ASWB Advanced Generalist Exam Questions

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61.

Which of the following would MOST likely change record keeping protocols?

  • Court order

  • Patient death

  • Patient medical emergency

  • Regulatory survey

Correct answer: Court order

Agency record-keeping protocols are designed to deal with most situations that can arise. Although perhaps unanticipated in the moment, events like patient death and medical emergencies are routine in the larger scope of a practice and should be addressed with established and trained methods. Similarly, a regulatory survey is not an occasion for change until perhaps after the survey.

A court order or subpoena is usually unforeseen and involves a change to an agency's usual method of dealing with information.

62.

Which of the following is the MOST important concern regarding handwritten documentation?

  • It is not taken seriously

  • It is inaccurate

  • It is not according to agency standards

  • It is not confidential

Correct answer: It is not taken seriously

The major concern with handwritten social work documentation of any kind is that it may not be taken seriously. It is important to adhere to a high standard of documentation, which would include producing documentation using universally readable media.

The other options are incorrect. Handwritten documentation may or may not be accurate, meet agency standards, or be as confidential as any other kind of documentation.

63.

When is it permissible to touch a client?

  • Under very specific controlled conditions 

  • Under no circumstances 

  • When the client requests it 

  • Only if the therapist is certified in a form of therapeutic touch

Correct answer: Under very specific controlled conditions 

The issue of touch is a highly sensitive one that involves a great risk for both clients and therapists. It is probably not advisable to rule out touch altogether, as touch in the form of handshakes and other casual social contact would be remarkable if absent. In some cases, rapport would be damaged if certain kinds of social touch are not engaged in; however, aside from this kind of casual social touch, the practice of touching clients should be evaluated carefully and only engaged in under very specific controlled conditions. 

It should not be a matter of client request, as the client may have secondary motives. It is also not confined to any specific certification in therapeutic touch. Ultimately, it is an issue of the social worker's judgment with the principle of avoiding any possible harm to the client or risk to themselves.

64.

Alex is assessing his client, Brad, who has just witnessed a mass shooting. What should Alex do FIRST?

  • Assess for imminent danger

  • Establish rapport

  • Identify the major problems

  • Explore feelings

Correct answer: Assess for imminent danger

Crisis planning begins with an assessment of any possible immediate threat to the client's safety, either from internal or external sources.

The other options are incorrect. Establishing rapport will happen after safety is established. Identifying the major problems will happen after rapport is established. Exploring Brad's feelings will be most effective after the problems have been identified.

65.

Various factors can set off a client’s emotional dysregulation. Comfortable furniture and accessible phones are signals of which of the following?

  • Physical safety

  • Social danger

  • Social safety

  • Physical danger

Correct answer: Physical safety

A client may sense physical safety when the following signals are present: clean and well-lit rooms, pictures and plants, comfortable furniture, and accessible phones. 

A client may sense physical danger when the following signals are present: broken, torn, or damaged furniture; bad odors; no exit; bars on the windows; dark corners and hallways; and warning signs. A client may sense social danger when the following signals are present: angry voices, profanity, rules without context, consequences and punishments, public use of shame and humiliation, and secrecy. 

A client may sense social safety when the following signals are present: pleasant interactions, welcoming people, smiles and a comforting tone, inclusiveness and participation, a sense of belonging, and choices.

66.

Which of the following MUST be present for the diagnosis of a paraphilic disorder?

  • Diagnostic criteria and negative consequences

  • Negative consequences

  • Diagnostic criteria

  • Diagnostic criteria and legal charges

Correct answer: Diagnostic criteria and negative consequences

In the DSM-5, in order to diagnose any paraphilic disorder, both diagnostic criteria and negative consequences must be present.

The other answers are incorrect, as they do not accurately describe the necessary elements of a paraphilic diagnosis.

67.

Which of the following is NOT a remedy for cognitive dissonance?

  • Avoid conflict

  • Reduce the importance of the conflict

  • Acquire new beliefs

  • Remove the conflict

Correct answer: Avoid conflict

Cognitive dissonance occurs when a person has to choose between two contradictory attitudes or beliefs. There are three ways one can remedy this situation: reduce the importance of the conflict, acquire new beliefs, or remove the conflicting belief. Avoiding the conflict is not seen as a remedy.

The other options are incorrect, as they are the remedies mentioned above.

68.

Which of the following BEST describes qualitative data?

  • It deals more with descriptions than discrete units

  • It deals more with discrete units than with descriptions 

  • It deals with numbers and can be measured

Correct answer: It deals more with descriptions than discrete units

Qualitative data deals more with descriptions and observations than discrete units of measurement.

Quantitative data deals more with discrete units than with descriptions and observations. Either type of research may include numbers, and both can be measured in some way, but qualitative data is more often measured in abstract or summary.

69.

After an initial evaluation, a social worker notes that the client was self-absorbed and had fragile self-esteem. What type of personality disorder does this client MOST likely have?

  • Narcissistic personality disorder

  • Avoidant personality disorder

  • Obsessive-compulsive personality disorder

  • Borderline personality disorder

Correct answer: Narcissistic personality disorder

Narcissistic personality disorder is characterized by excessive egocentrism, grandiosity, feelings of envy, fragile self-esteem, and self-centeredness.

Avoidant personality disorder is characterized by low self-esteem, hypersensitivity to potential rejection, and social withdrawal. Obsessive-compulsive personality disorder is characterized by impulses, obsessions, and reactions to conflicts or other anxieties. Borderline personality disorder is characterized by impulsive and unpredictable behavior, intense mood shifts, an inconsistent self-concept, and manipulation of others.

70.

Which of the following is NOT a dimension measured by the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI)?

  • Intellect/imagination

  • Extraversion/introversion

  • Thinking/feeling

  • Judging/perceiving

Correct answer: Intellect/Imagination

Intellect/imagination is not a dimension measured by the Meyers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI).

The other answers are incorrect, as they are all dimensions measured by the MBTI.

71.

What is the main point of administrative organizational reviews?

  • Providing accountability to the public 

  • Evaluating clinical performance 

  • Ensuring fiscal compliance 

  • Enhancing individual performance

Correct answer: Providing accountability to the public 

Administrative organizational reviews should be welcomed as an opportunity to provide accountability to the public about how clients are served. Such a review, when responsibly completed, may draw positive attention to the mission of an organization, as well as raise awareness of the clients and their problems within a community.  

Evaluating clinical performance, ensuring fiscal compliance, and enhancing individual performance may or may not be a direct result of this process.

72.

Which of the following is not one of the many definitions of gender?

  • One's pattern of sexual interest 

  • A set of visible, distinguishing characteristics 

  • Biological sex 

  • One's chosen identity as male, female, or another 

Correct answer: One's pattern of sexual interest 

The complex issue of gender identity is not made easier to understand by the language used to address it. For instance, the word gender can mean the set of visible, distinguishing characteristics that signal gender identity to others, one's biological sex, or one's chosen identity as male, female, or another choice. 

One thing that does not define gender is one's pattern of sexual interest, as this is referred to as sexual orientation.

73.

Which of the following is FALSE about somatization?

  • It is a conscious process 

  • It is an unconscious process 

  • Symptoms can emerge as responses to stressors or crises 

Correct answer: It is a conscious process 

Somatization is the unconscious process by which individuals experience physical symptoms with no apparent physical cause. Symptoms are highly idiosyncratic and can occur sporadically. They often emerge as responses to stressors or crises. 

74.

Which of the following is the MOST accurate statement regarding the progression of homosexual partners through the cycle of couples development?

  • They go through the same stages but experience unique factors 

  • They go through the same stages 

  • They do not experience the usual stages of couples development 

Correct answer: They go through the same stages but experience unique factors 

Couples development moves through several stages, from passionate encounters all the way through to more stable stages in which couples co-create as a dyad. Homosexual couples go through the same stages but experience unique factors due to stigma, a lack of public role models, and other factors.

75.

When should safety and risk assessments be done with clients? 

  • With all clients and in all settings

  • Only in cases where the diagnosis and/or circumstances warrant

  • When a past history of violence or problematic behavior exists

  • When an agency policy specifies 

Correct answer: With all clients and in all settings

Due to the unpredictability of circumstances and the endless variability of clients, it is crucial to perform safety and risk assessments with all clients in all settings. Such an assessment need not be unduly formal or lengthy, but in every circumstance, the evaluation of safety must be a first step in dealing with clients.

Many social workers have wrongly assumed that a safety assessment was not warranted in their circumstances or that they were safe because no past history indicated a concern. Agency policies should be in line with regular safety assessments; regardless, it is in the social worker's best interest to engage in them.

76.

A client has trouble walking and cannot keep up with her friends when they are shopping, so she always buys them lunch and gifts to make up for her disability.

What type of defense mechanism is this client most likely using?

  • Overcompensation

  • Intellectualization

  • Sublimation

  • Displacement

Correct answer: Overcompensation

Overcompensation is a defense mechanism characterized by an individual’s extreme efforts to counterbalance a deficiency.

Displacement is a defense mechanism in which a client transfers actions from a desired target to a substitute target when the first target is not permitted or not available.

Sublimation is a defense mechanism that allows an individual to act out unacceptable impulses or desires by converting these behaviors into a more acceptable form. Sublimation develops over a long period.

In intellectualization, people cognitively push away an emotion or reaction that they do not want to feel. Although they do not deny that an emotional event occurred, they do not want to think about its emotional consequences.

77.

Which of the following is an effect associated with the use of heroin?

  • Euphoria

  • Drowsiness

  • Dilated pupils

Correct answer: Euphoria

The effects of heroin include euphoria, apathy, and a “rush.” Heroin is a potent narcotic that is derived from morphine. Abusers either snort or inject it into their systems.

The effects of heroin do not typically include drowsiness or dilated pupils.

78.

Which of the following refers to the process of a community deciding its goals and strategies related to social issues?

  • Social planning

  • Social organization

  • Social consensus

  • Social structuring

Correct answer: Social planning

Social planning refers to the process of a community deciding its goals and strategies related to social issues.

The other options are incorrect. Social organization, social consensus, and social structuring do not refer to this process.

79.

Which of the following is the BEST definition of suprasystem in systems theory?

  • An entity composed of component systems

  • An absence of higher systems

  • An absence of subsystems 

  • An entity composed of systems in conflict 

Correct answer: An entity composed of component systems

Systems theory is a perspective that suggests human behavior is an expression of participation in various systems that interact. A suprasystem in systems theory is an entity composed of component systems, such as a large extended family suprasystem that is composed of smaller subsystems in the form of individual relationships.

The concept does not refer to an absence of higher systems, an absence of subsystems, or an entity composed of systems in conflict. 

80.

Which of the following is false regarding consultation with specialists?

  • Informed consent is generally not needed 

  • The minimum necessary information should be shared 

  • Consultation can be provided remotely

  • Consultation is not bound by the NASW Code of Ethics 

Correct answer: Informed consent is generally not needed 

It is sometimes necessary to engage a specialist to help with the problem-solving process. In these circumstances, the minimum necessary information should be shared that will assist in helping solve the problem. Consultation can be provided remotely; if performed by a social worker, it is bound by the same code of ethics as other kinds of social work. 

Informed consent should be gained from the client when engaging in consultative services, particularly when identifying information will be shared.