ASPPB Intervention Strategies & Treatment Planning 4 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A psychologist is considering using EMDR with a trauma survivor. EMDR is classified as an evidence-based treatment for which primary condition?
- Major depressive disorder
- Posttraumatic stress disorder (Correct answer)
- Generalized anxiety disorder
- Obsessive-compulsive disorder
Correct answer: Posttraumatic stress disorder
EMDR has the strongest empirical support and clinical guidelines endorsement specifically for the treatment of PTSD.
Question 2: Which of the following best describes the function of a functional behavioral assessment (FBA) in treatment planning?
- Determining a client's global level of adaptive functioning
- Identifying antecedents, behaviors, and consequences to understand what maintains a problem behavior (Correct answer)
- Assessing neurological causes of behavioral difficulties
- Establishing a psychiatric diagnosis using behavioral observations
Correct answer: Identifying antecedents, behaviors, and consequences to understand what maintains a problem behavior
An FBA uses the ABC (Antecedent–Behavior–Consequence) framework to identify the function of a behavior and inform functionally matched interventions.
Question 3: A psychologist is treating a client with a specific phobia of blood. The client faints upon exposure. Which specialized technique should be incorporated?
- Standard graduated imaginal exposure without modification
- Applied tension technique paired with exposure (Correct answer)
- Systematic desensitization with relaxation training
- Flooding with prolonged in vivo exposure from the first session
Correct answer: Applied tension technique paired with exposure
Blood-injection-injury phobia involves a vasovagal response, so applied tension (tensing large muscle groups to raise blood pressure) is added to standard exposure to prevent fainting.
Question 4: In the transtheoretical model (TTM), a client in the 'contemplation' stage is BEST described as:
- Unaware that a problem exists and not considering change
- Aware of the problem and ambivalent, weighing pros and cons of changing (Correct answer)
- Actively taking steps to change the behavior
- Having already changed and working to maintain the change
Correct answer: Aware of the problem and ambivalent, weighing pros and cons of changing
Contemplation is characterized by awareness of a problem and ambivalence — the person is considering change within the next six months but has not committed to action.
Question 5: A psychologist treating a child with ADHD incorporates a token economy. This intervention is grounded primarily in which theoretical framework?
- Classical conditioning
- Operant conditioning principles (Correct answer)
- Cognitive restructuring
- Attachment theory
Correct answer: Operant conditioning principles
Token economies use operant conditioning — specifically positive reinforcement and response cost — to modify behavior by linking target behaviors to earned tokens.
Question 6: Which of the following would be a contraindication for beginning trauma-focused exposure therapy?
- Client has a strong therapeutic alliance and good emotion regulation skills
- Client is currently experiencing active suicidal ideation with a plan and intent (Correct answer)
- Client expresses reluctance and anxiety about starting exposure
- Client has comorbid mild depression that is being monitored
Correct answer: Client is currently experiencing active suicidal ideation with a plan and intent
Active suicidal ideation with a plan is a contraindication that requires safety stabilization before beginning intensive trauma-focused work.
Question 7: When using a case conceptualization in treatment planning, the PRIMARY purpose is to:
- Satisfy documentation requirements for insurance billing
- Provide a working hypothesis linking predisposing, precipitating, and maintaining factors that guides intervention selection (Correct answer)
- Summarize the client's presenting complaints for referral purposes
- Establish the therapist's theoretical orientation for the client
Correct answer: Provide a working hypothesis linking predisposing, precipitating, and maintaining factors that guides intervention selection
A case conceptualization organizes clinical data into a coherent explanatory framework that directly informs why and how specific interventions are chosen.
ASPPB Intervention Strategies & Treatment Planning 4
A psychologist is considering using EMDR with a trauma survivor.
EMDR is classified as an evidence-based treatment for which primary condition?