ASWB exam reference
What the exam tests, in plain language, with a public source behind every line. Practice as you go with the LCSW, LMSW and LBSW practice tests, or check your state on the licensing guides.
16 reference pages live, 317 topics indexed.
Values and Ethics
- Duty to warn and duty to protect
What the ASWB exam expects you to know about duty to warn, Tarasoff, HIPAA and state law, with a source for every claim.
- Confidentiality and its limits
NASW 1.07 confidentiality, its exceptions, court orders, group work and records, as the ASWB exam tests them.
- Mandated reporting of child abuse
Who must report suspected child abuse, what CAPTA does, how HIPAA and 42 CFR Part 2 treat reports, and what varies by state.
- HIPAA psychotherapy notes vs progress notes
What counts as a psychotherapy note under HIPAA, how it differs from a progress note, and what clients can see.
- Informed consent
The elements of informed consent, capacity, involuntary clients, minors and research consent, with sources.
- Dual relationships and boundaries
NASW 1.06 and 1.09 on conflicts of interest, dual relationships, sexual relationships, touch and bartering.
- Cultural competence and humility
NASW 1.05 cultural competence and humility, the duty not to discriminate, and social action, as the ASWB exam tests them.
- Supervision, consultation and impairment
NASW standards on supervision, consultation, your own impairment and a colleague's, with the first step the ASWB exam expects.
Assessment and Planning
- Erikson's stages of psychosocial development
All eight of Erikson's psychosocial stages, plus the ninth, with the behavior exam questions describe for each.
- Piaget's stages of cognitive development
Piaget's four stages and the concepts exam questions use to point at them: object permanence, egocentrism, conservation.
- Defense mechanisms
Every defense mechanism the exam uses, with the vignette cue that points to each one.
- Suicide risk assessment and safety planning
How to assess suicide risk, the Stanley-Brown safety plan, and why safety comes first on the exam.
- DSM-5-TR durations and symptom counts
Every time window and count the exam leans on, with the trap for each.
Intervention and Practice
- Motivational interviewing and stages of change
MI principles, OARS skills and the transtheoretical stages of change, with what each stage calls for.
- Family systems therapy models
Bowen, structural (Minuchin), Satir and strategic family therapy: the key concepts and the vignette cue for each model.
- Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT)
The CBT model, cognitive restructuring, exposure and the DBT skills modules, and how ASWB exam questions point to each one.
Practice what you read
See where you stand
6 questions in the 2026 format. See where your answers lean.
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