Crisis Intervention 308 | Final Examination
CRISIS INTERVENTION 308 | FINAL EXAM QUESTIONS AND CORRECT
ANSWERS | VERIFIED CRISIS INTERVENTION AND EMERGENCY
COUNSELING | 2026/2027
CRISIS INTERVENTION 308
1. Which definition of crisis is most widely used in contemporary crisis
intervention literature?
A. A chronic state of emotional instability lasting more than one year
B. A personality weakness that prevents adaptive functioning
C. The perception or experience of an event as an intolerable difficulty
that exceeds the person's current resources and coping mechanisms
D. Any traumatic event that results in a diagnosable mental disorder
C. The perception or experience of an event as an intolerable
difficulty that exceeds the person's current resources and coping
mechanisms
Crisis is defined by the person's perception and the overwhelming of
coping resources, not by the event alone.
Page 1 of 65
, Crisis Intervention 308 | Final Examination
2. According to Caplan, an acute crisis state typically resolves, for better
or worse, within approximately:
A. 6 to 12 months
B. 24 to 72 hours
C. 4 to 6 weeks
D. 2 to 3 years
C. 4 to 6 weeks
Caplan observed that crisis states are self-limiting and usually reach some
resolution within about four to six weeks.
3. Erich Lindemann's pioneering work on acute grief reactions grew out
of his study of survivors and relatives of which event?
A. The sinking of the Titanic
B. The 1942 Cocoanut Grove nightclub fire in Boston
C. The 1995 Oklahoma City bombing
D. The 1906 San Francisco earthquake
B. The 1942 Cocoanut Grove nightclub fire in Boston
Lindemann's study of Cocoanut Grove survivors laid the groundwork for
grief work and early crisis theory.
4. Gerald Caplan is best known in crisis intervention for:
A. Developing the Seven-Stage Crisis Intervention Model
B. Applying a public health model of primary, secondary, and tertiary
prevention to mental health
C. Creating the Triage Assessment Form
D. Establishing the first 988 call centers
B. Applying a public health model of primary, secondary, and
tertiary prevention to mental health
Caplan brought preventive psychiatry and the concept of crisis as an
opportunity for intervention into the field.
Page 2 of 65
, Crisis Intervention 308 | Final Examination
5. The Chinese term for crisis (wei-ji) is often cited in crisis texts
because it combines the concepts of:
A. Fear and anger
B. Danger and opportunity
C. Chaos and order
D. Loss and grief
B. Danger and opportunity
The danger-and-opportunity framing captures the idea that crisis can lead
to either deterioration or growth.
6. Basic crisis theory holds that a person in crisis is in a state of:
A. Chronic psychosis
B. Permanent personality change
C. Psychological disequilibrium
D. Complete emotional numbness
C. Psychological disequilibrium
Basic crisis theory views crisis as a temporary loss of psychological
equilibrium that intervention aims to restore.
7. Expanded crisis theory differs from basic crisis theory because it:
A. Rejects the idea that environment influences crisis
B. Draws on systems, ecological, adaptational, interpersonal, and chaos
theories in addition to psychoanalytic theory
C. Focuses exclusively on biological causes of crisis
D. Applies only to children and adolescents
B. Draws on systems, ecological, adaptational, interpersonal, and
chaos theories in addition to psychoanalytic theory
Expanded theory recognizes that social, environmental, and situational
factors shape crisis, not just internal dynamics.
Page 3 of 65
, Crisis Intervention 308 | Final Examination
8. A 64-year-old man who becomes depressed and directionless shortly
after his retirement party is most likely experiencing which type of
crisis?
A. Ecosystemic crisis
B. Existential crisis
C. Situational crisis
D. Developmental crisis
D. Developmental crisis
Developmental crises arise from normal life transitions such as
retirement, marriage, or the birth of a child.
9. A college student who is seriously injured in an unexpected car
accident is experiencing which type of crisis?
A. Transcrisis
B. Situational crisis
C. Existential crisis
D. Developmental crisis
B. Situational crisis
Situational crises stem from sudden, random, and uncommon events that
a person cannot predict or control.
10. A 50-year-old woman reports that she suddenly feels her life has
had no meaning or purpose and that it is now too late to change. This
best describes:
A. A developmental crisis
B. An existential crisis
C. A situational crisis
D. An ecosystemic crisis
B. An existential crisis
Existential crises involve inner conflicts about purpose, responsibility,
freedom, and commitment.
Page 4 of 65
CRISIS INTERVENTION 308 | FINAL EXAM QUESTIONS AND CORRECT
ANSWERS | VERIFIED CRISIS INTERVENTION AND EMERGENCY
COUNSELING | 2026/2027
CRISIS INTERVENTION 308
1. Which definition of crisis is most widely used in contemporary crisis
intervention literature?
A. A chronic state of emotional instability lasting more than one year
B. A personality weakness that prevents adaptive functioning
C. The perception or experience of an event as an intolerable difficulty
that exceeds the person's current resources and coping mechanisms
D. Any traumatic event that results in a diagnosable mental disorder
C. The perception or experience of an event as an intolerable
difficulty that exceeds the person's current resources and coping
mechanisms
Crisis is defined by the person's perception and the overwhelming of
coping resources, not by the event alone.
Page 1 of 65
, Crisis Intervention 308 | Final Examination
2. According to Caplan, an acute crisis state typically resolves, for better
or worse, within approximately:
A. 6 to 12 months
B. 24 to 72 hours
C. 4 to 6 weeks
D. 2 to 3 years
C. 4 to 6 weeks
Caplan observed that crisis states are self-limiting and usually reach some
resolution within about four to six weeks.
3. Erich Lindemann's pioneering work on acute grief reactions grew out
of his study of survivors and relatives of which event?
A. The sinking of the Titanic
B. The 1942 Cocoanut Grove nightclub fire in Boston
C. The 1995 Oklahoma City bombing
D. The 1906 San Francisco earthquake
B. The 1942 Cocoanut Grove nightclub fire in Boston
Lindemann's study of Cocoanut Grove survivors laid the groundwork for
grief work and early crisis theory.
4. Gerald Caplan is best known in crisis intervention for:
A. Developing the Seven-Stage Crisis Intervention Model
B. Applying a public health model of primary, secondary, and tertiary
prevention to mental health
C. Creating the Triage Assessment Form
D. Establishing the first 988 call centers
B. Applying a public health model of primary, secondary, and
tertiary prevention to mental health
Caplan brought preventive psychiatry and the concept of crisis as an
opportunity for intervention into the field.
Page 2 of 65
, Crisis Intervention 308 | Final Examination
5. The Chinese term for crisis (wei-ji) is often cited in crisis texts
because it combines the concepts of:
A. Fear and anger
B. Danger and opportunity
C. Chaos and order
D. Loss and grief
B. Danger and opportunity
The danger-and-opportunity framing captures the idea that crisis can lead
to either deterioration or growth.
6. Basic crisis theory holds that a person in crisis is in a state of:
A. Chronic psychosis
B. Permanent personality change
C. Psychological disequilibrium
D. Complete emotional numbness
C. Psychological disequilibrium
Basic crisis theory views crisis as a temporary loss of psychological
equilibrium that intervention aims to restore.
7. Expanded crisis theory differs from basic crisis theory because it:
A. Rejects the idea that environment influences crisis
B. Draws on systems, ecological, adaptational, interpersonal, and chaos
theories in addition to psychoanalytic theory
C. Focuses exclusively on biological causes of crisis
D. Applies only to children and adolescents
B. Draws on systems, ecological, adaptational, interpersonal, and
chaos theories in addition to psychoanalytic theory
Expanded theory recognizes that social, environmental, and situational
factors shape crisis, not just internal dynamics.
Page 3 of 65
, Crisis Intervention 308 | Final Examination
8. A 64-year-old man who becomes depressed and directionless shortly
after his retirement party is most likely experiencing which type of
crisis?
A. Ecosystemic crisis
B. Existential crisis
C. Situational crisis
D. Developmental crisis
D. Developmental crisis
Developmental crises arise from normal life transitions such as
retirement, marriage, or the birth of a child.
9. A college student who is seriously injured in an unexpected car
accident is experiencing which type of crisis?
A. Transcrisis
B. Situational crisis
C. Existential crisis
D. Developmental crisis
B. Situational crisis
Situational crises stem from sudden, random, and uncommon events that
a person cannot predict or control.
10. A 50-year-old woman reports that she suddenly feels her life has
had no meaning or purpose and that it is now too late to change. This
best describes:
A. A developmental crisis
B. An existential crisis
C. A situational crisis
D. An ecosystemic crisis
B. An existential crisis
Existential crises involve inner conflicts about purpose, responsibility,
freedom, and commitment.
Page 4 of 65
