CBT Relapse Prevention & Maintenance Strategies 1 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: What is the primary goal of relapse prevention in CBT?
- To eliminate all future episodes of the disorder
- To help clients identify triggers and develop coping strategies to maintain gains (Correct answer)
- To ensure clients remain in therapy indefinitely
- To reduce medication dependence
Correct answer: To help clients identify triggers and develop coping strategies to maintain gains
Relapse prevention in CBT focuses on identifying triggers, high-risk situations, and building coping strategies to maintain therapeutic gains after treatment ends.
Question 2: Which concept, developed by Marlatt and Gordon, describes the cognitive and emotional response following an initial slip that can escalate to full relapse?
- The stress-vulnerability model
- The Abstinence Violation Effect (AVE) (Correct answer)
- The cognitive triad
- The diathesis-stress model
Correct answer: The Abstinence Violation Effect (AVE)
The Abstinence Violation Effect (AVE) refers to the guilt, shame, and self-blame that follow a lapse and can propel a person toward full relapse if not addressed.
Question 3: In relapse prevention, a 'high-risk situation' is best defined as:
- Any situation that causes distress
- A context, emotional state, or trigger that increases likelihood of returning to problematic behaviors (Correct answer)
- Situations that require emergency hospitalization
- Times when the therapist is unavailable for contact
Correct answer: A context, emotional state, or trigger that increases likelihood of returning to problematic behaviors
High-risk situations are specific contexts, emotional states, or interpersonal triggers that increase a client's vulnerability to relapse.
Question 4: Which CBT technique is most commonly used to prepare clients to cope with high-risk situations in relapse prevention?
- Free association
- Behavioral experiments only
- Coping cards and behavioral rehearsal (Correct answer)
- Projective testing
Correct answer: Coping cards and behavioral rehearsal
Coping cards and behavioral rehearsal help clients practice responses to high-risk situations before they occur, building preparedness and self-efficacy.
Question 5: What is the purpose of 'booster sessions' in CBT maintenance?
- To introduce entirely new therapeutic modalities
- To reinforce skills and address emerging difficulties after the main treatment phase (Correct answer)
- To conduct a full diagnostic reassessment
- To assess the need for medication changes
Correct answer: To reinforce skills and address emerging difficulties after the main treatment phase
Booster sessions are brief, periodic follow-up appointments designed to reinforce previously learned skills and address difficulties before they escalate into relapse.
Question 6: According to CBT relapse prevention models, which factor most strongly predicts relapse risk?
- The client's age at onset of the disorder
- Failure to identify and cope effectively with personal high-risk situations (Correct answer)
- The length of the original treatment course
- Therapist experience level during treatment
Correct answer: Failure to identify and cope effectively with personal high-risk situations
The inability to identify and effectively cope with personal high-risk situations is one of the strongest predictors of relapse in Marlatt and Gordon's model.
Question 7: What is 'behavioral contracting' in the context of relapse prevention?
- A legally binding agreement between therapist and client
- A collaborative agreement specifying goals and behaviors to maintain therapeutic progress (Correct answer)
- A punishment system imposed following a lapse
- A contract negotiated with the client's insurance provider
Correct answer: A collaborative agreement specifying goals and behaviors to maintain therapeutic progress
Behavioral contracting is a collaborative agreement between therapist and client outlining specific goals, expected behaviors, and contingencies to support maintenance of gains.
CBT Relapse Prevention & Maintenance Strategies 1
What is the primary goal of relapse prevention in CBT?