HSP Cheat Sheet 2026

The 30 highest-yield HSP facts, distilled from real exam questions. Print it, save it as a PDF, or study it here — free, no sign-up.

1. Which federal agency sets occupational exposure limits for bloodborne pathogens in healthcare workplaces, including psychology practices? → OSHA
2. What documentation is required when equipment is replaced or upgraded? → Asset tracking records, disposal documentation, and updated operating procedures
3. A psychologist's progress note states: 'Client appears depressed.' This documentation is MOST problematic because it: → Uses a diagnostic term without supporting behavioral observations
4. A health psychologist treating a patient with Type 2 diabetes who also has depression chooses to prioritize treating the depression first because: → Depression impairs self-care behaviors critical to diabetes management
5. In the context of pain physiology, what is the gate control theory of pain? → Non-painful input can close neural 'gates' in the spinal cord and reduce pain perception
6. During assessment, a patient endorses passive death wishes but denies active suicidal ideation or plan. How should the clinician document this finding? → Passive suicidal ideation without intent or plan
7. A health psychologist is conducting biofeedback training for migraine prevention. Which physiological signal is most commonly targeted in this protocol? → Peripheral skin temperature (thermal biofeedback)
8. Which component of a Mental Status Examination (MSE) evaluates whether a patient understands they have an illness requiring treatment? → Insight
9. When conducting Motivational Interviewing (MI), which technique is used to highlight a patient's ambivalence by reflecting both sides of their conflict? → Double-sided reflection
10. When disposing of a used needle after a capillary blood draw in a psychology research lab, the correct container is a: → Sharps container
11. Which intervention is considered evidence-based for treating insomnia as a standalone disorder? → Sleep restriction and stimulus control (CBT-I)
12. Which division of the autonomic nervous system is most active during digestion, relaxation, and recovery, often described as 'rest and digest'? → Parasympathetic nervous system
13. Which ethical standard most directly governs a psychologist's obligation to avoid exploiting clients for personal gain? → Avoiding Exploitation (multiple relationships)
14. A psychologist discovers an error in a client's clinical record. The APPROPRIATE correction procedure is to: → Draw a single line through the error, add a correction note with date and signature
15. When interpreting psychological test scores, a psychologist must consider the concept of regression to the mean. This concept is most clinically relevant when: → Re-evaluating a patient after initial extreme test scores to determine true change
16. In health psychology, the 'illness perception' model (Leventhal) is relevant to patient assessment because it predicts: → How patients' beliefs about illness influence coping and treatment engagement
17. The ADDRESSING framework (Hays, 2008) is used in multicultural psychology to: → Systematically consider multiple cultural identity dimensions when conceptualizing clients
18. A clinician uses the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-5 (SCID-5) rather than an unstructured interview. What is the primary advantage of this approach? → It increases diagnostic reliability by standardizing symptom inquiry
19. A health service psychologist who holds unconscious negative associations toward a particular ethnic group is demonstrating: → Implicit bias
20. In health psychology, the term 'illness behavior' refers to: → The manner in which individuals perceive, evaluate, and act on symptoms
21. Which protocol is used when a patient requires immediate stabilization of dangerous behavior before engaging in trauma-focused psychotherapy? → Phase-based treatment approach (stabilization before trauma processing)
22. When selecting a psychological assessment instrument for a client who recently immigrated from Southeast Asia, which factor is MOST critical to consider? → The normative sample and cultural validity of the instrument
23. What is the primary obligation of a certified professional regarding patient/client confidentiality? → Protect all personal information and disclose only with proper authorization
24. A patient's self-report on a depression measure is significantly more severe than clinical observation suggests. What phenomenon should the clinician consider? → Negative response bias or amplification
25. Why is it important to use standardized terminology in documentation? → It ensures consistent understanding across all readers and reduces ambiguity
26. A health psychologist calculates a patient's BMI as 32. According to standard classification, this falls in the: → Class I Obesity range
27. A telehealth platform used for therapy sessions shows a 2-second audio delay. Which factor is MOST likely causing this latency? → Insufficient network bandwidth or high packet loss
28. Surrogate decision-making for an incapacitated adult patient is BEST guided by which standard? → What the patient had previously expressed they would want (substituted judgment)
29. What does a diagnosis of Major Depressive Disorder require? → Five or more symptoms over two weeks
30. A psychology practice receives a complaint from a client about visible mold in the therapy room. The psychologist's primary responsibility is to: → Temporarily relocate sessions and arrange for professional mold remediation