NCE Practice Test

NCE Areas of Clinical Focus Practice Questions

Areas of Clinical Focus makes up 14 of every 50 questions on a Tigertest NCE practice test. Here are 10 of the 56 questions on it, each with the answer and the reason.

Updated 2026-11-10 by the Tigertest team. Based on the NBCC NCE content outline, the ACA Code of Ethics (2014) and the DSM-5-TR. Original questions; 50 per test, weighted like the real exam. Not affiliated with NBCC.

1. 1. A 45-year-old client wants to mentor younger coworkers and leave something lasting. In Erikson's theory, she is working on:

   • A.Industry vs. inferiority
   • B.Generativity vs. stagnation
   • C.Ego integrity vs. despair
   • D.Intimacy vs. isolation

   Answer: B. Generativity vs. stagnation is the task of middle adulthood: guiding the next generation and contributing to the world. Integrity vs. despair comes in late life.

2. 2. A 78-year-old client reviews his life and feels it had meaning. Erikson would call this resolution:

   • A.Identity
   • B.Autonomy
   • C.Generativity
   • D.Integrity

   Answer: D. Ego integrity vs. despair is the final stage, in which older adults look back and accept their life as meaningful. Despair is the unresolved outcome.

3. 3. A 4-year-old insists the tall glass holds more juice than the short wide glass with the same amount. Piaget would say the child has not yet mastered:

   • A.Conservation
   • B.Egocentric speech
   • C.Object permanence
   • D.Abstract reasoning

   Answer: A. Conservation, knowing an amount stays the same when its shape changes, develops in the concrete operational stage. A 4-year-old is in the preoperational stage.

4. 4. At which Piaget stage do adolescents begin to reason about hypothetical possibilities?

   • A.Preoperational
   • B.Sensorimotor
   • C.Formal operational
   • D.Concrete operational

   Answer: C. Formal operational thinking, beginning around age 11 or 12, allows abstract and hypothetical reasoning. Concrete operational thinking is tied to real objects.

5. 5. A teen says stealing is wrong because you might get caught and punished. Kohlberg would place this reasoning at the:

   • A.Postconventional level
   • B.Social contract stage
   • C.Preconventional level
   • D.Conventional level

   Answer: C. Preconventional reasoning judges right and wrong by punishment and reward. Conventional reasoning follows social rules and approval.

6. 6. Carol Gilligan's work on moral development emphasized:

   • A.An ethic of care
   • B.Defense mechanisms
   • C.Birth order effects
   • D.Stages of cognition

   Answer: A. Gilligan argued that Kohlberg's justice-based stages missed an ethic of care and relationships, which she found prominent in women's moral reasoning.

7. 7. In the Strange Situation, an infant is distressed when the parent leaves and is quickly comforted on return. This pattern is:

   • A.Disorganized attachment
   • B.Avoidant attachment
   • C.Resistant attachment
   • D.Secure attachment

   Answer: D. Ainsworth found securely attached infants protest separation and are readily soothed at reunion. Resistant infants stay upset and push away even while seeking contact.

8. 8. A college student has explored many career and value options but has not yet committed to any. Marcia would call this:

   • A.Identity diffusion
   • B.Moratorium
   • C.Foreclosure
   • D.Identity achievement

   Answer: B. Moratorium is active exploration without commitment. Foreclosure is commitment without exploration, often to parents' choices.

9. 9. A client's top Holland code is Social. Which work setting would she most likely prefer?

   • A.Managing a sales team
   • B.Teaching or helping others
   • C.Repairing machines outdoors
   • D.Analyzing lab data alone

   Answer: B. In Holland's RIASEC model, Social types like helping, teaching and serving people. Realistic types prefer hands-on work with tools and machines.

10. 10. In Holland's hexagon, which pair of types is most similar?

    • A.Artistic and Conventional
    • B.Investigative and Enterprising
    • C.Realistic and Social
    • D.Realistic and Investigative

    Answer: D. Adjacent types on the hexagon are most alike. Realistic sits next to Investigative, while Realistic and Social are opposite each other.