1. Which person is not associated with the existential movement?
a. RolloMay
b. VictorFrankl
c. IrvinYalom
d. B.F.Skinner
2. The central goal of existential psychotherapy is to:
a. decreaseselfawareness.
b. increaseawareness.
c. helpclientsrejecttheresponsibilityofchoosing.
d. keeptheclientfromexperiencingauthenticexistence.
3. Findingthe”couragetobe”involves:
a. confrontingaspecificphobia.
b. learningtobealone.
c. discardingoldvalues.
d. developingawilltomoveforwardinspiteofanxietyproducingsituations.
4. The British scholar working to develop training programs in existential therapy is:
a. RollMay.
b. IrvinYalom.
c. EmmyvanDeurzen.
d. J.MichaelRussell.
5. Which is not an essential aim of existential-humanistic therapy?
a. To help clients become more present to both themselves and others
b. To assist clients in identifying ways they block themselves from fuller presence
c. Todisputeclients’irrationalbeliefs
d. To challenge clients to assume responsibility for designing their present lives
6. Existential therapy is best considered as:
a. an approach to understand the subjective world of the client.
b. a school of therapy.
c. a system of techniques designed to create authentic humans.
d. a strategy for uncovering dysfunctional behavior.
7. Which of the following was notpartofStan’sworkinexistentialtherapy?
a. Challenging his feelings of loneliness
b. Working on his inauthentic relationship with his siblings
c. Confronting his responsibility for his drug and alcohol use
d. ExploringStan’shumanpotential
8. Philosophically, the existentialists would agree that:
a. the final decisions and choices rest with the therapist.
b. people do not redefine themselves by their choices.
c. a person cannot go beyond early conditioning.
d. making choices can create anxiety.
9. The characteristic existential theme includes:
a. freedomandresponsibility.
b. resistance.
c. transference.
d. examiningirrationalbeliefs.
10. According to the existential viewpoint, death:
a. makeslifeabsurd.
b. makeslifemeaninglessandhopeless.
c. givessignificancetoliving.
d. shouldnotbeexploredintherapy.
11. In regards to techniques, existential practitioners believe:
a. free association is essential to the growth and healing of the client.
b. no set of techniques is considered essential.
c. analysis of dysfunctional family patterns is imperative.
d. role playing is the most important technique used.
12. In a group based on existential principles, clients learn all of the following, except:
a. that there are no ultimate answers for ultimate concerns.
b. toviewthemselvesthroughothers’eyes.
c. to come to terms with the paradoxes of existence.
d. that pain is not a reality of the human experience.
13. __________ emphasizes the subjective and spiritual dimensions of human existence.
a. Existential analysis
b. Existential anxiety
c. Self-awareness
d. Existential guilt
14. Existential therapy is:
a. a deterministic approach to therapy.
b. an expansion of the Adlerian school of therapy.
c. a phenomenological approach to therapy.
d. a structured approach to therapy.
15. Existential therapists prefer to be thought of as:
a. an observer-technician.
b. philosophical companions, not as people who repair psyches.
c. a teacher and coach.
d. an advocate for social change.
16. When is the counseling process at its best from an existential viewpoint?
a. When the client feels comfortable enough to engage in shame-attacking exercises outside of counseling
sessions.
b. When the deepest self of the therapist meets the deepest part of the client.
c. When the therapist uses his or her influence to convince the client to let go of his or her anxiety.
d. When sessions begin with progressive muscle relaxation exercises.
17. ViktorFrankl’sapproachtoexistentialtherapyisknownas:
a. individual psychology.
b. logotherapy.
c. reality therapy.
d. redecision therapy.
18. Which of the following is not true about Rollo May?
a. He is most responsible for translating European existentialism into American psychotherapeutic theory and
practice.
b. He focuses on the subjective dimension of therapy.
c. He is a significant spokesman for the existential approach in the United States.
d. He believes that we can only escape anxiety by exercising our freedom.
19. In regards to freedom and responsibility, existential therapy embraces three values. Which of the following is not one
of these values?
a. The freedom to become within the context of natural and self-imposed limitations
b. The capacity to reflect on the meaning of our choices
c. The capacity to act on the choices we make
d. The freedom to choose our past and the choices of our parents
20. Ursula lived in New York City on 9/11. Ever since experiencing the aftermath of the terrorist attacks, she has felt
anxiety about going to the upper level floors of tall buildings. As an existentially oriented therapist, you might
conclude that:
a. Ursula is highly neurotic.
b. Ursula’sfearsarecompletelyunfounded.
c. Ursula’sanxietyisnormalinlightofthetraumaticexperienceshehadon9/11.
d. Ursula is on the verge of becoming psychotic.
21. Who was the Danish philosopher that addressed the role of anxiety and uncertainty in life?
a. MedardBoss
b. JeanPaulSartre
c. SorenKierkegaard
d. MartinBuber
22. Existentialists contend that the experience of relatedness to other human beings:
a. is a neurotically dependent attachment.
b. should be based on our needs and theirs.
c. is healthy when we are able to stand alone and tap into our own strength.
d. is not necessary, since we are basically alone.
23. According to existentialists, our search for meaning involves all of these except:
a. discarding old values.
b. meaninglessness.
c. creating our own value system.
d. exploring unfinished business.
24. Therapy is viewed as a ___________________in the sense that the interpersonal and existential problems of the
client will become apparent in the here and now of the therapy relationship.
a. social microcosm
b. “touchyfeely”encounter
c. living laboratory
d. tension-filled encounter
25. The central theme running through the works of Viktor Frankl is:
a. thatfreedomisamyth.
b. thewilltomeaning.
c. selfdisclosureasthekeytomentalhealth.
d. thenotionofselfactualization.
26. According to Yalom, the concerns that make up the core of existential psychodynamics
include all of the following, except:
a. death.
b. freedom.
c. togetherness.
d. meaninglessness.
27. Astatementthatbestillustrates“badfaith”is:
a. NaturallyI’mthisway,becauseIgrewupinanalcoholicfamily.
b. I will not consider others in the choices I make.
c. I must live by commitments I make.
d. I am responsible for the choices that I make.
28. For Sartre, existential guilt is what we experience when we:
a. do not live by the Ten Commandments.
b. fail to think about the welfare of others.
c. allow others to define us or to make our choices for us.
d. reflect on all that we might have done and failed to do.
29. Thetherapist’spresenceis:
a. a condition of therapeutic change.
b. a goal of therapeutic change.
c. both a condition and a goal of therapeutic change.
d. neither a condition nor a goal of therapeutic change.
30. Which of the following is not an example of how existential therapy is unlike many other therapies?
a. It does not have a well-defined set of techniques.
b. It stresses the I/Thou encounter in the therapy process.
c. It focuses on the use of the specific techniques created for this theory.
d. It allows for incorporation of techniques from many other approaches.
31. Which of the following is not considered a basic dimension of the human condition?
a. Capacity for self-awareness
b. Striving for acceptance of others
c. Establishing meaningful relationships with others
d. Freedom and responsibility
32. Being alone is a process by which we do all of the following except:
a. learn to tolerate feelings of isolation.
b. develop strength and self-reliance.
c. develop a deep understanding of ourselves.
d. reject the social overtures of others.
33. The goals of existential therapy include all but_________.
a. to help clients become more present to both themselves and others.
b. to assist clients in identifying ways they block themselves from fuller presence.
c. helping clients to eliminate anxiety in their lives.
d. to encourage clients to choose more expanded ways of being in their daily lives.
34. When working with a client living a restricted existence, an existential therapist would likely:
a. explore the developmental origins of these feelings.
b. developaspecificbehavioralplantohelptheclientget“unstuck.”
c. encourage the client to do a shame-attacking exercise.
d. make the client aware of how his or her current ways of living are keeping him or her stuck.
35. In the book Staring at the Sun: Overcoming the Terror of Death (2008), ________________develops the
idea that confronting death enables us to live in a more compassionate way.
a. MartinBuber
b. JustinBieber
c. IrvinYalom
d. StephenKing
36. From a multicultural perspective, some clients may reject this approach because:
a. it is founded on abstract, westernized notions that are not widely applicable.
b. their life circumstances provide them with truly limited choices.
c. death anxiety is not a central issue in all cultures.
d. the use of techniques may be overwhelming for them.
37. From a scientific perspective, existential psychotherapy:
a. is well researched.
b. lends itself easily to evaluation due to its clearly defined principles and techniques.
c. fits well into the framework of evidence-based practice.
d. is difficult to research because every psychotherapy experience is unique.
38. The existential approach is particularly well-suited to clients who:
a. are dealing with grief and loss.
b. are victims of oppression.
c. have limited intellectual capacities.
d. suffer from severe mental illness.
39. Existential therapy groups are particularly helpful for clients working on:
a. self-actualization.
b. issues of responsibility.
c. reducing problematic behaviors.
d. exploring family dynamics.
40. Time-limited existential treatments:
a. can serve as a catalyst for clients to become actively and fully involved in each therapy session.
b. are by definition, lacking in depth and richness.
c. lack structure and clear goals.
d. are well studied and shown to be effective.
41. Rollo May has been instrumental in translating some concepts drawn from existential philosophy and applying them
to psychotherapy.
a. True
b. False
42. Existential therapy can best be considered as a system of highly developed techniques designed to foster
authenticity.
a. True
b. False
43. The outcomes of existential therapy have been submitted to rigorous empirical testing.
a. True
b. False
44. Existential therapy grew out of a reaction to the limitations of both the psychoanalytic and deterministic stance.
a. True
b. False
45. A central existential concept is that although we long for freedom we often try to escape from our freedom by
defining ourselves as a fixed or static entity.
a. True
b. False
46. In the existential approach, techniques are primary, while subjective understanding of clients is secondary.
a. True
b. False
47. Existential therapists strive to be their authentic selves when working with clients.
a. True
b. False
48. According to existential thinking, effective therapy does not stop with awareness, for clients are challenged to take
action based on their insights.
a. True
b. False
49. From the existential viewpoint, anxiety is seen as a neurotic manifestation; thus the aim of therapy is to eliminate
anxiety so clients can live comfortably.
a. True
b. False
50. Existentialanxietyistheunavoidableresultofbeingconfrontedwiththe“givensofexistence.”
a. True
b. False
51. During the initial phase of counseling, existentially oriented therapists assist clients in identifying and clarifying their
assumptions about the world.
a. True
b. False
52. Existentialists claim that the use of specific techniques is the cornerstone of the approach.
a. True
b. False
53. According to the existential view, death makes life meaningless.
a. True
b. False
54. A major criticism of the existential approach is that it lacks a systematic statement of the principles and practices of
psychotherapy.
a. True
b. False
55. This approach puts emphasis on the human quality of the therapeutic relationship.
a. True
b. False
56. Martin Buber stressed the importance of presence, which allows for the creation of I/Thou relationships in therapy.
a. True
b. False
57. Existential guilt is being aware of having evaded a commitment, or having chosen not to choose.
a. True
b. False
58. Theexistentialviewisnotdesignedto“cure”peopleofillnessinthetraditionofthemedicalmodelbecausepeople
arenotsickbutare“sickoflifeorclumsyatliving.”
a. True
b. False
59. In the existential framework, inaction is a decision.
a. True
b. False
60. Existential therapy is especially appropriate for clients who are struggling with developmental crises.
a. True
b. False
61. Existentially, humans both long for and wish to escape from their freedom.
a. True
b. False
62. The existential approach can be used in a brief therapy context.
a. True
b. False
63. Existential therapy is rarely used for group treatment.
a. True
b. False
64. The existential vacuum represents a place of reflection and solace.
a. True
b. False
65. Currently, there is wide-ranging international interest in the existential approach to psychotherapy.
a. True
b. False
66. Existential therapy is especially useful in working with culturally diverse populations because of its focus on
individuality.
a. True
b. False
67. The core of the therapeutic relationship is respect.
a. True
b. False
68. A distinctly human characteristic is the struggle for a sense of peace.
a. True
b. False
69. Freedom implies that we are responsible for the lives of others around us.
a. True
b. False
70. Failure to move through anxiety results in neurotic anxiety.
a. True
b. False