603 Final Exam Study Guide Question
and answers 100% correct 2025/2026
Communication Patterns Questionnaire (CPQ): Know what this measure primarily assesses- - correct
answer ✔This measure evaluates the demand withdrawal pattern.
It's one in which there is one person-- we'll label that person the demander-- who criticizes, nags, or
makes demands, while the other partner-- who we'll refer to as the withdrawer-- avoids confrontation,
withdraws, and becomes defensive.
This pattern has sometimes been referred to as the nag-withdraw pattern, the pursuer-distancer
pattern, or also the rejection-intrusion pattern.
Be familiar with interview strategies for intimate partner violence (IPV) - - correct answer ✔Interview
separately
Start with a general question about what conflict tends to look like in the couple's relationship
Use very clear, direct, and specific language, such as using the term "physical violence" and that your
questions focus on concrete examples about specific behaviors
If an individual indicates that yes they have either been the victim of physical aggression or they have
been the aggressor, get specific descriptions of behaviors that have occurred.
Understand the frequency and last episode of abuse
You want to ask specific questions about the use of weapons and injuries that might have been
sustained in episodes of violence.
What is the worst episode of violence that's ever happened between your partner and you?
,Who is responsible for this aggressive behavior?
Do they take responsibility for that or do they somehow try to blame their partner for their violent
behavior?
Similarly, you would want to find out if someone has been the victim of intimate partner violence, do
they in some ways mistakenly blame themselves for this behavior or indicate that they feel that they
deserve it somehow?
Interview the victim first so if the client indicates he or she does not feel safe, you want to refrain from
asking those questions of the partner until you can address safety issues
Conflict Tactics Scale-2: Know what this measure assesses, how content changes in the revision
improved over the original CTS, and limitations of this measure. - correct answer ✔The measures the
extent to which members of a couple use specific tactics, including physical violence, during times of
conflict.
Improved both the content validity of the measure and also improved reliability by making the measure
longer or certain subscales longer
Improved distinction between identifying minor and severe forms of violence for various scales.
Limitations: The instructions on it are to consider acts that occur in the context of conflict. And some
have raised questions about whether this would exclude unprovoked acts of violence and aggression
that are done purely out of hostility or malevolence.
There is only a limited set of violent acts that are asked about. And by limiting these specific acts, are
we, therefore, leaving out important experiences of potential test-takers?
The final criticism is that the context in which these Conflict Tactics are occurring is not necessarily taken
into consideration, including the relative size and strength of the individuals involved. And the
circumstances under which these different acts happen, the sequence of events, and so on.
Marital Instability Index - know what this measure assesses and the score Gottman uses as an indicator
of concern - correct answer ✔So it is often helpful for a therapist to know the couple's commitment to
, their relationship when they are conducting couples therapy. And so including a measure of
commitment to the relationship or marital instability can be a helpful part of a couple's assessment. It
asks about steps that a member of the couple has taken towards separation and divorce.
John Gottman, the marital researcher, uses a score even lower than this. He says a score of four or more
indicates a respondent is emotionally out the door and seriously in danger of leaving the marriage.
FES: Know what this scale is used to assess; general advantages and disadvantages of this instrument;
how scale scores work (i.e., what do elevated scores mean? - i.e., are elevated scores always good, bad,
or does it depend on scale?) - correct answer ✔Social climate scales. Moos believed behavior is best
understood as an interaction between an individual and their environment.
Scales are in Domains- Relationship (Cohesion, Expression and Conflict), Personal Growth Dimensions
(Independence, Achievement, Intellectual- cultural, active-recreational, moral-religious), and System
Maintenance (Organization and control)
High Scores do not always indicate problems, depends on the scale
What are some reasons why assessment of parenting is important? - correct answer ✔Several reasons
could be: if we suspect there may be abuse going on, assessing would be important
It is important to see if a family is at risk for said abuse
Evaluating need for parent intervention
May reveal difficulties a child/parent may be experiencing for treatment.
What are some things to look for in a parent-child observation? - correct answer ✔How child may
attempt to gain attention from parent/how does parent respond to this
and answers 100% correct 2025/2026
Communication Patterns Questionnaire (CPQ): Know what this measure primarily assesses- - correct
answer ✔This measure evaluates the demand withdrawal pattern.
It's one in which there is one person-- we'll label that person the demander-- who criticizes, nags, or
makes demands, while the other partner-- who we'll refer to as the withdrawer-- avoids confrontation,
withdraws, and becomes defensive.
This pattern has sometimes been referred to as the nag-withdraw pattern, the pursuer-distancer
pattern, or also the rejection-intrusion pattern.
Be familiar with interview strategies for intimate partner violence (IPV) - - correct answer ✔Interview
separately
Start with a general question about what conflict tends to look like in the couple's relationship
Use very clear, direct, and specific language, such as using the term "physical violence" and that your
questions focus on concrete examples about specific behaviors
If an individual indicates that yes they have either been the victim of physical aggression or they have
been the aggressor, get specific descriptions of behaviors that have occurred.
Understand the frequency and last episode of abuse
You want to ask specific questions about the use of weapons and injuries that might have been
sustained in episodes of violence.
What is the worst episode of violence that's ever happened between your partner and you?
,Who is responsible for this aggressive behavior?
Do they take responsibility for that or do they somehow try to blame their partner for their violent
behavior?
Similarly, you would want to find out if someone has been the victim of intimate partner violence, do
they in some ways mistakenly blame themselves for this behavior or indicate that they feel that they
deserve it somehow?
Interview the victim first so if the client indicates he or she does not feel safe, you want to refrain from
asking those questions of the partner until you can address safety issues
Conflict Tactics Scale-2: Know what this measure assesses, how content changes in the revision
improved over the original CTS, and limitations of this measure. - correct answer ✔The measures the
extent to which members of a couple use specific tactics, including physical violence, during times of
conflict.
Improved both the content validity of the measure and also improved reliability by making the measure
longer or certain subscales longer
Improved distinction between identifying minor and severe forms of violence for various scales.
Limitations: The instructions on it are to consider acts that occur in the context of conflict. And some
have raised questions about whether this would exclude unprovoked acts of violence and aggression
that are done purely out of hostility or malevolence.
There is only a limited set of violent acts that are asked about. And by limiting these specific acts, are
we, therefore, leaving out important experiences of potential test-takers?
The final criticism is that the context in which these Conflict Tactics are occurring is not necessarily taken
into consideration, including the relative size and strength of the individuals involved. And the
circumstances under which these different acts happen, the sequence of events, and so on.
Marital Instability Index - know what this measure assesses and the score Gottman uses as an indicator
of concern - correct answer ✔So it is often helpful for a therapist to know the couple's commitment to
, their relationship when they are conducting couples therapy. And so including a measure of
commitment to the relationship or marital instability can be a helpful part of a couple's assessment. It
asks about steps that a member of the couple has taken towards separation and divorce.
John Gottman, the marital researcher, uses a score even lower than this. He says a score of four or more
indicates a respondent is emotionally out the door and seriously in danger of leaving the marriage.
FES: Know what this scale is used to assess; general advantages and disadvantages of this instrument;
how scale scores work (i.e., what do elevated scores mean? - i.e., are elevated scores always good, bad,
or does it depend on scale?) - correct answer ✔Social climate scales. Moos believed behavior is best
understood as an interaction between an individual and their environment.
Scales are in Domains- Relationship (Cohesion, Expression and Conflict), Personal Growth Dimensions
(Independence, Achievement, Intellectual- cultural, active-recreational, moral-religious), and System
Maintenance (Organization and control)
High Scores do not always indicate problems, depends on the scale
What are some reasons why assessment of parenting is important? - correct answer ✔Several reasons
could be: if we suspect there may be abuse going on, assessing would be important
It is important to see if a family is at risk for said abuse
Evaluating need for parent intervention
May reveal difficulties a child/parent may be experiencing for treatment.
What are some things to look for in a parent-child observation? - correct answer ✔How child may
attempt to gain attention from parent/how does parent respond to this
