Professionalism Flashcards
What is a Profession?
A trade, business or occupation of which one professes to have extensive specialised knowledge, acquired through:
- long years of experience
- formal education (often long and intensive)
- not easy to become a professional
What does Professional Responsibility mean?
Professionals have a special obligation to ensure their actions are for the good of those who depend on them
Why is it important to ensure that professionals act in the interest of others, and have extensive codes of conducts?
Professional’s decisions can have more serious decisions than the choices made by those holding less responsible positions in society.
People depend on professionals as they don’t have the knowledge required to make a decision
The power balance is in favour of the professional. Because of this, professionals need to be carefully monitored and controlled
Why are professionals losing their power?
They are under attack by politicians and the media (‘fake news’)
The internet - people can find information and think they’re experts, even if they don’t understand the levels of judgement involved
The idea that experts are elitist
People think experts are wrong
Experts understand that answers and solutions are difficult to reach. This is frustrating for others, as it is easier to have a black-and-white view of the world and ignore the nuance
How should professionals behave?
Avoid being arrogant when giving advice
Think about who is receiving advice, and in what context
Accept that they might be wrong - they need to listen to the way the advice is working in practice
Use multiple sources for knowledge and opinions (cross-validation)
Avoid confirmation bias
Name 5 characteristics of a job that requires professionals
Certification required
Specialised knowledge
Academic education
High-skill
Original or creative work (hard to automate)
Involves consistent judgement and quick decisions based on uncertain information (can’t be done with an algorithm, especially for situations that don’t occur often)
Work is intellectual and varied in character (not routine, standard, repetitive)
More autonomous (based on judgements and experience), they have more freedom
Are train drivers professionals?
No
They do not require academic education, are not high-skill, it does not involve consistent judgement or quick decisions, it is not intellectual.
Trains are becoming increasingly automated
Some trains are basically driver-less - driver is not in the driver compartment at all times.
Are pilots professionals?
Yes
Require academic education which takes several years, need to already have qualifications in maths and be able to speak two languages from A Level before even starting the course, high-skill, requires judgement and quick decisions, is intellectual, requires certification, requires specialised knowledge
Can be argued that planes are becoming more automated (eg auto-pilot)
However, pilot still needs to be able to land, take-off, navigate, read and understand instruments etc, be able to react to changes in air traffic (circle an airport if there have been delays), react to emergencies (divert to another airport if something goes wrong, lock cockpit in the attempt of a hostile takeover, etc)
Name the four types of professional codes
Community Code
- created by the religion or culture of the community. It is the expectation of the profession by the general public, and it may have legal groundings
Institutional Code
- This helps to build and maintain public confidence in the organisation
Personal Code
- An individual’s moral guidelines. The way you were raised, where you grew up, cultural background etc all contribute to this
Professional Code
- Guidelines created by the profession, normally monitored by the professional body
Name the pillars of professionalism
Commitment
Integrity
Responsibility
Accountability
What does Commitment mean in terms of the pillars of professionalism?
Commitment should be made willingly
The commitment made to the customer must be kept, even if help is required
- professional autonomy allows variation in how the commitment is achieved
- don’t be proud
The commitment must be based on agreement
- professionals shouldn’t commit unless they have advance knowledge of the job and full awareness of the issues
Open and public to the customer and others
- about the cost, materials, time, effort etc involved. Be honest and don’t hide anything in the hope it won’t come up
Don’t make the commitment in haste or too easily
- base it on the knowledge of what is involved BEFORE the commitment is made
Time Managment
- be open and honest - if something is going to be late, say so, and enter a new and revised commitment
What does Integrity mean in terms of the pillars of professionalism?
Should be undivided in ALL of your professional beliefs
- If you don’t believe in it, don’t do it
- Don’t hide from difficult decisions or make excuses to break codes
Love your job
- it makes you a better professional as you want to do the job, and do it well
What does Responsibility mean in terms of the pillars of professionalism?
Responsible for the service you provide
- Setting up the contract
- Quality and process
- Time of delivery
- After delivery you must keep to guarantee and keep the customer safe
Responsible for the product you produce
- Meets the required quality
- Right documentation and support provided
Responsible for the consequences
- if things go wrong afterwards, do everything possible to rectify
What does Accountability mean in terms of the pillars of professionalism?
Held accountable according to a predefined set of outcome measures
- reliable and objective measure of performance
Performance Standards
- thresholds for the outcome measures to check if the job has been done to a ‘professional’ standard
Incentives and Penalties
- Incentives must not undermine your professionalism
- Penalties must not destroy the professional
- Penalties must not destroy the profession by putting people off entering it
What are the 8 components of a mature professional infrastructure, according to Ford and Gibbs?
Initial Professional Education
- formal course before beginning practising the profession
Accreditation
- assures the formal course meets the standards of the profession
Skills development
- opportunities to gain practical skills to practice the profession
Certification
- evaluate the candidates to determine their readiness to enter the profession
Licensing
- gives the candidate the legal right to practice the profession
Professional Development
- formal course to maintain and develop knowledge and skills
Code of Ethics
- using knowledge and skills for the benefit of society
Professional Society
- organisation promoting the welfare of the profession
- typically consisting of most, if not all, members of the profession
