Free Practice Questions for ICF ICF-ACC Exam

Coaching supervision, per ICF, supports professional development by providing a reflective space for coaches to enhance skills and address challenges (ICF Competency 2: "Embodies a Coaching Mindset"). It’s about growth, not oversight. Let’s assess:

A. Supervision helps coaches actively reflect on and seek guidance about their professional experiences: This aligns with ICF’s view of supervision as a reflective practice for improving competence and self-awareness (Competency 2).

B. Supervision provides professional direction and ensures coaches follow applicable laws: This suggests control, not the developmental focus of ICF supervision.

C. Supervision provides instruction on the latest developments in the field and what other coaches are doing: This is training, not supervision’s reflective purpose.

D. Supervision helps coaches connect with and provide progress reports to their clients’ managers: This misrepresents supervision, which is coach-focused, not client-reporting.

Option A most accurately describes supervision’s benefits, per ICF’s framework.

The ICF Code of Ethics (Section 4.3) permits breaching confidentiality "to prevent serious harm" when a client poses an immediate risk, such as self-harm. Coaching boundaries exclude mental health crises (ICF Definition of Coaching), requiring urgent action. Let’s evaluate:

A. Try counseling the client: Counseling exceeds coaching’s scope (ICF Coaching Boundaries), and delays critical intervention in an emergency.

B. Call emergency response services: This is the first step for immediate risk, aligning with ethical and legal obligations to prioritize safety (Section 4.3).

C. Talk with the client’s family about getting help: This breaches confidentiality without imminent danger justification and isn’t the fastest response (Section 4).

D. Discuss with a mental health professional: Consulting delays action; emergency services are needed first (Section 2.5).

Option B is the first step, per ICF ethics and boundaries.

Option B is the worst because it imposes the coach’s opinion, undermining the client’s autonomy (Competency 8.3) and partnership (Competency 2.2). This breaches the ICF Definition of Coaching, which emphasizes client-led solutions, and Ethics Section 2.2 (avoiding bias).

Option A is premature but not inherently harmful. Option C shifts focus negatively, though it’s less directive. Option D (best, see Question 5) empowers the client. B most directly contradicts ICF principles by prioritizing the coach’s perspective over the client’s.