LSP Therapeutic Interventions & Treatment Planning 3 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A psychologist working with an adolescent in family therapy notices the parents consistently interrupt the teen. Using structural family therapy, the therapist would MOST likely:
- Interpret the interruptions as unconscious hostility
- Enact a boundary by redirecting the teen to speak directly without parental interference (Correct answer)
- Use a genogram to explore multigenerational patterns
- Prescribe the symptom to reduce its power
Correct answer: Enact a boundary by redirecting the teen to speak directly without parental interference
Structural family therapy uses enactment to restructure family subsystem boundaries and hierarchy in the moment.
Question 2: A therapist integrates techniques from multiple theoretical orientations based on each client's unique needs. This approach is best described as:
- Eclecticism
- Theoretical pluralism
- Systematic integrative psychotherapy (Correct answer)
- Transtheoretical therapy
Correct answer: Systematic integrative psychotherapy
Systematic integrative psychotherapy uses a principled, organized framework to combine techniques across orientations, distinguishing it from unsystematic eclecticism.
Question 3: In Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), 'cognitive defusion' refers to:
- Challenging irrational beliefs through Socratic questioning
- Altering the relationship to thoughts rather than changing thought content (Correct answer)
- Suppressing unwanted cognitions to reduce distress
- Reinforcing adaptive thinking patterns
Correct answer: Altering the relationship to thoughts rather than changing thought content
Cognitive defusion helps clients observe thoughts as passing mental events rather than literal truths, reducing the thoughts' behavioral influence.
Question 4: When developing a safety plan for a client with suicidal ideation, which element is considered MOST critical?
- A list of cognitive distortions to challenge
- Identification of warning signs and access to means restriction (Correct answer)
- A behavioral activation schedule
- Psychoeducation about depression
Correct answer: Identification of warning signs and access to means restriction
Effective safety plans must identify personal warning signs and reduce access to lethal means, which directly lowers suicide attempt lethality.
Question 5: A therapist uses the Stages of Change model to guide treatment planning. A client who acknowledges a problem and is considering change but has not yet committed to action is in which stage?
- Precontemplation
- Contemplation (Correct answer)
- Preparation
- Action
Correct answer: Contemplation
The contemplation stage is characterized by awareness of the problem and consideration of change without commitment to a specific action plan.
Question 6: A psychologist implements prolonged exposure therapy for a client with PTSD. Imaginal exposure is PRIMARILY used to:
- Recreate the trauma in a safe environment for catharsis
- Reduce conditioned fear responses to traumatic memories through habituation (Correct answer)
- Help the client achieve insight into unconscious trauma responses
- Practice relaxation while recalling trauma
Correct answer: Reduce conditioned fear responses to traumatic memories through habituation
Imaginal exposure reduces fear through habituation by having clients repeatedly confront traumatic memories until emotional distress decreases.
Question 7: Which of the following BEST describes the primary goal of psychoeducation in treatment planning?
- Providing the client with a DSM diagnosis explanation for legal purposes
- Empowering clients with knowledge about their condition to promote active engagement in treatment (Correct answer)
- Teaching clients cognitive restructuring before therapy begins
- Reducing therapy time by replacing sessions with reading materials
Correct answer: Empowering clients with knowledge about their condition to promote active engagement in treatment
Psychoeducation increases clients' understanding of their disorder, which improves treatment adherence and engagement.
LSP Therapeutic Interventions & Treatment Planning 3
A psychologist working with an adolescent in family therapy notices the parents consistently interrupt the teen.
Using structural family therapy, the therapist would MOST likely: