GAT Professional Standards and Ethics 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A colleague asks you to sign off on their work without reviewing it because they are behind schedule. What is the most ethical response?
- Sign it to help them meet the deadline
- Refuse and explain you must review before signing (Correct answer)
- Report them to management immediately
- Sign it but add a disclaimer
Correct answer: Refuse and explain you must review before signing
Signing off without review violates professional accountability and could expose you to liability for work you have not verified.
Question 2: Which of the following best defines 'conflict of interest' in a professional setting?
- Disagreeing with a supervisor's decision
- A situation where personal interests could improperly influence professional judgment (Correct answer)
- Competing with a coworker for a promotion
- Feeling stressed about a difficult project
Correct answer: A situation where personal interests could improperly influence professional judgment
A conflict of interest exists when personal gain or relationships could compromise objective professional decision-making.
Question 3: An employee discovers that their company is violating environmental regulations. They report this to the appropriate government agency. This action is known as:
- Corporate espionage
- Whistleblowing (Correct answer)
- Insubordination
- Breach of contract
Correct answer: Whistleblowing
Whistleblowing is the act of reporting illegal or unethical conduct by an organization to an external authority.
Question 4: Which ethical principle requires professionals to keep client information private unless legally compelled to disclose it?
- Non-maleficence
- Confidentiality (Correct answer)
- Autonomy
- Justice
Correct answer: Confidentiality
Confidentiality obligates professionals to protect information shared by clients from unauthorized disclosure.
Question 5: A manager consistently assigns the least desirable tasks to employees of a particular ethnicity. This behavior violates which principle?
- Transparency
- Non-disclosure
- Equal treatment and anti-discrimination (Correct answer)
- Professional competence
Correct answer: Equal treatment and anti-discrimination
Assigning unfavorable work based on ethnicity constitutes discriminatory treatment, which violates workplace equality principles and anti-discrimination law.
Question 6: When a professional acknowledges the limits of their expertise and refers a client to a more qualified specialist, they are demonstrating:
- Lack of confidence
- Professional competence and humility (Correct answer)
- Breach of duty
- Negligence
Correct answer: Professional competence and humility
Recognizing the boundaries of one's competence and making appropriate referrals is a hallmark of ethical professional practice.
Question 7: Which of the following is an example of a professional duty of care?
- Completing tasks quickly to maximize profit
- Taking reasonable steps to prevent foreseeable harm to clients (Correct answer)
- Avoiding all communication with clients
- Following instructions without questioning them
Correct answer: Taking reasonable steps to prevent foreseeable harm to clients
Duty of care requires professionals to act reasonably to prevent harm that could be anticipated from their actions or omissions.
GAT Professional Standards and Ethics 2
A colleague asks you to sign off on their work without reviewing it because they are behind schedule.
What is the most ethical response?