SPEX Exam Flashcards
7 cards from real SPEX practice questions. Tap to flip, then mark Knew It or Still Learning — missed cards come back until you master them.
Read the first 7 SPEX Exam flashcards as text
A psychologist receives a subpoena for a client's psychotherapy notes. The most appropriate initial response is to:
Answer: Consult with an attorney and notify the client before releasing any records
A subpoena is not a court order requiring immediate compliance; the psychologist should consult legal counsel and notify the client, who may seek to quash the subpoena.
Which of the following best describes the concept of 'therapeutic alliance' and its relationship to treatment outcome?
Answer: Therapeutic alliance is one of the strongest predictors of outcome across therapy modalities
Meta-analytic research consistently shows that therapeutic alliance—the collaborative bond and agreement on goals and tasks—is a robust predictor of positive outcome across diverse therapy types.
Under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), a psychologist in private practice with 15 or more employees is required to:
Answer: Provide reasonable accommodations for employees with disabilities unless it causes undue hardship
The ADA requires employers with 15 or more employees to provide reasonable accommodations for qualified individuals with disabilities unless doing so creates undue hardship.
Which of the following scenarios represents a dual relationship that most clearly violates APA ethical standards?
Answer: Providing individual therapy to a client whom the psychologist also supervises professionally
Simultaneously serving as both therapist and supervisor to the same individual creates an exploitative power differential and a clear dual relationship that is ethically prohibited.
In behavioral medicine, motivational interviewing (MI) is best characterized by which therapeutic stance?
Answer: Collaborative, evocative, and autonomy-supportive
MI is defined by its Spirit: collaboration (partnership), evocation (drawing out client's own motivation), and honoring autonomy, distinguishing it from both directive and purely nondirective approaches.
A psychologist discovers that a colleague is practicing while impaired by alcohol, placing clients at risk. According to APA ethics, the psychologist should FIRST:
Answer: Attempt to informally address the situation with the colleague directly if feasible
APA's Ethics Code indicates that psychologists should first attempt to resolve ethics concerns informally with the colleague when feasible, escalating to formal reporting if the informal approach is unsuccessful or inappropriate.
Which of the following best describes the role of 'effect size' in psychological research?
Answer: It quantifies the practical magnitude of a difference or relationship, independent of sample size
Effect size (e.g., Cohen's d, r) indicates the practical or clinical magnitude of a finding and does not depend on sample size, making it essential for evaluating real-world significance beyond statistical significance.