CDN CDN Nutrition Counseling & Behavioral Change 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Which dietary assessment method is best for estimating a patient's usual long-term dietary intake patterns?
- 24-hour dietary recall
- Food frequency questionnaire (FFQ) (Correct answer)
- Weighed food record for 1 day
- Direct observation at one meal
Correct answer: Food frequency questionnaire (FFQ)
A food frequency questionnaire captures habitual intake over weeks to months, making it more suitable for assessing usual dietary patterns than single-day methods.
Question 2: A client reports emotional eating during stressful periods. Which cognitive-behavioral strategy would be most appropriate?
- Prescribing a strict calorie limit
- Teaching stimulus control by removing trigger foods from the home
- Using food journaling to identify emotion-food cue connections (Correct answer)
- Recommending a high-protein diet to reduce cravings
Correct answer: Using food journaling to identify emotion-food cue connections
Food journaling that records emotions alongside eating episodes helps identify triggers and patterns, a foundational CBT technique for emotional eating.
Question 3: In the Health Belief Model, 'perceived barriers' refer to which concept?
- A person's belief that they are susceptible to a health condition
- The obstacles a person believes exist that prevent healthy behavior (Correct answer)
- The perceived benefits of taking a health action
- External cues that trigger health-related decisions
Correct answer: The obstacles a person believes exist that prevent healthy behavior
Perceived barriers are the individual's beliefs about the obstacles (cost, time, taste) that make healthy behavior difficult or impossible.
Question 4: Which technique in nutrition counseling involves helping a client identify discrepancies between their current behavior and their stated values or goals?
- Confrontation
- Developing discrepancy (a core MI technique) (Correct answer)
- Shaping
- Contingency management
Correct answer: Developing discrepancy (a core MI technique)
Developing discrepancy highlights the gap between the client's current behavior and their goals or values, creating internal motivation for change without external pressure.
Question 5: A dietitian is conducting a group nutrition education session. Which instructional method best promotes active learning and retention?
- Lecture-only presentation
- Distributing printed pamphlets
- Interactive discussion with case-based problem solving (Correct answer)
- Showing a nutrition documentary
Correct answer: Interactive discussion with case-based problem solving
Active learning methods such as case-based discussion engage participants and significantly improve knowledge retention compared to passive delivery.
Question 6: Self-efficacy, as described by Bandura's Social Cognitive Theory, is best defined as:
- A person's motivation based on rewards and punishments
- A person's belief in their ability to perform a specific behavior successfully (Correct answer)
- The influence of social norms on dietary choices
- A person's knowledge of nutrition principles
Correct answer: A person's belief in their ability to perform a specific behavior successfully
Self-efficacy is a person's confidence in their own capability to execute a behavior — a strong predictor of dietary behavior change.
CDN CDN Nutrition Counseling & Behavioral Change 2
Which dietary assessment method is best for estimating a patient's usual long-term dietary intake patterns?