NCE-ABE Exam Dumps - National Counselor Examination

Client-centered (person-centered) counseling, based on Carl Rogers’ theory, is grounded in a fundamentally positive view of human nature. People are seen as having an innate actualizing tendency—a built-in drive to grow, develop, and move constructively toward fulfillment when provided with appropriate conditions such as empathy, congruence, and unconditional positive regard from the counselor.1

Because of this, client-centered counselors view people as essentially:

Forward moving – oriented toward growth, change, and self-improvement.

Capable of realistic perception when not distorted by conditions of worth or external pressures.1

This aligns directly with Option A: forward moving and realistic.

Why the other options are incorrect:

B. Incongruent in most aspects of their lives.While Rogers acknowledges that incongruence (a mismatch between self-concept and experience) can occur and lead to distress, he does not define people primarily as incongruent in “most aspects” of their lives. Rather, incongruence is seen as a condition that can be reduced in a supportive therapeutic relationship.1

C. Incapable of unassisted change.Person-centered theory emphasizes that clients possess their own resources for growth. The counselor’s role is to provide facilitative conditions, not to act as the expert who “changes” the client. People are not viewed as fundamentally incapable of change without a counselor.1

D. Seeking to purge the evil from their lives.This reflects a moral or theological framing, not the humanistic, nonjudgmental stance of client-centered counseling. Rogers did not conceptualize people as evil; he saw them as basically trustworthy and constructive.1

In the Core Counseling Attributes area, NBCC emphasizes that counselors hold attitudes that respect the client’s inherent capacity for growth, autonomy, and self-direction—exactly the view reflected in Option A.

In developmental and ethological theory, imprinting refers to the process by which very young offspring form a strong, early bond or attachment to a primary caregiver. This process is especially noted in animal studies but is often used conceptually to describe how early, close caregiver relationships form and shape later attachment patterns.

Option B, imprinting, matches the idea of an early, foundational attachment process.

Role identification (A) involves modeling and adopting roles/behaviors, typically later in development.

Operant conditioning (C) and classical conditioning (D) describe learning through reinforcement or association, not specifically the attachment bond itself.

Knowledge of early attachment processes and their impact on later emotional and relational functioning is part of Areas of Clinical Focus in the NBCC Counselor Work Behavior Areas, as it helps counselors understand developmental roots of clients’ concerns.

In the Counseling Skills and Interventions work behavior area, counselors must understand major counseling theories and their associated assessment and intervention methods.

Individual psychology, developed by Alfred Adler, is an approach that emphasizes the holistic understanding of the person, including goals, social interest, family constellation, and life themes. A central tool in Adlerian/individual psychology is the lifestyle assessment, which explores:

Early recollections

Family constellation and birth order

Private logic and core beliefs

Patterns of behavior and goals of behavior

The purpose of lifestyle assessment is to understand the client’s unique way of viewing self, others, and the world, and to identify themes that influence current functioning and problems.

Gestalt (A) focuses on present awareness, unfinished business, and experiential techniques such as role-playing and empty-chair work, not lifestyle assessment.

Psychoanalytic (B) emphasizes unconscious processes, early childhood conflicts, and defense mechanisms, using tools such as free association and dream analysis.

Reality therapy (D) focuses on present choices, responsibility, and meeting basic needs, often using tools like the WDEP system (Wants, Doing, Evaluation, Planning), not lifestyle assessment.

Because lifestyle assessment is a hallmark of Adlerian/individual psychology, the correct answer is C.

During intake, assessment, and diagnosis, counselors are expected to collaborate with clients, involve them actively in understanding what is being assessed, and explain the purpose and implications of diagnosis. This includes:

Using the client’s self-report as an essential source of data.

Inviting questions and feedback about symptoms and diagnostic impressions.

Promoting transparency and shared understanding rather than a “secret” label.

Therefore, involving the client actively (A) best reflects ethical and competent diagnostic practice.

B. Conceal the diagnosis from the client is inconsistent with informed consent and collaborative practice.

C. Discuss treatment alternatives is important but is more central to treatment planning after diagnosis, not to the diagnostic process itself.

D. Accept any previous diagnosis without reassessment ignores the responsibility to re-evaluate current functioning, context, and symptoms.

This fits NBCC expectations that counselors use diagnosis thoughtfully and collaboratively as part of a larger assessment process.

Within the Areas of Clinical Focus work behavior area, counselors are expected to know evidence-based treatments for specific clinical conditions, including personality disorders.

Dialectical behavior therapy (DBT) (Option C) was originally developed by Marsha Linehan specifically to treat chronically suicidal individuals diagnosed with borderline personality disorder (BPD). DBT integrates:

Cognitive-behavioral strategies for behavior change,

Acceptance-based strategies (e.g., mindfulness),

A dialectical framework balancing acceptance and change.

The model includes:

Individual therapy,

Group skills training (mindfulness, emotion regulation, distress tolerance, interpersonal effectiveness),

Phone coaching,

Consultation team for therapists.

These features reflect the NBCC-aligned work behavior expectation that counselors understand appropriate, validated modalities for complex clinical presentations such as BPD.

Why the other options are incorrect:

A. Analytical behavioral analysis – This is not the recognized model associated with the original treatment of BPD.

B. Cognitive behavioral therapy – While DBT evolved from CBT and CBT techniques are useful with many disorders, standard CBT was not specifically designed as the original, specialized treatment protocol for BPD.

D. Transactional analysis – A distinct theoretical model focusing on ego states and life scripts; it is not the empirically established, original treatment model for BPD.

Counselors working with personality disorders are expected to identify and, when within their scope, apply or refer for treatments such as DBT, which are designed and researched for these clinical populations.

Counselors are expected to understand major theoretical orientations and how they conceptualize the family and the individual in context. Within this competency, Alfred Adler is recognized as the theorist who emphasized:

The family constellation, including the structure and dynamics of the family system.

The impact of birth order (e.g., oldest, middle, youngest, only child) on personality development, beliefs, and interpersonal style.

How these early family experiences shape a person’s sense of belonging, inferiority/superiority, and lifestyle.

Adlerian theory holds that an individual’s position in the family constellation influences roles, expectations, and perceived significance, which in turn affect behavior and psychological functioning. Counselors use this understanding to conceptualize clients within their relational and familial context.

Why the other options are not correct:

B. Carl Jung focused on the collective unconscious, archetypes, and individuation—not birth order.

C. Jean Piaget is associated with cognitive development in children, not family constellation dynamics.

D. Virginia Satir worked extensively with families and communication patterns, but she is not the theorist associated with birth order as a core conceptual tool.

This aligns with the NBCC Counselor Work Behavior Area expectations that counselors understand key theorists and use family and developmental context when conceptualizing client concerns.

In the Counseling Skills and Interventions work behavior area, counselors are expected to select interventions that are supported by empirical evidence for the client’s specific concerns, including substance use disorders.

Motivational interviewing (MI) (Option A) is a widely researched, empirically supported treatment modality for individuals with substance use disorders. It is a client-centered, directive approach designed to:

Enhance intrinsic motivation for change,

Resolve ambivalence,

Support clients in moving through stages of change regarding substance use.

Core MI skills often summarized as OARS (open questions, affirmations, reflections, summaries) are used to elicit and strengthen “change talk” and reduce resistance. Research has consistently shown MI’s effectiveness in reducing substance use and increasing treatment engagement across various populations and settings.

Why the other options are less appropriate here:

B. Narrative therapy – While potentially helpful for meaning-making and identity reconstruction, it is not the primary empirically validated front-line modality for substance use disorders.

C. Solution-focused brief therapy – Has some supportive evidence for various problems and can be useful in certain substance-related contexts, but MI has a stronger and more direct evidence base specifically for substance use disorders.

D. Eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) – Primarily validated for trauma-related disorders, particularly PTSD, rather than as a core, primary treatment for substance use disorders.

NBCC-aligned counselor work behaviors emphasize that practitioners should match interventions to the problem using approaches with strong empirical support, making motivational interviewing the best choice among the options for treating substance use disorders.

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Kohlberg’s theory states that young children (preschool age) typically operate at the preconventional level of moral development. At this level, moral judgments are based mainly on the consequences of actions, especially punishment and reward. Children see behaviors as “good” or “bad” depending on what happens afterward, not based on internalized values or concern for relationships.

Option B reflects this: decisions based on the outcomes of specific acts (e.g., “If I do this, will I get in trouble or get a reward?”).

Options A, C, and D reflect more advanced moral reasoning: peer influence, concern for relationships, and ethical principles—all of which appear later in Kohlberg’s stages. Understanding developmental theories like Kohlberg’s helps counselors conceptualize client behavior across the lifespan, which fits within Areas of Clinical Focus in the NBCC Counselor Work Behavior framework.