Try 10 focused PSM I questions on Scrum Theory, Values, and Empiricism, with answers and explanations, then continue with PM Mastery.
| Field | Detail |
|---|---|
| Exam route | PSM I |
| Topic area | Scrum Theory, Values, and Empiricism |
| Blueprint weight | 15% |
| Page purpose | Focused sample questions before returning to mixed practice |
Use this page to isolate Scrum Theory, Values, and Empiricism for PSM I. Work through the 10 questions first, then review the explanations and return to mixed practice in PM Mastery.
| Pass | What to do | What to record |
|---|---|---|
| First attempt | Answer without checking the explanation first. | The fact, rule, calculation, or judgment point that controlled your answer. |
| Review | Read the explanation even when you were correct. | Why the best answer is stronger than the closest distractor. |
| Repair | Repeat only missed or uncertain items after a short break. | The pattern behind misses, not the answer letter. |
| Transfer | Return to mixed practice once the topic feels stable. | Whether the same skill holds up when the topic is no longer obvious. |
Blueprint context: 15% of the practice outline. A focused topic score can overstate readiness if you recognize the pattern too quickly, so use it as repair work before timed mixed sets.
These questions are original PM Mastery practice items aligned to this topic area. They are designed for self-assessment and are not official exam questions.
Topic: Scrum Theory, Values, and Empiricism
Midway through a Sprint, the Developers realize they may not finish all Product Backlog Items they selected. To “stay on track,” they agree to call items “Done” even if some required testing in the Definition of Done is skipped, promising to do that testing in the next Sprint.
What is the most likely near-term impact?
Best answer: D
What this tests: Scrum Theory, Values, and Empiricism
Explanation: The Definition of Done is the Scrum Team’s shared commitment for what “Done” means for the Increment. If the team labels work as Done while not meeting the Definition of Done, the immediate consequence is reduced transparency about actual quality and completeness. This directly increases the near-term risk that the Increment is not usable as expected.
The core issue is misusing the Definition of Done (DoD). The DoD creates transparency by making the quality and completeness of the Increment clear; if an item is marked “Done,” it should meet the DoD. Skipping required testing but still calling the work “Done” creates a hidden undone-work pile and makes inspection at the Sprint Review less reliable.
Near-term consequences typically include:
This can happen even if the team believes it helps Sprint Goal progress; it mainly damages transparency and quality first.
Skipping the Definition of Done means “Done” no longer reliably indicates quality, undermining transparency of the Increment immediately.
Topic: Scrum Theory, Values, and Empiricism
It is day 7 of a 2-week Sprint. The Sprint Goal is “Enable users to export reports as PDF.” A stakeholder tells the Scrum Master a “CSV export” is now needed for an end-of-Sprint demo.
Constraints:
What is the Scrum Master’s BEST next action?
Best answer: D
What this tests: Scrum Theory, Values, and Empiricism
Explanation: The Scrum Master is not a people manager who assigns work or enforces commitments. Their accountability is to enable Scrum effectiveness by fostering transparency and facilitating inspection and adaptation. Here that means helping the Product Owner and Developers collaboratively respond to the new request while still protecting the Definition of Done and focus on the Sprint Goal.
A common misconception is that the Scrum Master manages the team by directing work or enforcing delivery promises. In Scrum, the Scrum Master is accountable for the Scrum Team’s effectiveness by coaching, facilitating, and helping remove impediments, while Developers self-manage the work and the Product Owner manages value and stakeholder collaboration.
Given a mid-Sprint request and current quality risks, the Scrum Master should enable empiricism:
The key is enabling the right people to decide and adapt, rather than acting as a manager who assigns tasks or applies pressure.
The Scrum Master serves the Scrum Team by enabling transparency and a PO–Developers decision about adapting the Sprint Backlog, not by managing or assigning work.
Topic: Scrum Theory, Values, and Empiricism
A company is unhappy with slow product decisions. Several department heads propose creating a “Product Owner committee” to vote on Product Backlog ordering and to approve changes to the Product Goal. The Scrum Master is asked to advise the Scrum Team.
Which statement is INCORRECT according to Scrum?
Best answer: C
What this tests: Scrum Theory, Values, and Empiricism
Explanation: Scrum defines the Product Owner as a single person accountable for maximizing value and for ordering the Product Backlog. Stakeholders can provide input and the Product Owner can collaborate widely, but decision-making accountability does not become a voting committee. Making ordering and product-direction decisions by committee reduces clear accountability and transparency.
A common misconception is treating the Product Owner as a group to “share ownership” or to speed up agreement. Scrum intentionally creates clear accountability by having one Product Owner who is accountable for maximizing value, ordering the Product Backlog, and ensuring the Product Goal is understood.
The Product Owner should actively collaborate with stakeholders and can delegate some Product Backlog management activities, but:
Keeping a single accountable Product Owner improves transparency and enables faster inspection and adaptation than decision-making by committee.
In Scrum, the Product Owner accountability is held by one person, not a committee, even though they collaborate with stakeholders.
Topic: Scrum Theory, Values, and Empiricism
In Scrum, which statement best describes transparency (as opposed to status reporting) and what it enables?
Best answer: A
What this tests: Scrum Theory, Values, and Empiricism
Explanation: Transparency in Scrum is about making important aspects of the work and its outcomes visible in a shared way, so people can inspect what is really happening. It is not primarily about producing periodic reports, but about clear, observable artifacts and a common understanding that supports empiricism.
Transparency is one of Scrum’s pillars of empiricism and is a prerequisite for meaningful inspection and adaptation. It means the work, progress, and results are visible to those responsible for the outcome and presented in a way that is commonly understood. In Scrum, transparency is primarily achieved through the Scrum artifacts and their commitments (Product Backlog with Product Goal, Sprint Backlog with Sprint Goal, and the Increment with the Definition of Done). If visibility is replaced by polished status reporting, inspection can become misleading because people are reacting to summaries rather than the real state of the product and the work.
Transparency means the work and its results are visible and shared in a common understanding, enabling effective inspection and adaptation.
Topic: Scrum Theory, Values, and Empiricism
Halfway through a 2-week Sprint, the Scrum Team learns a new regulatory interpretation that makes the Product Backlog items supporting the current Sprint Goal unusable. Stakeholders confirm this change is real and immediate.
What is the best Scrum-aligned adaptation?
Best answer: D
What this tests: Scrum Theory, Values, and Empiricism
Explanation: Empiricism requires adapting when new evidence shows the current plan will not deliver value. If the Sprint Goal is no longer viable, Scrum provides a clear adaptation: the Product Owner may cancel the Sprint. This avoids investing further in work that cannot be used and enables rapid re-planning based on the new reality.
Adaptation is changing the plan or approach when inspection reveals new information. In this scenario, the inspected evidence (a confirmed regulatory change) means the work supporting the Sprint Goal cannot be used, so continuing would create waste and an Increment that does not help reach outcomes.
Scrum’s built-in adaptation for this case is:
Changing the timebox or having others unilaterally redefine goals weakens transparency and undermines Scrum’s accountabilities; the key is to adapt decisively to the new evidence while preserving Scrum’s rules.
When new evidence makes the Sprint Goal obsolete, the Product Owner can cancel the Sprint to adapt immediately.
Topic: Scrum Theory, Values, and Empiricism
A Scrum Team is building an internal product. During Product Backlog refinement, three department heads join and collectively decide priorities; the organization refers to them as “the Product Owners.” Developers report they get conflicting direction and Sprint Planning is tomorrow.
As the Scrum Master, what is the most important thing to verify or ask first before deciding what to do next?
Best answer: B
What this tests: Scrum Theory, Values, and Empiricism
Explanation: The key issue is unclear Product Owner accountability caused by treating the Product Owner as a committee. In Scrum, one person is accountable for maximizing value and for ordering the Product Backlog, while stakeholders can advise and collaborate. Clarifying who holds that accountability is the first step to restoring transparency and enabling effective decisions.
This situation indicates a common misconception: treating the Product Owner accountability as a group that makes collective decisions. The Scrum Guide defines the Product Owner as a single person who is accountable for maximizing value and for effective Product Backlog management, including ordering.
Before addressing conflicts, facilitation, or next Sprint decisions, first make transparency explicit by confirming:
Once the single accountable Product Owner is clear, the team can inspect the Product Backlog ordering and adapt plans (including Sprint Planning) based on one coherent direction.
Scrum requires one Product Owner with clear accountability for Product Backlog ordering, even if many stakeholders provide input.
Topic: Scrum Theory, Values, and Empiricism
A Scrum Team’s stakeholders insist that the Sprint Review is a “go/no-go” gate: they want formal sign-off before the team can continue building or consider releasing. The Scrum Master wants to steer the conversation toward empiricism and validation instead of approvals.
Which option is the best evidence/indicator to validate progress, quality, and value in a Scrum-aligned way?
Best answer: D
What this tests: Scrum Theory, Values, and Empiricism
Explanation: The Sprint Review is not a stage gate; it is a working session to inspect the Done Increment and adapt the Product Backlog based on what was learned. The most credible validation of progress and quality is a usable Increment that meets the Definition of Done. Value is validated by inspecting that Increment with stakeholders and incorporating their feedback toward the Product Goal.
Treating the Sprint Review as “go/no-go” turns it into a control gate focused on approvals rather than learning. In Scrum, progress and quality are made transparent by producing a Done Increment each Sprint, and value is explored by inspecting that Increment with stakeholders to gather feedback and adapt.
Evidence that supports empiricism should be:
Documents, meeting notes, and throughput metrics can be useful, but they are weaker than inspecting a Done Increment for validating real progress and value.
In Scrum, the primary evidence is a Done, usable Increment that can be inspected in the Sprint Review to gather feedback and adapt.
Topic: Scrum Theory, Values, and Empiricism
During several Sprint Reviews, stakeholders see features that appear complete. Within days, many defects are found and the Developers explain that “testing and full integration happen after the Sprint.” The Sprint Backlog items are marked “Done” when code is merged to a shared branch, but there is no visible test report and no clear indicator of integration status.
Which underlying Scrum-related cause is most likely?
Best answer: D
What this tests: Scrum Theory, Values, and Empiricism
Explanation: The symptoms point to a lack of transparency about what “Done” means and whether work is integrated and tested. In Scrum, the Definition of Done is the key mechanism to create shared understanding of quality for the Increment. If testing and integration are outside the Definition of Done, the team can report progress while hiding quality gaps until after the Sprint.
Scrum relies on transparency so inspection and adaptation are meaningful. The Definition of Done creates a shared understanding of what it takes for work to be part of the Increment, and it should make quality visible (e.g., testing completed and integrated, with results available).
Here, items are called “Done” when code is merged, while testing and full integration occur after the Sprint and no test/integration evidence is visible. That indicates the Definition of Done is missing critical quality criteria and/or not being applied consistently, so the Increment’s true state cannot be inspected at Sprint Review and decisions are made with misleading information. The key takeaway is to strengthen and use the Definition of Done to expose quality and integration status every Sprint.
If “Done” does not include integrated and tested work (and its evidence), the Increment’s quality and integration status cannot be transparent each Sprint.
Topic: Scrum Theory, Values, and Empiricism
It is day 8 of a 10-day Sprint. The Sprint Goal is “Enable customers to reset their password.” The Definition of Done requires automated tests.
A stakeholder asks for a “security questions” feature to be included in the same release and offers to escalate if it is not done. During the Daily Scrum, Developers say they can only fit this request by skipping automated tests or by dropping part of the Sprint Backlog.
What is the BEST next action?
Best answer: C
What this tests: Scrum Theory, Values, and Empiricism
Explanation: The Scrum values (commitment, focus, openness, respect, and courage) guide behavior when there is pressure and uncertainty. The team should be transparent about constraints, courageous in protecting quality, and work with the Product Owner to adapt the Sprint Backlog while remaining focused on the Sprint Goal and a Done Increment.
The five Scrum values are commitment, focus, openness, respect, and courage, and they matter because they create the conditions for empiricism to work: people surface reality, inspect it, and adapt without fear or blame. In this scenario, the team is under stakeholder pressure late in the Sprint and has a clear quality constraint (the Definition of Done).
The best next action is to be open about the impact, show courage to not “buy scope” by cutting quality, and respect the Product Owner’s accountability for ordering and stakeholder collaboration. The Scrum Team can then adapt the Sprint Backlog (and possibly negotiate scope) while staying focused on the Sprint Goal and committed to delivering a Done Increment. The key takeaway is to adapt plans transparently rather than weakening quality or the Sprint timebox.
This applies Scrum values by being open and courageous about constraints while staying committed to a Done Increment and focused on the Sprint Goal.
Topic: Scrum Theory, Values, and Empiricism
In recent Sprint Reviews, stakeholders have given blunt feedback and the Developers have responded by defending their decisions. The Scrum Master helps the Scrum Team agree to feedback behaviors focused on curiosity and learning.
After two Sprints, which observation is the best evidence that feedback is now promoting learning and adaptation rather than defensiveness?
Best answer: A
What this tests: Scrum Theory, Values, and Empiricism
Explanation: In Scrum, the strongest indicator that feedback is healthy is that it results in transparent inspection and clear adaptation. When stakeholders and the Scrum Team use Sprint Review feedback to adjust the Product Backlog and try experiments, the feedback is being used for learning and improving outcomes. That is stronger evidence than producing artifacts of “better meetings” without changing product decisions.
Learning-oriented feedback in Scrum is validated by what changes as a result of inspection. The Sprint Review exists to inspect the outcome of the Sprint (including a Done Increment when possible) and determine future adaptations. When feedback is received with openness and curiosity, it shows up as concrete decisions: the Product Owner collaborates with stakeholders and the Scrum Team to update and reorder the Product Backlog, and the Scrum Team may run small experiments to test assumptions.
Measures like surveys, meeting polish, or task lists can be useful, but they are indirect; they do not by themselves demonstrate adaptation toward greater value. The most convincing evidence is observable change to product direction and next steps based on feedback.
Turning Sprint Review feedback into Product Backlog adaptation and experiments shows learning-oriented feedback driving change.
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