MC Master of Counseling: Family and Couples Counseling 4 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: In Strategic Family Therapy (Haley), 'prescribing the symptom' is a paradoxical intervention designed to:
- Reinforce the symptom to make the client aware of secondary gains
- Reduce resistance by instructing the client to intentionally engage in the problematic behavior (Correct answer)
- Reframe the symptom as a positive family function
- Assign a task that directly opposes the presenting problem
Correct answer: Reduce resistance by instructing the client to intentionally engage in the problematic behavior
Prescribing the symptom is a paradoxical directive where the therapist instructs clients to intentionally perform the symptom, reducing resistance and giving the therapist control over when the behavior occurs.
Question 2: A same-sex couple reports experiencing minority stress that is affecting their relationship. A culturally competent counselor should FIRST:
- Refer them to an LGBTQ+ support group before continuing couples work
- Acknowledge the external stressors of stigma and discrimination as valid contributors to relationship distress (Correct answer)
- Avoid discussing identity issues and focus solely on communication skills
- Assess whether one partner is more acculturated than the other
Correct answer: Acknowledge the external stressors of stigma and discrimination as valid contributors to relationship distress
Culturally competent practice requires the counselor to validate that minority stress from external stigma and discrimination is a real systemic stressor that legitimately impacts relationship functioning.
Question 3: Intergenerational trauma in families is BEST addressed through which therapeutic lens?
- Cognitive Behavioral Therapy focused on automatic thoughts
- Bowenian and contextual family therapy exploring multigenerational patterns (Correct answer)
- Solution-Focused Brief Therapy emphasizing present solutions
- Behavioral couples therapy targeting skill deficits
Correct answer: Bowenian and contextual family therapy exploring multigenerational patterns
Bowenian and contextual family therapy approaches are specifically designed to identify and interrupt the transmission of trauma and relational patterns across generations.
Question 4: When a client discloses ongoing intimate partner violence (IPV) during a couples session, the counselor's IMMEDIATE priority should be:
- Continuing the joint session to hear both perspectives before intervening
- Assessing the immediate safety of the victim and considering individual safety planning (Correct answer)
- Confronting the abusive partner about their behavior in session
- Referring the couple to a different modality without further assessment
Correct answer: Assessing the immediate safety of the victim and considering individual safety planning
Safety of the victim is the first priority when IPV is disclosed; joint couples therapy is contraindicated when active violence is present, and individual safety planning must occur first.
Question 5: The concept of 'circular causality' in systemic family therapy suggests that:
- One family member's behavior is the root cause of all family dysfunction
- Family problems are inherited through genetics across generations
- Behaviors in families are mutually influencing in recursive feedback loops (Correct answer)
- Therapy must address historical linear causes before current patterns
Correct answer: Behaviors in families are mutually influencing in recursive feedback loops
Circular causality replaces linear cause-and-effect thinking with the understanding that each family member's behavior is both a cause and an effect within recursive interactional loops.
Question 6: A family counselor practicing from a feminist therapy framework would MOST likely:
- Maintain strict neutrality and avoid discussing power dynamics
- Examine how societal gender norms and power imbalances contribute to family distress (Correct answer)
- Focus exclusively on internal psychological processes of each family member
- Use paradoxical directives to shift family hierarchy
Correct answer: Examine how societal gender norms and power imbalances contribute to family distress
Feminist family therapy integrates an analysis of gender socialization, power dynamics, and societal influences as central factors shaping family relationships and dysfunction.
Question 7: A counselor who uses 'reframing' in family therapy is primarily attempting to:
- Correct a family member's cognitive distortion using Socratic questioning
- Offer an alternative, more positive or systemic meaning for a behavior or situation (Correct answer)
- Restructure the family hierarchy by redistributing roles
- Help family members identify irrational beliefs underlying conflict
Correct answer: Offer an alternative, more positive or systemic meaning for a behavior or situation
Reframing provides an alternative interpretation of a behavior or situation that shifts its meaning, often from negative/individual to positive/systemic, which can reduce blame and open new possibilities.
MC Master of Counseling: Family and Couples Counseling 4
In Strategic Family Therapy (Haley), 'prescribing the symptom' is a paradoxical intervention designed to: