GRE issue task evaluates how well the candidates respond to the task. In the GRE issue task, candidates get a small essay with 5 paragraphs. This task examines how well the candidate substantiates a point with a logical statement. GRE AWA practice papers will also help in grabbing different topics around GRE AWA.

Topic: Ethical and Moral Standards

To be an effective leader, a public official must maintain the highest ethical and moral standards.

Write a response to which you discuss the extent to which you agree or disagree with the claim. In developing and maintaining your position, be sure to address the most compelling reasons and/ or examples that could be used for your position.

The importance of ethical and moral standards to be an effective leader is a highly debatable topic. People have their perspectives, some consider them to be of greater significance while others don't. To begin with, I would say I partly agree that a leader must have good ethical and moral standards since he/ she is going to represent the entire nation in front of the world. On top of that, a leader sets an example for the forthcoming generations. However, measuring the true potential of a leader only by their morals does not seem ideal either.

Perhaps their achievements equivalently contribute to the efficiency of their leadership. A public official with low or above-average moral and ethical values could still stand as an effective leader if he/ she holds prominent achievements during their leadership. Take the example of President Richard Nixon. He was involved in the Watergate scandal, which is still considered a major political scandal in the history of the United States. Nixon and his fellow supporters were involved in subsequent illegitimate activities including illegal break-ins, fraud campaigns, and more just to gain an edge over his re-election. However, despite his low ethics, he is still considered one of the most effective leaders of all time. This is because of his considerable knowledge and experience in diplomacy. He also successfully put an end to the Vietnam War and maintained peaceful relations with the Soviet Union.

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On the other hand, the importance of ethics and morality can neither be overlooked since it's a must to bring peace and prosperity to the nation. If we look a few centuries back, the period of the cruel dictatorship brings back true horrors. Due to their immorality and dominating nature, they were able to reach the greatest extent of power in no time. However, it didn't take long enough to collapse either. Hence, this shows how having higher ethics and morals can help one become an effective leader. Besides, there are various kinds of morals, some of which are mandatory to possess as a leader. Suppose responsibility and wisdom are must-have values for any leader to accomplish his duty rightfully.

Consider the example of George Washington, the first President of the United States. He is contemplated as a very effective and powerful ruler due to his high ethics and moral values. George, after his second consecutive term of serving as a President, denied continuing his third term to lay a foundation for the next President. He is still seen as a selfless leader who made immeasurable contributions as the President of the US.

However, a leader might come across several critical instances when they might have to deal with it cautiously and diplomatically. At such times, values like integrity and humility might not prove to be healthy. Instead, one has to rely on their political experiences and might even have to make use of certain inappreciable ways to deal with the situations in the most effective ways. Therefore, having higher ethics and morals is not enough to determine the effectiveness of a leader. One must possess courage and strong decision-making skills to achieve greater results as a higher-official or responsible leader.

Therefore, we can conclude that to be an effective leader, maintaining the highest ethical and moral standards isn't necessarily required. We shall consider the effectiveness of a leader by their achievements and the way they deal with the worst scenarios. However, individuals with brilliant achievements, along with an average moral, if not the highest, are greatly appreciated to have the ability of an effective leader.