NCMHCE - National Clinical Mental Health Counseling Examination Counseling Skills and Interventions 3

Question 1

A client with panic disorder catastrophizes physical sensations, believing a racing heart means they are dying. Which CBT technique most directly targets this cognitive distortion?

Accepted Answer

Cognitive restructuring

Answer

Interoceptive exposure

Answer

Systematic desensitization

Answer

Thought stopping

Question 2

During a couples session, one partner becomes tearful while the other looks away and changes the subject. The most therapeutically effective counselor response is to:

Accepted Answer

Reflect the emotional content and invite the other partner to respond

Answer

Ask the tearful partner to continue sharing

Answer

Redirect the conversation to a less charged topic

Answer

Interpret the avoidance as resistance

Question 3

A counselor using Motivational Interviewing notices a client expressing ambivalence about quitting alcohol. The BEST MI-consistent response is to:

Accepted Answer

Reflect both sides of the ambivalence without taking a position

Answer

Confront the client about the health risks of continued drinking

Answer

Provide psychoeducation on alcohol use disorder

Answer

Assign a decisional balance worksheet as homework

Question 4

Which intervention is most aligned with the Empty Chair technique used in Gestalt therapy?

Accepted Answer

Role-playing a dialogue between two parts of the client's experience

Answer

Having the client write a letter they never send

Answer

Guided imagery to revisit a past trauma

Answer

Progressive muscle relaxation to reduce bodily tension

Question 5

A client with PTSD reports being triggered by car alarms. The counselor implements stimulus discrimination training. What is the primary goal?

Accepted Answer

Help the client distinguish current safe stimuli from past traumatic cues

Answer

Eliminate the conditioned fear response entirely

Answer

Develop a safety plan for when triggers occur

Answer

Identify the root cause of the original trauma

Question 6

In a clinical simulation, a client discloses ongoing domestic violence but refuses to leave the relationship. The counselor's immediate priority should be to:

Accepted Answer

Conduct a safety planning assessment

Answer

Contact the partner and schedule a joint session

Answer

Report the abuse to law enforcement without client consent

Answer

Refer the client to a domestic violence shelter

Question 7

A counselor is using EMDR with a trauma client. During the desensitization phase, the client's SUDs score drops from 8 to 2. The counselor's next step should be to:

Accepted Answer

Continue bilateral stimulation until the SUDs reaches 0 or 1

Answer

End the session and process during the next appointment

Answer

Move immediately to the installation phase

Answer

Ask the client to verbalize the traumatic memory in detail