Deck 4: Attitudes and Characteristics of the Effective Clinician

Question 1

The feeling that although we have gained expertise in a particular area, we still feel as if we are "faking it," or not worthy of what we have accomplished, is called:

A) unfinished business.
B) incompetence.
C) the White Knight Syndrome.
D) the Imposter Syndrome.

Answer 1

D

Question 2

Countertransference has been defined as:

A) the manner in which the unfinished business of our clients affects the helping relationship.
B) how the relationship between the client and counselor, as affected by the client's issues, directs the helping relationship.
C) the positive or negative wishes, fantasies, and feelings that the counselor unconsciously directs or transfers to the client, stemming from his or her own unresolved conflicts.
D) the deleterious manner in which the clinician responds when a client's behavior touches a clinician's "sore spot."
E) a and b
F) c and d
G) All of the above

Answer 2

F

Question 3

An empathic clinician is one who has:

A) experienced the problem of another person.
B) dealt with that kind of problem before.
C) been certified as being empathic.
D) the ability to understand the inner world of another person.
E) All of the above

Answer 3

D

Question 4

Which of the following is not true about how minority clients tend to experience counseling?

A) They experience it as longer term than white clients, mostly because counselors have a difficult time understanding the minority client's problem.
B) They find therapy less helpful than their majority counterparts.
C) They attend therapy at lower rates.
D) They are frequently misunderstood and often misdiagnosed.

Question 5

In reference to the counseling relationship, genuineness is____ in the helping relationship:

A) being authentic
B) being real
C) periodically self-disclosing
D) being open
E) All of the above

Question 6

Which of the following best represents the concept of having an ethnocentric worldview?

A) It means we have examined our prejudices and stereotypes; understand our beliefs; have a knowledge base; and have the skills necessary to work with clients from diverse backgrounds.
B) It means the helper assumes their way of viewing the world is the same as their client's.
C) It means that we are developmentally mature as it pertains to counseling clients from diverse backgrounds.
D) It means that we have conquered our prejudicial worldview and can now take on the worldview of another.

Question 7

Purkey and Schmidt's approach to being an effective helper had to do with which of the following?

A) Ways of living a healthy life
B) Matching techniques to client problems
C) Embracing a number of theoretical orientations
D) Being oneself
E) All of the above

Question 8

All but one of the following are reasons why counseling does not work for many minority clients.

A) This country is a melting pot which de-emphasizes minority client identity.
B) The client and counselor have different expectations of the counseling process.
C) Counselors do not understand the impact of social forces on minority clients.
D) Counselors are not always in touch with their racist attitudes and prejudices.

Question 9

Which of the following is the definition of client resistance as noted in the text?

A) The clinician's inability to work on issues that foster countertransference.
B) When a client refuses to work on an issue due to unfinished business and transference.
C) Any behavior that moves a client away from areas of discomfort or conflict and prevents the client from developing.
D) The clinician's lack of experience that leads him or her to have an inability to gently push the client to work on important issues.

Question 10

The White Knight Syndrome is:

A) the feeling that although we have gained expertise in a particular area, we still feel as if we are "faking it," or not worthy of what we have accomplished.
B) the belief among female clients that a powerful male will suddenly solve all of their problems.
C) the cross-cultural stereotype concerning good and evil.
D) the sense among many beginning clinicians that we must somehow "save" the client.
E) the belief that some types of counseling are like a chess game that needs to be played carefully, deliberately, and effortlessly.

Question 11

Open-minded clinicians:

A) allow clients to express their points of view.
B) are able to take in the client's perspective and change the manner in which they come to understand the client.
C) tend to be more empathic than those who are closed-minded.
D) allow others to express their points of view and subtly try to change others to their point of view.
E) Two of the above
F) Three of the above
G) All of the above

Question 12

All but one of the following are reasons why counseling does not work for many minority clients.

A) Counselors view some cultural-specific appropriate behaviors as pathological.
B) Assessment instruments are sometimes culturally biased and misinterpreted.
C) Racism is inherent in society and impacts how counselors understand the world.
D) Counselors tend to "overcompensate" for minority clients.
E) Counselors are not always in touch with their racist attitudes and prejudices.

Question 13

Research on the well-adjusted counselor shows which of the following?

A) They are more effective than those who are not well adjusted.
B) Mixed results about their effectiveness
C) They are less effective than counselors who are struggling with their issues because those who are struggling have deeper empathy for others.
D) None of the above

Question 14

Clinicians who are accepting of others:

A) condone everything a person does.
B) accept people unconditionally.
C) accept people in their differences.
D) b and c
E) All of the above

Question 15

While many counselor attributes are related to client outcomes, one attribute that seems to be the most strongly related is:

A) being empathic.
B) being nonjudgmental.
C) having an internal locus of control.
D) being good at building a counseling relationship.
E) being mentally healthy.

Question 16

Joining is a term used by Salvadore Minuchin that can be most associated with which of the following counselor attributes?

A) Empathy
B) Being good at building a counseling relationship
C) Being mentally healthy
D) Genuineness
E) Acceptance

Question 17

All of the following are barriers to the effective multicultural helping relationship, except:

A) the melting pot myth.
B) understanding the universality of symptomatology.
C) having incongruent expectations of counseling.
D) lacking an understanding of social forces.
E) having an ethnocentric worldview.
F) being ignorant of self-racism and others' cultural identity.

Question 18

Cognitive complexity:

A) means that the clinician views clients in context.
B) means that the clinician can understand clients from multiple perspectives.
C) is an ability that can be developed by all clinicians.
D) Two of the above
E) Three of the above

Question 19

Which of the following is not true regarding participation in one's own therapy?

A) It can assist the counselor in dealing with his or her own personal difficulties.
B) It enables the therapist to identify and empathize with the experience of sitting in the client's seat.
C) It helps the clinician gain insight and helps to prevent countertransference.
D) It helps to assure that the clinician is providing unimpaired services, as highlighted in the ethical codes.
E) It addresses the requirement noted in accreditation standards that clinicians must attend their own therapy.
F) None of the above (all are benefits)

Question 20

Counselor competence includes all but which of the following?

A) Having a thirst for knowledge
B) Reading the professional literature
C) Practicing only in one's specialty area
D) Knowing when to consult with others
E) Knowing one's limitations
F) All of the above

Question 21

Some suggest that genuineness affects all helping relationships and that all helpers must, at some point, deal with this quality.

Question 22

Swenson (1997) states that being less competent than the "average of their peers" is often used as a measure of professional malpractice.

Question 23

Beginning counselors should have the expectation that deleterious attitudes that negatively impact on the counseling relationship need to change "overnight."

Question 24

The ability to be sympathetic is closely related to the ability to be empathic.

Question 25

The effectiveness of empathy may be related to a number of factors such as stage of the counseling relationship, kind of client problem, and cognitive complexity of the counselor.

Question 26

The White Knight and Imposter Syndromes describe some issues often faced by experienced clinicians.

Question 27

Awareness that our cultural blinders will inevitably impact what we do and what se say is critical.

Question 28

Which of the following values is not stressed by traditional views of counseling?

A) Cause and effect
B) Mind/body integration
C) Self-disclosure
D) Open-mindedness and insight
E) Focus on the individual
True or False

Question 29

Having "absolute truth" is a strength in the counseling relationship as it enables the client to view the helper as grounded and strong.

Question 30

In some cases, what clinicians call resistance that leads to lack of client progress may be the result of countertransference, lack of experience, and lack of expertise.

Question 31

When examining numerous studies, about 50% of clinicians have been in their own therapy.

Question 32

Most natural helpers will employ some helpful attitudes as well as some "destructive attitudes."

Question 33

Research shows that a well?adjusted counselor may have better client outcomes than counselors who are not well adjusted.

Question 34

Perceived competence has been consistently chosen by therapists as the most important factor in picking a therapist.