8 frequently asked integrity interview questions

1. What does integrity mean to you?

An interviewer may use this question to determine what is your understanding of the concept of integrity. Interviewers typically expect you to respond by talking about your values. Use your answer to show that you are responsible and trustworthy. Your ability to express integrity using your own words can show the interviewer that you have a moral code and values.

Example: ‘To me, integrity means standing up for what I believe, no matter what. It’s important to me to be ethical, even when I’m under pressure, and not compromise my standards. In the workplace or in my personal life, I think it’s important to remain consistent and follow my values and moral code.’

2. Have you ever experienced consequences after doing the right thing?

With this question, an interviewer wants to find out how you acted in a real-life situation where you had to make one or more sacrifices to stay true to your values.

The best response to this question involves telling a relevant story about a situation where you had to make a difficult moral decision despite being under pressure to let go of your values. Responding in this manner assures the interviewer that if you were in a similar situation while working at their company, you would make a morally correct decision even if it’s hard.

Example: ‘In a previous role, I discovered that one of my colleagues had behaved dishonestly when she falsified a work-related document. This colleague and I had become close friends while working together.

I realised I had to report their dishonest behaviour to our manager even though it would cost me her friendship. This was a hard decision, but honesty is an important value to me, and I had to do the right thing. After reporting her to our manager, she faced disciplinary action. She stopped spending time with me, but I felt satisfied that I stuck to my values by not protecting her dishonesty.’

3. How do you behave when you…