Moral awareness leadership can mitigate the impact of combat on soldier mental health

What is it about?

Moral injury is a psychological affliction that can result from observing or engaging in acts that transgress deeply held moral beliefs. Military leaders may play a critical role in mitigating moral injury through moral awareness leadership, which includes establishing clear expectations about ethical behavior, discussing the challenge of moral dilemmas, and placing moral concerns within the context of organizational values. We found that soldiers with higher levels of combat exposure had less depression and anxiety when their leaders engaged in higher levels of moral awareness leadership.

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Photo by Justin Cron on Unsplash

Photo by Justin Cron on Unsplash

Why is it important?

Moral injury can exacerbate mental health struggles among service members and veterans. While much attention has been paid to understanding and treating moral injury once it has occurred, comparatively few efforts have explored how it might be prevented in the first place. This study highlights the powerful impact that leaders can have on service member mental health by addressing moral and ethical issues pre-emptively. These findings can be leveraged to developed training and interventions that aim to prevent moral injury among personnel working in high-risk occupations. DISCLAIMER: Material has been reviewed by the Walter Reed Army Institute of Research. There is no objection to its presentation and/or publication. The opinions or assertions contained herein are the private views of the author, and are not to be construed as official, or as reflecting true views of the Department of the Army or the Department of Defense. The investigators have adhered to the policies for protection of human subjects as prescribed in AR 70–25.

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