Exam Prep

There is no question, the LMFT and LCSW board exams are challenging. They are also considered big hurdles that you must successfully jump over while on your path to licensure. These two facts combined make it far more likely that test anxiety will be present, and may even be higher than you’ve experienced during past exams. In this month’s anxiety management blog, we’re going to explore some techniques you can employ when anxiety unexpectedly strikes. When Might Anxiety Strike? Anxiety can and likely will appear throughout your studies. And because of its prevalence, this is a topic we’ve

Yesterday we discussed the topic of Self-Determination including a FREE Law and Ethics practice question to help you get prepared for your MFT or LCSW Law and Ethics exam. Let us take a look at the answer and the rationale: Practice Law and Ethics Exam Question: While meeting with a long-term client, a 28-year-old graduate school student, the therapist learns that the relationship the client is in is abusive. The client tells the therapist that her partner was very warm, communicative and kind at the beginning. With time, however, he became increasingly jealous, possessive, and began

Whether you are preparing to take the MFT Law and Ethics exam or the LCSW Law and Ethics exam, you are very likely to see questions on the topic of self-determination and patient autonomy. So why is patient autonomy important and what does the concept of self-determination mean? Well, it means that we do not tell our clients what to do and meet them exactly where they are at in the moment. Examples of patient self-determination: A client makes the decision of whether or not to stay in a relationship, even if the relationship is abusive in nature. A client chooses to focus on a particular issue

Yesterday we discussed Piaget’s Preoperational stage of development, including a FREE ASWB practice question to help you get prepared for your LMSW and LCSW exams. Did you get it right? ASWB Practice Question: Each of the following is characteristic of the preoperational stage of development EXCEPT: A. The child develops object permanence B. The child uses symbolic function C. The child can solve problems mentally D. The child engages in symbolic play The correct answer is A. By the time children reach the Preoperational stage, they have already developed permanence. Children develop object

Whether you are preparing for your master’s ASWB exam or clinical ASWB exam, you are bound to get at least a few questions on the various developmental stages - are you ready to successfully answer them? Within Erickson’s, Piaget’s, and Freud’s developmental stages, there is a lot to learn, and trying to learn it all can feel downright daunting. Amanda Rowan has done an excellent job identifying the most commonly tested information across these developmental stages and has created a user-friendly quick study on the developmental stages for anyone using one of TDC’s LMSW or LCSW ASWB exam prep

Yesterday we explored the topic of scope of competence, including a free practice question. Today we have the answer and a discussion of the rationale for you. Did you get it right?

Scope of Competence Last month we have discussed the concept of scope of practice. This month, we talk about the concept of scope of competence. If scope of practice is a legal issue, scope of competence is an ethical one. If scope of practice is what we are permitted to do, then the scope of competence is what we are good at doing.

Yesterday we explored the differences between the defense mechanisms introjection/internalization and identification. These can be difficult ones to distinguish, so if you haven’t already, we encourage you to check out yesterday’s blog post! Today we have a discussion of the answer and rationale for yesterday’s practice question.

Introjection/Internalization and Identification As an LCSW and LMSW exam coach, there are no defense mechanisms I get more emails and questions about than introjection/internalization and identification. Introjection and internaization are used pretty interchangeably on the exam, so going forward in this blog I will just use ‘identification’ for the sake of simplicity. There is a lot of confusion out there regarding the differences between these defense mechanisms, and our hope is that today’s blog will help you distinguish between these as you prepare for your LCSW and LMSW exams!

Negative Reinforcement vs. Positive Reinforcment In yesterday’s blog, we explored the topic of behavioral reinforcement, differentiating between negative reinforcement, positive reinforcement, and punishment. If you haven’t had a chance to check out yesterday’s blog, we encourage you to do so! Did you get yesterday’s question correct? Read on to find out!