Intake, Assessment, and Diagnosis CECE
UPDATED Exam Questions and
CORRECT Answers
Which of the following questions might be asked by a counselor conducting a
biopsychosocial interview as part of a new client's intake appointment?
a. Do you drink or do drugs?
b. What do you consider to be your strengths?
c. How often do you get together with friends?
d. All of the above - Correct Answer- d - Biopsychosocial interviews are holistic and
comprehensive. Counselors who conduct these interviews address the biological,
psychological, and social aspects of their clients lives in order to identify what is contributing
to their clients' problems and guide treatment planning/goal setting.
Which of the following interviews use the DSM-5?
a. Diagnostic interview
b. Biopsychosocial interview
c. Mental status exam
d. Screening - Correct Answer- a - Diagnostic interviews are used to help diagnose mental
illness. The DSM-5 is a manual mental health professionals use with their clients to assess
and diagnose mental disorders. While it does not provide mental health professionals with
guidelines to treat a disorder, diagnosing accurately is an important first step in treatment.
Biopsychosocial interviews can help determine factors that contribute to a client's problems
and can help guide the treatment plan. Mental status exams are used to assess a client's
behavioral and cognitive functioning. It consists of descriptions based on the counselor's
observations of the client's appearance, behavior, level of consciousness, attitude, perception,
and affect. Screening is a process used when selecting members for a small group.
For which client would a partial hospitalization program be the best place to get care?
Jacob - A thirteen year old whose mother recently died. While he is exhibiting some signs of
depression, he is still maintaining a normal routine as far as school and his social life are
concerned.
,Amanda - A six year old who was recently diagnosed with ADHD. She is struggling in school
because she is exhibiting a wide range of behaviors typically associated with ADHD. Her
parents recently joined a support group for parents to try to help them sort through different
treatment options.
Robert - A nine year old who is diagnosed with Oppositional Defiant Disorder and Disruptive
Mood Dysregulation Disorder and is unable to currently control his emotional and behavioral
outbursts at both home and school.
Olivia - A sixteen year old who has attempted suicide in the past and recently disclosed to her
therapist she is feeling suic - Correct Answer- c - Partial hospitalization programs provide
clients with group therapy, educational sessions, individual counseling and medication
management. They can work with both families and schools to plan for transition as the day
program comes to an end. Of the children in the above described scenarios, Robert would
benefit from a partial hospitalization program because he would be able to attend small group
and individual counseling sessions focused on helping him learn effective strategies to deal
with his emotions while decreasing negative behaviors. His parents/guardians as well as
educators could be involved in setting goals for treatment as well as transition. If he is on
medication, they will be able to manage/adjust his medication and if he is not, they would
talk with his parents/guardians about the pros and cons of starting medication. Jacob and
Amanda could both benefit from outpatient counseling. Olivia most likely needs a higher
level of care and after being assessed would benefit from inpatient psychiatric services.
You are doing an intake, and you ask about family constellation, particularly the client's
family of origin. Your client tells you she has three siblings, all older by eight years or more,
and she has one younger sibling, three years her junior. According to Adlerian theory, you can
assume she will take the role of:
a. The oldest child
b. The youngest child
c. The middle child '
d. Adler did not believe that birth order affected personality - Correct Answer- a - Adler
believed birth order had a major impact on personality development. When siblings are more
than seven years apart, the child assumes the role of the oldest child.
After your initial session with Nicole, she asks you what you have diagnosed her with.
Because your theoretical orientation is Rogerian, you answer:
a. "Tell me about why that's important to you."
b. "You have ________________________."
,c. "That is information for me to have to guide your treatment, but I cannot share it with
you."
d. "I don't like to work with diagnoses, as I see little benefit in doing so." - Correct Answer- d
- Rogerian counselors discourage diagnosis because using a diagnosis runs counter to seeing
each person as unique. It also puts the counselor in an authoritative/expert role.
A counselor is setting up group therapy screening appointments. She gathers the information
that she will give the members to help them understand the process of being part of a therapy
group. The best predictor of client success in a therapy group is:
a. Commitment
b. Dispelled myths about group
c. What role one takes on
d. Their level of participation - Correct Answer- a - Members that commit to change tend to
attain positive outcome and therapeutic benefit from group therapy.
In terms of a process group, pre-screening clients _____________________ group member
satisfaction.
a. Increases
b. Decreases
c. Has no effect on - Correct Answer- a - Yalom noted that pre-group preparation increases
member satisfaction with the overall group experience.
The following is not appropriate content for the pre-group screening discussion?
a. The stages and roles of group
b. Common myths of group therapy
c. The client's needs and expectations
d. None of the above—they are all appropriate for discussion - Correct Answer- d - During
the screening process, the stages, roles, common myths, expectations, needs and commitment
should be discussion as should confidentiality
Children who experience frequent mood swings, tantrums, periods of anger and depression
were once diagnosed as having bi-polar disorder. Today, the diagnosis would be:
a. Intermediate Explosive Disorder
b. Autism Spectrum Disorder
, c. Disruptive Mood Dysregulation Disorder
d. Asperger's Syndrome - Correct Answer- c - The diagnosis of Disruptive Mood
Dysregulation Disorder was created in order to prevent misdiagnosis and provide better
treatment and care for children who do not necessarily meet the criteria for bi-polar disorder
and yet display symptoms of chronic, severe, and or persistent irritability that manifest itself
as frequent temper outburst in response to the frustration that they are feeling.
A couple is concerned about the behavior of their 5 year old who periodically throws
tantrums and experiences angry outbursts when he is frustrated. This child does not quite
meet the criteria to be diagnosed with bi-polar disorder but a counselor should withhold
making the diagnosis because:
a. The parents have not disclosed whether there is a history of bi-polar disorder in the family.
b. An improper diagnosis could result in the child being labeled "special education" in the
future.
c. Much of the child's behavior could possibly be considered "normal" if it is found that the
couple lacks parenting skills.
d. All of the above. - Correct Answer- d - Children between the ages of 6 and 18 who
experience persistent irritability, tantrums and behaviors more than three times a week for
more than a year may be experiencing Disruptive Mood Dysregulation Disorder. The child in
this case is 5 years old and he or she may be considered too young for the diagnosis of
DMDD. What has to be determined before the final diagnosis is made, is if the behavior of
the child meets the criteria of the disorder or if the behavior is just reflective of normal
development.
The criteria for diagnosing children with autism and related disorders is known as:
a. Asperger's Syndrome
b. Pervasive Developmental Disorders
c. Childhood Disintegrative Disorders
d. Autism Spectrum Disorder - Correct Answer- d - Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) under
the DSM V is believed to be a more accurate diagnosis than the previous four separate
disorders of autistic disorder, childhood disintegrative disorder, Asperger's disorder or
pervasive development disorder as previously seen in the DSM IV. The criteria for
diagnosing ASD is still the same as the aforementioned disorders in the DSM IV. Symptom
criteria still include the classic problems in the area of social communication, social
interaction, repetitive behavioral patterns and even if a child does not fit perfectly into the old
criteria, they can still land within the "spectrum." The challenge of diagnosing the disorder is
what motivated researchers to change the name to ASD so that symptom criteria for making
diagnoses could fall anywhere "under the umbrella" and still meet the criteria of ASD. The
whole purpose of adopting ASD was so that clinicians could account for the varying
