Think Like the Exam
True/False: The ASWB exam has both direct question examples and vignette examples to answer.
Direct Question Example: What drug is classified as a depressant?
Vignette Question: A social worker meets with a family experiencing stress because one member recently became unemployed. What should the social worker do FIRST?
True. You should be prepared to answer questions that test direct knowledge and social work processes.
A system of moral principles and perceptions about right versus wrong; the resulting philosophy of conduct that an individual, group, profession, or cultural practice.
What are Ethics?
A social worker at a substance use treatment center meets with an adolescent client who expresses remorse about engaging in sexual activity while drunk. The social worker tells the client that sexual promiscuity while intoxicated may indicate alcohol use disorder. What BEST describes the social worker’s approach?
A. Education B. Confrontation C. Summarization D. Clarification
What is A. Education?
Differences in and among societal groups based on race and/or ethnicity, gender, age, physical/mental abilities, sexual orientation, religion, and other distinguishing characteristics.
What is Diversity?
The termination process is MOST often associated with:
A. Evaluating goals and accomplishments B. Implementing a plan of action C. Setting limits D. Developing a contract
What is A. Evaluating goals and accomplishments?
Scored: 1_0
Length: _ hours
What is 170 questions listed - 150 scored - with 4 hours to complete the exam?
Not performing additional duties outside of your scope of practice, not providing personal information to clients, and setting strong rules/expectations for interactions with co-workers and clients are all examples of...
What are professional boundaries?
A client tells the social worker that he occasionally drives while intoxicated but asks the worker not to tell anyone. He is not intoxicated during the session. What should the social worker do FIRST?
A. Notify the police B. Document the statement and continue the session C. Clarify limits of confidentiality and assess current risk D. Warn the client about legal consequences
What is C. Clarify limits of confidentiality and assess current risk?
In this stage of change, the behavior has been acknowledged, and the person has decided to make a change. It may be a small change, for example, a reduction in the amount of substance used, or the type, or it could be a behavior change (safer injection).
What is Preparation/Determination?
A client is overwhelmed by many problems and cannot focus. You begin with…
What is partializing the problem?
On the exam, it's helpful to identify ________ words for guidance, i.e. best, next, least, most, first, etc.
What are qualifying words?
This principle prioritizes the client’s right to make their own treatment decisions, even when the social worker disagrees.
What is self-determination?
A social worker is working with a client who has been living in an abusive relationship for several years. The client is ready to leave, but they are unsure of how to go about it. The social worker SHOULD:
A. Advise the client to call the ex-partner immediately to seek closure.
B. Give the client the phone number of their ex-partner and suggest they talk things through.
C. Discuss the pros and cons of contacting the ex-partner, helping the client explore their feelings and motivations.
D. Avoid discussing the topic of the ex-partner altogether.
What is C. Discuss the pros and cons of contacting the ex-partner, helping the client explore their feelings and motivations?
A child in foster care avoids their caregiver but seeks comfort from strangers. This behavior is MOST consistent with:
A. Secure attachment B. Avoidant attachment C. Disorganized attachment D. Anxious attachment
What is C. Disorganized attachment?
This is an insecure attachment style stemming from early childhood trauma, neglect, or caregivers who were both a source of fear and safety. It manifests as a confusing mix of wanting and fearing intimacy. Adults with this style often display chaotic, inconsistent behaviors, severe mistrust, and poor emotional regulation.
A resistant mandated client refuses to talk. Your BEST technique is…
What is motivational interviewing/engagement techniques?
Identify the 4 content areas of the exam
What is....
I. Human Development, Diversity, and Behavior in the Environment
II. Assessment and Intervention Planning
III. Interventions with Clients and Client Systems
IV. Professional Relationships, Values, and Ethics
When a client threatens harm to an identifiable person, this legal/ethical duty overrides confidentiality.
What is the duty to warn/protect?
Residents of a neighborhood are concerned about increasing crime rates. The residents ask a social worker for help. To help the residents work together to improve their safety, what process should the social worker use?
A. Program development B. Community organizing C. Social reform D. Protest
What is B. Community Organizing?
This concept examines how multiple identities overlap to shape client experiences.
What is Intersectionality?
A social worker interviews a client with a history of resistance to treatment and hostility toward agency staff. To involve the client and establish a therapeutic alliance, what should the social worker do FIRST?
A. Conduct a mood assessment with the client B. Engage the client in a discussion of the presenting problem C. Review the history of services with the client D. Refer the client to an anger management group
What is B. Engage the client in a discussion of the presenting problem?
The ASWB examinations are designed to test your social work knowledge across a range of kinds of thinking, or cognitive levels. Identify the 3 types of cognitive levels required for this exam.
What is...
1. Recall: simply remembering something—for example, information you learned in school or from a seminar or text.
2. Application: using what you’ve learned in a particular situation.
3. Reasoning: sorting through what you’ve learned, along with considering the situation and other relevant information.
Bonus: The Masters, Advanced Generalist, and Clinical exams have more application and reasoning questions than the Associates and Bachelor's level exams.
This process involves identifying the dilemma, consulting the Code of Ethics, seeking supervision, and documenting the process.
What is an ethical decision-making model?
A teen’s behavior changes significantly depending on whether they are at home, school, or with peers. This is best explained by:
A. Cognitive theory B. Psychodynamic theory C. Systems/ecological theory D. Behavioral theory
What is C. Systems/ecological theory?
A teenager begins engaging in risky behaviors after joining a new peer group that values rule-breaking. This is BEST explained by:
The classification for medications typically used to treat anxiety.
What are Benzodiazepines?