LMSW Social Work Ethics and Values Questions and Answers Flashcards
7 cards from real LMSW practice questions. Tap to flip, then mark Knew It or Still Learning — missed cards come back until you master them.
Read the first 7 LMSW Social Work Ethics and Values Questions and Answers flashcards as text
A social worker is seeing a client who is also dating someone the worker knows personally. This creates a:
Answer: Dual relationship requiring careful boundary management or transfer of care
Dual relationships that could impair professional judgment or exploit the client must be disclosed and managed, potentially requiring referral.
In Loewenberg and Dolgoff's Ethical Principles Screen, which principle takes the highest priority when resolving ethical dilemmas?
Answer: Protection of Life
Loewenberg and Dolgoff rank Protection of Life (Principle 1) as the highest priority in their seven-principle hierarchy for resolving ethical dilemmas.
A social worker uses a session with a grief client to process their own recent personal loss, shifting focus away from the client's needs. This is an example of:
Answer: Countertransference leading to boundary violation
Using client sessions to meet the worker's own emotional needs constitutes countertransference and a boundary violation that places the worker's needs above the client's.
A social worker receives a subpoena demanding release of a client's confidential psychotherapy notes. The worker should:
Answer: Consult legal counsel, notify the client, and seek a protective order if appropriate before releasing psychotherapy notes
A subpoena does not automatically require disclosure; psychotherapy notes have additional protections, and the worker should seek legal guidance and client input before responding.
Cultural humility, as distinct from cultural competence, emphasizes:
Answer: Ongoing self-reflection, lifelong learning, and recognition of power imbalances in cross-cultural practice
Cultural humility prioritizes the practitioner's ongoing self-awareness and openness over mastery of cultural content, acknowledging that no one fully 'masters' another's culture.
A social worker in a school setting becomes aware that a 16-year-old student is engaging in consensual sexual activity with a same-age peer. Under mandatory reporting laws in most US states, the social worker is:
Answer: Not required to report consensual peer sexual activity between minors of similar age under typical statutory exemptions
Most states include 'Romeo and Juliet' or close-in-age exemptions that exclude consensual peer sexual activity between adolescents of similar ages from mandatory reporting requirements.
The concept of 'informed consent' in social work practice requires that the client:
Answer: Receive information about services in understandable language, have the capacity to consent, and agree voluntarily without coercion
Valid informed consent requires disclosure of relevant information, client comprehension, decision-making capacity, and voluntary agreement — it is an ongoing process, not a one-time event.