Trauma-Informed Care Mock Exam: LCSW Practice Test Guide

Preparing for your Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW) exam? Understanding Trauma-Informed Care (TIC) principles is essential — not only for test success but also for real-world clinical competence. This blog offers a 30-question multiple-choice mock exam designed to simulate LCSW test conditions with answers and explanations.

Each question tests your ability to apply trauma-informed principles like safety, empowerment, cultural awareness, and collaboration in practice.

🧭 Understanding Trauma-Informed Care

Trauma-informed care means recognizing the prevalence and impact of trauma, integrating that understanding into clinical practice, and avoiding re-traumatization. It rests on five core principles:

Safety – Ensuring clients feel physically and emotionally secure.
Trustworthiness – Maintaining transparency in professional relationships.
Choice – Empowering clients with options.
Collaboration – Partnering in treatment planning.
Empowerment – Building clients’ strengths and resilience.

🧠 LCSW Mock Exam: 30 Multiple Choice Questions

Below are 30 practice questions with answers and explanations to help you test your readiness.

1. A trauma-informed therapist prioritizes which of the following in their first session with a new client?

A. Goal setting
B. Safety and trust
C. Exploring trauma details
D. Assigning homework

Answer: B. Safety and trust

Explanation: The foundation of trauma-informed care is establishing safety and trust, ensuring the client feels secure before deeper work begins.

2. Which best describes a trauma-informed approach?

A. Asking detailed trauma history on intake
B. Minimizing trauma discussion entirely
C. Understanding trauma effects and adapting care
D. Using standard protocols for all clients

Answer: C. Understanding trauma effects and adapting care

Explanation: Trauma-informed care integrates knowledge of trauma’s effects into treatment planning and practice.

3. A client displays irritability and distrust during sessions. A trauma-informed clinician would:

A. Label the behavior as resistance
B. Explore safety concerns
C. Ignore the behavior
D. Increase session frequency

Answer: B. Explore safety concerns

Explanation: Such behaviors often indicate a history of trauma; addressing safety validates the client's experience and builds rapport.

4. Which principle focuses on giving clients control in their treatment?

A. Safety
B. Collaboration
C. Choice
D. Trustworthiness

Answer: C. Choice

Explanation: Supporting client choice restores autonomy often threatened by trauma.

5. Why is cultural humility essential in trauma-informed practice?

A. It replaces trauma education
B. It acknowledges diverse trauma responses
C. It standardizes interventions
D. It eliminates bias in all clinicians

Answer: B. It acknowledges diverse trauma responses

Explanation: Trauma and resilience are shaped by culture; humility helps avoid re-traumatization and bias.

6. Which of the following is a primary trauma-informed goal?

A. Stopping self-harm
B. Complete avoidance of stress
C. Prescribing medication immediately
D. Ignoring symptoms

Answer: A. Stopping self-harm

Explanation: Immediate focus is on stabilization, including reducing harm, before delving into trauma processing.

7. Which model, developed by Sandra Bloom, is evidence-supported for trauma-informed system change?

A. Seeking Safety
B. Sanctuary
C. ATRIUM
D. Stages of Change

Answer: B. Sanctuary

Explanation: The Sanctuary Model emphasizes organizational culture and trauma-informed system reform.

8. The Sanctuary Model’s four pillars include all except:

A. Knowledge
B. Values
C. Practice
D. Recovery

Answer: D. Recovery

Explanation: The model’s four key pillars are Knowledge, Values, Language, and Practice.

9. Intrusion and re-experiencing symptoms in PTSD include:

A. Avoidance of reminders
B. Distressing memories, dreams, or flashbacks
C. Restricted affect
D. Hypervigilance

Answer: B. Distressing memories, dreams, or flashbacks

Explanation: Intrusive symptoms relate to involuntary reliving of trauma.

10. The paradigm shift in trauma-informed care asks:

A. “Why are you here?”
B. “What's wrong with you?”
C. “What happened to you?”
D. “What do you want?”

Answer: C. “What happened to you?”

Explanation: Emphasizing experience over pathology reduces stigma and fosters empathy.

11. Which of the following is NOT likely a trauma-informed physical environment?

A. Well-lit spaces
B. Secure entry and exit
C. Lack of privacy
D. Clear signage

Answer: C. Lack of privacy

Explanation: Trauma-informed settings prioritize safety and privacy, reducing environmental triggers.

12. When is it essential that the environment is safe for discussing trauma?

A. In outpatient settings
B. Residential treatment
C. Inpatient settings
D. In all settings

Answer: D. In all settings

Explanation: Safety is a universal principle regardless of the setting.

13. What is viewed as central in the Seeking Safety model?

A. Harm reduction
B. Stopping self-harm
C. Gaining control over minor symptoms
D. Avoiding relationships

Answer: B. Stopping self-harm

Explanation: This model prioritizes immediate safety and symptom reduction.

14. A trauma-informed provider collaborates with the client by:

A. Dictating the treatment plan
B. Involving the client in decision-making
C. Relying solely on clinical judgment
D. Ignoring client preferences

Answer: B. Involving the client in decision-making

Explanation: Collaboration empowers clients and builds trust.

15. Effective trauma-informed assessment avoids:

A. Screening for behavioral problems
B. Screening for cognitive function
C. Intrusive, threatening questions
D. Initial drug and alcohol screening

Answer: C. Intrusive, threatening questions

Explanation: Assessments should feel safe, not intimidating or re-traumatizing.

16. The Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACE) study showed that:

A. Trauma has minimal health impact
B. Childhood trauma can affect lifelong health outcomes
C. Only physical trauma affects adults
D. Resilience cannot develop after trauma

Answer: B. Childhood trauma can affect lifelong health outcomes

Explanation: ACEs are linked to greater risk for mental and physical health challenges.

17. Which response best demonstrates trauma-informed collaboration?

A. “Here's the plan you will follow.”
B. “Let’s discuss options together.”
C. “I will decide what works best.”
D. “Only the doctor knows best.”

Answer: B. “Let’s discuss options together.”

Explanation: Jointly developing plans honors the client's voice and agency.

18. What’s a reason to avoid “What’s wrong with you?” in trauma interviews?

A. It locates fault in the client
B. It eliminates accountability
C. It’s too clinical
D. It’s a medical question

Answer: A. It locates fault in the client

Explanation: Asking “What happened to you?” centers on context, not blame.

19. Which of the following is NOT a guiding principle of Seeking Safety?

A. Integrated treatment
B. Focus on ideals
C. Attention to clinician processes
D. Attending a 12-step program

Answer: D. Attending a 12-step program

Explanation: 12-step attendance is not a core Seeking Safety principle.

20. Trauma-informed care is applicable to:

A. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy only
B. Any clinical practice
C. Family therapy only
D. Nursing care only

Answer: B. Any clinical practice

Explanation: Trauma-informed principles can be integrated into any treatment context.

21. Which is a negative alteration in cognition or mood after trauma?

A. Avoidance
B. Intrusion symptoms
C. Hypervigilance
D. Restricted affect

Answer: D. Restricted affect

Explanation: Emotional numbing and detachment are common cognitive/mood impacts of trauma.

22. Empowerment in trauma-informed care means:

A. Doing for the client
B. Encouraging self-advocacy
C. Focusing on deficits
D. Avoiding risk talks

Answer: B. Encouraging self-advocacy

Explanation: Empowerment helps clients rebuild strength and self-efficacy.

23. Trauma-informed intake avoids:

A. Immediate trauma narrative
B. Informed consent
C. Explaining confidentiality
D. Open-ended questions

Answer: A. Immediate trauma narrative

Explanation: Forcing trauma disclosures at intake may re-traumatize; trust comes first.

24. Which describes the “window of tolerance”?

A. Range of emotional experiences tolerated without dysregulation
B. Range of healthy vital signs
C. All symptoms of PTSD
D. Period before therapy begins

Answer: A. Range of emotional experiences tolerated without dysregulation

Explanation: Staying inside this “window” helps clients feel regulated and safe.

25. A trauma-informed provider understands that:

A. Trauma can impact physical, emotional, and cognitive health
B. Trauma only affects memory
C. Trauma always results in PTSD
D. Trauma cannot be healed

Answer: A. Trauma can impact physical, emotional, and cognitive health

Explanation: Trauma’s effects are diverse and widespread.

26. A client refuses to discuss certain topics. What’s the best approach?

A. Insist on disclosure
B. Respect boundaries and build trust
C. End therapy
D. Interpret as lack of motivation

Answer: B. Respect boundaries and build trust

Explanation: Client-paced disclosure minimizes re-traumatization and builds rapport.

27. In trauma-informed care, what does "do no harm" mean?

A. Avoiding responsibility
B. Prioritizing safety and preventing re-traumatization
C. Focusing solely on medication
D. Ignoring past trauma

Answer: B. Prioritizing safety and preventing re-traumatization

Explanation: “First, do no harm” is key in trauma-informed practice.

28. What is intergenerational trauma?

A. Trauma in childhood only
B. Patterns of trauma passed across generations
C. One-time adult trauma
D. Trauma unrelated to family history

Answer: B. Patterns of trauma passed across generations

Explanation: Unresolved trauma can transmit stress and behaviors through families.

29. Trauma-informed care emphasizes which of the following as key?

A. Symptom minimization
B. Creating safety, trust, choice, and empowerment
C. Prevention only
D. Medication compliance

Answer: B. Creating safety, trust, choice, and empowerment

Explanation: These are the foundations for all trauma-informed frameworks.

30. Biopsychosocial factors are important in trauma-informed care because:

A. Only biology matters
B. Trauma affects mind, body, and social connections
C. Focus is on short-term fixes
D. Social context is irrelevant

Answer: B. Trauma affects mind, body, and social connections

Explanation: Trauma impacts individuals holistically, influencing biology, psychology, and relationships.