CPP Ethics & Professional Standards in Prevention 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A prevention professional learns that a colleague is falsifying program attendance records to meet grant requirements. The MOST appropriate first step is to:
- Ignore it to avoid workplace conflict
- Confront the colleague directly and document the conversation (Correct answer)
- Immediately report to the funding agency without speaking to the colleague
- Resign from the organization
Correct answer: Confront the colleague directly and document the conversation
Ethical standards require addressing misconduct directly first, then escalating if the behavior continues or poses serious harm.
Question 2: Which principle guides a CPP professional to base prevention programs on the best available research rather than personal preference?
- Beneficence
- Evidence-based practice (Correct answer)
- Autonomy
- Non-maleficence
Correct answer: Evidence-based practice
Evidence-based practice requires using interventions supported by rigorous research to maximize effectiveness and accountability.
Question 3: A prevention specialist is asked by a school principal to share individual student substance use screening results with teachers. Ethically, the specialist should:
- Share only aggregate, de-identified data unless consent is obtained (Correct answer)
- Provide all results since teachers are school staff
- Refuse all data sharing regardless of circumstances
- Ask students verbally if they consent during class
Correct answer: Share only aggregate, de-identified data unless consent is obtained
Confidentiality protections require that individually identifiable data not be shared without proper written consent or legal authorization.
Question 4: Cultural humility in prevention practice is BEST described as:
- Completing a one-time multicultural training
- An ongoing process of self-reflection and learning about others' cultures (Correct answer)
- Assuming all members of a cultural group share the same values
- Adapting program materials to a single dominant culture
Correct answer: An ongoing process of self-reflection and learning about others' cultures
Cultural humility is a lifelong commitment to self-evaluation and learning, rather than a fixed set of competencies achieved once.
Question 5: When a CPP professional realizes they lack competence in a specific evidence-based intervention being requested, they should:
- Proceed anyway to avoid disappointing the community
- Seek supervision, training, or refer to a qualified colleague (Correct answer)
- Modify the intervention without proper training
- Decline prevention work altogether
Correct answer: Seek supervision, training, or refer to a qualified colleague
Professional ethics require practitioners to work within their scope of competence and seek training or referral when needed.
Question 6: Which of the following BEST represents a conflict of interest for a prevention professional?
- Using the same evidence-based curriculum for multiple populations
- Recommending a vendor whose products the professional personally profits from (Correct answer)
- Collaborating with other agencies on a shared grant
- Attending a professional development conference paid by the employer
Correct answer: Recommending a vendor whose products the professional personally profits from
A conflict of interest exists when personal financial gain could compromise objective professional judgment.
Question 7: The principle of justice in prevention ethics primarily requires that professionals:
- Ensure all clients receive identical services regardless of need
- Distribute prevention resources fairly, addressing disparities (Correct answer)
- Prioritize funding agencies' preferences over community needs
- Avoid working with marginalized populations to prevent bias
Correct answer: Distribute prevention resources fairly, addressing disparities
Justice requires equitable distribution of benefits and burdens, with attention to populations experiencing the greatest need.
CPP Ethics & Professional Standards in Prevention 2
A prevention professional learns that a colleague is falsifying program attendance records to meet grant requirements.
The MOST appropriate first step is to: