Statistics Professional Standards & Competencies 5 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A statistician is asked to design a survey that will systematically oversample high-income households to make the results look more favorable to a client. The correct professional response is to:
- Comply if the sampling plan is disclosed in the methodology section
- Refuse, as intentional design bias violates core professional standards (Correct answer)
- Accept if appropriate weighting will be applied post-collection
- Agree only if the client signs a liability waiver
Correct answer: Refuse, as intentional design bias violates core professional standards
Deliberately biasing a survey design to produce favorable results is professionally and ethically impermissible regardless of disclosure.
Question 2: Which organization publishes the most widely cited ethical guidelines specifically for statisticians in the United States?
- National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST)
- American Statistical Association (ASA) (Correct answer)
- Institute of Mathematical Statistics (IMS)
- Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS)
Correct answer: American Statistical Association (ASA)
The ASA's 'Ethical Guidelines for Statistical Practice' is the primary professional ethics document for U.S. statisticians.
Question 3: The principle of 'informed consent' in statistical research primarily requires that participants:
- Understand and agree to how their data will be collected, used, and stored (Correct answer)
- Receive a copy of the final statistical report
- Be informed only if the study involves medical interventions
- Sign consent forms written at a graduate-level reading level
Correct answer: Understand and agree to how their data will be collected, used, and stored
Informed consent requires that participants understand the purposes, risks, and data practices before agreeing to participate.
Question 4: A statistician is reviewing software code written by a junior analyst and finds a critical error in how missing data was handled. The senior statistician's professional responsibility is to:
- Fix the error silently to protect the junior analyst
- Document the error, correct it, and mentor the junior analyst to prevent recurrence (Correct answer)
- Report the junior analyst to management for disciplinary action
- Exclude the affected variables from all future analyses
Correct answer: Document the error, correct it, and mentor the junior analyst to prevent recurrence
Professional responsibility includes correcting errors transparently and using them as teaching opportunities to build competence.
Question 5: Which scenario represents a violation of the 'independence' standard for statisticians serving as peer reviewers?
- Reviewing a paper in a methodology area outside your primary specialty
- Reviewing a paper co-authored by your current doctoral student (Correct answer)
- Requesting additional data before recommending acceptance
- Recommending rejection of a paper using a method you have criticized in print
Correct answer: Reviewing a paper co-authored by your current doctoral student
Reviewing work by someone in a direct supervisory or mentorship relationship constitutes a conflict of interest that compromises independence.
Question 6: When presenting statistical results to a non-expert audience, which practice aligns best with professional communication standards?
- Presenting only findings that reached statistical significance to avoid confusion
- Using accessible language, visualizations, and communicating uncertainty clearly (Correct answer)
- Simplifying by removing confidence intervals to reduce cognitive load
- Rounding all values to integers for easier comprehension
Correct answer: Using accessible language, visualizations, and communicating uncertainty clearly
Professional communication standards require conveying uncertainty and key findings in accessible terms without sacrificing accuracy.
Question 7: A statistician discovers that a data breach may have exposed participants' confidential survey responses. The first professional obligation is to:
- Complete the current analysis before addressing the breach
- Immediately notify relevant authorities and affected parties per legal and ethical obligations (Correct answer)
- Delete all data to prevent further exposure
- Investigate the breach fully before deciding whether disclosure is necessary
Correct answer: Immediately notify relevant authorities and affected parties per legal and ethical obligations
Data breaches involving personal information trigger immediate mandatory notification obligations under professional ethics and data protection law.
Statistics Professional Standards & Competencies 5
A statistician is asked to design a survey that will systematically oversample high-income households to make the results look more favorable to a client.
The correct professional response is to: