NCE-ABE National Counselor Examination Preparation Resources

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NCE-ABE National Counselor Examination is designed to assess knowledge, skills and abilities determined to be important for providing effective counseling services. It is one of two options for the National Certified Counselor (NCC) certification. The exam contains 200 multiple-choice questions, and you have 255 minutes to answer all the questions. We provide the latest National Counselor NCE-ABE exam preparation resources, which are useful for you to take the test. Free National Counselor NCE-ABE exam preparation resources are available below.

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1. What should a treatment team do when a client meets treatment goals earlier than anticipated?

Consider changes to medication.

Refer the client to group therapy.

Review and revise the treatment plan.

Understand the client's attitude toward treatment.

2. A counselor in private practice has been asked to teach a course in the counselor education department of the local university. Soon after beginning the course, one of the students in the class requests personal counseling from the counselor. Ethically, what should the counselor do?

Ask the student to wait until the course is over.

Refer the student to another appropriate professional.

Schedule a counseling appointment at the earliest convenience.

Suggest that the student redirect the request to another faculty member.

3. Which therapeutic approach would utilize outsider witness groups to integrate social resources in supporting client change?

Adlerian therapy

Gestalt therapy

Community psychology

Narrative therapy

4. In the early stages of reduction-in-force (RIF) outplacement counseling, the typical immediate counseling goal is to help clients:

Locate sources of information about retraining and/or further education.

Improve job interview skills.

Evaluate potentially appropriate workCleisureClifestyle integrations.

Cope with the resulting feelings.

5. What term is used to describe a client's entire human experience (background, values, morals, and traditions) in a social context?

A. Individualism

B. Culture

C. Collectivism

D. Race

6. The type of test validity that refers to the test's relationship to independent ratings of an individual's performance in a particular area is:

Face validity.

Criterion validity.

Content validity.

Construct validity.

7. Individual variation in modes of perceiving, remembering, and thinking, or distinctive ways of comprehending, storing, and utilizing information, is known as:

A. Divergent thinking

B. Creativity

C. Cognitive style

D. Convergent thinking

8. What therapeutic model was originally developed to treat individuals with borderline personality disorder?

A. Analytical behavioral analysis

B. Cognitive behavioral therapy

C. Dialectical behavior therapy

D. Transactional analysis

9. What is the definition of transference?

Transference denotes when a client wants to work with a counselor who shares their culture.

Transference denotes when the client looks at the counselor as a parental figure.

Transference denotes when the client develops strong emotions about the counselor.

Transference denotes when the client desires a counselor with the same diagnosis they have.

10. An applicant for a position in a counseling setting was asked to write a response to a commonly encountered situation for that setting. This is an example of a screening technique known as:

A. A structured interview

B. Content analysis

C. A work sample

D. Role-play

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11. Projective techniques:

Provide objective assessment.

Predict future difficulties of the subject.

Reflect the causes of the subject's current difficulty.

Reveal unconscious processes.

12. A primary distinction between content and construct validity is the:

A. Nature of the judges evaluating the test.

B. Nature of the rationale underlying the test.

C. Types of items included in the test.

D. Statistical analyses used on the test.

13. In family counseling, when a counselor attempts to help one family member become more assertive, the counselor recognizes that

making one member more assertive will result in other family members becoming more assertive.

changing one family member's behavior will change the behavior of other family members.

assertiveness is a uniquely personal attribute not usually amenable to change through family counseling.

such a behavior change can be accomplished effectively only if the other family members concur that it is a desirable change.

14. An organizational risk factor for compassion fatigue in social service agencies is:

A culture of silence about stressful events.

Competition between agencies for resources.

Predisposing personal characteristics and issues.

Providing required supervision and training opportunities.

15. What group theory uses lifestyle assessment?

Gestalt

Psychoanalytic

Individual psychology

Reality therapy

16. Piaget's studies of the cognitive growth of children are an example of which of the following types of research?

Descriptive

Correlational

Causal-comparative

Historical

17. What should a counselor do, in accordance with the general characteristics of life stages, circumstances, and life perspectives, when conducting group counseling for older persons?

Increase the use of purpose-specific, structured group activities.

Avoid the use of pre-group screening interviews to select group members.

Focus on the development of new, humanistically oriented interpersonal skills.

Guide discussions away from personal reminiscences by group members.

18. In setting up a behavior change program, a behavioral counselor would not be concerned about:

A baseline of behavior.

Contingency management.

Self-actualization.

Previous research on the concern.

19. According to research by John Gottman on counseling married couples, which of the following is not a predictor of divorce or marital misery?

A. Defensiveness

B. Stonewalling

C. Criticism

D. Anger

20. The statistical index that reflects the average distance of scores from the mean is the:

A. Correlation coefficient.

B. Range.

C. Standard deviation.

D. Standard score.

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21. A client reports difficulty concentrating “because everyone is always speaking at once.” Following this disclosure, what symptom must the counselor assess?

A. Visual hallucinations

B. Auditory hallucinations

C. Delusions of grandeur

D. Tactile hallucinations

22. Which of the following is a factor not initially addressed in the treatment of a client diagnosed with substance use disorder?

Physical concerns

Managing stress without substances

Dysfunctional lifestyle

Personality traits

23. Which of the following factors would be most salient in the treatment of a client who grew up in an urban neighborhood and is currently unemployed?

A. Cultural identity

B. Family background and history

C. Economic and class experiences

D. Psychological maturity and development

24. Group leaders facilitating groups in residential treatment facilities can expect which of the following?

A. Treatment team members to specify the goals for the group.

B. Use of screening to select appropriate group members.

C. Group membership to be consistent and stable until termination.

D. Groups to be open with inconsistent attendance.

25. Which of the following is not equivalent to the other three in a normal distribution?

Z score of 1

T score of 60

Percentile rank of 84

Stanine of 5

26. Generally, the provision of career counseling for persons at midlife and older should

Be presented systematically with a focus on career selection

Focus on abstract considerations of clients’ perception of self

Be grounded in the realities of clients’ lives

Emphasize the continuing need for self-development through training or education

27. To overcome problems involved in the interpretation of a ratio IQ, deviation IQs have been developed that:

A. Lower the standard deviation among test takers.

B. Are based on common means and standard deviations for many IQ tests.

C. Place primary emphasis on selecting students in extreme intelligence categories.

D. Reflect that all new IQ tests are being based on a common theory of intelligence.

28. Anorexia nervosa is commonly associated with which of the following?

Repeatedly regurgitating food over a period of at least one month

Intense fear of gaining weight

High incidence in low-income countries

Binge eating

29. What would a counselor do during the diagnostic process?

Involve the client actively.

Conceal the diagnosis from the client.

Discuss treatment alternatives.

Accept any previous diagnosis without reassessment.

30. Which theorist studied the development of moral values in females, allowing specialists to more thoroughly examine gender differences?

Carol Gilligan

Virginia Satir

Anne Roe

Karen Horney

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31. Within group counseling, the formation of subgroups as a reaction to initial intragroup conflict:

Is a phenomenon to be expected.

Should be prevented by the counselor.

Indicates need for change in leadership style.

Serves as an indicator of counseling effectiveness.

32. In some family counseling processes, attention is given to discussions about the behaviors of participating family members and members of the extended family (e.g., grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins). A primary reason for including these discussions in the family counseling process is to

A. trace the origins of inappropriate behaviors.

B. determine who else should be in counseling.

C. identify model family members.

D. clarify familial behavior norms.

33. Which of the following is the experimentally validated treatment modality for individuals diagnosed with substance use disorder?

Motivational interviewing

Narrative therapy

Solution-focused brief therapy

Eye movement desensitization and reprocessing

34. Which of the following would be the most appropriate approach for the counselor to use to help the client clarify vague descriptions of depression and existential concerns?

A. Challenge the client to establish a structure with which the client can organize life values.

B. Use active-listening skills to help the client to be more competent in describing the problem.

C. Generate and discuss possible antecedents of depression for the client to consider and evaluate.

D. Confront the client’s inconsistency between feelings of depression and lack of explanation of those feelings.

35. What diagnostic criteria would a counselor consider while assessing the severity of intellectual disability of a seven-year-old client?

A. Pressured speech

B. Agitation

C. Genetic factors

D. Concept formation

36. Which of the following is a major assumption of behavior therapy?

Behavior therapy attempts to correct the underlying cause rather than the maladaptive behavior itself.

Behavior therapy assumes that a maladaptive behavior is basically acquired through learning just as any behavior is learned.

Behavior therapy assumes that psychological principles, especially learning principles, can be very ineffective in modifying maladaptive behavior.

Behavior therapy provides only one method of treatment, regardless of the specific nature of the client's presenting complaint.

37. Aptitude tests, as a group, are best distinguished from achievement tests by the fact that they are:

Measures of previously learned skills.

Focused on the future.

Primarily used for program accountability.

Predominantly nonverbal.

38. During an intake session, a client reports persistent worry, muscle tension, difficulty concentrating, and excessive anxiety occurring more days than not for the past six months.

What is the most appropriate preliminary diagnostic impression?

Panic Disorder

Generalized Anxiety Disorder

Acute Stress Disorder

Somatic Symptom Disorder

39. A client with a terminal illness discloses to their hospice counselor that they would like to discuss the option of assisted suicide.

Which of the following should the counselor do first?

Seek consultation or supervision from professional and legal parties.

Maintain confidentiality to protect the therapeutic relationship.

Inform the client's family immediately to discuss next steps.

Review palliative care medications.

40. Which of the following techniques best characterizes the demonstration of advanced empathy to a client?

A. Asking questions

B. Demonstrating interest

C. Reflecting content

D. Reflecting conflicting feelings

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41. A client is an 85-year-old male who is in declining health. He has had a recent heart attack and his cardiologist recommended counseling. The client reports being divorced for 10 years and estranged from his adult children. He presents as mildly depressed with a limited range of emotional expression. He says he has accepted the loss of family relationships while recounting all he did to provide for his family. He expresses some fears about dying alone and wonders aloud about how much time he has left. An important focus of counseling with this client would be which of the following?

End-of-life issues

Repairing family relationships

Reviewing will and health care directives

Developing and expanding support networks

42. What technique should be used in solution-focused brief therapy (SFBT)?

Exceptions based on curiosity about times the problem seems prominent

The miracle question labeled as an emotional-focused coping strategy

The understanding of issues within or outside of the client's control

In-depth views and experiences regarding the client's feelings of distress

43. To elicit strengths that might improve the likelihood of goal attainment, a counselor might ask the client which of the following?

“How have you been able to stop the problem from getting worse?”

“What is the worst part about having this problem?”

“What resources do you wish you had?”

“What is your most positive memory from childhood?”

44. Counselors who follow behavioral orientations to counseling believe that anxiety evolves from:

A. Inappropriate reactions to early childhood behavior

B. Lack of effective responses to problem situations

C. Discrepancies between the real and the ideal self

D. Overt inconsistencies in responding to the environment

45. Techniques such as relaxation training, covert modeling, mental imagery, interpretation, and empty chair are routinely used by counselors who favor which of the following approaches to counseling?

Affective

Behavioral

Cognitive

Eclectic

46. Which theorist stressed the impact of birth order in the family constellation?

Alfred Adler

Carl Jung

Jean Piaget

Virginia Satir

47. When counselors build an alliance and demonstrate an understanding of the client's issues and concerns, they are using which foundational skills?

Listening, attending, and reflection skills

Summarizing, challenging, and reframing skills

Clarifying, assessing, and problem-solving skills

Treatment planning, interventions, and referral skills

48. How would a counselor demonstrate empathy in a counseling session?

Communicate an accurate perception of the client's feelings.

Nod their head frequently as the client speaks.

Sit in an open posture without crossing arms or legs.

Provide a detailed summary of the story the client just shared.

49. Counselors following Kohlberg's theory of moral development know that preschool-age children make their moral decisions primarily based on:

Observations of peer behaviors.

The outcomes of specific acts.

Their relationships with others involved in a situation.

Ethical implications of anticipated behaviors.

50. What is the prominent activity in career construction counseling?

A. Analyzing temperament

B. Documenting experience

C. Identifying life themes

D. Practicing interview skills

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51. Who has the responsibility for legal and ethical rights of subjects in a collaborative research project?

The principal investigator for the research project

The author of the research proposal

The counselor who agrees to accept the responsibility

The state licensure board

52. Once a person's higher needs have been gratified, the needs' intensity temporarily:

Disappears.

Stabilizes.

Decreases.

Increases.

53. An adult helps a child notice their feelings by engaging in dialogue about the effects of the child’s misbehavior on others. This is a form of which of the following disciplines?

A. Operant conditioning

B. Inductive approach

C. Deductive approach

D. Intermittent reinforcement

54. At the beginning of a group counseling process, the counselor informs group members that after each group session each will be asked to provide brief, anonymous, and positive or negative written comments about the counselor's behaviors during the group sessions. The counselor states that the comments will be typed by a secretary to further protect clients' identities prior to review by the counselor. This counselor is proposing a process that will produce data most useful for:

Group stage evaluation.

Outcome evaluation.

Self-evaluation.

Process gradient scaling.

55. What is the best diagnosis for a 40-year-old client who reports feeling hopeless and worthless, difficulty concentrating, and suicidal ideation nearly every day for the past two weeks, and who previously experienced the same symptoms as a traditionally-aged college student?

A. major depressive disorder, recurrent

B. major depressive disorder, single episode

C. persistent depressive disorder

D. bipolar I disorder

56. Which lack of bonding factor between caregiver and child has been found to contribute to academic underperformance by a child?

Inhibited cognitive and emotional growth due to low stimulation

Indiscriminate attachments to adults due to lack of attachment

Decreased experience with attending behaviors

Decreased practice with delaying gratifications

57. How would a counselor apply internal family systems therapy with an individual having relationship difficulties?

Explore how the client's family of origin shows up in relationship patterns.

Facilitate identification and visualization of parts taking over in the relationship.

Include family members in counseling sessions to resolve internal conflicts.

Recognize internal conflicts and attachment wounds affecting the client.

58. Feminist counselors suggest that:

One must understand the relationship with one's mother to obtain any lasting change.

Women have socially acknowledged equality.

Individual counseling can be used as a tool of social change.

Women can be empowered by men.

59. A client-centered counselor would agree that people are:

Forward moving and realistic.

Incongruent in most aspects of their lives.

Incapable of unassisted change (i.e., without a counselor).

Seeking to purge the evil from their lives.

60. You have been assigned to assess a 21-year-old client who presents as disheveled and confused. During the initial part of the interview, you note rapid speech, agitation, and paranoia. Based on your observations, which of the following is an appropriate next step when making a diagnosis?

Obtain additional information.

Establish a safety plan.

Discuss the client's addiction problem.

Seek a 72-hour hold on the client.

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61. Which is a primary feature of feminist counseling modalities?

Action is oriented to changing systemic threats to the wellness of the client.

Their roots lie in the development of solution-focused brief therapy (SFBT).

They have been contraindicated for use in couples and family counseling.

Practitioners must have moved beyond an androgynous gender role for their effective use.

NCE-ABE National Counselor Examination Preparation Resources

NCE-ABE National Counselor Examination Preparation Resources

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