suggests that counselors should only practice using techniques for which they have been trained. Most counselors are not trained in classical analysis. This concept also implies that a counselor should not attempt to treat clients for which he or she has no training. Your state counseling law could stipulate that you disclose your �scope of practice� to all potential clients.
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805. Ethical guidelines were first created for the helping professions in 1953 when the American Psychological Association (APA) published their first code of ethics. The National Association of Social Workers (NASW) created their code in 1960, and in 1961, the organization that is now ACA adopted ethics for counselors. Ethics always describe.
a. laws.
b. universal principles which apply to all helpers.
c. standards of conduct imposed by ACA and NBCC.
d. all of the above.
C. Let�s examine precisely why choices �a,� �b,� and �d� are incorrect. In regard to choice �a,� the state in which you practice may not have a law on the books that explicitly states that you can�t date a counselee, yet I can almost guarantee that your licensing board will see it as a so-called dual relationship, which could be an ethics violation. Ethics define standards of behavior set forth by organizations and certification bodies. Ethics are not state- or federally mandated laws. Unlike many laws, ethical guidelines generally do not spell out penalties for violations. Hence, the aforementioned counselor who is dating a client might lose his or her license but will not be serving time in a city jail or a federal penitentiary. Choice �b� is misleading since ethics are not universal. That is to say, the ethics set forth by one organization may not be identical to those spelled out by another organization. Exception to the aforementioned explanation! I wish life were a little simpler but often it is not. I just explained that ethics are not always identical or equal to laws; however, if your state sends you ethical guidelines after you secure your license that are state statutes, then in this instance your guidelines will be the law.
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806. Most ethical dilemmas are related to.
a. confidentiality.
b. testing.
c. diagnosis.
d. research.
A. Confidentiality implies that the counselor will not reveal anything about a client unless he or she is given specific authorization to do so. Some of the literature in the field refers to confidential material as �entrusted secrets.� What goes on in the counseling relationship remains private rather than public. Helpers must, nevertheless, be aware that there are exceptions to this principle. The exceptions illuminate the fact that confidentiality is relative to the situation. When does confidentiality end? According to ACA ethical guidelines counselors have an obligation to protect the confidentiality of the deceased and this should be stated clearly in your informed consent document given to the client at the beginning of treatment. In a recent article in Counseling Today Online several ACA ethics task force members were asked about some issues related to this topic. Say an elderly person dies and said some nice things about surviving family members. Could you break confidentiality and tell them generally what the elderly person said? Yes! However, assume that a young man commits suicide and after his death his mother wanted to know if he hated her. The answer the experts gave is that you would attempt to uphold what the son would have wanted based on documentation. If this is not clear (and very often it is not!), then it should be kept private. Can a counselor attend a funeral? You ask yourself whether it might be beneficial just as you would if you decided to attend a client�s wedding. If somebody approaches you at the funeral you can say that you knew the deceased professionally.
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807. The landmark 1969 case, Tarasoff versus the Board of Regents of the University of California illuminated.
a. difficulties involved in client/counselor sexual behavior.
b. ethical issues in relation to research.
c. the duty to warn a client in imminent danger.
d. the impact of an impaired professional.
C. For the most part, I wouldn�t go around memorizing court cases for exams; however, the Tarasoff case is now so well known in the behavioral sciences that it is an exception to the rule. In 1969 a student named Prosenjit Poddar at Berkeley was receiving counseling on an outpatient basis. During the course of the treatment he revealed that he was going to kill a woman (Tatiana Tarasoff) when she returned from Brazil. The therapist consulted with other professionals and called the campus police. The therapist wanted Poddar hospitalized. Campus police spoke with Poddar but did not hospitalize him. A letter also was sent to the chief of campus police regarding this dangerous situation. Despite all the actions taken, Poddar did indeed kill Tarasoff, and Ms. Tarasoff�s parents filed suit against the Board of Regents as well as the university employees. The charge was failure to warn an intended victim. Although a lower court dismissed the suit (sometimes referred to as Tarasoff I), the parents appealed the decision, and the California Supreme Court ruled in favor of the parents in 1976 (often dubbed as Tarasoff II). This case is often cited as an example of a professional helper�s �duty to warn� a person of serious and foreseeable harm to him- or herself or to others. ACA chose to replace the phrase �clear and imminent danger� which appeared in the previous version of their ethical code with �serious and foreseeable harm.� The newer terminology is seen as indicating that there is a broader scope of circumstances where confidentiality may need to be broken such as a client with a terminal illness who has no medical options and wishes to end his or her own life. Nevertheless, no matter what terminology is used, if another party needs to be contacted to prevent a dangerous situation then the counselor should ethically take this action even if it means violating confidentiality. Choice �d,� impaired professional, connotes a helper who has personal issues (e.g., substance abuse or brain damage) that would hinder the quality of services rendered.
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808. A counselor reveals information that is extremely damaging to a client�s reputation. This counselor could be accused of.
a. beneficence.
b. justice.
c. nonmaleficence
d. defamation
D. Hold on folks, this is starting to sound a lot like law school! That�s because I think there is a good chance that you may see one or all of the above terms on your exam. Beneficence means the counselor is working for the good of the client or the group. Justice (usually applied to group situations) means that the counselor treats all members fairly. Nonmaleficence means that the counselor will do no harm. The correct answer�defamation�describes behavior that can damage one�s reputation. It is known as libel if it is written and slander if the defamation refers to verbal remarks.A plaintiff can win a case against a counselor even if the communication was not intended as malicious. Some experts suggest that counselors should avoid psychological jargon and only communicate with others regarding a client when it is necessary (e.g., a duty to warn or responding to a request for a release of information) to avoid defamation allegations.
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809. State laws can govern title usage and practice, however, they do not govern.
a. accreditation.
b. counselor licensure.
c. psychologist licensure.
d. involuntary commitment to state psychiatric facilities.
A. State laws regulate �licensing� of professionals such as choice �b� counselors, and choice �c� psychologists, and commitment procedures (choice �d�). Accreditation, however, is not the law. In fact, you need to be aware of the fact that many counselor preparation programs are not accredited. Accreditation is a process whereby an agency or school (not an individual) meets certain standards and qualifications set forth by an association or accrediting organization. The organization that grants the accreditation usually requires site visits for the purpose of evaluating the institution initially and on an ongoing basis. Thus, programs in psychology will boast accreditation via the APA (American Psychological Association) while counseling programs can be accredited by CACREP, mentioned earlier. Important reminder: The term accreditation applies to programs, not individual counselors. Moreover, experts warn that accreditation is not without disadvantages. Disadvantages include that being accredited is very costly for the institution; that faculty are busy teaching required courses and thus often don�t have time to teach creative alternative courses; that the accreditation organization and not the school determines the curriculum; that faculty credentials are determined via accreditation guidelines, and this does not necessarily mean such individuals have the best teaching, clinical, or research skills; and that the program approval can be misleading inasmuch as the program could be accredited yet ineffective.
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810. An exception to confidentiality could occur when a client is suicidal. Suicidal warning signs include.
a. repeatedly joking about killing one�s self.
b. giving away prized possessions after one has been depressed for an extended period of time.
c. a previous suicide attempt and a very detailed suicide plan for the future.
d. all of the above.
D. Suicide checks in as the 11th or 12th leading cause of death in the United States (higher than homicide!); and among those ages 15 to 24 suicide is the second or third leading killer. The rate for older adults is two to three times what it is for the general population. Firearms account for more suicides than all the other methods put together. Suicides are more likely to occur in rural areas that are not highly populated and in times of economic recession or depression. When a famous person commits suicide the national rate will show an increase. Most suicides occur in the spring at the end of April or May and about 75 to 80% of your clients will give warning signs.
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811. A statement of disclosure could include all except.
a. a list of the courses the counselor took in graduate school.
b. the counselor�s qualifications, office hours, and billing policies.
c. emergency procedures and therapy techniques utilized.
d. a statement that confidentiality is desirable, but cannot be guaranteed in a group setting.
A. Some states now require a statement of disclosure be given to all potential clients. The procedure of giving the client this document and having him or her read it and sign it is sometimes referred to as �informed consent.� The client has the information to consent to the treatment.
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812. Privileged communication refers to the fact that anything said to a counselor by a client.
a. can be revealed in a court of law if the counselor decides it is beneficial.
b. can be revealed only if a counselor testifies in court.
c. is protected by laws in every state.
d. will not be divulged outside the counseling setting without the client�s permission.
D. By definition privileged communication is a legal term that implies that a therapeutic interaction (verbal or written) will not be available for public inspection. A counselor/client relationship protected by privileged communication is one in which the client�not the counselor�can choose not to have confidential information revealed during a legal proceeding (generally on the witness stand). Repeat after me out loud: the client is the holder of the privilege. Say it again! Simply put�and this is a fine memory device�it is the �client�s privilege� to reveal. In relation to choice �c,� the law varies from state to state. In some states, one mental health provider will be covered by the law (e.g., a psychologist or psychiatrist), while another provider (often a counselor, social worker, or caseworker) will not be covered.
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813. In regard to state law and privileged communication, counselors must be aware that.
a. privileged communication exists in every state in the union for LPCs.
b. laws are unclear and may vary from state to state.
c. there are no laws which govern this issue.
d. state psychology laws are applicable in this respect.
B. Privileged communication is a legal concept that protects clients, not counselors. If a client decides to waive his or her right to privileged communication, then the counselor must reveal the information. Privileged communication legislation varies from state to state (so much for choices �a� and �c�). Check your state laws if you are taking an exam for state licensure. As of this time, some states do not have privileged communication for the licensed counselor/client relationship. Privileged communication is not applicable in cases of child abuse, neglect, or exploitation; suicide or homicide threats; criminal intentions; clients in dire need of hospitalization; or in cases where a counselor is the victim of a malpractice lawsuit. In addition, privileged communication does not apply to minors (although their legal guardians generally hold the privilege) or those who are mentally incompetent. As for choice �d,� state psychology laws would not govern the behavior of licensed professional counselors.
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814. When counselors state that privileged communication is �qualified,� they actually mean that.
a. the counselor must have certification before privileged communication applies.
b. privileged communication applies only to doctoral level counselors.
c. exceptions may exist.
d. all of the above.
C. See the answer to question 813 for exceptions. In regard to choices �a� and �b,� it is important to note that privileged communication is based on licensure status rather than one�s graduate degree or certification credentials.
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815. You are a counselor in a state that does not legally support privileged communication. You refuse to testify in court. In this situation.
a. ACA will back you for doing the ethical thing.
b. NBCC will back you if and only if you have attained NCC status
c. you need not testify if your case was supervised by a licensed psychologist and/or psychiatrist.
d. you could be held in contempt of court.
D. Your client in this situation would not have the �privilege� to say no if you are asked to testify.
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816. An 11-year-old child comes to your office with a black eye and tells you she can�t remember how she received it. You have reason to suspect abuse. You should.
a. be empathic and discuss her feelings regarding the matter.
b. drop the matter as it could embarrass her.
c. refer her to a medical doctor of your choice.
d. call the child abuse/neglect hotline.
D. Counselors are mandated reporters for child abuse. It is legal and ethical to break confidentiality in such cases. You must report child abuse, it�s the law! The word mandated means that a counselor does not have a choice in the matter. Your state may have a legal penalty for failure to report child abuse, sexual abuse, neglect, or exploitation. Check your state laws. Generally, counselors report incidents via the state child abuse hotline. Some exams may refer to this area of concern as �protective services.� Other exceptions to maintaining confidentiality include:
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a. Client is a danger to self or others.
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b. Client requests a release of information.
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c. A court orders a release of information.
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d. The counselor is engaged in a systematic supervision process.
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e. Clerical assistants who process client information and papers.
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f. Legal and clinical consultation situations.
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g. Client raises the issue of the counselor�s competence in a malpractice lawsuit.
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h. The client is less than 18 years of age. (If a client is a minor, a parent or guardian can demand that information be disclosed that was revealed during a session.)
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i. An elderly person is abused.
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j. An insurance company or managed care company requests a diagnosis and/or relevant clinical information.
Is a counselor always on duty? I mean, what about the old �I saw a child being abused in the grocery store� dilemma? As of this writing counselors are only mandated reporters while they are performing professional duties. If you are in the grocery store tapping on watermelons and you spy a parent abusing his child, you can make the decision to report it, or not report it, just like anyone else in the store. You are not acting as a mandated reporter at that point in time.
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817. During a counseling session a 42-year-old male client threatens suicide. You should.
a. keep it a secret as the client is not a minor.
b. call the state child abuse/neglect hotline even though he is an adult.
c. call his wife and mention that a serious problem exists but be very careful not to discuss the issue of suicide since to do so would violate the client�s confidentiality.
d. contact his wife and advise her of possible suicide precautions.
D. Most experts would agree with choice �d.� Ethics guidelines will usually say something like this: When a client�s condition indicates that there is a clear and imminent danger or serious and foreseeable harm to the client and others, the counselor must take reasonable personal action or inform responsible authorities. This may seem a bit vague (i.e., specific words such as suicide and/or homicide are not mentioned). Indeed, ethics guidelines are often not nearly as specific as counselors would like them to be.
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818. A 39-year-old female secretary you are seeing in your assertiveness training group reveals that she is plotting to shoot her husband. Based on the Tarasoff case you should.
a. warn the husband.
b. keep it confidential because an assertiveness training group is decidedly not the same as one-to-one counseling.
c. make a police report in the city in which the husband resides.
d. tell a supervisor, administrator, or board member if one exists, but do not contact her husband.
A. Tarasoff implies that a responsible helper will warn an intended victim. Professionals generally adhere to the principle of minimal disclosure, which suggests that you reveal only what is necessary. Another landmark case, the Hedlund case, suggests that therapists should warn others (i.e., third parties) who also may be in danger. Tarasoff is controversial and based on a California court decision that may or may not apply to your state. Again, I recommend checking your state�s laws if your exam is for licensure status. Choice �d� also might have been appropriate had the phrase �do not contact her husband� been eliminated.
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819. You pass your exam and now have NCC status. During a staff meeting a clinical director explains to you that, from an ethical standpoint, your primary duty is to the agency. Most experts in the field of counselor education would.
a. agree with this position with very few reservations.
b. disagree inasmuch as professional ethics emphasize that your primary responsibility is to your clients.
c. disagree inasmuch as professional ethics emphasize that your primary responsibility is to the ACA.
d. say that, according to �aspirational ethics,� your agency comes first.
B. The answer is choice �b.� Skeptical? Then please read NBCC�s Certified Counselor�s Code of Ethics. Believe me, you won�t have to read very far! You have my promise. Number 2 of the first section (i.e., Section A: General) states that �If the certified counselor and the employer do not agree and cannot reach agreement on policies that are consistent with appropriate counselor ethical practice that is conducive to client growth and development, the employment should be terminated. If the situation warrants further action, the certified counselor should work through professional organizations to have the unethical practice changed.� The next time your well-meaning supervisor tells you the agency comes first, hand him or her a copy of NBCC�s ethics, compliments of yours truly. Aspirational ethics (answer �d�) means that a practitioner adheres to the highest possible ethical standards.
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820. One impetus for counselor licensing was that.
a. ACSW wanted to restrict counselors.
b. politicians demanded that counselors be licensed.
c. psychology licensure bodies sought to restrict the practice of counselors so counselors could not receive third party payments from insurance and managed care companies.
d. insurance companies pushed strongly for it.
C. Many�if not most�counselors were not able to be licensed as psychologists because one popular requirement was that the graduate program had to be �primarily psychological in nature,� which basically meant that persons who attended counseling programs were considered inappropriate. Licensing for counselors was needed as psychologists attained licensing (and had somewhat of a monopoly on nonmedical treatment services) in every state in the United States.
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821. A counselor who possesses a graduate degree wishes to become a licensed psychologist. Which statement most accurately depicts the current situation?
a. Any counselor can easily become a psychologist if he or she can pass the EPPP.
b. A counselor can become a licensed psychologist by taking three graduate credit hours in physiological psychology and then passing the EPPP.
c. In nearly every case individuals trained in counseling departments would not be allowed to sit for the EPPP and thus could not become licensed psychologists.
d. A counselor with a doctorate in counseling could be licensed as a counseling psychologist if he or she has a degree from a recognized department of counseling.
C. Choice �c� (the correct response) provides a good rationale why counselors needed a license to call their own. EPPP stands for Examination for Professional Practice in Psychology. Roughly speaking, the EPPP is to psychologists, as the NCE is to counselors. Choice �d� would be incorrect in most cases as the applicant would still generally need a degree from a psychology rather than a counseling department.
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822. A woman who is in private practice mentions in her phone book advertisement that she is a licensed counseling psychologist. This generally means that.
a. she has a doctorate from a counselor education program.
b. she has a graduate degree from a psychology department.
c. she has a degree from a CACREP program.
d. she has a degree in counseling but is trained in projective testing.
B. The trick to answering this question is to remember that the term psychology can only be used if the helper is a licensed psychologist, even if the person specializes in counseling. Hence, the degree would need to be from a program which is primarily psychological, a psychology rather than a counseling department (rendering choice �a� incorrect). For review purposes, pertaining to choice �c� you will recall that CACREP is the Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs, which is ACA�s accrediting agency. CACREP, which set up shop in 1981, currently has 543 programs accredited in 210 institutions. Critics charge that the number of programs sporting CACREP accreditation is still too low. Some oh-so-good news for CACREP graduate readers! CACREP accredits master�s degree programs in career counseling, college counseling, community counseling, gerontological counseling, marital, couple, and family counseling/therapy, mental health counseling, school counseling, student affairs, counselor education and supervision, and doctoral degree programs. The largest number of CACREP programs is in school counseling with community counseling not that far behind. Gerontological counseling is lacking at this time with just two programs that meet the requirements. All master�s level CACREP schools must provide a 48-credit hour program except mental health and marital, couples, and family which must meet the stiffer 60-credit hour requirement. If you have a CACREP degree under your belt and you wish to become a NCC, the two years of supervised experience is waived! You simply take the NCE and pass it and presto you�ve snared NCC credentials after your name. In addition, some states will waive a portion of the supervised experience for licensure.
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823. One major difference between the psychology versus the counseling movement seems to be that.
a. the psychologists are working to eliminate practitioners with less than a doctorate, while the counselors are not.
b. counselors are working to give up tests for licensure.
c. psychology boards are made up primarily of psychiatrists.
d. in most states psychologists do not need to take an exam.
A. Counselors and social workers seem comfortable with master�s level practitioners. In an early study in which ACES members were asked to comment on the minimum level of education necessary for licensure, over 45% of the respondents felt comfortable with master�s level practitioners. A little over 41% insisted that a doctorate was necessary.
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824. APA is to psychologist as ACA is to.
a. APGA.
b. certified clinical mental health counselor.
c. counselor.
d. NCC.
C. Here is a straightforward example of an analogy item. First, recall that the APA (in the context of this question) refers to the American Psychological Association, which is the major professional body for psychologists. ACA plays the same role for counselors.
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825. You have achieved the status of NCC. NBCC, nevertheless, feels you have violated professional ethics. NBCC can do any of the following except.
a. revoke your state counseling license.
b. remove your name from the list of NCCs in the U.S.
c. revoke your NCC status.
d. note in their newsletter that your NCC status has been revoked.
A. Here is the key point: certification is not the same as licensing. Thus, a certified reality therapist cannot legally use the title counselor (assuming the state has licensing) unless he or she is licensed by the state. A certification is given to an individual via an organization which is not part of the state or federal government. A counseling license is granted by the state government. Nevertheless, you must (yes must) be certified to call yourself a certified counselor. You could, however, call yourself a professional counselor if you are not certified. A certification is a title mastered by living up to certain standards. Does the fact that choice �d� is true surprise you? It shouldn�t! NBCC is very open and upfront about this fact and specifically states that certification violations (e.g., using the title MAC when you have not fulfilled the requirements) may be published in NBCC�s newsletter. Believe me, this is one situation where you certainly don�t need the notoriety! And oh yes, I almost forgot; this is what makes this such a difficult question. Although a certification board cannot revoke your license for an ethics violation, they do indeed reserve the right to contact your state licensing board (or other certification boards, for that matter), and your state board may well decide to take your license. The certification organization also could deny you further certification and take legal action against you. Important exam reminder: Ethical guidelines drafted via your state licensing board may indeed be at odds with your national organization�s standards (e.g., ACA, NASW).
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826. A counselor who is alcoholic and suffering from burnout could best be described as.
a. a mesomorph.
b. an impaired professional.
c. a paraprofessional.
d. a counselor who is wise enough to use his own experiences to help others.
B. The term impaired is used here to mean a deterioration in the ability to function as a counselor. The counselor described in this question definitely meets the criteria. Choice �a� is derived from an old theory of personality proposed by Sheldon, which suggested three basic temperaments based on one�s physical build. The mesomorph or muscular type was said to be assertive, courageous, and willing to take risks. The ectomorph, characterized by a slender or frail build, was thought to be sensitive and inhibited. The endomorph, or soft rotund individual, was inclined to love food, comfort, and relaxation. Choice �c,� paraprofessional, is used to describe a helper who does not possess the education and experience necessary to secure professional credentials.
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827. Counselor certification.
a. is synonymous with licensure.
b. is synonymous with program certification.
c. recognizes that you have reached a given level of competence and thus are authorized to use a title.
d. is primarily a legal process.
C. If you marked anything other than choice �c,� review the explanation given in answer 825.
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828. A woman comes to you for help with an eating disorder. You have no experience or training in this area. Ethically you should.
a. refer this client to a colleague who is indeed trained and experienced with this type of client.
b. keep the client and work on her general lack of self-esteem.
c. tell the client you will do a comprehensive Internet search on the topic and then begin seeing her.
d. explain to the client that a symptom such as eating or not eating is not the real problem and that counseling focuses on real underlying issues.
A. Would you do psychosurgery on somebody�s brain without the correct training? I didn�t think so. Choice �d� is very psychodynamic.
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829. Virginia was the first state to license counselors in 1976. The APGA (later AACD and now ACA) division that was initially the most instrumental in pushing for licensing was the.
a. American College Personnel Association.
b. American School Counselor Association.
c. Association for Specialists in Group Work.
d. American Counselor Education and Supervision.
D. Known as ACES. The APGA set up a licensure commission in 1975. What�s in a name? Why in the world did the American Personnel and Guidance Association (APGA) founded in July of 1952, change the organization�s name to AACD, or the American Association for Counseling and Development, in 1983? Well, the story goes that during the late seventies and early eighties members expressed a dislike for the words personnel and guidance, as these terms did not accurately depict the work of counselors. The current nameplate, the American Counseling Association (ACA), was adopted in July 1992, after the members voted by mail. The new name was intended once again, to clarify what members really did.
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830. The problem with income sensitive or sliding fee scales (based on the client�s ability to pay) is that.
a. scales of this kind are unethical.
b. scales of this nature are illegal.
c. it is difficult to administer them in a fair manner.
d. scales like this are used frequently; however, they are unethical and illegal.
C. Sliding fee scales, which are ethical and legal, quite popular with not-for-profit agencies, are often confused with the term amount waived,which refers to the amount a third party payer did not cover. Let�s assume you charge $80 for a 50 minute counseling session. The payer (e.g., an insurance company or managed care organization) only pays a licensed counselor $40 for the session. You would thus charge all payers the full $80 fee and waive the amount they did not pay; in this case $40. Different companies pay different amounts for the same service and pay different fees for different providers. Hence, the psychologist or social worker next door could very well be making a different amount than you for the same service. Hey, Albert Ellis warned us that life isn�t fair!
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831. One possible negative aspect of counselor licensure is that.
a. counselors would receive more third-party payments.
b. counselors might be accepted as providers by insurance companies.
c. counselors may not be as creative during their graduate work and simply take courses aimed at fulfilling the requirements to take the licensure exam.
d. it will take business away from psychologists.
C. Choices �a� and �b� mean basically the same thing and are anything but negative, and in fact constitute two excellent reasons why counselors fought (and continue to fight) for licensure. Licensing generally adds prestige to a profession and can serve to protect the public; nevertheless, students often take precisely what is required for licensing or certification.
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832. A client wants his records sent to a psychiatrist he is seeing. You should.
a. advise against it based on current research.
b. refuse to do so based on ethical guidelines.
c. first have the client sign a dated release of information form that stipulates whether the information can be released once (or for what period of time it can be released) and then you can send the information.
d. call the psychiatrist to discuss the case but explain that state law prohibits a counselor from sending anything in writing about the client.
C. Clients have a right to �privacy.� Do not use a xerox or photocopy of the client�s signature on any release of information form. Exam hint: If you or your agency didn�t collect the information in the record then don�t send it even with a release form. What�s that you say? That doesn�t make sense. Okay, let�s assume that your client was seen at the local homeless shelter. You had him sign a release and now have information from that particular shelter. Now the information from the homeless shelter is part of your record file. But, as you well know from the question, a psychiatrist wants the client�s record from you. You should not send what you acquired from the homeless shelter. Can the psychiatrist secure this information? After all, it might prove clinically valuable. Of course, but the psychiatrist will do precisely what you did. The psychiatrist can procure it simply by having the client sign a release which the psychiatrist will send to the homeless shelter. Exam hint: Your exam might refer to a release of information as consent to disclose or transfer records. Also note that you may not record or observe sessions without permission of the client. Lastly, ethics dictate that you should keep the client�s record for at least five years after your last contact with the client even in cases where the client is deceased.
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833. You are a licensed professional counselor in one state but will soon relocate to another state. The new state informs you that they will grant you reciprocity or so-called endorsement. You will thus.
a. simply need to take the licensing test in the new state.
b. be permitted to practice in the new state based on your current credentials without taking another exam.
c. need to take numerous graduate courses.
d. not be allowed to practice until you serve an internship.
B. Reciprocity occurs when one state or organization accepts the license or credential of another state or organization. Cool huh? Yeah, well don�t get your hopes up! State requirements for licensure differ and thus one state does not always accept credentials snared in another state. When that occurs we merely say that the state the counselor is moving to will not grant the counselor reciprocity. The profession is working diligently to enhance portability (the ease that something can be transferred) so that one state would accept another�s credentials.
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834. According to the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) of 1974 (also known as the Buckley Amendment).
a. a parent can see his or her daughter�s middle school record.
b. an 18-year-old college student can view his or her own educational record.
c. a and b.
d. a and b are both illegal.
C. Although the act applied to educational files (often called student cumulative record files) rather than counseling records, most agencies and ethical bodies created procedures so clients who wish to can view their records. In order to abide by FERPA, school counselors are urged to keep their counseling notes separate from the rest of the student�s file and to make certain other teachers do not have access to the files. However, school counselors should be aware that a court of law can still subpoena the actual counseling notes or request that the counselor testify.
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835. You are a school counselor who wishes to refer an orthopedically disabled student to a private therapist. In general, the best referral would be to.
a. a CRC.
b. a MAC.
c. a licensed clinical psychologist.
d. a licensed social worker.
A. CRC stands for Certified Rehabilitation Counselor. CRCs will need at least a master�s in rehabilitation counseling, acceptable experience in the field, and a passing score on a 400-question multiple choice examination. Choice �b� is a certification specialty of NBCC known as Master Addictions Counselor.
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836. A registry would be.
a. a list of licensed psychologists in the state of Illinois.
b. a list of CRCs in the United States.
c. a and b.
d. the registration process for counselor licensure in the state of Missouri.
C. A registry is always a list of providers. A person whose name is included in a state counseling registry can sometimes use the title �registered professional counselor� or RPC.
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837. A counselor wins the lottery and closes her practice without telling her clients. This counselor�s course of action is best described as.
a. a multiple relationship.
b. defamation.
c. abandonment.
d. nonmaleficence.
C. In most situations, ethics frown on multiple or dual relationships such as counseling a client you are dating! Imagine how objective you will be when the client divulges during the next session that he or she is dating somebody he or she likes better! Are ethical guidelines becoming�dare I say it�a bit more humanistic? Perhaps! The first major change in the tide began recently when ACA dropped the term dual relationships from their latest ethical guidelines because they felt that in some instances a relationship of this nature could be beneficial (such as attending a client�s graduation or visiting them in the hospital). The counselor is advised to include in his or her counseling notes why such action would be beneficial. The counselor should also discuss any potential benefits and harm that could occur. Whenever possible, the notation should appear prior to the actual event. Sexual or romantic activity with any current client is unethical under the new or the old set of ethics! Defamation occurs when a counselor says something (i.e., slander) or writes something (i.e., libel) that damages a client�s reputation. Nonmaleficence means to do no harm. The client in this question is the victim of abandonment which occurs when a counselor stops providing services and does not refer the client to another helper.
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838. You are counseling your first cousin for depression. This is.
a. ethical.
b. not actually an ethical issue.
c. ethical if you continue to counsel her and refer her to a psychiatrist for an antidepressant.
d. generally unethical as it would constitute a dual or so-called multiple relationship.
D. A dual relationship results when a counselor has another significant relationship with the client that hinders objectivity. A dual relationship is also said to exist when a supervisor accepts a subordinate or administrator as a client.
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839. A counselor who sports NCC after her name.
a. will need not concern herself with continuing education.
b. will need three graduate courses every 10 years.
c. will never receive credit for workshops but should attend for her own personal growth nevertheless.
d. will need a specified amount of continuing education contact hours before she can be recertified, or she will need to take the NCE again.
D. One hundred hours of professional development are needed during a five-year period. Recently, Home Study Programs have made this process more convenient.
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840. You find yourself sexually attracted to a client. This is known as.
a. countertransference.
b. ambivalent transference.
c. negative transference.
d. positive transference.
A. A typical manifestation of countertransference would be romantic or sexual feelings toward a client. Countertransference is an indication of unresolved problems on the part of the helper.
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841. Your sexual attraction toward your client is hindering the counseling process. You should.
a. continue treatment but be honest and empathic with the client.
b. ignore your feelings; after all you are a professional.
c. explain this to the client and then refer the client to another provider.
d. continue to see the client but ignore psychosexual topics.
C. The word hindering is critical to answering the question correctly. If the counselor felt a sexual attraction which had �not� as yet hindered the treatment process, then personal therapy/professional supervision for the counselor would be the most desirable plan of action. Moreover, prior to the point where the counselor�s attraction interfered with the treatment, most experts would advise against discussing the attraction with the client.
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842. A malpractice or liability insurance company is least likely to defend you if.
a. you are sexually involved with a client.
b. you violate confidentiality.
c. you do not have a client sign a release of information and send a record to another agency or provider.
d. you call a state child abuse hotline and a client takes legal action since the child was actually the victim of an accident.
A. Some states will revoke your license for sexual misconduct even if it occurs outside the session and even if the client has consented! In addition, your license may be revoked even if the client is not damaged or harmed by the experience. The fact that a client seduced you is irrelevant even if it is true. Some insurance companies pay smaller settlements or no settlement in cases where you are found guilty of sexual harassment or misconduct. Let me share with you what my current professional liability insurance occurrence form states. It says: Note: A smaller limit of liability applies to judgments or settlements when there are allegations of sexual misconduct.� In addition, if a counselor is found guilty most insurance companies will cancel the insurance and the possibility of finding another company to insure a counselor in this situation is very difficult. A counselor should never have a sexual relationship with a current client. It is even considered illegal in most areas of the country. NBCC ethics stipulate that you should not engage in sexual intimacies with a former client within a minimum of two years after terminating the counseling relationship. If you engage in such a relationship after the two-year period you must be able to document that the relationship was not exploitive in nature. ACA ethics indicate that a minimum of five years must pass before the counselor can have a romantic relationship with the client. Hint: If your ethics exam is created via your state board, check state regulations regarding nonerotic touching; some states stipulate that behaviors such as hugging a client are unethical.
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843. Computers are now being used in various counseling settings. Counselors speak of Computer Assisted Counseling (CAC) and Computer Managed Counseling (CMC). An office that employs a computer to schedule clients would be an example of.
a. CMC.
b. CAC.
c. an ethical violation.
d. the misuse of computers, though the practice is ethical.
A. When a computer helps manage your practice (yes, just like a manager) then it is known as CMC. CMC would include tasks such as bookkeeping, client scheduling, printing billing statements, and compiling referral sources. CAC is like having a counseling �assistant� do the counseling for you. A computer software program that attempts to counsel clients is an example of CAC in action. CAC is controversial and most experts agree computers can never provide the compassion of a human doing counseling.
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844. A college student who suffers from panic disorder types his symptoms and concerns onto a PC screen and then waits for the computer program to respond or question him further. The student engages in this practice for one 40-minute session per week. This is an example of.
a. CAC.
b. CMC.
c. Computer Managed Counseling.
d. b and c.
A. Again, the computer �assists� in the actual practice of counseling; hence the term computer assisted counseling, a humanistic counselor�s worst nightmare!
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845. As a professional counselor you develop a self-help software package for use by the general public. Ethics indicate that.
a. the package must be designed to use with counseling.
b. the package must be designed to use with counseling and then modified for stand-alone usage.
c. the package must be initially designed for stand-alone usage as opposed to modifying a package requiring counselor support.
d. this is an unethical practice.
C. If you�re scratching your head, then I�d strongly suggest you peruse NBCC ethics to see why item �c� is right on target. Ethics also dictate that the certified counselor must provide descriptions of appropriate and inappropriate applications, suggestions for using the software, statements regarding the intended outcomes, and how and when counseling services are beneficial. Lastly, the manual must delineate the counselor�s qualifications, the process of development, validation data, and operating procedures.
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846. Which statement best describes the counseling profession�s reaction to computer assisted counseling and computer managed counseling?
a. Counselors are very humanistic and seem to dislike CMC and CAC technology.
b. Counselors have welcomed both forms of computer technology with open arms.
c. CMC has been well received since it cuts down time on paperwork, scheduling, and record keeping, but there is a mixed reaction to CAC as some feel it depersonalizes counseling.
d. Counselors dislike CMC but praise CAC highly.
C. Work around any agency, school counseling office, or private practice and you�ll surely hear counselors complaining about paperwork, ergo the enthusiasm over CMC procedures. CAC, nevertheless, seems a bit cold and depersonalizing in a field which emphasizes concepts like empathy and positive regard. Besides, when computers display warmth they tend to electronically shut down!
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847. You are a supervisor at a sexual abuse treatment agency. Sally is one of your counselors and you give her a performance rating on a yearly basis. Sally has been having panic attacks on a daily basis at home for almost a month and her physician feels that counseling rather than medicine is indicated. Now�for the first time�she has a terrible panic attack at work. If you don�t see her the nearest counselor is 150 miles away. You should.
a. refer her to the counselor who is 150 miles away.
b. absolutely refuse to see her as dual relationships violate ethical guidelines.
c. teach her relaxation but refuse to counsel her.
d. attempt to counsel her.
D. Surprise! The answer is choice �d.� NBCC ethics that address dual relationships state that: �Exceptions are made only in instances where an individual�s situation warrants counseling intervention and another alternative is unavailable.� Also remember that ACA ethics now state that not all dual relationships are bad and that very fact helped remove the term from the current guidelines.
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848. A counseling journal article should use documentation (i.e., references) that is based on.
a. APA style.
b. MLA style taught in most English composition classes.
c. a or b.
d. none of the above.
A. Counseling journals conform to the standards of the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association. The reality is, however, that many of us took only English composition courses that taught MLA, rather than APA style.
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849. A 14-year-old male threatens to blow up his parents� garage because he has been grounded. You believe his threat is genuine. You should.
a. ask the child if he will sign a release of information so you can talk to his parents.
b. not talk to the parents since this would weaken the bond of trust you have with the client.
c. have the child sign a contract stating he will not blow up the garage but mention nothing to the parents.
d. warn the parents that their property is in danger.
D. There is little evidence to suggest a right or a wrong answer to this question. Nevertheless, a case tried in the Supreme Court of Vermont suggested that a mental health agency was negligent for not warning parents that their son, who was in therapy, threatened to burn down their barn�which he did. So until further notice a warning is in order.
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850. A 16-year-old girl threatens to kill herself and you fail to inform her parents. Your behavior as a counselor is best described as.
a. an example of a dual relationship.
b. an example of informed consent.
c. an example of negligence, which is a failure to perform a duty, which in this instance is an obligation to protect the client.
d. multiple submission.
C. Here is a myriad of terms related to counseling ethics. A dual relationship (choice �a�) occurs when a counselor has a relationship with the client in addition to being his or her counselor (e.g., a sexual relationship, or a business deal with the client). As stated earlier, in many instances ethics frown on this practice, claiming that it prevents professional objectivity. Although ACA has eliminated the term dual relationships from their ethical guidelines NBCC has not. NBCC specifically mentions that a referral to another professional might be necessary to avoid this in some instances. NBCC ethics are clear that if a client refuses a referral for any reason, the counselor is not obligated to continue seeing the client. Informed consent, on the other hand, is an example of a desirable counselor behavior that can actually reduce the chances of a malpractice suit. Informed consent is roughly the opposite of mystifying the counseling process. The counselor �informs� the client what will take place so the client will have the necessary information to decide whether he or she wants to �consent� to the procedure. Informed consent applies to research (e.g., a fair explanation of benefits, discomfort, freedom to withdraw from the study at any time, etc.) as well as counseling! Multiple submission (choice �d�)�a violation of ethics�transpires when a journal article is submitted to more than one journal at a time. Negligence (choice �c�) is evident when a counselor �neglects� or fails to perform a required behavior.
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851. NBCC has developed a Code of Ethics to help counselors behave in a professional manner. The code is divided into a preamble and seven sections. The first section (i.e., Section A) warns against stereotyping and discrimination. All of the following would be examples of stereotyping and discrimination except.
a. advising an African-American client to avoid graduate school because you believe the Jensen research regarding Blacks and IQ scores.
b. advising a client to consider switching his college major based on your clinical judgment as well as the results from an extensive test battery.
c. advising a female client to avoid taking a management position because you feel women are generally nonassertive.
d. advising a female client to avoid taking a management position because you feel women managers are generally too aggressive.
B. Discrimination is the practice of not treating all clients in an equal manner especially due to religious, racial, ethnic, sexual, or cultural prejudice on the part of the therapist. Stereotyping occurs when a counselor views all persons of a given classification or group in a biased manner (e.g., all women are too nonassertive to hold management positions; or all therapists are crazy�I knew that one would get your attention even after pondering 851 questions!).
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852. Section A, which is the general section of NBCC�s Code of Ethics, cautions counselors against sexual harassment defined as �unwelcome comments, gestures, or physical contacts of a sexual nature.� An example of an ethics violation in this respect would be.
a. a female counselor who repeatedly tells a male client how sexy his hairy chest looks when he leaves his shirt unbuttoned.
b. a male counselor who smiles to reinforce a female client (who is overly critical of her looks) who has just said that she is beginning to accept her feminine qualities.
c. a female career counselor who tells a male client that she feels his gray flannel suit would be the most appropriate for a given job interview.
d. when a client who has been very depressed and neglecting her looks comes into the therapy session looking much better and the counselor comments, �You certainly look nice today.�
A. A 1977 study by Holroyd and Brodsky of 1,000 PhD licensed psychologists (500 females and 500 males) found that when erotic contact did occur it was usually between male therapists and female clients. And of those therapists who had intercourse with patients, 80% repeated the act. Of male therapists, 5.5% reported having intercourse with a patient, while the female therapist rate was .6%. Most of the therapists in the study felt erotic contact is never beneficial to clients. Response �a� is illustrative of a sexually inappropriate comment on the part of a helper. Ethics warn against deliberate or repeated comments of a sexual nature.
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853. You are a well-known cognitive behavior therapist who heads up a private practice in New Jersey. For the next two years you will be in Canada conducting a research project. Your practice has six other counselors. The practice is sending brochures to schools, agencies, and hospitals in an attempt to boost referrals. Your name appears on the front of the brochure as if you are available for referrals. This is.
a. totally ethical.
b. unethical.
c. possibly ethical and possibly unethical. Not enough information is given to answer this question.
d. irrelevant since ACA and NBCC ethics do not address private practice.
B. The verdict: unethical. Ethics do address private practice and suggest that persons who hold leadership roles not allow their names to be used in professional notices when they are not practicing counseling unless this is clearly stated in the practice�s literature.
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854. A colleague of yours who is not a certified counselor behaves in an unethical manner. The ethical thing for you to do is.
a. ignore it; unfortunately you have no rights in this situation.
b. consult the school the person graduated from.
c. attempt to rectify the condition via institutional channels, turning to NBCC procedures if this fails.
d. all of the above are considered ethical.
C. NBCC does not beat around the bush in regard to this critical issue. Professional behavior of associates is expected of �both certified and noncertified counselors.� Read Section A: General, paragraph 3, of, NBCC�s Code of Ethics. Try to ameliorate the difficulty via the institution�s channels before contacting NBCC.
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855. A client asks you for classical psychoanalysis yet you have no training whatsoever in this area. If you agree to analyze the client, you are.
a. violating the duty to warn.
b. still ethical if you possess LPC or NCC.
c. unethical as this is misrepresentation.
d. still ethical if and only if you have a doctorate.
C. Six doctorates and a wall covered with LPC and NCC credentials will not change the situation. The general section of NBCC�s Code of Ethics states in Section A paragraph 7 that �certified counselors recognize their limitations and provide services or only use techniques for which they are qualified by training and/ or experience.� Ethics go on to administer the coup de grace, explaining that �counselors neither claim nor imply professional qualifications which exceed those possessed.� A counselor who had extensive training, say via an analytic institute, could perhaps provide this service ethically. Moreover, most psychologists and counselors would agree that it is ethical to withhold or summarize test results requested by another professional who does not have sufficient training to properly analyze or interpret the data. This section of the code also emphasizes the need for continuing education.
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856. A client needs counseling but can afford only $5 per session. As a private practitioner you charge $75 per hour. You should.
a. still charge the client $75 per hour, but let her pay you $5 per week indefinitely until she has actually paid your normal rate.
b. be firm and tell her the fee is $75 per hour regardless of her income.
c. immediately refer her to a state funded agency.
d. consider the client�s financial status and the locality and offer her a reduced rate.
D. If she cannot afford your reduced rate, you should assist her to find a comparable service at an acceptable cost. ACA ethics tell the story: �Counselors consider the financial status of clients.� If the fee is inappropriate, you must assist the client in �finding comparable services of acceptable cost.� Incidentally, ACA ethics state that counselors devote a portion of their work making a contribution to society by providing services with little financial return or �pro bono� (i.e., free) services.
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857. Dr. X recommends to his agency clients that he would rather counsel them in his private practice. Ethically speaking.
a. Dr. X has every right to do this.
b. Dr. X is diverting agency clients to his practice and this is unethical.
c. guidelines do not address this practice.
d. NBCC encourages this method for private practitioners.
B. This is also a great way to get yourself fired from the agency!
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858. Section B of NBCC�s Code of Ethics deals with the counseling relationship. Thus a counselor who uses a paradoxical strategy.
a. has committed a blatant ethics violation.
b. does not need to explain the purpose of the paradox to the client.
c. should explain the purpose of this technique to the client.
d. must tape record the interview.
C. Certified counselors will clearly inform clients of the purposes, goals, and techniques utilized. Some textbooks in the field may have inadvertently given counselors the false notion that it is best to mystify the counseling process. Paradoxical interventions�in which a client is told to exaggerate a symptom�are contraindicated in cases with homicidal or suicidal clients.
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859. A counselor is counseling an executive secretary. The counselor notes that he is writing a book and explains to the client that he will see her for free if she types the manuscript. This is.
a. known as bartering and unethical as described here.
b. known as bartering and ethical.
c. known as bartering and is highly recommended for clients with limited income.
d. is known as bartering and ethics encourage this practice whenever possible.
A. And what happens to the counselor�s objectivity if his secretary is doing a poor job or worse yet not completing the manuscript? The practice of �bartering� is discouraged. Bartering occurs when a client exchanges a good or service for treatment or testing (e.g., I�ll paint your car if you provide me with six sessions of therapy). Currently, ethics allow the practice if the client requests it, a written contract is drafted, and the relationship is not exploitative. Choice �c� would be correct if the client had suggested the bartering in lieu of the fact that she could not afford the sessions.
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860. Ethics state that a counselor should _______ all clients for group counseling.
a. diagnose.
b. test.
c. screen.
d. a and b.
C. Some clients are inappropriate for group work.
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861. You are a middle school counselor at a public school. A child is threatening to kill another student and admonishes you to keep it a secret. According to the ethical principle of minimal disclosure the best course of action would be to.
a. try to talk the client out of his plan of action but do not violate his confidentiality by telling anyone else.
b. call the major radio and television stations as research clearly indicates that publicity can stop school tragedies.
c. call the police and give them a complete blow by blow description of the counseling session.
d. inform the parents of the student in danger, inform the principal, and call the police immediately, discussing only material related to the threat.
D. An important minireview here: Minimal disclosure means that if you must break confidentiality you reveal only what is necessary (i.e., a minimal amount) and when possible inform the client that you are going to disclose confidential information. In reality, there is no perfect answer to a question such as this.
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862. Your agency uses a collection agency when clients don�t pay their bills. You should.
a. not take a chance on degrading the therapeutic relationship by mentioning it.
b. Explain to the client that ethically the agency can do this; however, a private practitioner is not allowed to use a collection agency and thus a private counselor might be a wiser choice.
c. inform the client of this before the counseling begins.
d. never do this as it is unethical in our field.
C. The ethical principle of informed consent dictates that the counselor should give the client this information upfront.
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863. You have just made a landmark discovery which you feel could literally change the entire field of counseling and thus you write an article which depicts your findings. The next step would be to.
a. submit the article to no more than two journals simultaneously.
b. submit the article to every major APA and ACA journal published.
c. submit the article to one publication at a time despite your conviction that the article must get published.
d. write NBCC and request permission for multiple submission privileges.
C. Here is a concept I mentioned earlier and Section D of the NBCC code sets the record straight: �certified counselors must not submit the same manuscript, or one essentially the same in content, for simultaneous publication consideration by two or more journals.� Multiple or duplicate submissions are unethical in relation to journal articles. Exam hint: Once your article is published you may not have it republished elsewhere without the express permission of the first publisher.
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864. Section F of NBCC�s Code of Ethics is concerned with ethics related to consulting. Consulting or consultation can best be defined as.
a. a brand or paradigm of brief psychotherapy.
b. a brand or paradigm of long-term psychotherapy.
c. a systematic process based on classical conditioning.
d. a voluntary relationship between a professional helper and a help-needing individual, group, or social unit in which the consultant helps define or solve problems related to clients, the client system, or work-related issues.
D. One ethical consideration here is that the consulting relationship encourages growth and self-direction for the consultee. The consultant should not become a decision maker for clients or create a dependent relationship. If choices �a,� �b,� and �c� are unclear, reread the questions and answers in this book in the �Theories of Counseling and Helping Relationship� section.
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865. Section G of NBCC�s Code of Ethics describes ethical issues related to private practice. Which of these situations is clearly an ethics violation?
a. A private practitioner who advertises in the Yellow Pages.
b. A private practitioner who advertises in a daily newspaper.
c. A counselor who terminates a professional relationship with a client because she feels it is no longer productive for her client.
d. An executive director of a private practice who has his name listed in a Yellow Pages advertisement as a counseling provider despite the fact that he is out of the country and is engaged in a research project for the next two years.
D. I hope I am getting my message across here: Expect to see a host of questions related to the practical application of all the major areas of counseling�not just ethics�on your exam. The helping professions have become more liberal about advertising practices and thus, based on the information in items choices �a� and �b,� you cannot say they are unethical. Paragraph 2 of NBCC�s Section G states, however, that certified counselors in executive leadership roles should not allow their names to be used in professional notices at times when they are not performing counseling.
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866. Nosology refers to a system of classification. Name the nosological system(s) utilized by professional counselors who diagnose clients.
a. DSM.
b. ICD.
c. a and b.
d. The Rogerian classification system.
C. Did you mark choice �a�? Well give yourself an A� because that�s not really a bad answer. In fact, it is not even an incorrect answer. The answer I wanted you to mark, nevertheless, was choice �c� since some third-party payers have begun asking for ICD (International Classification of Disease) codes (choice �b�). Strict Rogerians, choice �d,� frown on formal diagnosis.
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867. The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) was created by the American Psychiatric Association. The Manual of the International Statistical Classification of Diseases, Injuries, and Causes of Death (ICD) was created by the World Health Organization (WHO). Which counselor would most likely be required to utilize one of these guides to diagnose a client?
a. A counselor who wishes to secure insurance (i.e., third party) payments.
b. A guidance counselor discussing a child with a teacher.
c. A multicultural counselor who is seeing a Black client.
d. counselor leading a T-group.
A. Some experts (e.g., Jay Haley and Carl Rogers) have noted that the formal process of diagnosis is not necessarily a good thing. Giving the client a diagnosis may bias the counselor or cause the counselor to stereotype the individual. Diagnosis has been seen as dehumanizing, and a given diagnosis does not imply a given cure. Despite all the aforementioned difficulties, insurance companies/managed care organizations ask for a diagnosis before paying for a service; this is a remnant of the so-called medical model. Remember: The DSM is produced by a medical organization, the American Psychiatric Association (yes unfortunately, there�s another APA to commit to memory).
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868. Traditionally, _______ counseling has caused the most ethical concerns.
a. behavioral.
b. person-centered.
c. humanistic.
d. reality therapy.
A. The concern has been that behavior therapists can control, manipulate, and shape behavior. Is it ethical, for example, to use aversive conditioning such as electrical shocks, drugs, or paralysis to eliminate smoking, alcoholism, gambling, or homosexual tendencies? Some clients in token economy behavior modification systems have questioned the legality of using contingencies in the form of reinforcement to get them to talk, work, behave, dress, or interact in a certain way.
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869. Insurance payments are also called.
a. mandated payments.
b. third-party payments.
c. optional payments.
d. psychometric payments.
B. Keep in mind that third-party payments do not always cover the entire counseling fee. An insurance policy, for example, could pay only 50 or 80%. Other third-party systems have a maximum fee for services which could conceivably be less than your normal rate. When a client pays for a portion of the service it is known as a �copayment.�
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870. The DSM uses a multiaxial classification system with five axes. Diagnostic codes have _______ digits.
a. five.
b. four.
c. nine (which correspond to the DOT).
d. 12.
A. The first DSM appeared on the mental health scene in 1952 and has been updated on a number of occasions. This question introduces you to the word axes. Each �axis� actually describes a different class of information. Thus, therapists refer to the DSM as a �multiaxial system of diagnosis.� The first three axes constitute the �official diagnostic assessment,� while the final two (i.e., axis IV and axis V) are used for research and special clinical settings to predict outcome and help in treatment planning. The axes include: Axis I�Clinical Syndromes: Other Conditions That May Be a Focus of Clinical Attention; (except personality disorders and mental retardation) this could include most V Codes; Axis II� Personality Disorders and Mental Retardation; Axis III�General Medical Conditions (i.e., that might be relevant to diagnosis or treatment of the disorder); Axis IV�Psychosocial and Environmental Problems, and Axis V�Global Assessment of Functioning (GAF). The GAF is �global� in the sense that it rates psychological, social, and occupational functioning on a continuum of mental health/ mental illness. The scale goes from 0 (inadequate information) to 1 (persistent danger to the self or others) to 100 (superior functioning). Hence, the higher the rating (e.g., 92 is better than 56), the higher the level of mental health. DSM instructions say that two GAF ratings should be given, one for the present level of functioning, and one for the highest level during the past year which endured for at least a few months. In children and adolescents, the second rating should include a school year month. Counselors need to be aware that third party payment organizations sometimes require GAF ratings. All diagnostic codes, except the GAF rating, utilize five digits with a decimal point after the first three digits (e.g., 296.21 Major Depressive Disorder, Single Episode or V62.30 Academic Problem). An easy memory device might be that your hand has five digits (you know, as in fingers) and the DSM likewise has five-digit codes and five axes.
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871. Identify the DSM code.
a. 29622.
b. 29.622.
c. 303.90.
d. 2962.2.
C. You would not need to know that this is the code for �major depression, single episode, moderate,� to answer this question. In fact let me give you some friendly advice: Do not waste one second of your time memorizing the code numbers for diagnoses for the National Counselor Examination. The idea of these questions is to familiarize you with the format of the diagnostic process. Choice �c� is correct. As mentioned in the answer to the last question, the decimal point occurs after the third digit regardless of the diagnosis or lack of it. (Special note: I say lack of it since V71.09 stands for no diagnosis on Axis I, or it could mean no diagnosis on Axis II, while 799.90 is a diagnosis or condition deferred on Axis I or on Axis II.) The DSM allows the counselor to perform a multiaxial assessment.
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872. As you are reading the DSM you see this code: 296.2X. In this case the X (i.e., the fifth digit) refers to.
a. severity, and thus it will be replaced with a diagnostic number.
b. an adjustment disorder.
c. developmental disorder.
d. physical disorders and conditions.
A. The fifth digit can also indicate a condition in a state of remission while a fifth digit of 0 means �unspecified.� In this actual example the 296.2X indicates the condition of major depression, single episode. In the form of 296.20 the condition is �unspecified.� Written 296.21 the condition is �mild.� 296.22 is moderate, while 296.23 is �severe without psychotic features�; and finally 296.24 signifies the most serious state of �severe with psychotic features�; 296.25 is �in partial remission,� whereas 296.26 is �in full remission.� This is an example of a mood disorder. For organic mental disorders and schizophrenia, the five-digit code will take on a different meaning. Five-digit codes for organic impairment include: 1=with delirium (i.e., mental confusion); 2=with delusions (a false belief unaltered by facts to the contrary); 3=with depression; and 0=uncomplicated. For schizophrenia, 1=subchronic; 2=chronic; 3=subchronic with acute exacerbation; 4=chronic with acute exacerbation; 5=remission; and 6=unspecified. Also take note of the fact that the DSM routinely uses the abbreviation NOS, which means �not otherwise specified,� while NEC (�not elsewhere classified�) appears in the ICD. The DSM does not speculate about causation of the condition.
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873. In the DSM the so-called V Codes refer to conditions which are not attributable to a mental condition. An example of a V Code would be.
a. 6282.V.
b. 62V.82.
c. 628V2.
d. V62.82.
D. Although a V Code is not attributable to a mental condition, it is the focus of treatment such as Adult Antisocial Behavior or an academic problem. Choice �d,� the correct choice, is �Uncomplicated Bereavement.� Please do not memorize this code. The salient feature to remember is that the �V� replaces the first digit in the five-digit code.
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874. An example of a V Code diagnosis would be.
a. Major Depression Single Episode Mild.
b. Borderline Personality.
c. Uncomplicated Bereavement.
d. Cocaine Dependence.
C. Certainly bereavement in response to a death of a loved one, for example, might not be attributed to any other �mental disorder� listed in the DSM. It might surprise you to discover that in addition to the aforementioned conditions, V Codes include marital problems, borderline intellectual functioning (an IQ of 71 to 84; 70 or below is considered retarded), malingering (which is avoiding life�s work or duties by exaggerating or feigning physical symptoms or illness), parent�child problems, occupational problems, noncompliance with medical treatment, other interpersonal problems, and a phase of life or circumstances problem (such as enduring a divorce). In essence, these are what the average person might consider day-to-day problems rather than a psychiatric or psychological difficulty. This text is not intended to cover the DSM in depth, moreover a new DSM is on the horizon and could easily be in print by the time you take your test. Read the DSM before sitting for your exam.
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875. Formal diagnosis, also known as nosology, is most closely related to the _______ model.
a. behavioral.
b. medical.
c. cognitive-behavioral.
d. rational-emotive behavior therapy.
B. The behaviorist, choice �a,� is looking for an operational definition (remember, I mentioned this term earlier) of the problem. A DSM diagnosis such as 300.23, Social Phobia, is vague and meaningless for the behaviorist. Instead, a diagnosis like �I cry whenever I have to give a presentation in my Counseling 502 class� is the type of specific information in which the behaviorist is interested. Rational-Emotive Behavior Therapists and other cognitive behavior therapists are generally more interested in the client�s self-talk than in the DSM category. The medical model of medicine or psychotherapy begins with a formal label or diagnosis of the problems.
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876. Which DSM diagnosis indicates the most serious pathology?
a. 296.21.
b. 296.22.
c. 296.23.
d. 296.24.
D. Review the answer to 872, unless you marked choice �d.�
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877. The type of mental health service provided to the client is coded via _______ and is generally required for insurance payments.
a. DSM (e.g., 296.22).
b. the ICD (e.g., 311).
c. the AMA�s Current Procedural Terminology (e.g., CPT 90844).
d. the Psychiatric Dictionary.
C. If you want to accept insurance payments you will generally need to specify a CPT code in addition to the DSM or ICD code on your billing statement. The CPT code will specify the exact nature of the treatment being utilized to help your client (e.g., psychotherapy, hypnosis, biofeedback, or group psychotherapy). A CPT code also can specify the length of the service unit, such as �psychotherapy over 30 minutes.� At the end of each session, a client seeking insurance or third-party benefits is given a statement which is sometimes called a �superbill.� The superbill verifies the nature of the counselor/client interaction. At the very least, an acceptable superbill usually lists the client�s name, the date, the DSM or ICD diagnosis, the CPT Code, and the provider�s name and license. It is misrepresentation to list someone else as a direct service provider to secure third-party payments if you provided the service yourself. If an insurance company only reimburses a psychiatrist or a licensed clinical psychologist, then you are not allowed to put the psychologist�s or psychiatrist�s name on the superbill as if he or she were the service provider. The psychiatrist�s or psychologist�s name could, however, be clearly noted as a supervisor. This can help to secure insurance payments in some cases. Third-party providers can and have taken legal action against therapists for such misrepresentation. Moreover, therapists have been require do pay back funds received in this manner. My advice is to play it straight. Your bank account may not be quite as large, but I guarantee you�ll sleep a lot better.
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878. You refer a client to Dr. Smith. Ethically, Dr. Smith.
a. may not pay you a referral fee for sending her the client.
b. may pay you a referral fee if you have a written contract with her.
c. may pay you a referral fee if she has expertise in the client�s area of concern and you don�t.
d. can pay you a referral fee if and only if she is a psychiatrist.
A. Save your nickels; counselors cannot ethically accept referral fees.
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879. You have written a very popular book on reality therapy. Now you are teaching a graduate course on counseling at a local university. Ethically, you.
a. may not use the textbook in your class.
b. may not use the textbook in your class but other teachers at the university may indeed use your book as a textbook.
c. may use the book as a textbook in your class, however, the royalties you receive must be donated to the institution.
d. may use the book as a textbook in your class.
D. It�s ethical! Nevertheless, your school could have a policy against it or a policy similar to choice �c.�
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880. An elementary school counselor is giving a child a standardized test. On several occasions the child says he does not understand what the counselor has said. The counselor should.
a. refuse to repeat the question.
b. tell the child to answer the question nevertheless.
c. repeat the question, but talk more slowly.
d. ignore the child�s verbalizations.
C. A word of caution is in order here. The counselor should always attempt to use the recommended wording. Changing the wording could alter the impact of the test question, possibly confounding the results.
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881. The most popular paradigm of mental health consultation has been proposed by.
a. Satir and Minuchin.
b. Schein.
c. Caplan.
d. Bandura.
C. Mental health consultation occurs when a consultant works with a consultee regarding clients or administrative/program issues. When the ultimate goal is to help a client, it is known as a �client-centered� consultation. When your licensing supervisor suggests a plan of action for a given client, then you as a consultee are the recipient of �client-centered� consultation (not to be confused with client-centered therapy). The exam you will take also may mention �consultee-centered� consultation. Here, the focus is on helping the consultee develop improved techniques or skills. Thus, when your licensing supervisor explains a better way for you to implement a hypnotic induction with one of your clients, then you are the recipient of �consultee-centered case consultation.� A variation of this is the �consultee-centered administrative consultation� in which your supervisor or consultant�s intention is to sharpen up your administrative skills (e.g., making you a better presenter at your agency board meeting). Finally, there is the �program-centered administrative consultation.� As the name suggests, the emphasis here is on creating, designing, or evaluating the program in question. These four basic types of mental health consultation have been proposed by Gerald Caplan. Choice �a� identifies two well-known names in the family therapy movement, while Albert Bandura (choice �d�) is well-known for his work in modeling and vicarious learning by observation (sometimes known as �social learning theory�). In this approach, the consultant helps the consultee set up behavioral management programs for the clients.
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882. The doctor�patient consultation model relies on four distinct stages: entry, diagnosis, implementation, and evaluation. In order for the doctor�-patient structure to work, the consultee (i.e., the person receiving the consultation) must accurately depict symptomatology, trust the consultant�s diagnosis, and carry out the consultant�s directives. This model is associated most closely with the work of.
a. Caplan.
b. Freud.
c. Adler.
d. Schein.
D. Consultants can focus on process (what is happening from a communications standpoint) or content (knowledge imparted from the consultant to the consultee).
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883. _______ is the leading cause of malpractice actions taken against counselors, therapists, and mental health providers.
a. Sexual misconduct.
b. Dual relationships.
c. Failure of the duty to warn.
d. Inferior record keeping.
A. It has been estimated that over 95% of those clients who were sexually involved with their therapists have been harmed, and that in about one third of the cases, treatment literally ended as soon as sexual intimacy began.
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884. Your client was seeing Dr. Doyle for counseling for three years. The client has now stopped seeing Dr. Doyle and has an appointment to see you. You should.
a. refuse to see the client unless she will sign a release so you can secure the information Dr. Doyle compiled.
b. call Dr. Doyle. In this situation no release of information or consent form is necessary.
c. counsel the client.
d. put something in writing and send it to Dr. Doyle prior to the second session of counseling.
C. Treat this client in the same manner as you would treat any other client! To be sure, you might decide that information amassed via Dr. Doyle would be helpful and then you would secure the client�s written permission to contact him. Nevertheless, this certainly isn�t required to begin the counseling process. Moreover, it is possible that the client will not sign for the release.
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885. You are treating a man who suffers from panic disorder. His panic attacks are so severe he cannot drive to work. After just three sessions he is not only driving to work but has taken up sky diving to demonstrate his progress over his fear. You would love to put his testimonial on your brochure to show how adept you are at treating this affliction. You should.
a. ask him if he will write you a few sentences to place on the brochure with his name at the end.
b. ask him if you can write the testimonial for him and place it on the brochure.
c. not ask him for a testimonial since it would constitute an ethics violation.
d. ask him if he will write you a few sentences to place on the brochure but assure him that his name will not appear.
C. Ethics guidelines clearly state that the counselor should not solicit testimonials from clients.
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886. Ethical dilemmas rarely have clear-cut answers. Thus when a complex ethical situation manifests itself, it is best to.
a. consult only ethical codes and not colleagues.
b. consult with colleagues as well as ethical codes inasmuch as legal standards are very often based on the methods of fellow professionals in analogous situations.
c. consult ACA but not your colleagues.
d. consult your state licensing bureau but not your colleagues.
B. Legal standards and cases regarding malpractice suits are often decided by the behavior of your fellow professionals. If I were you, I�d check to make certain you�re not the one soldier marching in the opposite direction! In malpractice cases you are often judged by what your peers would do in the situation.
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887. You have attempted to help a client for over two years with little or no success. You should.
a. always refer the client to a board certified psychiatrist.
b. terminate the relationship and initiate an appropriate referral.
c. change therapeutic modalities and see the client for another six months.
d. change therapeutic modalities and see the client for at least another year.
B. Ethics guidelines suggest that when a counselor feels he or she is unable to help a potential or existing client, then the relationship should not be initiated, or the existing one should be terminated. In either case, the counselor is responsible for providing alternative referral sources to the client.
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888. Assume that you have decided to refer a client elsewhere because you were unable to help her. The client insists upon seeing you. Ethics guidelines would dictate that.
a. you must see her; your duty is to the client.
b. you must refer her to a medical practitioner.
c. you must ask her to consider hospitalization.
d. you are not obligated to continue the relationship.
D. You are acting in the best interest of the client.
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889. Counseling is a relatively new profession. The first counselors in the United States were not called counselors. They were.
a. psychoanalysts practicing short-term therapy.
b. behaviorists practicing short-term therapy.
c. deans and advisors employed after the Civil War in college settings to watch over young women.
d. humanistic psychologists.
C.
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890. Historically speaking, the first psychology laboratory was set up by.
a. Frank Parsons, who set up community centers to help individuals in search of work.
b. Sigmund Freud, the father of psychoanalysis.
c. Wilhelm Wundt, in 1879 in Leipzig, Germany.
d. E G Williamson.
C. Wundt was convinced that psychology could be accepted as a science if consciousness could be measured. Wundt�s school of thought is termed structuralism because his interest was in the �structure� of consciousness. German psychologists�and I�m certain you�ll find this humorous in terms of our emphasis today on pragmatic strategies�were convinced that Wundt�s theory was indeed pure science because it had no practical applications! Parsons, choice �a,� has been called the �Father of guidance.� Some historians insist that the profession of counseling officially began when Parsons founded the Vocational Guidance Bureau of Boston and published the book Choosing a Vocation in 1909.
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891. Counseling became popular after the 1931 publication of.
a. Workbook in Vocations by Proctor, Benefield, and Wrenn.
b. The Interpretation of Dreams by Freud.
c. Behaviorism by Watson.
d. Counseling and Psychotherapy by Rogers.
A. These are all landmark books in the field. Choice �a� is the correct answer because it set the stage for the popularization of the word counseling. Prior to 1931, the word guidance was used for educational and vocational guidance. This work, as well as an earlier one by Proctor in 1925 entitled Educational and Vocational Guidance, began to conceptualize counseling as a psychological process. Choice �b� is considered Freud�s most influential work, while choice �c� described the tenets of behaviorism, which was born in 1912. Watson�s behaviorism asserted that the only subject matter for psychology was observable behavior. Choice �d� is the 1942 classic in which Rogers emphasized a theory of intervention in which the counselor was not an authoritarian figure such as in psychoanalysis, trait-factor analysis, or directive schools of helping. Rogers was also known as one of the first theorists to employ audio recordings to improve practicum supervision.
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892. PL94-142 (The Education Act for All Handicapped Children) states that.
a. all children between 5 and 21 are assured free education.
b. handicapped persons are placed in the least restrictive environment (LRE).
c. an Individualized Education Plan (IEP) is developed for each child
d. all of the above.
D. This act was passed in 1975�the same year Virginia passed the first counselor licensure law�after a congressional finding that the United States had over 8 million handicapped children. Over half were not receiving appropriate education while one million were excluded from public education. Enforcement relied on funding. That is to say, if a state did not meet the guidelines mentioned in choices �a,� �b,� and �c,� funding was denied. Section 617 (c) of PL 94-142 (another stipulation for funding) gave individuals the right to read their own records and files if they were over 18, as well as the records of their children. The term disabled is currently preferred over the antiquated term handicapped. In 1990 the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) prohibited employers with 15 or more employees from discriminating against the disabled.
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893. The major trend that impacted upon the counseling movement in the 1980s.
a. was reality therapy.
b. was behavior modification.
c. included an emphasis on professionalism, certification, and licensing.
d. was the group movement.
C. Credentialing helped counseling become a specific and separate profession such as psychology or psychiatry. Although group work is still very popular, it emerged as a driving force in the 1970s.
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894. The APGA and APA had joint ethics guidelines for counselors and psychologists. This changed during the 1970s when.
a. PsyD programs were introduced.
b. the APA did not wish to credential master�s-level counselors or psychologists.
c. psychologists were doing more testing.
d. joint ethics became illegal in the United States.
B. Separate ethics were thus developed, which helped discern counseling from psychology as a profession. PsyD, or doctor of psychology programs (choice �a�), generally focus more on practitioner skills and less on research and experimental skills than PhD programs in clinical psychology.
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895. The 1950s was the age of tremendous strides in.
a. analysis.
b. developmental psychology.
c. behavior modification.
d. group work.
B. Piaget, Erikson, and Havinghurst were very influential. In addition, thanks primarily to the work of Carl R. Rogers, counseling rather than testing became the major task for professionals.
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896. The _______ movement began in the late 1960s.
a. testing.
b. Rogerian.
c. group.
d. developmental psychology.
C. Groups would remain popular in the 1970s. Some of the literature in the field refers to the 1960s and 1970s as the �decades of variation,� in which we became �therapy of the month consumers�! Jerome Frank hypothesized at the time that the sudden flood of new therapies was due to the current upheaval in society. Gestalt, Transactional Analysis (TA), Primal Scream Therapy, Encounter Groups, Marathon Groups, and yes, even Naked Encounter Groups became popular!
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897. In the 1960s Gilbert Wrenn�s book, The Counselor in a Changing World, urged counselors to.
a. use biofeedback.
b. rely more heavily on projective testing.
c. emphasize developmental concerns rather than merely focusing on crises and curing emotional illness.
d. stick to proven nondirective techniques.
C. This 1962 APGA publication was an attempt to steer counseling away from merely providing remedial services to students.
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898. One of the primary problems of counseling in the early 1960s was that it wrongly emphasized.
a. social issues.
b. intrapsychic processes.
c. referrals to secure antidepressant medicine.
d. career counseling.
B. This was not entirely a negative thing; nevertheless, social issues such as Vietnam, civil rights, and women�s issues could have been emphasized to a greater degree.
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899. The significance of the 1958 National Defense Education Act was that it.
a. provided financial aid for graduate education in counseling.
b. expanded school guidance services.
c. improved guidance for gifted children.
d. all of the above.
D. Many pilot programs developed as a result of the funding. Gradually, the funding found its way into helping counselors prepare to work with economically disadvantaged youth. Thus, the act eventually helped all types of young people secure better counseling and guidance services. Some exams may use the abbreviation NDEA when referring to this act.
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900. A man has a rare, highly contagious disease that is fatal. He is keeping it a secret and insists that he will never tell his wife. You should.
a. break confidentiality and tell his wife.
b. honor the man�s decision not to tell his wife for therapeutic reasons.
c. honor the man�s decision not to tell his wife in order to maintain ethical confidentiality.
d. handle it based on your clinical intuition since ethical guidelines fail to address this emotionally charged issue.
A. Ethics tell us that if a client has a contagious fatal disease the counselor is justified in telling a third party who would be at risk. Of course, the counselor must ascertain that the client has not already informed this person or that the client does not intend to inform the third party in a reasonable period of time.
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901. A married couple brings their two children to counseling for behavioral problems. The 14-year-old daughter stays out late and their 17-year-old son is using drugs. According to most marriage and family therapists the identified patient would be.
a. the 17-year-old son.
b. the 14-year old-daughter.
c. the family.
d. both children.
C. Most family counselors believe that the entire family system, which is really a natural social system, is dysfunctional. Hence the entire family is the identified patient and in need of treatment. Traditionally, the identified patient (IP) was seen as the person who was having a problem. Unfortunately, for insurance purposes you may need to pick a family member to diagnose as the identified patient even though this goes against what most family therapists believe!
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902. You are seeing a husband and wife for marriage counseling. During one of the sessions you decide to see them separately. The husband tells you he has seen an attorney because he is filing for divorce. He has not told his wife and indicates that he will not do so. You feel the wife has a right to know this because it will help her plan for the future. You should.
a. only tell his wife if he gives you permission.
b. communicate his intent to his wife since ethics guidelines state you may do so when a member of the couple is contemplating divorce.
c. not tell the wife since research indicates that women respond more positively to divorce when they have less time to think about it.
d. terminate the husband unless he tells her.
A. According to ethics guidelines counselors must not disclose information about one family member in counseling to another without prior consent. Could this situation happen in your caseload? Consider this: In the United States, getting married is like playing the ponies�approximately 50% of all marriages end in divorce, while about 65% of second marriages end in divorce. In general, family therapy seems to be briefer than counseling or therapy provided to individuals.
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903. You are supervising a licensing candidate who is primarily interested in marriage and family counseling. You are very attracted to her and have sex with her. According to ethics guidelines.
a. this is perfectly ethical, since this is a student and not a client.
b. this is unethical.
c. this is perfectly ethical, since this is a supervisee and not a client.
d. a and c are both correct.
B. There�s a clear-cut answer here folks: Counselors should never engage in sexual relationships with students or supervisees. The fact that the supervisee is interested in marriage and family counseling is totally irrelevant.
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904. The fastest growing clientele for professional counselors are persons.
a. experiencing bipolar disorder.
b. experiencing suicidal ideation.
c. experiencing marriage and family problems.
d. who abuse their children.
C. Philosophical differences between organizations are evident. The American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy (AAMFT) sees marriage and family therapy as a separate profession in and of itself. The International Association of Marriage and Family Counselors (IAMFC) is a division of ACA and adheres to CACREP guidelines and believes that marriage and family counseling is a specialty mastered by an individual who has generic training in and experience in counseling. The accredited master�s level CACREP program is now 60 credit hours while that for other specialties (except mental health counseling which is also 60) is just 48 hours. Coursework areas between CACREP programs and those set forth to meet AAMFT curriculum are similar though certainly not identical.
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905. Family counselors generally believe in.
a. circular/reciprocal causality (e.g., dynamics of family members).
b. linear causality.
c. random causality.
d. dream analysis.
A. Linear causality is where you assume a causes b. For example, a person was physically abused as a child so now that person becomes an abusive parent. Linear causality is generally accepted as a valid concept in individual counseling; however, marriage and family therapists usually prefer the notion of circular causality. Anthropologist Gregory Bateson became interested in cybernetics (the analysis of information interactions and how the flow of information regulates and controls a system) after World War II and launched the concept of circular causality. Bateson was fond of explaining the new paradigm by taking the example of a man who kicks a stone versus a man who kicks a dog. When a man kicks a stone a linear or Newtonian physics model is appropriate. That is to say, if we know the weight of the stone, the angle it was kicked, the air density, and so on we can calculate the result of the kick. If a man kicks a dog, however, the dog�s behavior may control the man�s next response. Hence, the dog might bark and merely sit there; howl and run; or perhaps growl and attempt to bite the man. The man is influencing the dog; nevertheless, the dog is influencing the man. Thus, since everybody is influencing everybody else the problem resides in the family rather than a given individual. The distinction between linear causality and circular causality is a must know concept for most exams in this field. Performing family therapy often seems to resemble group therapy more than individual work; however, most group models do not work well with families since they are a very special type of group.
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906. Cybernetics is a concept used by family therapists. It is usually associated with the work of.
a. Freud and Ellis.
b. Norbert Wiener.
c. Virginia Satir.
d. behavioral family therapists and cognitive family therapists.
B. Cybernetics was pioneered in the early 1940s and named (from the Greek word for steersman) by MIT mathematician Norbert Wiener. Wiener was asked to investigate how guns could be aimed to hit moving targets. He teamed up with mathematician John Von Neumannn, who worked on the Manhattan Project in Los Alamos, New Mexico, the site of the first U.S. nuclear weapons production. This information, which initially related to machines, was used to analyze family systems thanks to Gregory Bateson. In family therapy, cybernetics suggests that the family has feedback loops to self-correct a family system.
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907. A family that is stable and reaches an equilibrium is in a state of.
a. adaptability.
b. enmeshment.
c. Nonsummativity.
d. homeostasis.
D. The best answer is choice �d,� homeostasis, which refers to maintaining a balanced state. A thermostat that controls the temperature in your home is a device that monitors and controls homeostasis as is a guidance system on a missile or a smart bomb. A balanced state is not necessarily healthy! The family will attempt to hold onto a given pattern of functioning that could indeed be dysfunctional. Choice �a� describes a family�s ability to change or display flexibility in order to change. Choice �b,� enmeshment, occurs when family members are overinvolved with each other and thus lose their autonomy. Nonsummativity, choice �c� is a concept suggesting that any system including the family is greater than the sum of its parts (the individuals in it) and therefore it is necessary to examine patterns rather than merely each individual�s behavior.
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908. Adaptability is the ability of the family to balance.
a. ego strength.
b. stability and change.
c. morphostasis and morphogenesis.
d. b and c.
D. Morphstasis is the ability of the family to balance stability while morphogenesis refers to the family�s ability to change.
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909. A family wants to see you for counseling; however, they have a very limited income and can�t afford to pay. You therefore agree to see the family for free (i.e., pro bono). The term that best describes your actions would be.
a. aspirational ethics.
b. mandatory ethics.
c. empathy.
d. all of the above.
A. Exam hint: The answer to this question would be the same whether the question was asking about individual, group, or family treatment. Ethics guidelines are documents that sometimes contain two types of ethics: mandatory and aspirational. The literature describes mandatory ethics as guidelines that are strictly enforced. If you violate a mandatory ethic there are consequences for your actions. Your exam may call mandatory ethics, standards of practice. Mandatory ethics are often very clear-cut and have no gray areas (e.g., you should never have sex with a current client). Aspirational ethics, on the other hand, describe ideal or optimal practice. Pro bono services would fall into this category because it would be difficult to win an ethics� violation charge against a counselor because he or she would not see the client for free.
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910. Experiential conjoint family therapy is closely related to the work of.
a. Virginia Satir.
b. Albert Ellis.
c. Jay Haley.
d. Salvador Minuchin, the father of structural family therapy.
A. Satir was a social worker who began seeing families in private practice in 1951. She felt that the family could be healed via love while Minuchin felt that family therapy was a science requiring therapeutic interventions well beyond warmth. These two family therapy titans clashed during a 1974 meeting in Venezuela, and Satir�who felt Minuchin was speaking for the entire movement�went her own way for the rest of her career. She died of pancreatic cancer in 1988. The term conjoint merely implies that two or more family members are in the therapy session at the same time.
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911. Virginia Satir felt that a major goal of therapy was to improve intrafamily communication (i.e., communication between family members). According to Satir, four basic patterns prevented good communication under stress. These defensive postures or stress positions are: placating, blaming, being overly reasonable, and being irrelevant. Placating means.
a. you disagree with all the other family members.
b. you pick a favorite family member and agree with him or her.
c. you ignore the other family members.
d. you try to please everybody out of a fear of rejection.
D. The placating style causes the individual to sacrifice his or her own needs as a way of dealing with stress.
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912. The placater is a people pleaser under stress while the blamer.
a. will sacrifice others to feel good about himself.
b. will often say �if it weren�t for you....�
c. will point the finger at others to avoid dealing with his or her own issues.
d. all of the above are typical behaviors of the blamer.
D. The blamer basically asserts that, �It�s your fault I�m the way I am.�
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913. The person who becomes overly reasonable.
a. practices excitation.
b. cries a lot during therapy sessions.
c. is likely to engage in the defense mechanism of intellectualization.
d. has a high degree of emotion.
C. Choice �a� is an old term for expressing true emotion�basically the opposite of what the overly reasonable person does! Some of the literature describes this individual as �functioning like a computer� to keep his or her emotions in check. The person is emotionally detached. Exam hint: Your test could refer to the overly reasonable client as the responsible analyzer.
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914. According to Satir, the individual displaying an irrelevant style.
a. will distract the family from the problem via constantly talking about irrelevant topics.
b. will become a people pleaser.
c. will analyze the situation more than most.
d. all of the above.
A. Choice �a� is typical of this dysfunctional type of communication. Choice �b� is clearly the pattern of the placater, while choice �c� describes the overly reasonable client.
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915. Virginia Satir is considered a leading figure in experiential family therapy. _______ is sometimes called the dean of experiential family therapy.
a. Ludwig von Bertalanffy.
b. Gregory Bateson.
c. Carl Whitaker.
d. Murray Bowen.
C. Okay, calm down! Nobody is asking you to learn to spell von Bertalanffy�s name�yet! His name often comes up in discussions of family therapy since Ludwig von Bertalanffy was the biologist who popularized the notion of the connectedness of all living things or the so-called systems theory model. The analogy is that the family is more than merely the separate persons but rather a system with rules, patterns that connect members, and so on. Murray Bowen based his family therapy on systems theory. The correct answer to this question is Carl Whitaker, who was fond of saying that experience, not education, changes families. Experience goes beyond consciousness, according to Whitaker and the best way to access the unconscious is symbolically. Exam hint: Your exam may refer to Whitaker�s approach as experiential symbolic family therapy.
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916. Carl Whitaker�s interaction with the family could best be described as.
a. quiet and empathic.
b. joining the family and experiencing it as if he were a family member.
c. a reality therapist.
d. a cognitive behavior therapist.
B. Whitaker, a psychiatrist by training, intentionally minimized the importance of theory, noting that therapeutic interaction is more of an art. Note that although some theories created for individual counseling (e.g., reality therapy or Adlerian) can be used with families and couples. Nevertheless, other approaches such as Whitaker�s that emphasize systems are unique and generally not covered in sources and courses that focus only on individual models.
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917. According to Whitaker.
a. a cotherapist is helpful.
b. a cotherapist should never be used.
c. a cotherapist should be used only with blended families.
d. all of the above could be true.
A. Whitaker felt that a cotherapist can provide meaningful feedback and allows the therapist to be an active participant in the therapy rather than merely a teacher.
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918. Psychotherapy of the absurd is primarily related to the work of.
a. Virginia Satir.
b. Carl Whitaker.
c. Maxie C. Maultsby, Jr.
d. William Glasser.
B. Whitaker could be wild at times. A couple who was in a power struggle, for example, might be asked to have a tug of war in order to prove who really had control! Maultsby�the psychiatrist in choice �c� is noted for creating rational self-counseling that is similar to Ellis�s REBT.
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919. A behavioristic marriage and family therapist is counseling the entire family together. She turns to the 18-year-old son who is attending community college and says, �You must complete your sociology essay before you can use the family car and go out with your friends.� Which theorist is primarily guiding her intervention strategy?
a. David Premack�s principle or law.
b. Ivan Pavlov and John B. Watson
c. B. F. Skinner
d. all of the above
A. Behaviorists who practice marriage and family therapy rely on the same theorists as individual practitioners of this persuasion. All of the theorists listed are behaviorists. Premack�s work, nevertheless, suggests that a family member must complete an unpleasant task (known as a low probability behavior LPB) before he or she would be allowed to engage in a pleasant task (known as a high probability behavior HPB).
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920. A behavioristic marriage and family counselor is counseling the entire family together. She turns to the 18-year-old son who is attending community college and says, �I know you like to play golf. Therefore, every time you cut the grass your father will take you to play golf. I am going to have you and your dad sign a contract that you agree with this policy.� Which principle is primarily guiding her strategy?
a. negative reinforcement.
b. thought stopping.
c. shaping with successive approximations.
d. quid pro quo.
D. In Latin quid pro quo means �one thing for another,� �something for something� or �this for that.� Gee, I knew there was some reason I spent two years studying a dead language in high school! Anyway, this technique, which generally makes use of a behavioral contingency contract, is based on the notion that one person in the family will do something as long as the other member agrees to do something comparable. Just for the record, all of the choices are behavioristic.
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921. A male is supervising a female counselor for state licensing. He tells her that he will continue to supervise her as long as she has sex with him. This is an example of.
a. quid pro quo.
b. a legal but not an ethical violation.
c. a and b.
d. none of the above.
A. Surprise! The correct answer is choice �a.� Here the term (i.e., quid pro quo) is being used in a different context in a negative manner that constitutes sexual harassment. Needless to say, the term still has �something for something� or �you do this for me and I�ll do this for you� connotations. Expect to see it in either context on your exam. Choice �b� is incorrect since this is indeed an ethical violation.
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922. A behavioristic family counselor suggests that the family chart the number of times that 6-year-old Billy says �no� when he is told to do something. The baseline of the chart would refer to.
a. the period when positive reinforcement is being implemented.
b. the period when negative reinforcement is being implemented.
c. the period when quid pro quo is being implemented.
d. the period before the behavior modification begins.
D. In behaviorism, a baseline is merely a measure of the behavior prior to the treatment or when treatment is not being implemented. Exam hint: On some exams the baseline is signified via the upper-ease letter �A� while the behavior modification treatment is written with an upper-case �B.�
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923. The family counselor explains to Mrs. Smith that the next time that 9-year-old Sally hits her little brother she must sit in the family room by herself. The counselor is using.
a. shaping.
b. shaping with successive approximations.
c. reciprocity.
d. time-out, a procedure that most behaviorists feel is a form of extinction.
D. Time-out occurs when a family member (usually a child) is isolated or removed from an environment for a specified period of time so as to ensure that he or she does not receive reinforcement for dysfunctional behavior.
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924. Mrs. Chance tells a family therapist that she pays all the bills, does all the cleaning, and brings in 90% of the family�s income. Moreover, Mrs. Chance is convinced that her husband does not appreciate her or show her affection. According to the behavioristic principle of family therapy known as reciprocity.
a. there is a good chance that Mrs. Chance will consider leaving the marriage.
b. it may seem paradoxical; nevertheless, Mrs. Chance will be more committed to making the marriage work.
c. it may seem paradoxical; nevertheless, Mr. Chance will consider leaving the marriage.
d. this situation will have virtually no impact on this couple�s marriage.
A. Yes, reciprocity can mean that one state accepts another state�s license or credential but that obviously isn�t what it means in this respect. In fact, if that crossed your mind, take a break, you�ve been studying too darn long! The concept of reciprocity in marriage asserts that in most cases two people will reinforce each other at about the same level over time. When this doesn�t happen marital discord may result.
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925. A couple is having sexual problems that stem from anxiety. A marriage counselor who is a strict behaviorist would most likely.
a. dispute the couple�s irrational thinking.
b. prescribe thought stopping.
c. rely on systematic desensitization procedures.
d. rely primarily on paraphrasing and reflection.
C. Joseph Wolpe�s systematic desensitization pairs feared mental imagery with relaxation to eliminate the fear and relaxation. Choice �a� isn�t necessarily a poor choice since it refers to rational-emotive behavior therapy (REBT; formerly known as RET or rational-emotive therapy) that does employ behavioristic techniques. Nevertheless, a strict behaviorist would be more likely to rely on apurist technique such as systematic desensitization.
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926. A family counselor notices that the husband in a blended family is having obsessive sexual thoughts about a woman living down the street. A strict behaviorist would most likely.
a. analyze the man�s dreams.
b. have him chart the incidence of the behavior, but do little else.
c. practice thought stopping.
d. rely primarily on Joseph Wolpe�s systematic desensitization.
C. Behavioral family therapy first appeared on the scene in the late 1960s, initially focusing on kids in the family who had problems. Psychologist Gerald Patterson (who popularized behavioral parent training in the family�s home), psychiatrist Robert Liberman, and social worker Richard Stuart (who created operant interpersonal therapy) are generally cited as the pioneers of this approach. Thought stopping is intended to do just what it sounds like�stop thoughts! The man would be taught to yell in his mind stop! as loudly as possible every time he experienced a sexual thought related to his neighbor.
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927. You secure a job as the executive director of a family counseling agency. As you go through your files you discover that five years before you took the job the agency selected 100 families and counseled them using a strict behaviorist model. The agency took the next group of 100 families and counseled them using Satir�s experiential conjoint family therapy model. Each family received 12 sessions of therapy and each family took a before-and after-assessment that accurately depicted how well the family was functioning. You decide to run a t test to examine whether or not a statistically significant difference is evident between the two approaches. This is.
a. an ex post facto (i.e., after the fact) correlation study.
b. causal-comparative or ex post facto (i.e., after the fact) research.
c. a true experiment.
d. simple survey research.
B. Since the research occurred in the past and the researcher did not have control over the independent variable this qualifies as causal-comparative research. The fact that a t test was used would allow you to eliminate choices �a� and �d.� Causal-comparative and correlational research and surveys are called nonexperimental designs.
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928. All of the techniques listed below would be used by a behavioristic family therapist except.
a. family sculpting.
b. a functional analysis of behavior followed by operant conditioning.
c. modeling.
d. chaining and extinction.
A. Family sculpting, popularized by Virginia Satir, is an experiential/expressive technique in which a family member places other family members in positions that symbolize their relationships with other members of the family. Finally, the member places him- or herself. This helps the therapist understand family dynamics that might be missing from a mere discussion of family issues.
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929. Which statement is true of families?
a. The divorce rate has decreased markedly in the last several years.
b. Remarriage today is uncommon.
c. Remarriage today is common.
d. The divorce rate in the United States hovers at about 10%.
C. Remarriage is almost as common as marriage! Approximately half of all marriages include a remarriage for one partner and in about 25% of all marriages both parties are getting remarried. Choices �a� and �d� are incorrect inasmuch as the divorce rate is stable at about 50%.
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930. Which statement is true?
a. Single life is short-lived for divorced persons. About 30% of all divorced persons are remarried within 12 months of being divorced.
b. Most persons who are divorced do not remarry.
c. Most persons who are divorced wait a minimum of five years to remarry.
d. Women remarry quickly, however, men do not.
A. Some experts forecast that in the 21st century stepfamilies may out number traditional families. After a divorce the median interval for remarrying is 2.3 years for men and just 2.5 years for women.
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931. The theory of psychodynamic family counseling is primarily associated with.
a. William Glasser.
b. Sigmund Freud.
c. Virginia Satir and Carl Whitaker.
d. Nathan Ackerman.
D. Although Freud is the Father of psychoanalysis, it was Ackerman�an analytically trained child psychiatrist�who as early as 1938, recommended studying the family and not just the child who was brought into treatment as the identified patient. Some experts consider this the true beginning of the family therapy movement. Because he was analytically trained, Ackerman�unlike many family therapists�was concerned with the internal feelings and thoughts of each individual as well as the dynamics between them. Prior to Ackerman it was considered inappropriate to include family members in analytic treatment sessions.
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932. In psychoanalytic family therapy the word object means.
a. a dream.
b. a significant other with whom a child wishes to bond.
c. transference.
d. countertransference.
B. This is the notion that an individual (or the individual�s ego) attempts to establish a relationship with an object�often a person or a part of the body�to satisfy needs. When this does not occur anxiety is manifested.
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933. In psychoanalytic family therapy the term introjects really means that the client.
a. internalizes the positive and negative characteristics of the objects within themselves.
b. possesses internal verbalizations.
c. possesses a finite number of problem solving options.
d. possesses the internal motivation to solve his or her own difficulties.
A. Eventually, these introjects (taking in personality attributes of others that become part of your own self-image) determine how the individual will relate to others.
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934. Pick the best example(s) of the psychoanalytic concept of splitting.
a. A client who realistically perceives her therapist as a very empathic person.
b. A client who realistically perceives her therapist as only having good qualities.
c. A client who sees her therapist as all bad.
d. b and c.
D. Splitting occurs when the client sees an object (another person) as either all good or all bad. Splitting allows one to keep anxiety in check by making objects predictable. This tendency begins in childhood, usually by categorizing one�s mother as all good or all bad. Removing dysfunctional introjects from childhood is curative.
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935. A 72-year-old woman you are counseling in a family reminds you of your mother and this is bringing up unresolved childhood issues for you as the counselor. This is an example of.
a. positive transference.
b. negative transference.
c. countertransference.
d. ambivalent transference.
C. Yes, I realize that I have introduced you to these concepts earlier in the text, nevertheless, repetition can help ensure that you truly understand the concepts. Countertransference occurs when a counselor has an unresolved issue that impacts the treatment. A strict psychodynamic theorist would assert that the counselor has an unconscious reaction to the family or the 72-year-old woman that is similar to a reaction he or she experienced in a previous situation; often his or her own childhood.
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936. A family actually changes the structure of their family system. According to Watzlawick, Weakland, and Fisch, the family has achieved.
a. second-order change that is more desirable than first-order change.
b. first-order change that is more desirable than second-order change.
c. mediation.
d. a Greek chorus.
A. Second-order change is indeed more desirable than first order change. Why? The answer is easy. First-order change can be defined as changes that are superficial. That is to say, behavioral changes do occur; however, the organization or structure of the system does not change. Therefore, first-order change often ameliorates symptoms but the changes are often temporary. Second-order change involves an actual change in the family structure that alters an undesirable behavioral pattern. Mediation�a term that is becoming more popular�refers to a procedure used by attorneys and trained mental health professionals to settle disputes between couples getting a divorce without going to court. Yes, my dear reader, choice �d� is a real bona fide must-know exam term. Peggy Papp�s Greek chorus refers to a consultant or supervisory team that observes a session from behind a one-way mirror and sends messages to the therapist or the family. This so-called treatment-team approach is very popular with strategic therapists. Keep in mind that the counselor may accept or reject notions put forth via the Greek chorus.
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937. A woman sees her husband as all good sometimes and all bad at others. An analytically trained family therapist who believes in object relations would see this as.
a. ambivalent transference.
b. splitting.
c. dysthymia.
d. psychotic behavior.
B. Here is another type of splitting (the first type is depicted in question 934). As a child this woman internalized an image of her mother as all good at times and all bad at others. She now adheres to this pattern as an adult. Choice �c,� dysthymia, is a term I would definitely commit to memory for your exam. It refers to a low level depression that occurs more days than not for at least one year in kids and teens and for at least two years in adults.
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938. Nathan Ackerman is considered a famous psychoanalytic family therapist; So are.
a. Carl Rogers and Albert Ellis.
b. Arnold Lazarus and Joseph Wolpe.
c. William Glasser and Robert Wubbolding.
d. James Framo and Robin Skynner.
D. Here�s a very brief minireview: Rogers is person-centered; Ellis is rational-emotive behavior therapy; Lazarus is multimodal therapy based on his BASIC ID structure; Wolpe is systematic desensitization (behavior therapy); and Glasser and Wubbolding are reality therapy. Framo believes that important objects (usually parents) often fuel �love�hate� feelings in kids. The more pathological the early life experiences are the more that person as an adult will make all relationships fit the internal �love�hate� scenario from childhood. Skynner (not Skinner!) is a British psychoanalyst who feels that kids who had poor role models as children possess protective systems. This simply means that such individuals harbor unrealistic expectations of people in current relationships carried over from childhood.
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939. Cloe Madanes and Jay Haley are associated with the _______ school of family counseling.
a. strategic.
b. behavioral.
c. psychodynamic.
d. object relations.
A. Haley is the name we associate most with this area. Haley was impacted by the late great Milton Erickson (not Erik Erikson!) who believed in �designing a strategy for each specific problem.� It has been said that Haley helped alter Erickson�s work so that it helped families as much as individuals. Haley actually coined the term strategic therapy to explain Erickson�s method.
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940. When Haley began investigating psychotherapy he.
a. was already trained as a Freudian analyst like so many other pioneers in the field.
b. was already trained as a behaviorist.
c. had studied REBT with Ellis.
d. had a degree in the arts and communication rather than the helping professions.
D. Could it be that Haley viewed his lack of formal training in the counseling field as an advantage? Possibly! While at the Philadelphia Child Guidance Clinic he and pioneer Salvador Minuchin trained people with virtually no background in psychotherapeutic intervention. Since these individuals did not harbor preconceived notions of what therapy should or should not be they were seemingly more open to innovative ideas.
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941. Jay Haley believes in giving clients directives. You are counseling a family and during the session the 14-year-old daughter exclaims that she is suicidal. The best example of a directive would be.
a. You turn to the 14-year-old daughter and say, �You seem to be saying that living is too painful.�
b. You turn to the 14-year-old daughter and say, �Could it be that you want to hurt yourself because your boyfriend no longer wishes to see you?�
c. You turn to the family and say, �If your daughter threatens suicide this week I want the entire family�including your daughter�to stay home and nobody leaves for the day.�
d. You turn to the family and say, �Could this be a family problem rather than a difficulty for your daughter?�
C. A directive or prescription is when the therapist tells a client or family what to do.
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942. Which of these responses is the best example of the double-bind concept used in Jay Haley�s strategic therapy? You are trying to help a client stop smoking.
a. You hypnotize her and tell her she will never smoke another cigarette again. After you awaken her you admonish her to smoke as many cigarettes as she can for the first three days.
b. You recommend that the client chart the number of cigarettes she smokes.
c. You tell her to mentally visualize herself as a nonsmoker whenever she has the desire to smoke.
d. All of the above.
A. A double bind is a no-win situation characterized by contradictory messages such as never smoke again and then smoke as much as you want. It constitutes a paradox in the sense that the client is told he or she can engage in a behavior that the person wishes to abate. Although it is used therapeutically, Gregory Bateson (mentioned previously) believed that when parents repeatedly double-bind children the result could be schizophrenia. Yes, my dear reader, a therapeutic technique resulted from studying pathological behavior. Choice �b� is not a great homework assignment, but it represents a behavioristic ploy. Choice �c� is also a possible mode of intervention. I have personally used the correct answer (choice �a�) and it tends to work well with smokers. A person who has just been hypnotized will do anything to prove that he or she can still smoke!
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943. The directive or prescription given to the smoker in the previous question could best be described as.
a. a paradoxical intervention.
b. a cognitive intervention.
c. an object relations intervention.
d. a behavioristic intervention.
A. A directive is really a therapeutic task or command. When a person follows a paradoxical directive the symptoms are under therapeutic control. So if the client in the previous question called the counselor and said, �Hey you hypnotized me and I smoked five cigarettes after the session,� the therapist could remark, �Well of course you did, I told you to smoke as many cigarettes as you could.� One definition of paradox is that the helper prescribes what the client or family would probably do anyway and can even tell them to exaggerate it! Paradox is roughly the direct antithesis of common sense and is a must-know concept for your exam!
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944. A couple tells a therapist using strategic family therapy that they have a quarrel at least once every evening. The therapist says, �Between now and the next time I see you I want you to have a serious quarrel at least twice every evening.� This is an example of.
a. relabeling, which is commonly used in this form of therapy.
b. refraining, which is commonly used in this form of therapy.
c. prescribing the symptom.
d. a directive that is not paradoxical or a double bind.
C. Choices �a� and �b� mean roughly the same thing and are used by Haley and his followers. Choice �d� stands incorrect since prescribing the symptom is a paradoxical strategy.
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945. Strategic family counselors often rely on relabeling or reframing. A client says his girl friend yells at him every time he engages in a certain behavior. The best example of reframing or relabeling would be.
a. a counselor who remarks, �Research seems to show that when she yells at you it is because she loves you so much. A woman often feels foolish if she hugs or kisses you in a situation like that.�
b. a counselor who remarks, �Can you tell me about it in the present moment, as if she is yelling at you this very minute?�
c. a counselor who remarks, �You are upset by her verbal assaults.�
d. a counselor who remarks, �Are you really hurt by your girl friend�s remarks or is it the fact that you are telling yourself how catastrophic it is that she said these things?�
A. Reframing occurs when you redefine a situation in a positive context (i.e., make the situation or behavior seem acceptable to the client). The situation is described in a positive light to evoke a different emotional response. Choice �c� is a technique used by Rogerian therapists while choice �d� would be a common response for an REBT family therapist.
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946. In strategic family counseling the person with the power in the family.
a. has the authority to make rules and enforce them.
b. is usually extremely aggressive.
c. is usually not willing to follow a family therapist�s prescriptions or directives.
d. is the one who talks the most.
A. Haley believes you enhance the power of a family member within the context of therapy by speaking to him or her first during the initial session of therapy.
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947. Psychoanalytic practitioners do not attack symptoms directly. Strategic therapy.
a. does not attack the symptoms directly either.
b. is pragmatic and often focuses on abating symptoms.
c. does not take a position on whether a counselor should attempt to ameliorate symptoms or not.
d. takes the position that if you can change each family member�s unconscious, then symptoms will gradually disappear.
B. Haley�s therapy is solution/symptom focused and very action oriented.
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948. Cloe Madanes insists that symptoms serve a function. A child, for example, sees that her mother is depressed. The daughter throws a glass cup to the floor to break it. This brings her mother out of the depressed state and makes her mother angry and powerful. This is known as.
a. symptom substitution.
b. the perverse triangle.
c. incongruous hierarchy.
d. latency.
C. Madanes believes that one of the keys to family functioning is to help children find more direct ways to help their parents so that their symptoms (in this case breaking one of the family�s cups!) no longer serve a viable purpose. In a normal family hierarchy, the mother controls her daughter; however, in this case, since the daughter is in control, the term incongruous hierarchy is evident. Haley has stated that a malfunctioning hierarchy is evident in most dysfunctional families. The strategic approach asserts that a symptom controls a situation when everything else has failed. A symptom is sometimes viewed as a metaphor for a difficulty being expressed by another family member.
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949. Madanes advocates pretend techniques that are somewhat paradoxical. An example might be.
a. a child who has panic attacks pretends he has a mental bullhorn in his head and shouts �stop.�
b. a child who has panic attacks pretends in his mind that a therapist is counseling him.
c. a child who has panic attacks pretends his dad is a therapist during the actual family therapy session.
d. a child who has panic attacks pretends to have one during the session and the parents pretend to help him.
D. In the pretending, the family enacts a make-believe scenario of the problem. Most experts maintain that the pretend technique is more gentle and less confrontational than traditional paradoxical interventions.
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950. A strategic family therapist says to a family, �I don�t know what else you can do to stop the bickering and fighting in your house.� This is an example of.
a. restraining.
b. quid pro quo.
c. pretending.
d. interpretation.
A. In restraining a therapist may warn the family or individual about the negative consequences of change. The counselor might tell the family to take it very slow or expect a relapse. Restraining helps overcome resistance by suggesting that it might be best if the family does not change!
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951. A client remarks that her depression is extremely intense. Her strategic counselor remarks, �It is very possible your depression is hopeless. It is possible you will never get over it.� Her comment is an example of.
a. a blatant ethical violation.
b. positioning.
c. cohesion.
d. behavioral disputation.
B. Who knows, at some point in time choice �a� could be the correct answer, however, choice �b� is currently correct. Positioning occurs when a helper accepts the client�s predicament and then exaggerates the condition. Positioning paints an even more negative picture of the situation for the client than restraining, mentioned in the previous question. The strategic techniques of restraining, positioning, prescribing the symptom, and relabeling (also called redefining and reframing on some exams) are all examples of paradoxical interventions since they defy common sense. Choice �c� refers to the degree of bonding between family members or members in a counseling group. Choice �d� is associated with Albert Ellis�s REBT. In REBT, the primary goal is to dispute and change the client�s cognitions. In behavioral dispute, the client tries to behave in away that is markedly different from his or her normal, though undesirable, pattern.
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952. A family counselor treats an Asian-American family exactly like he treats the Hispanic families in his caseload. He also imposes values from his own culture on them. This counselor has been described in the literature as.
a. culturally sensitive.
b. lacking cultural sensitivity.
c. culturally encapsulated, a term suggested by counseling pioneer Gilbert Wrenn.
d. b and c.
D. Cultural encapsulation results in a counselor imposing goals from his or her own culture on people from another culture. This is a no-no in counseling. Counselors who treat all families the same ignore key cultural differences.
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953. Which statement is true of African-American families?
a. They are the largest minority in the United States.
b. Fewer African Americans are getting married than at any time in history and out-of wedlock births account for two out of three first births to African-American women under the age of 35.
c. African Americans are less likely to be concerned about gender roles (e.g., men and women can cook meals or work outside of the home).
d. b and c.
D. Choice �a� is false since as of this writing African Americans constitute the second largest minority. Hispanics constitute the largest minority group.
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954. When working with an African-American family the best approach would probably be.
a. Bowen�s family therapy; Minuchin�s structural family therapy; or Jay Haley�s strategic family therapy.
b. cognitive family therapy.
c. Ackerman�s psychoanalytic approach to family therapy.
d. a strict reality therapy approach based on the work of psychiatrist William Glasser.
A. A high percentage of African-American families do not seek out professional treatment because they often rely on the extended family and the church for support and guidance. This is viewed as a strength. When family counseling is utilized, problem-focused, brief, or multigenerational approaches mentioned in the first choice seem to fare best.
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955. When counseling Asian-American families the best approach would most likely be.
a. Nathan Ackerman�s psychoanalytic approach.
b. behavioral family therapy.
c. solution focused/problem focused modalities.
d. a, b, and c.
C. Asian-American families also tend to use community resources on their own once the therapist has given them the appropriate information.
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956. Which statement is true of Hispanic families?
a. They have a high unemployment rate, often live in poverty, and rarely earn high school diplomas or college degrees.
b. They have higher than average incomes but usually don�t finish high school or college.
c. They have college degrees, but still generally live in poverty.
d. They prefer long-term treatment in therapy.
A. In general, Hispanic families have less education than non-Hispanics; have twice as many people living below the poverty level as non-Hispanics; and have a higher unemployment rate than non-Hispanics. Let me address choice �d.� In a high percentage of the cases Hispanic clients expect mental health treatment to mimic the treatment they receive from their medical doctors. Short-term behavioral family therapy or structural approaches appear to work well.
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957. A model by Olson, Sprenkle, and Russell suggests that family functioning can be described in two dimensions�cohesion and adaptability. The family therapy term cohesion refers to the level of emotional bonding between family members. Adaptability refers to.
a. a family�s level of enmeshment or disengagement.
b. a family�s ability to adapt to the therapist�s personality.
c. a family�s ability to adapt to the theoretical persuasion of the therapist.
d. how rigid, structured, flexible or chaotic the family is.
D. Choice �a� is incorrect since it clearly describes the family�s level of cohesion. Adaptability refers to the family�s balance between stability, known as morphostasis and change, known as morphogenesis. According to this model the key factor is that the family should have balance in cohesion as well as adaptability. This is the so-called circumplex family model. A word to the wise: Since a number of popular texts include information on this topic it is likely that you would see a question on one or more of the terms included in this question.
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958. Which statement is true regarding Native-American families?
a. They are a very diverse group as they belong to over 500 state-recognized tribes.
b. Extended family and the tribe are very significant.
c. A high percentage of children have been placed in foster care homes, residential facilities, or adoption homes that are non-Native American.
d. All of the above are true.
D. Most theorists agree that the result of choices �a,� �b,� and �c� (all true, by the way) has been identity confusion.
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959. The statement, �Native Americans have a problem with alcoholism and suicide,� is.
a. false.
b. true as far as alcoholism is concerned, however, false where suicide is concerned.
c. true.
d. true regarding the suicide rate, however, false regarding their use of alcoholic beverages.
C. Since the statement is true this creates issues with suicide bereavement (people mourning a suicide are known as �survivors of suicide�), fetal alcoholism, and cirrhosis of the liver.
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960. Murray Bowen is known for his work in intergenerational family therapy. When Bowen refers to triangulation he means.
a. that most people have three ego states (i.e., the Parent, the Adult, and the Child) in their personality.
b. that most people have a personality structure composed of the id, the ego, and the superego.
c. when a dyad (i.e., two individuals) is under stress a third person is recruited to help stabilize the difficulty between the original dyad. This could even be a child placed in the middle of the conflict.
d. therapy has three distinct phases.
C. Choice �a� is postulated via transactional analysis while choice �b� is the darling of the Freudians. Choice �c� is the correct answer. Unfortunately, the ploy usually makes the situation between the original pair worse!
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961. One of the primary goals of Bowen�s intergenerational family therapy is differentiation. Differentiation is.
a. the extent that one can separate one�s intellect from one�s emotional self.
b. the extent that one is different from one�s peers.
c. the extent that one is different from one�s childhood.
d. the same as fusion.
A. Did you mark choice �d�? If so, you�d be going back a space or two if this were a board game since fusion is the direct opposite of differentiation. It occurs when the intellectual and emotional aspects of the personality merge. A person who does not possess differentiation does not have a clear sense of the self and others.
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962. Bowen popularized a three-generational pictorial diagram as a therapy tool. This is known as.
a. an histogram.
b. asociogram.
c. a genogram.
d. family sculpting.
C. A genogram is a family tree of sorts that relies on lines, words, and geometric figures (e.g., squares for males, circles for females, horizontal lines for marriages, and vertical lines for children). If you�ve ever studied electronics you will note that a genogram looks a bit like a schematic. Bowen suggested that the genogram should depict three or more generations.
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963. An intergenerational family therapist says she is concerned with the nuclear family emotional system. She is referring to.
a. the fact that although the current family in therapy has an emotional system, this emotional system is influenced by previous generations whether they are alive or dead.
b. the fact that a genogram should depict a single generation.
c. the fact that emotional discord is a function of the unconscious mind.
d. the miracle question.
A. The �miracle question� introduced in choice �d� is a common term popping up on exams these days. The miracle question is a brief-therapy technique in which the therapist asks, �Suppose one night, while you were asleep, there was a miracle and this problem was solved. How would you know? What would be different?� The miracle question�popularized by the solution-oriented therapy of Steve de Shazer�allows clients to look beyond the problem. Bowen originally referred to the nuclear family emotional process as an �undifferentiated family ego mass� since families with difficulties display a high degree of fusion.
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964. Albert Ellis is to REBT as Salvador Minuchin is to.
a. the MRI model.
b. structural family therapy.
c. intergenerational family counseling.
d. behavioral family counseling.
B. Note that choice �a� uses the abbreviation MRI for Mental Research Institute in Palo Alto, California. Haley�s strategic model has also been called the MRI model or the communications model. To answer the question you would need to know that Ellis is the father of Rational-Emotive Behavior Therapy while Minuchin is the founder of action oriented structural family therapy. This approach posits that an individual�s behavior can only be interpreted by analyzing family interaction. Moreover, a change in the family�s patterns of communication and interaction must occur to create a healthy family. Here again, play with a memory device like �Salvador begins with an S and so does structural.�
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965. An important technique in structural family therapy is joining. Which statement most accurately depicts this intervention?
a. The therapist meets, greets, and attempts to bond with the family. The therapist will use language similar to that of the family and mimesis which means that he or she will mimic communication patterns.
b. The therapist is professional but distant.
c. The therapist joins the family and sympathizes with their difficulties.
d. Joining is used during the final session of therapy.
A. Joining occurs during the initial session to boost the family�s confidence in the treatment process and reduce resistance. In subsequent sessions the therapist will challenge the dysfunctional communication patterns and the structure of the family.
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966. A family is seeing a structural family therapist because there is a huge argument every time the subject of the 16-year-old daughter�s boyfriend comes up. The therapist says, �Okay, I want you to play like you are at home and act out precisely what transpires when the subject of your daughter�s boyfriend is mentioned.� The structural family therapist is using a technique called.
a. joining.
b. reframing (defined as an alternative way of describing or perceiving an event).
c. enactment.
d. cognitive disputation.
C. Enactment is a strategy that allows the counselor to see an instant replay, if you will, of what genuinely transpires in the family. Although �c� is the correct answer here structural therapists do employ refraining and relabeling discussed in earlier questions.
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967. When a structural therapist uses the term boundaries he or she really means.
a. the limits of the human mind.
b. the limits of behavior in the family.
c. the separation of the family members from their family of origin.
d. the physical and psychological entities that separate individuals and subsystems from others in the family.
D. When structural therapists attempt to help the family create healthy boundaries it is known as changing boundaries or the boundary marking technique. In this technique the family is seating is often altered and family members are placed at a different distance from each other.
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968. In Minuchin�s structural approach, clear boundaries are.
a. pathological.
b. rigid.
c. also called diffuse boundaries.
d. ideal�firm yet flexible.
D. Clear boundaries are considered healthy. When boundaries are clear persons in the family are supported and nurtured, but each has the freedom to be his or her own person (i.e., individuate).
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969. A woman is having difficulties at her place of employment. Her husband turns to her in a session and says, �You�re on your own, I�ve got my own problems.� A structural family therapist would assert that the boundaries between this couple are.
a. rigid.
b. clear.
c. diffuse.
d. a combination of a and c.
A. Rigid boundaries are characterized by individuals or subsystems being disengaged. What will the wife do in this situation? Well, according to this theory she will seek support outside of the family system.
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970. A mother insists on accompanying her 20-year-old daughter on a date. A structural therapist would assume that.
a. the family has clear boundaries.
b. the family has rigid boundaries.
c. the family has diffuse boundaries.
d. the family supports individuation.
C. Okay, so some of you overprotective moms out there thought I should have included a choice �e��cautious! Very funny. The answer I was looking for, nonetheless, was choice �c,� diffuse boundaries. Minuchin does not feel that the �I devote my life to my children� mentality is a healthy one. In fact, he believes that if the spousal subsystem becomes obsessed with parenting the child will be afraid to experiment and thus could mature slowly. This child will often have trouble making friends outside of the home. When such individuals get married they rely far too much on their family of origin. Such children often grow up to not feel comfortable when they are alone.
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971. Minuchin would often mimic the family�s style. This is known as.
a. cognitive disputation.
b. the structural map.
c. permeable boundaries.
d. none of the above.
D. Minuchin did rely on a so-called structural map with symbols to diagram the structure of the family, but of course, choice �b� is not the correct answer. Choice �d� is correct. The correct term is mimesis and it implies that the therapist copies the family�s style. This helps the therapist join the family and helps the family accept him or her as a helper.
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972. Ackerman is psychodynamic. Haley is strategic. Minuchin is structural. Bowen is intergenerational. Another well-known intergenerational family therapist would be.
a. Alfred Adler.
b. the Hungarian analytically trained psychiatrist Ivan Boszormenyi-Nagy (enunciated Naahge).
c. Andrew Salter.
d. Mara Selvini-Palazzoli.
B. Boszormenyi-Nagy�thank your lucky stars you need not know how to spell it for the exam�discusses the importance of give-and-take fairness or relational ethics in the family. According to the notion of relational ethics a healthy family can negotiate imbalances and preserve a sense of fairness and accountability. Boszormenyi-Nagy introduced the term family legacy, which refers to expectations handed down from generation to generation. He is also known for his family ledger technique. The ledger is a multigenerational balance sheet or accounting system, if you will. The ledger outlines who gave what to whom and who owes what to whom. Mara Selvini-Palazzoli is associated with Milan systematic family therapy.
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973. A family member who is emotionally distant is.
a. disengaged.
b. enmeshed.
c. an example of equifinality.
d. a placater.
A. Disengagement is often defined as an isolated lack of connectedness between family members.
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974. During the course of a family session you discover that a man and his 14-year-old boy are putting pressure on mom to quit her job. Mom very much likes her work. In Haley�s theory this set of dynamics would be called.
a. reframing.
b. equifinality.
c. the perverse triangle.
d. paradox.
C. The perverse triangle is a situation when two members who are at different levels of the family hierarchy (usually a coalition between parent and a child) team up against another family member. The alliance between the parent and the child may be overt or covert. In any event, the alliance against the other parent undermines his or her power and authority.
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975. _______ was a pioneer in the early history of family therapy.
a. Carl Jung.
b. David Wechsler.
c. Alfred Adler.
d. Franz Anton Mesmer.
C. Adler opened over 30 child guidance clinics in Vienna in the 1920s that were later eliminated by the Nazi Party in 1934. These clinics would often perform open forum therapy in which Adler worked with the family as well as the open forum audience.
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976. Which therapist could best be described as atheoretical?
a. Jay Haley.
b. Carl Whitaker.
c. Alfred Adler.
d. Nathan Ackerman.
B. Whitaker asserted that theory is often used as an excuse to keep therapists emotionally distant from the family. Whitaker promoted �craziness� (not a typo!) and creativity of family members.
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977. Solution-Oriented therapy as practiced by William O�Hanlon, Insoo Kim Berg, Steve de Shazer, and Michelle Weiner Davis focuses primarily on.
a. the past.
b. the present.
c. the future.
d. dream analysis.
C. This approach puts little or no emphasis on understanding the problem. The therapist�s verbalizations center on the future. The therapist coformulates a plan of action with the client or family. There may be more than one appropriate course of action.
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978. Narrative therapy (NT), which highlights stories in counseling, is associated with the work of.
a. William O�Hanlon.
b. William Glasser.
c. Milton H. Erickson.
d. Michael White, his wife Cheryl White, and David Epston.
D. Narrative therapy fits in a new category of treatment known as postmodernism or constructivism. Constructivism or social constructivism asserts that a client constructs or invents the way he or she perceives the world. Clients come up with a story about their lives and they can reauthor these stories in therapy. Simply put: Reality is invented or constructed; it is not objective. The Whites and Epston believe that every country and culture espouses viewpoints or social narratives. Social narratives dictate what a family ought to be like. In narrative therapy the therapist asks questions or uses language to externalize the problem. Externalize, in this case, means to separate the problem from the person. The therapist utilizing this approach teams up with the family to take on the enemy (i.e., the problem). Thus, a therapist working with a family with an abusive spouse might say to the abuser, �I know you want to put an end to this violence. Tell me about a time when you stopped a violent episode that keeps you from being the wonderful, loving husband you want to be.�
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979. Postmodernist Tom Anderson, a psychiatrist from Norway, became disenchanted with traditional family therapy. He began using a radical approach based primarily on.
a. a one-way mirror and a reflecting treatment team.
b. three therapists.
c. the gestalt empty chair technique.
d. homework assignments.
A. Postmodernism is a key concept that assumes that there are no fixed truths in the world, only people�s individual perceptions of what constitutes reality or the truth. This technique was discovered when Anderson asked a family if they would like to hear what the team was saying about them. The family said �yes.� The family and the family therapist listen as the team (called a reflecting team) discusses the case. Finally, the therapist processes the family�s reaction to the team�s observations. A number of schools of family therapy have now incorporated this technique. Constructivism is not really a unified therapy based on a single individual but rather the theorists mentioned in this question as well as the trail blazers mentioned in the previous two questions. The theory stresses that therapy should be less hierarchical. A helper does not treat a client. Instead the client and the therapist have a conversation to work together in a collaborative effort.
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980. Feminist therapy criticizes traditional therapies.
a. because they are androcentric (i.e., they use male views to analyze the personality).
b. because they are gendercentric (i.e., they assume that there are two separate psychological developmental patterns�one for men and one for women).
c. because they emphasize heterosexism and debase samesex relationships.
d. all of the above.
D. Feminist counselors often wisely note that a psychological difficulty can be located in the environment or the political system, rather than in the person (i.e., intrapsychic). A woman who is depressed because she is being beaten by her partner would be an excellent example. In the case of a woman who is making less money for the same job the phrase �the personal is political� rings true. In a nutshell, feminist therapies are said to be �gender free,� in the sense that differences between men and women are seen to be the result of socialization�not whether they are male or female. Like the postmodernists, the feminist therapists attempt to have an egalitarian relationship with the client. Bibliotherapy, appropriate therapist disclosure, and assertiveness training are often used. This modality tends to dispute sex-role stereotypes (e.g., women are less assertive and less aggressive than men). Feminists strive for equality in human relationships and the counselor can help in this area by avoiding complex clinical jargon. Many feminist practitioners have a person-centered slant to their work. Can a male be an effective feminist therapist? Well, as it now stands, the feminists themselves are not in agreement on this issue. It is common, nevertheless, for feminist therapists to work with male batterers. Your exam might refer to feminist counseling as gender-fair counseling. One interesting fact related to the women�s counseling movement and its emphasis on abating sexism is that it helped illuminate the special issues in counseling men, masculinity, and men�s psychology. Since the early to mid-1980s, counseling and clinical services for men have become much more commonplace. One interesting finding is that parents and society are more tolerant of girls who adopt masculine behaviors, than of boys who take on feminine behaviors. In childhood, young girls are often reinforced for showing emotions. This is generally not the case with boys who are reinforced for physical pursuits and not showing affective/emotional expression. Men are therefore less likely to seek out counseling services and may do so only when they are experiencing a crisis. When men do engage in counseling services their competitiveness can help them work hard to succeed.
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981. The term skeleton keys as used in Steve de Shazer�s brief solution-focused therapy (BSFT) indicates.
a. a standard or stock intervention that will work for numerous problems.
b. a technique where the client goes home to see his or her family of origin.
c. a technique that works for one specific problem, but usually will not work with other difficulties.
d. a technique in which the therapist hands the client or clients a sheet of paper with a compliment on it.
A. Choice �d,� although it is not the correct answer, is a de Shazer technique that has been dubbed simply as a compliment. When using a similar technique known as past successes the therapist may also compliment past successes without specifically relating them to the current obstacles. Brief therapy is sometimes abbreviated as BT.
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982. One criticism of using cognitive-behavioral methods like REBT with families or individuals in multicultural counseling would be.
a. that the theory is not intended to be used with diverse populations.
b. the theory suggests that the therapist must have ethnic or racial ties with the client in order for efficacious treatment to occur.
c. that it ignores present moment problems.
d. that the cognitive disputation could go against cultural messages.
D. Another criticism is that Ellis views dependency as unhealthy and some cultures see interdependence as a positive attribute.
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983. Most experts predict that in the 21st century, theories of counseling and psychotherapy will.
a. become more integrative, since about 30 to 50% of all therapists say they are eclectic.
b. become more behavioristic, since this is the approach that uses statistical outcomes.
c. become more Rogerian, since the world as a whole is becoming more humanistic.
d. not tolerate eclecticism, since it is not scientific.
A. Will we see an end to therapy wars as we know them? Is the battle between psychotherapeutic and counseling modalities winding down? It would seem that the answer is yes. The trend is clearly toward integration. Theorists and practitioners alike have discovered that one theory is never extensive enough to include all behaviors. In addition, studies often indicate that one approach is not necessarily superior to another, or to put it very simply: most approaches are equal in terms of their therapeutic value. Persons who pay allegiance to one school of psychotherapy are now incorporating approaches from other (sometimes rival!) modalities. So much for the therapy wars of the 20th century. Expect to see the term integrative psychotherapy more frequently in the coming years. One notion is that theories of counseling are helpful because they have elements that are common to all approaches. This is called a �common factor approach.� Another theory about why integrative counseling works is that regardless of the paradigm there are �common stages of change.�
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984. Pick the most accurate statement.
a. Brief solution-oriented therapy requires the use of a one-way mirror with a treatment team behind the mirror.
b. Brief solution-oriented therapy does not utilize a treatment team behind a one-way mirror.
c. Brief solution-oriented therapy sometimes uses a treatment team behind a one-way mirror, nevertheless, it is not required.
d. Brief solution-oriented therapy does not utilize paradoxical interventions.
C. Brief solution-oriented strategic therapy often relies on paradox; hence, choice �d� is incorrect. On brief strategic/family therapy questions on your exam, the term ecosystems refers to the fact that larger systems often impact client and family functioning (e.g., the schools, church, or health care system). An ecosystemic approach always takes these larger systems into account.
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985. A researcher takes a group of clients and gives them a depression inventory. He then provides each client with two sessions of brief solution-oriented therapy and gives them the same depression inventory. A t test is used to compare the two sets of scores on the same people (i.e., the before and after measures of depression). This would be.
a. a between-groups design.
b. a correlation coefficient.
c. a related measures within-subject design.
d. survey research.
C. In the within-subjects design, each subject acts as his or her own control. The between-groups design (which relies on separate people in the control and experimental groups) is a much more popular form of research. When a single group is used in research or two groups that are not equivalent your exam will probably refer to this situation as a preexperimental design.
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986. A question on the NCE or CPCE regarding a preexperimental design uses the letters XO. The letters stand for.
a. X stands for treatment and O stands for observation, measurement, or score.
b. X is the mean while O implies that no treatment was given.
c. X is the median while O stands for other group.
d. X stands for treatment while O is the number of observations taken.
A. Experimental designs are often diagrammed. The most popular abbreviations are: O for observation, measurement, or score�O is the DV or dependent variable in the experiment; X for treatment; E for experimental group; C for control group; R for random sampling; and NR for no random sampling of groups. Hence, the preexperimental design in the last group could be connoted by:
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Pretest: O (since a score was accrued)
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Treatment: X (in this case two sessions of brief-solution oriented therapy)
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Posttest: O (since another score was accrued)
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If you were not acquainted with these abbreviations in graduate school I highly recommend you reread this question several times!
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987. Another type of preexperimental design is the one-group only posttest design. This is best depicted by.
a. OXO.
b. XO.
c. OX.
d. XX.
B. Okay, let�s walk through this quagmire together. The group only receives treatment (remember a capital X) and a score (that would be O) so the correct answer is choice �b.� What would the correct sequence be for the previous question? Choice �a� since the group received a test (O), treatment (X), and then another test (O). Geez! I wonder if researchers stay up all night trying to come up with abbreviations and nomenclature to make exams more difficult. We should get together and do a study on that one! If the results are significant I�m certain we can find a journal dealing with psychopathology that will be more than happy to put our findings in print.
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988. A time-series design is a quasi-experimental design.
a. that utilizes two randomly chosen groups; a control group and an experimental group.
b. that relies on multiple observations of the dependent variable (i.e., the thing you are measuring) before and after the treatment occurs.
c. a and b.
d. is not depicted by any of the answers above.
B. Choice �a� is incorrect since two randomly chosen groups would constitute a true experiment. Using our abbreviations this design would look something like this: O1, O2, O3, X, O4, O5, O6.
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989. The Solomon four-group is considered a true experimental design since each group is chosen via a random sample. When using this design.
a. all groups receive a pretest.
b. there is no pretest.
c. one control group receives a pre-test and one experimental group receives a pretest; the other control group and experimental group do not.
d. there is no posttest.
C. In this design one pair of control/experimental groups receives a pretest while the other pair does not. This design helps weed out the impact of a pretest.
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990. Which group would most likely avoid eye contact with the counselor and benefit from assertiveness training?
a. African/Black Americans.
b. Asian Americans.
c. European Americans.
d. All of the above.
B. The best answer is choice �b�; however, many African Americans (or perhaps African/Black Americans on your exam) seem to avoid eye contact while listening but not while speaking.
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991. The newest career theory would be.
a. constructivist and cognitive approaches.
b. the trait-and-factor approach.
c. the developmental and psychoanalytic approaches.
d. the transactional analysis approach.
A. Career experts wonder if traditional theories are applicable now since the majority were based on research using White middle-class males, which is hardly representative of the work market today that includes more people of color, a large number of women and teens, and more persons from lower socioeconomic classes.
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992. A popular TWA career counseling model by Renee V. Dawis and Lloyd Lofquist uses the abbreviation PEC. This stands for.
a. Person Emotion Consequence.
b. Person Education Consequence.
d. Person Environment Correspondence.
d. Person Environment Consequence.
C. Wait a minute! What in the world does TWA stand for? It stands for Theory of Work Adjustment or what Dawis considers her �greatest accomplishment� (with the help of Lofquist, whom she admits had equal input). This theory posits that the person must fit the job (i.e., the correspondence or congruence between the individual and the work must be high), and also that the work must meet the needs of the person. In other words the relationship works both ways. This theory therefore espouses that higher work satisfaction generally results in greater productivity. Work adjustment is basically the match between the expectations of the employee and the expectations of the place he or she is working. Tests are routinely used in this model to assess one�s work personality, abilities, and needs. Criticisms? Well pundits charge that the theory does not take into account the fact that the individual changes over time. So does the work environment.
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993. Most experts believe that the number of multigenerational families with a child, a parent, and a grandparent will.
a. decrease.
b. increase.
c. remain static.
d. will continue to go up and down on a fairly regular basis.
B. The number of families of this ilk nearly doubled between 1980 and 1990. When the economy goes into a recession and young adults can�t afford to live on their own they often live with their family. In addition, as more people live longer, the number will go up since many of the older folks are incapable of caring for themselves. And just in case your exam asks, the number of single adults in the United States is also increasing.
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994. A researcher wants to prove that structural family therapy is the most effective modality. She conducted a study a year ago using a significance level of .05. Several colleagues felt her significance level needed to come down. She thus ran the same basic experiment again with new people using a significance level of .01. Her chances of making a Type I error or so-called alpha error went down. Now assume you compare her new research with her old research. What could you say about the possibility that her results will indicate that structural family therapy was not significantly different when in reality it truly is significant?
a. Statistically, nothing.
b. The chance of this occurring will go down when compared to the first experiment.
c. The chance of this occurring increases when compared to the first experiment.
d. It would totally depend on the sample size.
C. The situation described in this question is a Type II error or so-called Beta error. When the chance of making a Type I error goes down (as stated in the question) then the probability of making a Type II error goes up. Type I and Type II errors are like a see-saw�as one goes up the other goes down. Why do you think I called this section advanced?
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995. A question on the NCE asks you to compute the coefficient of determination. You are given a correlation coefficient of .70. How would you mathematically accomplish this task?
a. You would subtract .70 from a perfect correlation of 1.00.
b. You would multiply the mean of the population by .70.
c. You would add .70 to a perfect correlation of 1.00.
d. You would square the .70.
D. The coefficient of determination is computed by squaring the correlation coefficient. Thus, in this case the variance would be 49%.
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996. A correlation coefficient between variables X and Y is .60. If we square this figure we now have the coefficient of determination or true common variance of 36%. What is the coefficient of nondetermination that shows unique rather than common variance?
a. There is no such concept.
b. You would subtract 36 from 100.
c. It would still be36%.
d. It would be 64%.
D. You subtract the coefficient of determination from 100.
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997. Krumboltz proposes a _______ model of career development.
a. social learning.
b. trait-and-factor.
c. developmental.
d. psychoanalytic.
A. Krumboltz builds on the social learning theory of Albert Bandura. Krumboltz insists that learning not interests guide people into a certain occupation. In addition, changes of interest, hence jobs, occur due to learning. This theory notes that career decisions are influenced by: (a) Genetic endowment and special abilities (e.g., a certain physique); (b) Environmental conditions and events (e.g., a government policy or an earthquake); and (c) instrumental learning (e.g., positive reinforcement for solving math problems)/association learning (e.g., a client wants to go to medical school because everyone in the family loves her uncle who is a physician).
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998. Krumboltz�s social learning theory is sometimes referred to as a cognitive theory because it emphasizes beliefs that clients have about themselves as well as the world of work. When Krumboltz speaks of self-observation generalizations he really means.
a. generalizations regarding a given occupation and how successful the client would be in the occupation.
b. Pavlov�s principle of stimulus generalization.
c. Skinner�s principle of operant conditioning.
d. that in career counseling your primary concern is the manner in which people view themselves and their ability to perform in an occupation.
D. Choice �a,� though incorrect, is what Krumboltz calls worldview generalizations that are also important when counseling a client.
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999. SCCT stands for.
a. social-cognitive career theory.
b. social-cognitive family therapy.
c. self-control career theory.
d. self-contained career therapy.
A. Social-cognitive career theory asserts that self-efficacy beliefs can influence one�s career decisions. A woman, for example, may have very good math skills, nevertheless, she might not consider the field due to the belief that women are not as proficient in math as men. Self-efficacy really deals with the personal question of, �Can I really do this and what will happen if I try to do this?�
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1000. Career counselors refer to job shadowing and volunteering as _______ activities, while reading the job hunting book What Color Is Your Parachute? would be _______.
a. noninteractive; interactive.
b. interactive; noninteractive.
c. interactive; interactive.
d. noninteractive; noninteractive.
B. With noninteractive activities and media (e.g., a book, speech, or video regarding a job or career) the client has some control over the process. Noninteractive approaches to career decision have been called linear. On the other hand, interactive approaches (e.g., a field visit to a business, interviewing a worker in a given field, or a computer based career guidance system) are said to be nonlinear. Interactive approaches are often more expensive and reduce the influence or control that the client has over the process. A counselor could decide that she no longer wishes to read a job pamphlet, however, she cannot control the hours of employment of the agency she is visiting.
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1001. Urie Bronfenbrenner is one of the codevelopers of the National Head Start Program. He proposed a theory of development that is.
a. essentially the same as Piaget�s constructivism.
b. almost identical to Watson�s behaviorism.
c. an ecological systems theory that stresses the microsystem (any immediate or close relationships or organizations the child interacts with); the mesosystem (the way microsystems work together such as family and school); the exosystem (i.e., the school, church, neighborhood, parents� places of employment, in essence other places the child interacts with but not as often); and the macrosystem (i.e., the largest and most remote system which includes, culture, wars, the federal government, and customs).
d. based on 12 discrete stages.
C. Although choice �a� is incorrect, Piaget�s approach is a constructivism theory of cognitive development. Bronfenbrenner, born in Russia, is credited with creating the theory of human ecology. Hint: Bronfenbrenner�s theory is not a stage theory!
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1002. Before _______ child psychologists studied the child, sociologists studied the family, anthropologists studied society, economists analyzed the economic framework, and political scientists investigated the political structure.
a. James W. Fowler.
b. Daniel Levinson.
c. Urie Bronfrenbrenner.
d. Nancy Chodorow.
C. Various forms of this statement, which refers to Bronfrenbrenner, are alive, well, and living in a glut of books, journal articles, and scholarly Internet sites; hence, it occurred to me that it could rear it�s head on a professional exam. Levinson, you will recall postulated that the human lifespan has several stressful transition periods. He also postulated the now popular term midlife crisis; however, research indicates that the majority of people do not experience it. Fowler�s name is associated with faith development, while sociologist Nancy Chodorow, is a psychoanalytic feminist. Chodorow feels that the domestic ideal caused oppression in women.
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1003. The school psychometrician refers Katie to you for individual counseling. She indicates that Katie�s IQ is at the 50th percentile. Katie�s IQ.
a. is in the mentally retarded range.
b. cannot be estimated based on this statistic.
c. is approximately 100.
d. is well above the norm for children her age.
C. See Figure 13.1 of the normal curve in the graphical representations section of the book. Note that the 50th percentile is directly in the middle of the normal curve. Since an average IQ is approximately 100, this would be the best answer.
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1004. The psychometrician calls you to tell you that she has another student who has an IQ that falls near the 84th percentile. This student�s IQ.
a. is somewhere in the gifted range, say 140.
b. is most likely near 105.
c. is approximately 115.
d. is between 75 and 80.
C. Here again, take a look at the normal curve. The 84th percentile is about a standard deviation above the mean. A standard deviation above the mean is roughly 15 IQ points above the mean or 100 plus 15 or an IQ of 115. Again I ask you, why do you think we call it the advanced section?
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1005. An exam has a mean of 50 and a standard deviation of 20. Phil has a score of 90. His score would fall.
a. at the 40th percentile.
b. at the 5th stanine.
c. near the 98th percentile and the 9th stanine.
d. in the 6th stanine.
C. Some folks who have taken their comprehensive exams claim that it helps to draw a watered down version of the normal curve with a few percentages, z-scores, t-scores, and stanines on scratch paper (provided at the exam site) before beginning the exam. Needless to say, you�ll need to practice drawing the curve before sitting for the exam or else your numbers could be wrong resulting in a string of incorrect answers! In any event, if you take Phil�s score of 90 you can see that it is two standard deviations above the mean since one standard deviation is 20. Looking at the normal curve you can see that this is an exceptionally high score placing it in the top or 9th stanine.
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1006. Mrs. Kim wanted her daughter to attend a private school for gifted children who have very high intelligence. Mrs. Kim�s daughter took the Otis Lennon IQ test. Her T score was 80. Kim�s counselor knew that.
a. Mrs. Kim would be very upset because her daughter�s low score would not allow her to be admitted.
b. Mrs. Kim would be elated because her daughter scored exceptionally high and would be admitted.
c. she could not give Kim mother any feedback since a T-score tells you nothing about one�s actual IQ score.
d. a T-score of 80 is very average.
B. Take a look at the normal curve and wow, Mrs. Kim�s daughter blew the lid off the test with a truly superior IQ score of nearly 150. Since a gifted IQ is generally around 135 you can bet your bottom dollar she will be admitted to the school.
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1007. The mean score on a new counseling exam is 65. The standard deviation is 15. Tanja scored a 35. This tells us that.
a. she had a z score of +1.
b. she had a z score of -1.
c. she had a t score of 40.
d. she had a z score of -2.0.
D. The z score is the same as the standard deviation. In this case Tanja scored two standard deviations below the mean.
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1008. Kia was given a new client with a morbid fear of heights. Her supervisor emphasized that he wanted her to use the most hi-tech form of treatment available. Kia should use.
a. VRT.
b. William Glasser�s new reality therapy with choice theory.
c. Joseph Wolpe�s systematic desensitization (also known as reciprocal inhibition) a form of behavior therapy that works well with fears
d. REBT created by Albert Ellis, which was once called RET.
A. If you�ve been out of grad school for eons of time�and I include myself in this category�then VRT would be totally unfamiliar. Virtual reality therapy (VRT) has been dubbed in many sources as �the next best thing to being there.� Clients are hooked to a computer by wearing head gear. The computer simulates are real life situation such as being high up in a glass elevator (or whatever the problem is). This is termed virtual reality. Dr. Barbara Rothbaum, created this behavioristic approach. The client experiencing the virtual environment (or VE) generally has the same physiological reactions as he or she would experience in an actual situation such as a higher heart rate and sweaty palms. Initial research on VRT with clients who have a fear of flying shows that it is as effective as treatment using exposure to the actual feared stimuli and that VRT clients do make more progress than those in a control group. Could this be the next big thing? Stay tuned!
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1009. The DSM provides diagnostic criteria for mental retardation. It states that.
a. the client must have an IQ score of 70 or below on an individually administered IQ test and the onset of the condition must be prior to age 18.
b. the client must have an IQ score on any IQ test below 70.
c. The client must have an IQ score on an individually administered IQ test and the onset of the condition must be prior to age 21.
d. The client must have an IQ of 85 or below on an individual or a group IQ test.
A. Contrary to popular belief, mental retardation is not always present throughout the lifespan. Training is capable of raising IQ scores. Exam reminder: A diagnosis of mental retardation or a personality disorder (e.g., Borderline Personality Disorder or BPD) will be recorded on Axis II of the DSM. Group IQ tests are not considered as accurate as individually administered tests. The individual IQ test is the gold standard; however, IQ testing is a very controversial topic.
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1010. Measures of central tendency are used to summarize data. A counseling researcher wants to use a measure of central tendency which reacts to every score in the distribution. He will thus.
a. use the median, or middle score when the data are ranked from lowest to highest. The median divides the distribution in half since half the scores will fall above the median, while half the scores will fall below the median.
b. use the mode, which is the most frequently occurring score or category.
c. use the mean, which has been termed the arithmetic average.
d. use the median or the mode.
C. Repeat after me three times aloud: The mean is the only measure of central tendency which reacts to every score in the distribution. Although the mean has been called the most useful average, it has the mixed blessing of being misleading when a distribution contains very high or abnormally low scores�sometimes even a single extreme score. Take this common example that has been used a thousand times before, but illustrates this nicely. Bill Gates decides to take one of your graduate courses in counseling (fat chance, right). If you were to figure the mean income for the class it would suggest that the average student was a multimillionaire! Case closed. Exam hint: The median would generally be superior to the mean when you have a skewed distribution with a glut of high or low extreme scores.
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1011. Which theorist would most likely assert that EQ is more important than IQ?
a. David Wechsler.
b. Alfred Binet.
c. Charles Spearman.
d. Daniel Goleman.
D. EQ incidentally stands for emotional intelligence. EQ would encompass traits such as empathy, impulse control, motivation, and the ability to love. According to Daniel Goleman in his popular book Emotional Intelligence: Why It Can Matter More Than IQ it is EQ rather than IQ that determines success.
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1012. A counseling agency decides to pay their employees once a week. The agency is using a.
a. fixed interval schedule of reinforcement.
b. a variable interval schedule of reinforcement.
c. a fixed ratio schedule of reinforcement.
d. a variable ratio schedule of reinforcement.
A. This question is as old as the hills (yes even older than the Bill Gates example, in fact Bill probably didn�t own a computer when this one first surfaced), but that means there is an excellent chance it will pop up (or at least a version of it) on your comprehensive exam. Since the employee gets paid every seven days this must be a fixed schedule. Moreover, since it involves time it must be an interval scale. Forget about this question for a moment. In everyday life when we refer to the passage of time we say �time interval.� Hence, your handy dandy memory device can be that all interval scales deal with time.
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1013. As a gambling addiction counselor Laura is well aware that slot machines operate on a.
a. variable ratio schedule of reinforcement.
b. variable interval schedule of reinforcement.
c. fixed ratio schedule of reinforcement.
d. reinforcement system that counselors truly cannot explain.
A. Another good old typical reinforcement question. Since the slot machine does not operate on time (e.g., pays off every 20 minutes) then it is not an interval scale. Instead, it is based on the opposing or ratio scale. Remember my explanation in the previous question? And, since the slot machine does not always pay off every so many times (say every 10 times you put in a token) you play it (otherwise you could just count the number of times you played and make a serious chunk of change betting big when you know you will win�wouldn�t that be awesome) then you know it is a variable scale.
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1014. Pick the most accurate statement.
a. behavior therapies based on classical conditioning are used primarily with clients who have bipolar disorder. Lithium is no longer used.
b. Behavior therapies based on classical conditioning are much more effective than CBT when treating mood disorders.
c. Behavior therapies based on classical conditioning are commonly used to treat phobias, but are also utilized for clients with obsessive-compulsive disorders or OCD.
d. Behavior therapy is never based on classical conditioning
C. One of the most popular forms of behavior therapy based on classical conditioning, Wolpe�s systematic desensitization, is an excellent therapy for phobic clients in individual and group therapy and it has its roots in Pavlov�s classical conditioning. In terms of choice �a� psychiatrists and other physicians are still prescribing lithium for bi-polar disorder. Clients must be monitored since high dosages can lead to medical problems or even death.
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1015. Ken�s supervisor told Ken to do a meta-analysis related to treating children with sleep disorders.
a. Ken can use a correlation coefficient.
b. Ken can set up a true experiment with a control group and an experimental group.
c. Ken can use a single subject N = 1 intensive design.
d. Ken will use statistics based on numerous studies to investigate the issue.
D. Karl Pearson�also associated with the concept of correlation� created the first statistics department in a university in 1911. In 1904 he unleashed the technique of meta-analysis. Meta-analysis or metaresearch occurs when several studies on the same topic are utilized in order to examine a hypothesis. The results of several studies�or tons of studies if they are available�are then synthesized. The technique was originally used to overcome the severe limitations of a small sample size that often occurs when a researcher performs a single experiment. Needless to say, the drawback to this technique is that it may be relying on a glut of poorly designed studies which in turn will yield inaccurate results.
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1016. You gave your client Ester a personality test and then shared your interpretation of the test with her. Your client was amazed at how accurate the test results were in terms of depicting her personality. She readily accepted the interpretation. The next day you discovered that you had interpreted the wrong test! The test you were analyzing was not Ester�s but rather belonged to another client! Ester�s behavior could best be explained by.
a. the obvious fact that she is psychotic which means that she is not in touch with reality.
b. the Barnum effect.
c. negative transference.
d. the placebo effect.
B. In psychometrics the Barnum effect (which can also be dubbed the Forer effect after the psychologist who discovered it, Bertram R. Forer) refers to the fact that clients will often accept a general psychological test report, horoscope, or palm reading and believe it applies specifically to them! And no you need not be psychotic (choice �a) to be influenced by this effect. You�ll recall that P.T. Barnum was quoted (or according to some misquoted) when he quipped that �there is a sucker born every minute.�
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1017. Approximately 40% of all elementary schools have shortened recess or student playtime. Counselors.
a. are excited about this change because U.S. children are behind other countries academically and thus need more study time.
b. believe the change will actually have little or no impact on the children.
c. are concerned because some research indicates that recess can have a positive impact since children are less fidgety on days when they have recess; especially if they are hyperactive.
d. are not concerned as boys have better concentration on days when they do not have recess.
C. Choice �d� is patently false. Boys showed less concentration on days when normal recess was delayed. Choice �c� stands correct as research indicates that fourth graders were less fidgety on days with recess playtime. Good attention requires periodic novelty.
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1018. In 2005, the American Counseling Association released the first revision of the ACA Code of Ethics in a decade. One major change was that.
a. the code eliminated the concept of confidentiality.
b. the code bans Internet counseling.
c. the code bans telephone counseling.
d. the code eliminated the phrase �dual relationships.�
D. Choice �d� is true! If you�ve been out of grad school for a few years this is hot off the presses new information! The new ACA Code of Ethics is radically different from anything which came before these standards. Even recent textbooks, courses, and study guides may not be predicated on the new code. I would not advise anybody to attempt to pass a comprehensive exam at this point in time without reading every word of this new code. The experts on the ACA Ethics Code Revision Task Force felt the term dual relationships was imprecise and confusing. Far from being banned, the new code actually allows dual relationships that are healthy or beneficial to the client. The counselor should document the reasons for a change in the relationship with the client, including the benefit to the client. Full informed consent of the client is required.
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1019. The new ACA 2005 Code of Ethics forbids sexual or romantic counselor�client interactions or relationships with current clients, as did the old code. The old 1995 Code stipulated that a counselor would need to wait two years after termination before entering into a romantic relationship with a former client. The new regulations.
a. are virtually identical in this area.
b. changed 2 years to 10 years.
c. changed 2 years to 5 years.
d. changed 2 years to just 1 year.
C. This is a key change! It also applies to romantic relationships with a client�s family members or romantic partners. Expect to see this question coming to a professional credentialing exam near you! Again, I cannot overemphasize this point: Read the new 2005 ACA Code prior to taking your exam.
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1020. You are counseling a well-known celebrity who dies. According to the new 2005 ACA Ethical Code.
a. Confidentially exists even after she dies.
b. Confidentiality does not exist after death for any professional helper. Princess Diana�s therapist was on television talking about Princess Di�s eating disorder immediately after her death.
c. The ethics state �a counselor has no obligation to uphold confidentiality after a client�s death.�
d. The counselor is given no direction since this issue is not addressed in the guidelines.
A. The ACA Code promotes the protection of deceased clients.
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1021. Over 7,000 ACA members are now in private practice. The consensus among experts is that.
a. most private practitioners will not need to deal with managed care.
b. managed care companies are becoming increasingly difficult to deal with.
c. managed care companies are becoming easier to work with.
d. ACA ethics now prohibit practitioners from being on managed care panels.
C. Choice �c� best describes the current situation. Thank god for small favors! I could share a few personal horror stories from the early 1990s when I was in private practice, but you�ve got more important things to remember! So far as choice �a� is concerned, some private practices are now nearly 100% managed care driven.
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1022. Each year, approximately 31,000 U.S. citizens commit suicide with an alarming 2,000 individuals attempting suicide each day in the United States. Suicide often checks in as the second or third leading killer of teens. Men commit suicide more frequently than women, however, women attempt suicide far more often than men. It is accurate to say that.
a. 10 to 15% of all claims handled by the ACA liability insurance programs are related to suicide.
b. nearly 100% of the claims handled by the ACA liability insurance programs are related to suicide.
c. ACA liability insurance will not cover you if a client commits suicide.
d. African-American females have an extremely high rate of suicide.
A. First, choice �d� is blatantly false since the Black female rate is very low (about 2 per 100,000 compared to about 11 per 100,000 for the general public). According to �Counseling Today� about 40% of all expenditures for the ACA liability insurance programs relate to suicide, thus raising the premiums. Suicide rates of rescue workers increased after the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. The suicide rate for U.S. veterans is also up. Most legal difficulties related to suicide revolve around negligence. You can avoid negligence by making certain that as a counselor you adhere to the ethical principle of practicing within your boundaries of competence and providing appropriate referrals when requested or needed. Always use a suicide prevention or so-called �no suicide� contract. The contract will stipulate that the client will contact you or a suicide hotline/helpline if an uncontrollable urge to commit suicide is manifested. And finally: If you think consultation is in order, just do it!
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1023. The 2005 ACA code addresses end-of-life issues since these issues are getting a high degree of social attention (e.g., the Oregon assisted suicide law and the Terri Schiavo right-to-die case).
The new code.
a. finally takes a moral stance on abortion and gives counselors a road map for dealing with this issue.
b. suggests that counselors who are helping terminally ill clients who are thinking of hastening their own death must break confidentiality.
c. suggests that counselors who are helping terminally ill clients who are thinking of hastening their own death would have the option of breaking or not breaking confidentiality.
d. suggests that a counselor who morally refuses to assist a terminally ill client who wants to hasten her death (and hence, wishes to explore end-of-life options) is acting in an unethical manner.
C.Bottom line: Ethical charges to the ACA Ethics Committee cannot be brought up against a counselor who helps a client explore end-of-life options. The new ethics also suggest that the opposite is true: Charges cannot be brought up against a counselor who refuses to hasten death based solely on this position. The counselor can use his or her best clinical judgment based on the situation. Reality check: If your state disagrees with ACA�s position you could still have legal or ethical charges brought against you via the state licensing bureau. State laws take precedence.
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1024. A client suffers from bipolar disorder and takes lithium. According to the DSM she has.
a. a mood disorder.
b. an anxiety disorder.
c. schizophrenia, a term coined by Eugen Bleuler in 1911 (a psychotic disorder).
d. a somatoform disorder such as pain disorder.
A. Clinical depression, dysthymia (a low level depression that has a longer duration than clinical unipolar depression), and bipolar disorder fall neatly into the category we call �mood disorders.� An anxiety disorder is evident when a situation that truly represents no threat elicits anxiety. A panic attack�with or without agoraphobia�would fall into this category, as would a social phobia, obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), or generalized anxiety disorder (GAD). Somatoform disorders are actually conditions that would imply a medical condition; however, the disorder cannot be fully explained by the condition. Hence, a hypochondriac is said to fall into this category. Physical conditions without physical or physiological causes are called somatoform disorders (e.g., a headache with no medical reason). Somaform disorders occur primarily in females.
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1025. Matt was diagnosed with somatization disorder which falls under the category of somatoform disorders. It safe to say that.
a. Matt is under 21.
b. Matt has never had a physical exam.
c. His symptoms have lasted over six months and his condition manifested itself prior to age 30.
d. Matt�s only complaint is his back pain.
C. The diagnostic criteria for somatization disorder include multiple somatic complaints that have lasted for several years. Moreover, a physical exam has not turned up a physical cause (that knocks out choice �b�). At least four symptoms are evident and the symptoms last for at least six months. Finally, the onset must be prior to age 30.
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1026. Millie has a panic attack whenever she drives across a bridge. She has.
a. situationally bound panic attacks.
b. cued panic attacks.
c. a and b.
d. predisposed panic attacks.
C. Okay, folks. To answer this question you need to discern an uncued attack, also termed an �unexpected� attack, from a cued attack, also called a �situationally bound attack.� Simply put: situationally bound or cued attacks have a cue or an environmental trigger. In this case it is obviously the bridge. On the other hand, an uncued or unexpected attack seemingly occurs out of nowhere and no internal or external trigger can be identified. A predisposed attack (geez is this complex verbiage or what?) might occur after being exposed to the anxiety provoking situation. In this case Millie would have the attack after she reaches home. The predisposed category is also appropriate if the trigger (i.e., driving across a bridge) does not always cause a panic attack.
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1027. Sybil refers to a famous client who had 15 personalities. At the time Sybil was said to suffer from multiple personality disorder (MPD). Today her diagnosis would be.
a. dissociative identity disorder.
b. a mood disorder.
c. related to RS issues.
d. a personality disorder.
A. In any dissociative disorder, the client attempts to avoid stress by dissociating or escaping from the situation. Cases of amnesia (i.e., the inability to recall) fall into this diagnostic category. In the case of dissociative identity disorder formerly known as multiple personality disorder (MPD), the client has often been sexually abused as a child. Counseling can be efficacious in terms of integrating the personality into a single entity. Just for review purposes, choice �c� RS means religious and spiritual. Experts, I might add, do not agree on a single definition of spirituality. Generally, the term describes a unique personal experience related to feelings of self-actualization, a better understanding of the meaning of life, and an awareness of a divine or Higher Power. One theory is that 12-step programs such as Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) promote a brand of what has been called �informal spirituality� which has made RS issues more popular with the general public. Another major impetus for the spirituality movement was Scott Peck�s landmark 1978 book The Road Less Traveled. This work helped religion and psychotherapy gel. Research indicates that religion can be a double-edged sword for clients. In general, religion generally has a positive impact on clients (e.g., improved well-being, better marital satisfaction, and less depression). On the negative side of the coin, clients who harbor religious strain, such as difficulty forgiving God, suffer from more stress, depression, and even suicidal feelings. Because of the contradictory evidence, counselor educators do not suggest that counselors urge clients to be more spiritual or have more religious involvement. This seems ironic since one survey of ACA affiliated counselors revealed that the majority of these helpers valued spirituality in their own lives even more than they did organized religion. I think it goes without saying that your personal views may differ!
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1028. Bulimia is classified as.
a. an eating disorder which occurs equally in both men and women.
b. an eating disorder that occurs primarily in women.
c. an adjustment disorder.
d. a narcissistic personality disorder.
B. Anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa are eating disorders. Statistically speaking, about 90% of anorectics and bulimics are female. The onset of these disorders often occurs in adolescence. In anorexia, the client refuses to eat enough to maintain a healthy body weight. Bulimia is characterized by binge eating (translation: eating a tremendous amount of food) and then compensating for the binge eating by purging (e.g., vomiting, enemas, diuretics, or laxative abuse), fasting, or excessive exercise. The DSM stipulates that an average of two binge eating episodes must be present per week, for at least three months.
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1029. You are seeing a client who is extremely concerned about her body weight and shape. She vomits to keep her weight down, nevertheless, she does not engage in binge eating. The most appropriate diagnosis would be.
a. anorexia.
b. bulimia.
c. gender identity disorder.
d. eating disorder NOS.
D. Since this disorder does not fit neatly into any other eating disorder category your diagnosis would be eating disorder NOS or eating disorder �not otherwise specified.�
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1030. When counseling women a counselor can assume that.
a. a woman generally makes less money than a man for the same job.
b. most complaints against counselors for exploitation come from women complaining about male counselors.
c. women are not as comfortable as men when they are involved in competitive situations
d. all of the above.
D. According to the Department of Health and Human Services, all of the above statements are right on target. They also add that women (in general, of course) are more compassionate and more likely to adhere to traditional moral values. The old adage that �women are more comfortable expressing their feelings,� is only partially true. Women are more at home expressing sadness, intimacy, and nurturing behavior, nevertheless, they are less comfortable expressing anger and being assertive. Thus, men�who are more aggressive�are more likely to die via accidents, suicide, homicide, in war, or by an act of violence.
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1031. A hermaphrodite is.
a. now referred to as an intersex person.
b. always gay.
c. always homosexual.
d. also called a cross-dresser.
A. An intersex individual has a condition called �intersexuality� (in the past known as a hermaphrodite) and has male and female genitalia. Choice �d� a cross-dresser wears clothes generally worn by the opposite sex and has been called a transvestite in some of the literature. Choices �b� and �c� are incorrect inasmuch as intersex individuals, or cross-dressers for that matter, are not exclusively heterosexual or homosexual.
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1032. Gay men and women.
a. primarily live the gay or lesbian lifestyle.
b. basically have the same range of gender role behaviors as do male and female heterosexuals.
c. cannot be characterized in terms of lifestyle due to a distinct lack of research.
d. are always transgendered.
B. Choice �a� is way off base: There is no single gay, lesbian, bisexual lifestyle! Choice �d� transgender is used to describe a person who does not identify with his or her birth sex. Transsexuals are generally regarded as being in a separate category from transgendered individuals because transsexuals resort to the use of hormones and plastic surgery in order to better express their identity.
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1033. Warren needs to conduct a study. His supervisor wants him to use a parametric inferential statistic. This means that.
a. he will need to use random sampling and the distribution is normal.
b. he will need to use a convenience sample or a volunteer sample.
c. his distribution will be positively skewed.
d. his distribution will be bimodal.
A. By definition, parametric statistics are used when the distribution is normal (i.e., the mean, the median, and the mode are the same), and random sampling has been utilized. Convenience samples and volunteer samples are not picked randomly. Moreover, a bimodal or multimodal curve is not the same as a bell-shaped normal curve.
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1034. A counselor has an answering machine in her office. Which statement most accurately depicts the ethical guidelines related to this situation.
a. Ethical guidelines forbid the use of answering machines.
b. Ethical guidelines allow answering machines, but forbid speaking with clients via a cell phone.
c. Ethical guidelines allow answering machines, but experts insist that unauthorized staff should not be allowed to listen or retrieve such messages.
d. Ethical guidelines are clear that a pager should be used rather than an answering machine.
C. According to experts, there are additional guidelines which apply to counselors who use the telephone for messages. First, never give out information to an unknown caller�in fact don�t even tell such a caller whether a client is receiving services or not! Remember that anything you say to a client over the phone could end up in court. Be very careful about leaving personal messages for clients on their answering machines. You never know who is in the household and will be listening to the messages. When using a cell phone never forget that the call might be monitored by an unauthorized third party, horrors! Finally, when sending a message via a pager use the same precautions listed above for telephone messages. Finally, if you aren�t technologically challenged and decide to send a confidential fax, it is the counselor�s responsibility (yes you!) to make certain the fax is secure. Hence, prior to sending a fax check to see if the appropriate person will be receiving it.
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1035. The law requires clinicians to.
a. keep process notes.
b. keep progress notes.
c. keep process and progress notes.
d. keep the client�s name and address, but no other information.
B. As a neophyte in the field I remember storming into my supervisor�s office to complain that I did all these wonderful things for my clients and still didn�t get a raise. When I stopped ranting and raving my supervisor gave me some sage advice, �Rosenthal,� she quipped, �I want to tell you something and I never want you to forget it during your career. If you didn�t write it down, you didn�t do it, and it never happened!� Today, all competent supervisors espouse something similar. Now let�s tackle the question. First you should keep accurate records on your clients. Documentation helps you provide appropriate counseling, decreases your liability (translation: chances of being sued), and helps you or your agency get reimbursed. There are basically two types of client records. First, there are progress notes and yes they are mandated by law. Counselors often refer to these as clinical notes. Experts state that progress notes are behavioral because they focus on what the client does and says. Progress notes could include something about informed consent, the client�s DSM diagnosis, symptoms, the type of counseling interventions used, the goals of counseling, the dates of the sessions, and the termination date. Process notes (sometimes called psychotherapy notes) are not generally shared with clients or made available to them. Process notes are intended for the counselor who created them. They are not required by law.
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1036. A client wants to read her record. Pick the statement which is not accurate.
a. You should allow her to read the record or a summary of it because she has an ethical right to do so.
b. You should allow her to read it, however, you should go back and change things you don�t want her to see; for example, the fact that you said she was schizophrenic.
c. You should allow her to read the record realizing that it is best if you enter the information as soon as possible after the session and then sign and date the entry.
d. Since your agency inputs the client�s record on a computer, each entry will be dated and have a time on it. You could then print the document for her perusal.
B. All of the above are excellent practices except choice �b�. This choice is incorrect since a counselor cannot alter documented information in a client�s file after it has become part of the record.
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1037. A counselor is seeing a client on a managed care plan. Unfortunately, the client has used up her maximum number of sessions for the year. The counselor is convinced that the client is in need of additional counseling, however, the counselor�s agency will not allow him to see her for any additional sessions. The best plan of action would be for the counselor to.
a. Refer the client for continued counseling to a practitioner who will see the client whether or not she has managed care benefits.
b. Empathize with the client, but be sure to explain that she is catastrophizing (an irrational thought pattern delineated by Albert Ellis) and use REBT, a cognitive therapy, to help her cope with the fact that she cannot be seen again until next year.
c. Threaten to sue the managed care company, since this would be in violation of ethical care for the client.
d. See the client, but don�t tell your supervisor. This is both legal and ethical.
A. It is also possible that the client has even reached her lifetime limit on sessions.
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1038. A career counselor who relies on the constructivist viewpoint would emphasize that.
a. unconscious conflicts influence career decisions.
b. An individual�s career choice is influenced by his or her attempt to make meaning out of the world of work.
c. Most career counselors do not give enough career inventories.
d. SCCT is the best theory.
B. SCCT is the abbreviation of social cognitive career theory.
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1039. A homosexual protests that he has been homosexual long enough and wants to lead a heterosexual lifestyle. He tells you that he wants a family and children. You should.
a. refer him to a psychiatrist as medicine is necessary.
b. use dialectical behavior therapy (DBT).
c. bring in other members of his family since homosexuality has its roots in the family system.
d. explain that homosexuality is not a mental disorder that needs to be changed.
D. Though dialectical behavior therapy (which synthesizes ideas from individual therapy, group therapy, behavior therapy, and cognitive modalities) is clearly the wrong answer, I�d be familiar with this evidence-based modality that seems to work well with borderline personality disorder. In this approach diary cards are used to make a hierarchy of treatment targets with suicidal and self-mutiliating behaviors getting top attention. Now for the answer to this question. In 1998 the ACA Governing Council passed a resolution indicating that gay and lesbian individuals are not mentally ill due to their sexual orientation. Approximately 5 to 10% of the population in the United States is gay or lesbian. Harassment for these individuals generally starts early in life. ACAs, Association for Gay, Lesbian, and Bisexual Issues in Counseling (AGLBIC) supports counselors working in this area; however, the organization does not support trying to transform homosexuals into heterosexuals. You may recall that homosexuality was removed from the DSM way back in 1973. The answer to this question is clear-cut: According to the new ACA ethics it would be unethical to treat this client for the purpose of changing his sexual orientation. Some counselors find ACA�s position controversial. Perhaps this is fueled by the fact that the majority culture is said to have a negative view of homosexuality.
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1040. Conversion or reparative therapy is intended to change sexual orientation and behaviors from gay to straight.
a. The literature in scientific and peer reviewed journals does not indicate that a person�s sexual orientation can be altered from same sex attraction to opposite sex attraction.
b. ACA prohibits counselors from practicing conversion or reparative therapies although no studies exist in this area.
c. Longitudinal studies with clients who have been through reparative or conversion therapy indicate that the treatment is effective, but it still remains unethical.
d. ACA ethics indicate that a counselor trained in conversion or reparative therapy can practice these modalities if the client insists on the treatment.
A. The actual findings of ACA�when researching peer-reviewed journals to create their new ethics�was that conversion and reparative therapies can actually harm clients. Religious organizations who claim to change gay individuals to straight often use the term transformational ministries to describe their services.
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1041. A lesbian client wants to become heterosexual and asks for conversion or reparative therapy. You explain that you ethically do not believe in this form of intervention. She asks you to provide her a referral to a practitioner who will perform this type of therapy. You should.
a. initially comply, since ethical counselors provide an appropriate referral.
b. initially comply, but you must provide her with at least three referrals.
c. initially, tell the client you prefer not to refer her to a therapist who engages in this form of treatment. Discuss the potential harm and risks with the client emphasizing that this is an unproven form of treatment.
d. Initially, tell her to secure a consultation with a licensed physician prior to making a referral.
C. Evidence-based literature does not support the value of reparative or conversion therapy. No training in these paradigms is offered or condoned via the ACA since clients who go through such therapies function worse than before the treatment began. ACA goes so far as to state that these forms of treatment are not providing a service within the scope of professional counseling, but rather some other profession (e.g., Christian counseling or faith-based healing).
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1042. The new ACA ethical requirement to have a transfer plan in writing would apply to.
a. a situation in which a counselor became disabled.
b. a situation in which a counselor died.
c. a situation where a counselor moved to another state.
d. all of the above.
D. A transfer plan is necessary because a counselor could become incapacitated, die, or move. Hence, the transfer plan, a new ethical requirement, should be set up to protect the welfare of the client as well as his or her files. Or to put it another way: If you are incapacitated (e.g., are hospitalized), leave the practice or agency, or die, your clients will have access to their records, as well as their files. The transfer will be smooth. The old ACA ethics did not address this issue. All counselors should include a transfer plan in their informed consent document given to the client at the beginning of treatment. The new contact person and custodian of the records will be listed with complete contact information.
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1043. You are counseling a 29-year-old man in your private practice who is seeing a primary care physician (PCP) for severe headaches.
a. You are required to contact the PCP.
b. You are not required to contact the PCP; however, attempting to secure permission to do so from your client would be considered the ideal course of action.
c. The answer would be no for headaches, but yes if the client had visited the PCP regarding a mental health complaint.
d. Yes, but only if the client is abusing a child or a senior citizen.
B. Okay, hold onto your thinking caps because this can get a tad complex to say the least! Although the best answer is �b�, that you are not required to inform the primary care physician (PCP), experts recommend that you place a statement in your informed consent document asking the client to agree to or refuse such a disclosure. The client may indeed decline. Some states require you to document in writing the client�s consent or refusal. In these states, if a counselor violates this then he or she has broken a state law. Experts Robert J. Walsh and Norman C. Dasenbrook give counselors another incentive for asking the client for consent to the disclosure� money! It is a golden opportunity to market your private practice since physicians spend about seven minutes with a patient in a given office visit and thus often make mental health referrals. Marketing materials related to your practice can be sent to the PCP along with your diagnosis, steps to treat the client, and progress updates.
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1044. As a private practice counselor your _______ would be most important in terms of filing claims.
a. graduate transcript.
b. undergraduate and graduate transcript.
c. NCC provider number.
d. NPI number.
D. The National Provider Identifier (NPI) number would be required to file claims electronically or even by mail. HIPAA rules stipulate that the NPI is your standard unique identifier as a health care provider.
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1045. A counselor is treating a woman for a mood disorder. The counselor has sex with the woman�s daughter. According to the revised 2005 ACA Code of Ethics this is considered.
a. unethical.
b. ethical.
c. ethical only after the counselor terminates the client and then waits two years.
d. debatable since ACA guidelines fail to deal with sexual issues of this nature.
A. In the new code counselors are prohibited from engaging in sexual relationships with current clients just like the old code. Nevertheless, the new code prohibits sexual relationships with family members or clients� partners. Choice �c� would have been correct if it pertained to the old ethics; however, the new guidelines pumped the number of years from two to five. Moreover, this relationship cannot be exploitive. Key Exam reminder: The Ethical Code Revision Task Force was adamant that some nonsexual dual relationships are beneficial to the client and therefore not prohibited or banned via the new code. Hence, it might be ethical to attend a client�s wedding, graduation, or even visit a client in the hospital. The counselor should document in the record why he or she feels the interaction would be beneficial prior to the event when possible. If a negative or harmful situation does occur the counselor is expected to take reasonable action to rectify the situation. The same guidelines would apply to a supervisee. Remember that sexual harassment is not only unethical, but illegal.
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1046. You have impeccable training and experience as a counseling supervisor. Now your brother finishes his master�s degree in counseling and wants you to supervise him. According to ACA ethics you should.
a. accept him as a supervisee since it will be beneficial to him.
b. cosupervise him with another colleague.
c. refer him to a trusted colleague trained in supervision who is willing to take your brother.
d. supervise him if it is for licensing, but not if it is for NCC.
C. To quote ACA guidelines, �Counseling supervisors avoid accepting close relatives, romantic partners, or friends as supervisees.� Case closed!
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1047. The new ACA ethical guidelines stipulate that a counselor can refrain from making a diagnosis if the counselor believes the diagnosis could harm the client or others.
a. Therefore, a counselor could ethically diagnose all clients as having an adjustment disorder to secure insurance since this diagnosis is somewhat benign and not likely to harm the client.
b. A counselor could refrain from making an Axis I or an Axis II diagnosis if it is in the best interest of the client.
c. A decision to refrain from making a diagnosis is ideally made in collaboration with the client, although the counselor has the final say.
d. Choices �b� and �c� are both correct.
D. Choice �a� stands as incorrect because counselors should never intentionally misdiagnose a client, although I have seen this practice recommended by top figures in our field in the past! A counselor could refrain from making a diagnosis on any DSM Axis according to the new ethics. In a thought provoking interview that appeared on the ACA website here are several reasons members from the 2005 task force, which created the ethical code, gave for not making (i.e., refrained from making) a diagnosis.
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i. You are seeing a 9-year-old boy and have insufficient data to diagnose him as ADHD. If you were to diagnose him as such he could have long-standing identity problems based on the misdiagnosis. The boy might even be inappropriately medicated for normal energetic behaviors.
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ii. In some cultures a person will hear voices as part of the grieving process related to death. A psychotic diagnosis would be a misdiagnosis in this respect.
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iii. A client meets all the criteria for borderline personality disorder, yet the counselor refrained from making this as an Axis II diagnosis, knowing that this particular client might look the term up on the Internet and might feel doomed to a life of unhealthy relationships.
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iv. An individual with top security clearance in either the government or the military might lose his or her clearance based on a diagnosis.
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1048. The agency you work for insists that you diagnose every client.
Since this is in violation of the new ACA ethics this would qualify as �negative conditions.� You could handle this by
a. Meeting with your supervisor and executive director of the agency and discussing other ways to secure funding that go beyond DSM reimbursement.
b. Advocate for the client by explaining to the insurance company asking for the diagnosis that in some cases it is best that a diagnosis not be given. You could even teach the client to advocate for herself by having her inform the insurance company that a diagnosis might not be in her best interest.
c. Show your supervisor, executive director, or insurance company/managed care firm the actual ACA Code of Ethics so they can see it in writing that the code stipulates that �Counselors may refrain from making and/or reporting a diagnosis if they believe it would cause harm.�
d. All of the above.
D. Hmmm, choice �d� seems to be becoming a popular correct answer choice lately! Now although your well-meaning supervisor or insurance company representative may not agree, experts have cited all of these as viable ways to deal with this situation. Every counselor is responsible for educating agencies, insurance companies, managed care firms, and mental health professionals in related disciplines about the information in the new code. To those realistic readers who are saying to themselves �my agency won�t get paid for that client,� at this stage of the game I can only quip, �You may be right!� We can only hope that in the future reality and ethics will be 100% on the same wave-length.
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1049. You leave your practice to study mental health treatment in another country. Dr. Kline, another licensed counselor, is now the custodian of your records. To conform with current ethical standards this was clearly explained in your informed consent brochure given to the client during the first visit. The clients have Dr. Kline�s contact information. According to the new ethics regarding transfer plans.
a. Dr. Kline should contact each client when he receives the record.
b. you should contact each client even though you are residing in another country.
c. the client is totally responsible for contacting Dr. Kline since he or she was given an informed consent document.
d. neither you nor Dr. Kline would be obligated to contact the client.
A. Remember to give transfer plan information to appropriate staff members such as administrative assistants or another counselor in your practice since a client might lose the statement of informed consent (again, usually in the form of a brochure). If you are in private practice a colleague you use for backup or so-called on-call situations would be ideal.
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1050. In terms of the previous question:
a. A certified public accountant or CPA would be preferable to a mental health professional such as Dr. Kline to use as a custodian for the records.
b. An attorney would make the best custodian for the records.
c. Using a mental health professional on staff or at another facility is preferable to using a lawyer or a CPA.
d. A CPA, an attorney, or a mental health professional would be an excellent choice.
C. Whether you are using your own staff or somebody outside the agency or practice, it is imperative that you put the transfer arrangement in writing! A gentleman�s or gentlewoman�s agreement with a handshake is not enough! Finally, remember that after you retire you will still need a custodian, although to be sure you may personally provide their records if you are capable of doing so. This, needless to say, means that your clients will need your contact information after retirement. The bottom-line: Transfer plans protect the client�s welfare in unforeseen circumstances including, death or incapacitation of a helper.
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