Relating to moral injuries

Dutch mental health practitioners on moral injury among military and police workers

Bibliographic Data

ID4590019
AuthorsTeun Eikenaar (0000-0003-2890-1663, Radboud University Nijmegen, corresponding author)
Year2022
Volume298
Pages114876
Publication date2022-04-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueSocial Science & Medicine (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0277-9536 • E-ISSN: 1873-5347
PublisherElsevier BV (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1016/j.socscimed.2022.114876
PMID35278976
OpenAlexW4214852362
LanguageEN
Citations received6
References cited27

In recent years the concept of moral injury has become a common term to describe the lasting impact of moral transgressions on frontline workers. This article aims to broaden the largely clinical debate by involving the views of a diverse group of mental health practitioners who support military and police personnel in the Netherlands. These practitioners are chaplains, confidential counsellors, social workers, psychologists and integrity officers. How do these practitioners describe the moral injuries of servicemen and police officers and how do they think these should be approached? Through interviews with thirty different practitioners this study shows that definitions of moral injuries diverge considerably. In addition, the article analyses six different approaches to moral injuries. These range from framing moral injury as an exceptional problem that requires specific expertise, to seeing it as a broad issue that places workers in a larger moral community. An analysis of this variety both serves as an indication of possible ways to deal with moral injuries, and as a basis for a critical reflection on the implications of various approaches

Confidentiality · Criminology · Framing (construction · Medical emergency · Mental health · Moral disengagement · Moral injury · Occupational safety and health · Poison control · Political science · Psychiatry · Sociology · Suicide prevention · Child Abuse and Trauma · Human Factors and Ergonomics · Law · Medicine · Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Research · Psychology · Social Psychology · Torture, Ethics, and Law

Tools

Open DOIOpen Access