CPRP Leadership and Ethics in Public Administration — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Which leadership style involves sharing decision-making authority with staff and encouraging team participation in problem-solving?
- Autocratic leadership
- Laissez-faire leadership
- Democratic (participative) leadership (Correct answer)
- Transactional leadership
Correct answer: Democratic (participative) leadership
Democratic or participative leadership involves including team members in decision-making, which typically increases staff engagement, buy-in to outcomes, and creative problem-solving — though it generally requires more time than top-down approaches.
Question 2: A parks director discovers that a vendor bidding on a major facility contract is closely related to a board member who will vote on awarding the contract. What is the CORRECT course of action?
- Proceed as normal because personal relationships do not affect professional decisions
- The board member must disclose the relationship and recuse themselves from the vote (Correct answer)
- Immediately cancel the contract bid process without explanation
- Award the contract to the related vendor to strengthen community relationships
Correct answer: The board member must disclose the relationship and recuse themselves from the vote
A conflict of interest exists when a personal relationship could compromise — or appear to compromise — impartial judgment. Ethics codes and procurement law require the board member to disclose the relationship and recuse themselves from any vote on the matter.
Question 3: Which ethical principle requires parks professionals to use public resources — funds, equipment, and facilities — only for their intended public purposes?
- Equity
- Stewardship (Correct answer)
- Transparency
- Advocacy
Correct answer: Stewardship
Stewardship means acting as a responsible trustee of resources that belong to the public — ensuring that tax dollars, public lands, and equipment are managed efficiently and used solely for the community benefit for which they were entrusted.
Question 4: A recreation manager notices that a popular after-school program is consistently concentrated in high-income neighborhoods while lower-income areas lack comparable services. Which ethical principle is MOST directly at stake?
- Efficiency
- Loyalty to elected officials
- Equity (Correct answer)
- Organizational authority
Correct answer: Equity
Equity in parks and recreation requires that services are distributed fairly across all community segments regardless of socioeconomic status. Identifying and correcting disparate service distribution is a core ethical obligation of public recreation professionals.
Question 5: Which of the following BEST describes 'servant leadership' as applied in parks and recreation management?
- Leaders who prioritize their own career advancement above organizational mission
- Leaders who focus solely on enforcing rules and measuring compliance
- Leaders who prioritize the growth, well-being, and effectiveness of the people they lead (Correct answer)
- Leaders who delegate all decision-making authority entirely to frontline staff
Correct answer: Leaders who prioritize the growth, well-being, and effectiveness of the people they lead
Servant leadership, a concept associated with Robert Greenleaf, positions the leader's primary role as empowering and supporting their team rather than exercising authority for its own sake — widely adopted in public service and mission-driven organizations.
Question 6: According to the NRPA Code of Ethics, parks and recreation professionals are expected to:
- Prioritize organizational efficiency over community welfare whenever they conflict
- Maintain strict confidentiality about all agency operations regardless of public interest
- Uphold the public trust, act with integrity, treat all people fairly, and advance the profession (Correct answer)
- Avoid community advocacy entirely to preserve political neutrality
Correct answer: Uphold the public trust, act with integrity, treat all people fairly, and advance the profession
The NRPA Code of Ethics calls on recreation professionals to serve the public trust with integrity, treat all individuals equitably, maintain professional competence, and actively advance the profession through ethical conduct and community engagement.
CPRP Leadership and Ethics in Public Administration
Which leadership style involves sharing decision-making authority with staff and encouraging team participation in problem-solving?