CRSS Ethical and Professional Responsibility 4 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Which of the following BEST describes an appropriate professional boundary for a recovery support specialist?
- Lending money to a peer who is in financial crisis
- Meeting a peer outside of work hours as a personal friend
- Providing consistent, role-appropriate support within established agency guidelines (Correct answer)
- Sharing the home address of another peer who might be able to help
Correct answer: Providing consistent, role-appropriate support within established agency guidelines
Appropriate boundaries mean providing defined, role-consistent support within agency policies—not forming personal relationships or exchanging favors.
Question 2: Why is ongoing professional development considered an ethical obligation for recovery support specialists?
- It is required only to meet licensing renewal deadlines, not for ethical reasons
- It ensures specialists can provide the most current, effective, and safe support to peers (Correct answer)
- It demonstrates superiority over peers who do not pursue additional training
- It is optional for experienced specialists who feel confident in their skills
Correct answer: It ensures specialists can provide the most current, effective, and safe support to peers
Continuous learning is an ethical duty because it ensures the peer receives competent, evidence-informed support as the field evolves.
Question 3: A recovery support specialist is experiencing secondary traumatic stress from their work. The MOST ethical response is to:
- Conceal the issue so as not to appear weak to supervisors or peers
- Seek supervision, self-care, and professional support to maintain competence (Correct answer)
- Reduce caseload without informing anyone to manage stress privately
- Transfer all peers to other specialists and take extended leave without explanation
Correct answer: Seek supervision, self-care, and professional support to maintain competence
Addressing secondary traumatic stress through supervision and self-care is an ethical responsibility to maintain the quality of care provided to peers.
Question 4: Which of the following MOST accurately reflects the principle of 'do no harm' in recovery support practice?
- Avoiding all difficult conversations to prevent emotional discomfort for the peer
- Critically evaluating actions and interventions to minimize risk of negative outcomes for peers (Correct answer)
- Only offering support when the specialist is certain the outcome will be positive
- Focusing solely on the peer's immediate emotional state rather than long-term wellbeing
Correct answer: Critically evaluating actions and interventions to minimize risk of negative outcomes for peers
'Do no harm' requires thoughtful evaluation of potential negative consequences before acting, not the avoidance of all challenging interactions.
Question 5: A recovery support specialist is asked to sign a document they know contains false information about a peer's participation in services. They should:
- Sign it to avoid conflict with the requesting agency
- Refuse to sign and report the issue to their supervisor or ethics officer (Correct answer)
- Ask the peer if they want the document signed before deciding
- Sign with a note that the information is unverified
Correct answer: Refuse to sign and report the issue to their supervisor or ethics officer
Signing a falsified document violates professional ethics; specialists must refuse and escalate the issue through appropriate channels.
Question 6: When a recovery support specialist disagrees with agency policies they believe are harming peers, the MOST ethical action is to:
- Ignore agency policy and act independently based on personal judgment
- Openly criticize the agency in front of peers to raise awareness
- Use appropriate internal channels to advocate for policy change while following current policy (Correct answer)
- Immediately resign in protest to demonstrate ethical commitment
Correct answer: Use appropriate internal channels to advocate for policy change while following current policy
Ethical advocacy involves working through legitimate organizational channels to change harmful policies while continuing to operate within existing professional standards.
Question 7: A peer shares that they want to pursue a recovery path the specialist personally disagrees with, such as using cannabis as a harm reduction strategy. The specialist should:
- Refuse to support any recovery approach that involves substance use
- Support the peer's right to self-determination while providing accurate, non-judgmental information (Correct answer)
- Inform the peer's treatment team without the peer's consent
- Lecture the peer on the risks until they reconsider their choice
Correct answer: Support the peer's right to self-determination while providing accurate, non-judgmental information
Ethical recovery support respects self-determination and provides information non-judgmentally, even when the peer's choices differ from the specialist's personal views.
CRSS Ethical and Professional Responsibility 4
Which of the following BEST describes an appropriate professional boundary for a recovery support specialist?