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NURS 3054 PSYCHOSOCIAL NURSING FINAL EXAM QUESTIONS AND
CORRECT ANSWERS LATEST EDITION 2026
NURS 3054 Psychosocial Nursing Final Exam — ALL QUESTIONS
SECTION 1: THERAPEUTIC COMMUNICATION & THE NURSE-CLIENT RELATIONSHIP (Questions
1–60)
Question 1
A nurse is using therapeutic communication with a client who was recently diagnosed with a
chronic illness. Which of the following statements by the nurse is an example of this technique?
A) "Why did you wait so long to come in?"
B) "Everything will be fine, don't worry."
C) "Tell me more about how you're feeling."
D) "You should try harder to accept this."
Answer: C
Rationale: Therapeutic communication encourages patients to express their feelings. Open-
ended questions like "Tell me more…" facilitate this. "Why" questions can be perceived as
judgmental, false reassurance dismisses feelings, and advice-giving is not therapeutic.
Question 2
A client with schizophrenia tells the nurse, "The voices are telling me to hurt myself." Which of
the following is the nurse's priority response?
A) "Ignore the voices; they aren't real."
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B) "Are you thinking of hurting yourself right now?"
C) "That must be frustrating for you."
D) "You are safe here with us."
Answer: B
Rationale: Assessing for suicidal ideation is the priority to ensure immediate safety. While
empathy and reassurance are important, a direct assessment of current risk takes precedence.
Question 3
A nurse is caring for a client experiencing a panic attack. Which statement by the nurse is most
therapeutic?
A) "This is a short-term problem, and you will feel better before you leave."
B) "Let's try taking slow, deep breaths. I'll stay with you until you feel better."
C) "Did you keep the instructions that were given on how to stop these attacks?"
D) "I'll give you some time to calm down. Then I'll come back and we can talk."
Answer: B
Rationale: Offering to go through the situation together and staying with the patient signals
presence and support during an acute panic attack. Leaving the client alone is not therapeutic.
Question 4
A client tells the nurse, "I don't think this is my heart. That spaghetti I ate for lunch tasted a little
strange. I think I have food poisoning." Which defense mechanism is this client exhibiting?
A) Compensation
B) Denial
C) Displacement
D) Identification
Answer: B
Rationale: Denial is an attempt to ignore unacceptable realities by refusing to acknowledge
them. The client is refusing to accept the diagnosis of a myocardial infarction.
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Question 5
A client who is angry with their spouse yells at their child instead. This is an example of which
defense mechanism?
A) Displacement
B) Projection
C) Sublimation
D) Reaction formation
Answer: A
Rationale: Displacement involves transferring emotions from the original source to a safer
target.
Question 6
A client who was just diagnosed with a chronic illness states, "The lab results must be wrong; I
feel perfectly fine." Which defense mechanism is the client using?
A) Denial
B) Repression
C) Rationalization
D) Suppression
Answer: A
Rationale: Denial involves refusing to acknowledge the reality of a threatening situation.
Question 7
A client who is an alcoholic states, "I can quit anytime I want; I just don't want to right now."
Which defense mechanism is being used?
A) Denial
B) Rationalization
C) Projection
D) Displacement
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Answer: B
Rationale: Rationalization involves creating logical explanations to justify unacceptable
behavior.
Question 8
A client who is feeling jealous of a coworker's success states, "I'm actually happy for them; they
really deserve it." This is an example of which defense mechanism?
A) Reaction formation
B) Sublimation
C) Projection
D) Displacement
Answer: A
Rationale: Reaction formation involves expressing the opposite of one's true feelings.
Question 9
A client with a history of trauma describes the traumatic event in a detached, emotionless
manner. Which defense mechanism is being used?
A) Dissociation
B) Repression
C) Suppression
D) Isolation of affect
Answer: D
Rationale: Isolation of affect involves separating emotions from the associated thoughts or
memories.
Question 10
A client states, "I'm not anxious about the surgery; I'm just concerned about the recovery
process." This is an example of which defense mechanism?
A) Denial
B) Rationalization
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NURS 3054 PSYCHOSOCIAL NURSING FINAL EXAM QUESTIONS AND
CORRECT ANSWERS LATEST EDITION 2026
NURS 3054 Psychosocial Nursing Final Exam — ALL QUESTIONS
SECTION 1: THERAPEUTIC COMMUNICATION & THE NURSE-CLIENT RELATIONSHIP (Questions
1–60)
Question 1
A nurse is using therapeutic communication with a client who was recently diagnosed with a
chronic illness. Which of the following statements by the nurse is an example of this technique?
A) "Why did you wait so long to come in?"
B) "Everything will be fine, don't worry."
C) "Tell me more about how you're feeling."
D) "You should try harder to accept this."
Answer: C
Rationale: Therapeutic communication encourages patients to express their feelings. Open-
ended questions like "Tell me more…" facilitate this. "Why" questions can be perceived as
judgmental, false reassurance dismisses feelings, and advice-giving is not therapeutic.
Question 2
A client with schizophrenia tells the nurse, "The voices are telling me to hurt myself." Which of
the following is the nurse's priority response?
A) "Ignore the voices; they aren't real."
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,Page 2 of 105
B) "Are you thinking of hurting yourself right now?"
C) "That must be frustrating for you."
D) "You are safe here with us."
Answer: B
Rationale: Assessing for suicidal ideation is the priority to ensure immediate safety. While
empathy and reassurance are important, a direct assessment of current risk takes precedence.
Question 3
A nurse is caring for a client experiencing a panic attack. Which statement by the nurse is most
therapeutic?
A) "This is a short-term problem, and you will feel better before you leave."
B) "Let's try taking slow, deep breaths. I'll stay with you until you feel better."
C) "Did you keep the instructions that were given on how to stop these attacks?"
D) "I'll give you some time to calm down. Then I'll come back and we can talk."
Answer: B
Rationale: Offering to go through the situation together and staying with the patient signals
presence and support during an acute panic attack. Leaving the client alone is not therapeutic.
Question 4
A client tells the nurse, "I don't think this is my heart. That spaghetti I ate for lunch tasted a little
strange. I think I have food poisoning." Which defense mechanism is this client exhibiting?
A) Compensation
B) Denial
C) Displacement
D) Identification
Answer: B
Rationale: Denial is an attempt to ignore unacceptable realities by refusing to acknowledge
them. The client is refusing to accept the diagnosis of a myocardial infarction.
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,Page 3 of 105
Question 5
A client who is angry with their spouse yells at their child instead. This is an example of which
defense mechanism?
A) Displacement
B) Projection
C) Sublimation
D) Reaction formation
Answer: A
Rationale: Displacement involves transferring emotions from the original source to a safer
target.
Question 6
A client who was just diagnosed with a chronic illness states, "The lab results must be wrong; I
feel perfectly fine." Which defense mechanism is the client using?
A) Denial
B) Repression
C) Rationalization
D) Suppression
Answer: A
Rationale: Denial involves refusing to acknowledge the reality of a threatening situation.
Question 7
A client who is an alcoholic states, "I can quit anytime I want; I just don't want to right now."
Which defense mechanism is being used?
A) Denial
B) Rationalization
C) Projection
D) Displacement
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Answer: B
Rationale: Rationalization involves creating logical explanations to justify unacceptable
behavior.
Question 8
A client who is feeling jealous of a coworker's success states, "I'm actually happy for them; they
really deserve it." This is an example of which defense mechanism?
A) Reaction formation
B) Sublimation
C) Projection
D) Displacement
Answer: A
Rationale: Reaction formation involves expressing the opposite of one's true feelings.
Question 9
A client with a history of trauma describes the traumatic event in a detached, emotionless
manner. Which defense mechanism is being used?
A) Dissociation
B) Repression
C) Suppression
D) Isolation of affect
Answer: D
Rationale: Isolation of affect involves separating emotions from the associated thoughts or
memories.
Question 10
A client states, "I'm not anxious about the surgery; I'm just concerned about the recovery
process." This is an example of which defense mechanism?
A) Denial
B) Rationalization
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