Information for Final Exam Preparation

Overview: The exam will cover all readings and class material since the midterm exam.  Like the midterm, the exam will be divided into two primary sections: (a) identifications (short essays), requesting description or application of concepts, and (b) long essays, focused on concept integration, analysis and critique, or comparison and contrast.  In addition, there will be a third, brief section (part c) consisting of objective style questions on the presentations (e.g., true-false, multiple choice).

            A. Identifications/short essays (10 points each, 50 points total): As with the midterm, some identifications will request application of concepts to cases, e.g., "Describe the technique of exposure and explain how it was used in the case of June."  However, there are not many clinical cases among the post-midterm reading material, and some topics cannot be easily applied to the cases we did read (e.g., psychotherapy effectiveness, ethics).  Consequently, some identifications will request application to hypothetical cases (e.g., "describe 3 ways in which a cross-culturally competent therapist might adapt her style to better accommodate an ethnic minority client") or basic description (e.g., "describe 4 research difficulties affecting studies of psychotherapy outcome").

The concepts and cases with which you should be familiar are listed below:

• Behavior therapy techniques: systematic desensitization, exposure (implosive) therapy, behavior rehearsal and modeling, thought-stopping, contingency management, aversion therapy
• Advantages or strengths and limitations or weaknesses of behavior therapy
• Shared assumptions of cognitive therapies
• Cognitive therapy techniques: increasing self-efficacy, rational restructuring, stress inoculation training, Beck's cognitive therapy
• Similarities and differences of behavior therapy and cognitive therapy
• Cases: June (Case study), Martha (A 23-year old woman), Kim (videotape client)
• Psychotherapy effectiveness: efficacy vs. effectiveness study and advantages and disadvantages of each; major findings of Consumer Reports study; flaws (and rebuttals) of Consumer Reports study; meta-analysis and findings of meta-analysis of psychotherapy effectiveness; empirically validated treatments pros and cons; examples of empirically validated treatments
• Common factors: Jerome Frank's 6 factors; contributions of technique, expectancy, relationship, and client factors
• Cross-cultural counseling: why do minority clients underutilize or prematurely terminate mental health services; appropriate language for people with disabilities, older people, women, and gay/lesbian/bisexual people; therapeutic techniques for working with ethnic minority clients; racial/cultural identity development
• Ethics: Dual relationships and confidentiality
• The scientist-practitioner gap (Tavris): why, consequences

            B. Long essays (20 points each, 40 points total): Here are 4 possible essays.  I will choose 2 on the day of the exam.  I strongly suggest that you write out, or at least outline, your ideas in advance so that you can make the best use of time on the day of the exam.  I'm estimating that you would write a full page or more for each.

• Compare and contrast behavior therapy and cognitive therapy, in terms of therapist style, approach, techniques, or philosophy.  (Try to consider approximately 4 similarities and 4 differences, although the specific number depends on the depth that you go into.)
• Consider the case of Laura, from the first half of the semester.  (Sorry to make you go back to this material, but I was in need of another case.  If you really didn't like or don't remember this case, you can choose the case of Carlos.)  How would a behavioral OR cognitive therapist have approached this case?  Be specific, explaining how initial sessions might have proceeded and techniques that might have been incorporated.
• Design a study to investigate the effectiveness of a new, 6-session treatment for poor body image.  Be sure to consider all the issues discussed in class (i.e., controls, group equivalence, measures of change, treatment delivery), explaining precisely how you will deal with each research challenge.  Assume that you have a limited budget; you have received a $20,000 grant from the BIB (Body Image Boosters) Foundation, and must attempt to stay within this budget.
• Consider the case of Kim (videotape from class).  Choose any 4 common factors (e.g., from Frank or from "Bells and Whistles"), and for each, consider whether the counselor on the videotape offered an advantage over a White therapist in making use of the factor.  Try to integrate what you've learned about cross-cultural counseling in your response.  Note: If you did not see this video, you can check it out of the UNCA library.  It is from a series called Ethnicity and Counseling (BF637.C6 E84 1996  v.1).  Be sure you get volume 1, "Counseling the African-American client." 

            C. Presentations (10 points).  Be sure you look over information from the presentations given in class.  For the MW class topics include prescription privileges, substance abuse, and wounded healers; for the T class topics include dual relationships, feminist therapy, and one other (to be determined today!).  Questions here will be similar to those on your reading quizzes (designed to reward good listening, not to force memorization).