Deck 6: Basic Interpersonal Skills

Question 1

The following are all reasons why a practitioner may misunderstand a client EXCEPT

A) s/he may misinterpret the client's words.
B) s/he may lack knowledge about the client's culture.
C) s/he may be influenced by personal biases and prejudices.
D) the client may have a psychotic disorder that makes him/her illogical.

Answer 1

D

Question 2

In groups, scanning involves

A) glancing at the other group members while one group member is speaking.
B) skimming through the group materials.
C) putting a piece of paper in a machine and pressing "start."
D) looking up and down at the member who is speaking and noticing his/her nonverbal communication patterns.

Answer 2

A

Question 3

As a peer supervisor, which of the following is NOT appropriate?

A) Give direct and accurate feedback.
B) Focus on the behavior, not the person.
C) Focus on the person's character, not the behavior.
D) Give the person being supervised both positive and negative feedback.

Answer 3

C

Question 4

You notice a flush developing from your client's chest and moving up into his face. What is he most likely experiencing?

A) Heart attack
B) Intoxication
C) A stomach ache
D) Strong emotion

Question 5

Listening involves all of the following EXCEPT

A) developing your own thoughts and conceptualizations of the client while the client is speaking.
B) noticing the client's communication style.
C) noticing pauses, silence and changes in usual patterns of speech.
D) resisting the temptation to talk to fill the silences.

Question 6

Which of the following is NOT one of the interpersonal skills discussed in the chapter that facilitate good professional relationships?

A) Positive humility
B) Accurate observations
C) Effective attending
D) Active listening

Question 7

Why might physical contact be an inappropriate way of expressing warmth?

A) Physical contact is considered moral corruption by some.
B) It may be seen as an intimate exchange rather than a way of expressing professional caring.
C) The practitioner may inadvertently hurt the client.
D) It may make the client feel guilty about his/her physical appearance.

Question 8

Nonverbal communication includes all of the following EXCEPT:

A) facial expressions.
B) breathing patterns.
C) posture.
D) unclear words

Question 9

In groups, the practitioner should

A) not only look at the person speaking but also scan the other group members.
B) only look at the person who is speaking and give him or her undivided attention.
C) direct all questions to the person who is talking
D) encourage members to refrain from speaking to other members of the group.

Question 10

A practitioner wants to communicate involvement through minimal encouragement. What should the practitioner do?

A) Say "uh-huh", nod, or repeat what the client says.
B) Shift in his/her seat.
C) Ask the client to think of ways to encourage him/herself.
D) Remain silent.

Question 11

When a contradiction between a verbal and nonverbal message is noticed, an appropriate response from the practitioner might be

A) to ignore the contradiction since a comment may sound accusatory.
B) to make a comment such as, "I heard you say you weren't nervous and noticed that you're bouncing your leg and clenching your fists."
C) to make a comment such as, "You're not telling the truth. Your body language does not match your words."
D) to make eye contact and create a contradiction between the practitioner's verbal and nonverbal communication.

Question 12

Attending involves

A) going to class.
B) focusing only on the words of the client.
C) being completely focused on the client.
D) dividing your time between listening to your client and focusing on your own thoughts.

Question 13

Which of the following is NOT an example of noticing nonverbal communication?

A) You notice your client speaking faster and at a higher pitch.
B) You notice that your client mostly looks at the floor during your sessions.
C) You notice that your client sits with slumped shoulders.
D) You notice your client tends to talk about the stress he is experiencing at work.

Question 14

A client comes to see you and demonstrates the following behavior: crying, sighing, poor eye contact, and slight change in the amount of moisture in her eyes. She may be experiencing which emotion?

A) Anger
B) Fear
C) Sadness
D) Stress

Question 15

If a client's nonverbal message is different from his/her verbal message, which one is usually closer to the actual meaning?

A) The nonverbal message.
B) The verbal message.
C) There is a third message that needs to be explored.
D) Both messages are close to the actual meaning, depending on your perspective.

Question 16

_________ is the term used when a client demonstrates no expression or facial movement.

A) Flat affect
B) Expressionlessness
C) Sad affect
D) Labile affect

Question 17

Why is it challenging to be a good observer of larger groups?

A) You may not meet everyone in the group.
B) There may be several levels of interaction in larger groups.
C) You may not be able to remember everyone, so people may not feel as connected to the practitioner.
D) The practitioner may not like everyone in the group.

Question 18

The advantage to having two leaders in a group session is that

A) one leader can scan the group while the other one is leading.
B) each leader can pay attention to half the clients.
C) leaders do not have to make any observations during the session since they can depend on the other leader to do so.
D) dual relationships are allowed in this case since both leaders have relationships with the members of the group.

Question 19

Why are careful observations important?

A) They allow you to disregard what the client says.
B) They supplement what the client tells you verbally.
C) They may provide interesting information about the client but do not provide any critical information.
D) They always contradict the client's verbal information.

Question 20

Readiness to be involved and to be fully present can be communicated in several ways including all of the following EXCEPT

A) leaning slightly forward with a relaxed body posture.
B) sitting in an open and accepting way with arms unfolded.
C) maintaining facial expressions that are congruent with whatever is being discussed.
D) speaking more than the client and leading the entire session.

Question 21

As a peer supervisor, you notice that a beginning practitioner fidgets in her seat and taps her foot frequently during a session. Her client may believe that she is

A) crazy.
B) nervous.
C) incontinent.
D) hungry.

Question 22

During one of your sessions, your client does not make much eye contact with you, uses one-word responses to your questions, and frequently glances at his watch. What hypotheses do you have about what may be going on with your client? Provide three hypotheses and discuss how you might go about exploring theses hypotheses with your client.

Question 23

One of your clients, whom you are seeing for court-mandated anger management sessions, screams in your face at the first session, "I don't know why the court is forcing me to see you! I DON'T HAVE ANGER PROBLEMS! The judge is a moron!" Describe how you might observe, attend, listen, and express warmth to this client. What would you say to this client? How would you use your own non-verbal communication to make this client feel heard?

Question 24

You are seeing an extremely shy, 16-year-old, Asian, female client who speaks with a very soft voice and rarely makes eye contact. What would you do to let her know you are attending to her? Be sure to consider cultural and gender factors in your response.

Question 25

A practitioner notices that one client tends to communicate in a story form, while another client tends to jump from one topic to another. This practitioner is noticing the clients' ___________.

A) talk therapy
B) style of communicating
C) jargon and colloquialisms
D) meaning

Question 26

The use of _____________ is the foundation of any positive relationship.

A) love
B) knowledge
C) attending
D) communication

Question 27

Which of the following areas - observing, attending, listening, expressing warmth - are most challenging for you? What might you do to develop these skills?

Question 28

Why might listening as a practitioner be difficult?

A) It requires that the practitioner pay complete attention to the client's words and actions.
B) It requires that the practitioner focuses on what s/he is thinking while focusing on the client's words and actions.
C) It requires that the practitioner ask many questions.
D) It requires that the practitioner refrain from using minimal encouragement.

Question 29

List five non-verbal behaviors that you should pay attention to as a good observer. List one question for each non-verbal behavior that you could ask yourself while observing your client.

Question 30

Which of the following is NOT a typical conversational behavior?

A) Talking about oneself
B) Asking a lot of questions
C) Changing the subject
D) Active listening