Differentiate between responsibility and accountability;

Introduction to the Activity

The purpose of this discussion is to examine the concepts of responsibility and accountability and to look at how our leaders impact society with what they do or don’t do.  In our work places, we have people who are responsible either because of their positions or because they step up and accept it.  How is that different than being accountable?  When looking at these two concepts, you will want to also look at the mitigating factors that place responsibility and accountability on certain individuals.  You may want to even give personal examples of how you are responsible and/or accountable and how you deal with those concepts.

The module learning outcomes addressed in this activity are:

• Differentiate between responsibility and accountability;
• Analyze ethical, values-based leadership essential for the credibility of the government (public) service leader and impacts on society;
• Analyze mitigating factors that cause you to hold an individual or individuals more or less responsible and accountable and what happens when these factors are breached.

Differentiate between responsibility and accountability;

Introduction

Responsibility is the trait of being willing to accept accountability for one’s actions. It means that you are committed to fulfilling certain promises or expectations, and it’s a key part of becoming a leader. Accountability is an important trait in leaders because it helps them think about how their decisions affect other people. However, not everyone has this ability; some people simply don’t care about how their actions affect others unless they have a direct financial benefit from them.

Responsibility is the obligation to accept accountability for one’s actions.

Responsibility is the obligation to accept accountability for one’s actions. The word responsibility is derived from the Latin verb respondere, meaning “to answer.” The word accountability is derived from the Latin verb accipere, meaning “to take.”

People who take on a responsibility are committed to fulfilling certain promises or expectations;

People who take on a responsibility are committed to fulfilling certain promises or expectations. In this way, they have a higher level of accountability than those who don’t.

The difference between these two concepts is: Responsibility is something that you do; Accountability is what you promise (and keep).

Accountability is an important trait in leaders.

Accountability is an important trait in leaders. It’s the way you hold yourself responsible for your actions, and it’s not always something that someone else can hold you accountable for. For example, if a leader tells his employees to do something but they don’t follow through with it or don’t get it done on time, he is accountable for this failure because he has been given permission by his superiors to tell them what needs doing and how long until completion. In other words: accountability means that if an employee does not do what was asked of him/her then there will be consequences (like having their pay cut).

However

Accountability isn’t always something that someone else can hold you accountable for;

Accountability isn’t always something that someone else can hold you accountable for. It’s a trait of leaders and people who take on responsibilities, and it’s one of the reasons we want to hire leaders and people with strong commitments.

To be accountable means to accept responsibility for an action or decision made by yourself or others in your company or organization; this includes everything from being responsible for your own actions (e.g., “I didn’t complete my goals”) to accepting blame when things go wrong (e.g., “I’m sorry we failed this test”).

Being responsible means thinking beyond yourself and considering how your actions affect other people.

Being responsible means thinking beyond yourself and considering how your actions affect other people.

You are responsible for your actions and in some cases, the consequences of those actions. For example, if you don’t pay attention while driving down a highway and get into an accident that injures or kills another person, then you should be held accountable for that action. However, if someone else causes the accident (for example by texting while driving), then it can be argued that they were not at fault because they weren’t aware of what was happening around them until it was too late–and thus shouldn’t be held accountable for their actions in any way shape or form.

It’s important to think about how your actions affect others because this will help ensure that they’re done safely and with consideration for other people involved when making decisions like purchasing items online through Amazon Prime instead of just buying something off Craigslist because there might not be enough information available online concerning safety issues associated with certain products; namely those which contain chemicals known as phthalates (sometimes referred to as “plasticizers”). Phthalates have been linked with health problems including diabetes type 2; low birth weight infants could also suffer adverse effects from exposure during pregnancy such as miscarriages etcetera .

The way you respond to things will help you become more responsible.

Responsibility is a choice. Responsibility is choosing to do what’s right, best and fair. It involves taking on the burden of your actions and making them your own responsibility instead of passing it off to someone else. Responsibility can be used in any situation where you have choices and responsibilities–whether it’s at home or work; with friends or family; as part of your job duties; etc., but it doesn’t necessarily mean that you’ll always get things done perfectly by yourself (or even at all).

But accountability is something different altogether–it means being accountable for the results of your actions rather than just being responsible for how those actions happen (like if I were responsible for my car crash because I didn’t wear my seat belt).

Conclusion

The next time you hear someone say, “I’m responsible for my actions” or “It’s my responsibility to do X, Y and Z,” don’t just nod in agreement. Take a moment to think about the distinction between responsibility and accountability. You may be surprised at how much more you can accomplish when you focus on what others expect of you instead of focusing only on yourself!