ASWB Clinical MCQ 5 â Questions and Answers
Question 1: A client with alcohol use disorder reports they have not had a drink for 48 hours and now presents with tremors, diaphoresis, and confusion. The social worker should FIRST:
- Begin motivational interviewing to reinforce sobriety
- Arrange immediate medical evaluation for alcohol withdrawal (Correct answer)
- Contact the client's sponsor for support
- Schedule a psychiatric evaluation within one week
Correct answer: Arrange immediate medical evaluation for alcohol withdrawal
Alcohol withdrawal can be life-threatening; delirium tremens presenting with tremors and confusion requires immediate medical intervention.
Question 2: A social worker using a strengths-based perspective would MOST likely focus on:
- Identifying and diagnosing the client's pathology
- Exploring unconscious conflicts from childhood
- Amplifying the client's existing capacities and resources (Correct answer)
- Challenging cognitive distortions systematically
Correct answer: Amplifying the client's existing capacities and resources
The strengths-based perspective, pioneered by Saleebey, centers on identifying and mobilizing clients' existing assets, resilience, and community resources.
Question 3: Under HIPAA, a covered entity may disclose protected health information without client authorization in all of the following EXCEPT:
- Reporting child abuse to state authorities
- Disclosing records to a client's employer upon employer's request (Correct answer)
- Complying with a court order
- Public health activities to prevent disease spread
Correct answer: Disclosing records to a client's employer upon employer's request
HIPAA does not permit disclosure to employers without client authorization; employment-related disclosures require written consent.
Question 4: A social worker using solution-focused brief therapy (SFBT) would MOST likely ask:
- 'Tell me about your childhood and its impact on current problems.'
- 'What beliefs are causing your distress?'
- 'Suppose you woke up and the problem was solvedâwhat would be different?' (Correct answer)
- 'How does your family system reinforce this behavior?'
Correct answer: 'Suppose you woke up and the problem was solvedâwhat would be different?'
The 'miracle question' is a hallmark SFBT technique that helps clients envision a preferred future and identify existing solutions.
Question 5: A client who recently immigrated reports social isolation, grief over leaving family, and difficulty adjusting to US culture. The MOST appropriate initial intervention is:
- Diagnose major depressive disorder and begin psychotherapy
- Connect the client with culturally matched community resources and conduct psychosocial assessment (Correct answer)
- Refer immediately to psychiatry for medication evaluation
- Focus solely on language acquisition and employment support
Correct answer: Connect the client with culturally matched community resources and conduct psychosocial assessment
An initial psychosocial assessment and connection to culturally relevant community supports addresses the acculturation stressors before pathologizing normal adjustment responses.
Question 6: The concept of 'informed consent' in clinical social work practice requires that clients understand all of the following EXCEPT:
- The nature and purpose of treatment
- Potential risks and benefits of the proposed intervention
- The social worker's personal theoretical orientation history (Correct answer)
- Their right to refuse or withdraw consent
Correct answer: The social worker's personal theoretical orientation history
Informed consent requires disclosure of treatment nature, risks, benefits, alternatives, and client rightsânot the clinician's personal theoretical biography.
Question 7: A social worker is treating an adolescent and the teen discloses occasional marijuana use but begs the worker not to tell their parents. The MOST appropriate action is to:
- Immediately disclose to parents because the client is a minor
- Maintain confidentiality since drug use is not an imminent safety risk
- Assess severity of use and determine whether it constitutes a danger, then act accordingly (Correct answer)
- Terminate treatment due to the ethical conflict
Correct answer: Assess severity of use and determine whether it constitutes a danger, then act accordingly
Confidentiality with minors requires nuanced assessment; occasional marijuana use may not meet the threshold for mandatory disclosure, but a safety and risk assessment must guide the decision.
ASWB Clinical MCQ 5
A client with alcohol use disorder reports they have not had a drink for 48 hours and now presents with tremors, diaphoresis, and confusion.
The social worker should FIRST: