Intro to Clinical Mental Health Counseling (Fall 2025)

With Dr. Lien Nguyen :)

Which of the following terms was devised in the mid- to late-1970s to identify counseling activities that took place outside of educational settings? (Chapter 1)

A. Mental health counseling

B. Community counseling 

C. School guidance and counseling

D. Clinical mental health counseling

B. Community counseling

Which of the following divisions of the American Personnel and Guidance Association was established for mental health counselors? (Chapter 1)

A. American Community Counselors Association

B. American Clinical Mental Health Counseling Association

C. American Mental Health Counselors Association

D. American Counseling Association

C. American Mental Health Counselors Association

The first state to adopt a professional counselor licensure law was: (Chapter 1)

A. Alabama

B. Virginia

C. Arkansas

D. California

B. Virginia

Which of the following was formed in the 1980s to standardize counselor training and accredit counseling programs? (Chapter 1)

A. CACREP

B. APGA

C. APA

D. NBCC

A. CACREP

What occurred as a result of the growth of managed care organizations in the 1990s? (Chapter 1)

A. Many counselors became providers for health maintenance organizations (HMOs).

B. The number of sessions a counselor could offer under managed health care plans decreased.

C. The number of independent counselors decreased

D. All of the above

D. All of the above

Which of the following statements reflect(s) an impetus for forming the taskforce, 20/20: A Vision for the Future of Counseling? (Chapter 1)

A. To advance the future of counseling.

B. To address the issue of professional identity

C. To increase unity within the profession

D. All of the above

D. All of the above

Which of the following mental health professions is represented by Division 17 of the APA? (Chapter 1)

A. Counseling Psychology

B. Clinical Psychology

C. Professional Counseling

D. Psychiatry

A. Counseling Psychology

The definition of counseling reached by the task group, 20/20: A Vision for the Future of Counseling, includes all of the following except: (Chapter 1)

A. Counselors promote wellness

B. Counseling is diverse and multicultural

C. Counseling is a dynamic, lively, and engaging process

D. All of the above are included in the definition

D. All of the above are included in the definition

All of the following are benefits of national counseling certification except? (Chapter 1)

A. It ensures that counselors, rather than independent state legislators, set the national standards and minimum requirements for being a professional counselor

B. It regulates professional practice.

C. It provides referral sources and networking opportunities across state lines

D. All of the above are benefits of national counseling certification.

B. It regulates professional practice.

Which court judgment stated that counseling was a profession distinct from psychology? (Chapter 1)

A. Bogust v. Iverson

B. Iowa Law Review Note

C. Weldon v. Virginia State Board of Psychologists Examiners

D. Tarasoff v. University of California – Berkeley

C. Weldon v. Virginia State Board of Psychologists Examiners

Which of the following, according to Van Hoose & Kottler (1985) is “a philosophical discipline that is concerned with human conduct and moral decision making” (p. 3). (Chapter 2)

A. Morality

B. Law

C. Ethics

D. Autonomy

C. Ethics

All of the following are moral principles described by Kitchener (1984) except: (Chapter 2)

A. Autonomy

B. Justice

C. Nonmaleficence

D. Fidelity

E. Beneficence

F. Capacity

F. Capacity

A counselor struggles between protecting a client’s welfare and respecting a client’s freedom of choice and action. The counselor is struggling with which two moral principles? (Chapter 2)

A. Nonmaleficence and Autonomy

B. Capacity and Nonmaleficence

C. Justice and Autonomy

D. Fidelity and Autonomy

E. Beneficence and Autonomy

E. Beneficence and Autonomy

Mandatory ethics are followed when clinical mental health counselors: (Chapter 2)

A. Make decisions based on internalized principles and ideals of the profession, not just external considerations.

B. Judge or evaluate their professional actions through a spiritual or religious lens.

C. Comply with the required minimal standards of the profession.

D. None of the above.

E. All of the above.

C. Comply with the required minimal standards of the profession.

All of the following are true regarding ethical codes except: (Chapter 2)

A. No ethical code can address every situation or potential dilemma.

B. Enforcing ethical codes is difficult

C. Sometimes conflicts arise between ethical and legal codes.

D. There may be conflicts within the ethical codes as well as among different organizations’ codes.

E. Ethical codes are necessary and sufficient for promoting ethical behaviors.

F. Some codes are ambiguous, making them open to interpretation

E. Ethical codes are necessary and sufficient for promoting ethical behaviors.

According to the 2014 ACA Code of Ethics counselors are restricted from engaging in romantic or sexual relationships with clients for at least how many years after the termination of the counseling relationship? (Chapter 2)

A. 2 years

B. 3 years

C. Counselors are restricted, in all cases, by the 2014 ACA Code of Ethics from engaging in romantic or sexual relationships with clients.

D. 5 years

D. 5 years

All of the following represent areas of potential malpractice for counseling except: (Chapter 2)

A. Providing services for which competence has not been established

B. Improperly certifying a client in a commitment hearing

C. Promising a “cure”

D. Breaching confidentiality

E. Failing to take action when someone other than the client is in danger

F. All of the above are potential examples of malpractice

F. All of the above are potential examples of malpractice

Which of the following terms refers to a client’s legal right to determine what information about himself or herself will be shared with others? (Chapter 2)

A. Autonomy

B. Beneficence

C. Privacy

D. Confidentiality

C. Privacy

In which legal case did the court rule that counselors need to take reasonable action to help protect potential victims from dangerous client? (Chapter 2)

A. Tarasoff v. Board of Regents of the University of California

B. Jaffee v. Redmond

C. 1993 Napa County, California case
D. None of the above

A. Tarasoff v. Board of Regents of the University of California

Online counseling that occurs during the moment of connection is called: (Chapter 2)

A. Skype counseling

B. Asynchronous counseling

C. Voice over IP (VolP)

D. Synchronous counseling

D. Synchronous counseling

As defined by Olatunji (2001), which of the following accurately describes multicultural counseling? (Chapter 3)

A. Multicultural counseling refers to multiple perspectives or multiple cultural viewpoints within the counseling relationship in which the viewpoint of the counselor is most accurate due to his or her training and self-awareness.

B. Multicultural counseling refers to multiple perspectives or multiple cultural viewpoints within the counseling relationship in which none are dominant or considered more “normal” than others

C. Multicultural counseling refers to binary perspectives or viewpoints within the counseling relationship in which certain viewpoints are healthier than others

D. None of the above.

B. Multicultural counseling refers to multiple perspectives or multiple cultural viewpoints within the counseling relationship in which none are dominant or considered more “normal” than others

Which counseling perspective emphasizes the universal qualities of counseling that are culturally generalizable? (Chapter 3)

A. Cultural generalizability approach

B. Etic approach

C. Hegemonic approach

D. Emic approach

B. Etic approach

__________________ refers to the way people perceive their relationship to the world, including nature, other people, objects, and religious experiences. (Chapter 3)

A. Multiculturalism

B. Ethnocentrism

C. Worldview

D. Acculturation

C. Worldview

_____________ includes both the affectional and sexual dimensions of self that are evidenced by thoughts, feeling, and behaviors. (Chapter 3)

A. Sexual behavior

B. Sexual attraction

C. Sexual identity

D. All of the above

C. Sexual identity

In which court case did a federal appeals court uphold the job termination of a counselor who asked to be excused from counseling a lesbian client on relationship issues because of the client’s sexual orientation conflicted with the counselor’s religious beliefs? (Chapter 3)

A. Tarasoff v. Board of Regents of the University of California

B. Bruff v. North Mississippi Health Services, Inc.

C. Jaffee v. Redmond

D. None of the above

B. Bruff v. North Mississippi Health Services, Inc.

Which of the following refers to the primary importance of family in Latino communities? (Chapter 3)

A. Respeto

B. Familism

C. Personalism

D. Marianismo

B. Familism

_________________ is a term in the DSM-5 used to describe individuals who experience incongruence between their expressed/experienced gender and their assigned gender. (Chapter 3)

A. Homosexuality

B. Sexual Identity Disorder

C. Gender Dysphoria

D. Gender Identity Disorder

C. Gender Dysphoria

_______________ refers to oppression, discrimination, or marginalization experienced by people who are negatively affected by socioeconomic disparity. (Chapter 3)

A. Social class

B. Socioeconomic status

C. Classism

D. Poverty

C. Classism

A counselor working with a client whose religion, ethnicity, and sexual orientation are different from his own, decides that he needs to process his thoughts and feelings about these contrastive cultural groups. This counselor is working on what facet of multicultural counseling competency development? (Chapter 3)

A. Cultural skills

B. Cultural knowledge

C. Cultural awareness

D. Cultural responsiveness

C. Cultural awareness

Jessica, a white female counselor, is working with Richard, a Chinese American male who is struggling with depression. Jessica has worked with many individuals with depression and, although she has not worked with a Chinese male with depression, she believes her existing knowledge base and skill set is sufficient. Which of the following statements, based on this information would be true of Jessica? (Chapter 3)

A. Jessica is actively contributing to institutionalized racism.

B. Jessica’s thought process is culturally sensitive because she aims to give the same treatment to Richard that she has given to clients in the past.

C. Jessica is exhibiting an emic perspective on counseling.

D. Jessica is exhibiting an etic perspective of counseling

D. Jessica is exhibiting an etic perspective of counseling

______________ refers to a motivation to change. (Chapter 4)

A. Initiative

B. Rapport

C. Informed consent

D. None of the above

A. Initiative

Which of the following theoretical frameworks encourages counselors to roll with resistance rather than confront it? (Chapter 4)

A. Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy

B. Motivational Interviewing

C. Transtheoretical Counseling

D. Developmental Counseling and Therapy

B. Motivational Interviewing

Which of the following counseling skills is effective in eliciting a large amount of information in a short time, but does not encourage elaboration? (Chapter 4)

A. Open questions

B. Empathy

C. Confrontation

D. Closed questions

D. Closed questions

All of the following are door openers except: (Chapter 4)

A. “What brings you to see me?”

B. “What if we move on to something different?”

C. “Tell me more.”

D. “What would you like to talk about?”

B. “What if we move on to something different?”

___________________ provides a way for counselors to link clients’ presenting problems to a treatment plan and serves to tailor interventions to specific client needs. (Chapter 4)

A. Case conceptualization

B. Empathy

C. Rapport

D. Clarifying probes

A. Case conceptualization

Which of the following is a term referring to negative, inaccurate biases that can result in unhealthy misperceptions of events? (Chapter 4)

A. Delusions

B. Resistance

C. Abreaction

D. Cognitive distortions

D. Cognitive distortions

________________ offers the client another probable and positive viewpoint of what a situation is or why an event might have happened. (Chapter 4)

A. Reframing

B. Selective abstraction

C. Empathy

D. Cognitive distortion

A. Reframing

Which of the following is best option describing the important function of ending the counseling relationship? (Chapter 4)

A. Gives clients the opportunity to maintain changes already achieved and generalize problem-solving skills to new areas

B. Serves as a reminder that the client has matured

C. Signals that something important has been completed

D. None of the above are important functions of ending the counseling relationship.

E. All the above are important functions of ending the counseling relationship.

E. All the above are important functions of ending the counseling relationship.

Which of the following involves arranging other assistance for clients when the initial arrangements are not likely to be helpful? (Chapter 4)

A. Recycling

B. Referral

C. Abandonment

D. Termination

B. Referral

A client who is unaware that a problem exists is in which stage of change? (Chapter 4)

A. Contemplation

B. Precontemplation

C. Maintenance

D. Action

E. Preparation

B. Precontemplation