TheoryNutrition Coach Practice Questions
Free Nutrition Coach practice questions with answers and plain-English explanations. Browse the PDF, video and online mock test.
Nutrition Coach Questions
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Q1In the Transtheoretical Model, a client who says 'I have no intention of changing my eating habits in the next six months' is in which stage?
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✓ Correct answer: Precontemplation
Precontemplation is defined by no intention to change within the next six months, often because the person is unaware of the problem or feels unable to change.
Q2A client states, 'I'm planning to start meal-prepping next week and have already bought containers.' Which stage of change does this best reflect?
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✓ Correct answer: Preparation
Preparation is marked by intent to act in the immediate future (typically within 30 days) plus some initial steps, such as buying supplies.
Q3A client has been eating five vegetable servings daily for eight months and feels confident she won't relapse. Which stage best describes her?
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✓ Correct answer: Maintenance
Maintenance applies once a behavior change has been sustained for roughly six months or more and the focus shifts to preventing relapse.
Q4Which TTM stage is characterized by ambivalence, weighing the pros and cons of change but no commitment to act within 30 days?
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✓ Correct answer: Contemplation
Contemplation involves recognizing the problem and seriously considering change within six months, but ambivalence keeps the person from committing to imminent action.
Q5Matching interventions to readiness, which strategy is most appropriate for a client in precontemplation?
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✓ Correct answer: Consciousness-raising about risks and personal relevance
In precontemplation the priority is raising awareness; action plans presume a readiness the client does not yet have.
Q6The TTM 'decisional balance' construct refers to which of the following?
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✓ Correct answer: The relative weight a person gives to the pros versus cons of changing
Decisional balance is the comparative weighing of the perceived advantages (pros) and disadvantages (cons) of changing; pros must outweigh cons for progress.
Q7According to TTM research, as a person moves from precontemplation to action, how do the pros and cons of change typically shift?
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✓ Correct answer: Pros rise and cons fall, with the crossover near contemplation/preparation
The 'strong principle' of progress holds that the pros of change increase while the cons decrease, with the crossover tending to occur around the contemplation-to-preparation transition.
Q8What does the acronym OARS stand for in motivational interviewing?
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✓ Correct answer: Open questions, Affirmations, Reflections, Summaries
OARS names the four core communication skills of MI: Open-ended questions, Affirmations, Reflective listening, and Summaries.
Q9In motivational interviewing, 'change talk' refers to:
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✓ Correct answer: Client statements that favor movement toward change
Change talk is any client speech that argues for change (desire, ability, reasons, need, commitment); MI aims to evoke and strengthen it.
Q10The opposite of change talk, where a client argues for the status quo, is called:
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✓ Correct answer: Sustain talk
Sustain talk is client language favoring not changing. In current MI it is distinguished from 'discord,' which is friction in the relationship itself.
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