Ethical & Professional Standards Flashcards
7 cards from real CSJT practice questions. Tap to flip, then mark Knew It or Still Learning — missed cards come back until you master them.
Read the first 7 Ethical & Professional Standards flashcards as text
You witness a supervisor making a decision that clearly favors a personal acquaintance over more qualified candidates. You should:
Answer: Raise the concern with a higher authority or the ethics office
Favoritism in official decisions undermines merit principles and should be reported to the appropriate oversight body.
An agency regulation conflicts with your personal moral beliefs. The appropriate professional response is to:
Answer: Apply the regulation as written while using legitimate channels to advocate for change
Civil servants are obligated to follow lawful regulations and must use proper channels to seek changes they disagree with.
You are a public official and a journalist asks about an ongoing investigation. The ethical response is to:
Answer: Decline to comment and direct the journalist to the agency's public affairs office
Unauthorized disclosure of investigative details can compromise the process and violates information management protocols.
Your agency has a strict no-social-media policy about work matters. A colleague posts agency-related content publicly. You should:
Answer: Report the violation to HR or a supervisor
Policy violations should be reported through proper internal channels rather than addressed publicly online.
During a public hearing, an attendee becomes verbally hostile toward you. The most professional response is to:
Answer: Calmly acknowledge their concerns and follow established procedures for managing disruptions
Maintaining composure and following established procedures protects both the process and the public servant's professionalism.
You are asked to write a performance evaluation for a subordinate you personally dislike. The ethical approach is to:
Answer: Evaluate based solely on documented performance data and objective criteria
Performance evaluations must be grounded in objective, documented evidence regardless of personal feelings.
A vendor who contracts with your agency offers you free tickets to a sporting event. You should:
Answer: Decline because accepting gifts from contractors creates a conflict of interest
Accepting gifts from contractors who do business with your agency creates a real or perceived conflict of interest.