Moral trauma, moral distress, moral injury, and moral injury disorder : definitions and assessments

We propose new definitions for moral injury and moral distress, encompassing many prior definitions, but broadening moral injury to more general classes of victims, in addition to perpetrators and witnesses, and broadening moral distress to include settings not involving institutional constraints. We relate these notions of moral distress and moral injury to each other, and locate them on a “moral trauma spectrum” that includes considerations of both persistence and severity.

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Moral courage, injury, and leadership in military contexts : lessons from a thematic analysis of conversations among international experts and students

Introduction

Recent global events have underscored the importance of moral leadership and courage. A series of moderated conversations about moral leadership and dilemmas during times of conflict and crisis were facilitated in 2021 with Lieutenant-General (ret’d) The Honourable Romeo Dallaire, military and global affairs experts and international scholars from North America, Europe, Australia and the global south, together with students from the Netherlands and Canada.

 

Objective

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Proposing the Integrated Pathway Model of Moral Injury (IPM-MI) : A Moderated Mediation Analysis of Moral Injury Among Secure Mental Healthcare Staff

Moral injury is a prevalent issue for secure mental healthcare staff, though understanding of the underlying mechanisms is limited. This multi-study paper explores several developmental, cognitive and emotional pathways to moral injury and associated wellbeing outcomes. Frontline and support staff from secure mental healthcare services were recruited to two cross-sectional studies (n = 527 and n = 325, respectively), and completed several questionnaires.

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Patterns of mental health problems and resilience among immigrant and refugee adolescents : a latent profile analysis

Background: Immigrant and refugee adolescents often face traumatic experiences and are vulnerable to mental health problems, such as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), anxiety and depression. Yet, they also show remarkable resilience in the face of these stressors. Research is still scarce on how both mental health problems and resilience dynamically interplay in immigrant and refugee adolescents’ development.

 

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The Efficacy of Bereavement Interventions : A Systematic Umbrella Review

In recent decades, there have been diverse reviews published on intervention program value for bereaved people. The variation and multiplicity of such reviews makes it difficult to obtain an overview of what is known about treatment effectiveness. In this systematic umbrella review, we explore the current knowledge base on psychotherapeutic bereavement intervention program efficacy. Thirty-three quantitative systematic reviews and/or meta-analyses published between January 2001 and October 2021 were included.

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Role of peer support in mitigating PTSD and suicide risk among firefighters experiencing colleagues’ death

Background: The impact of witnessing a colleague’s line-of-duty death or suicide on firefighters is profound, potentially elevating the risk of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and suicide risk. Although violent loss has been acknowledged as more traumatic than natural loss, research exploring the specific outcomes of experiencing a colleague’s death within these contexts are scarce.

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Poly-victimization and post-traumatic stress symptoms in care experienced youth : the mediating role of mentalizing

Background: Youth with care experience have often been affected by repeated victimization and exhibit high rates of post-traumatic stress symptoms (PTSS). Several studies underline the buffering role of mentalizing against the harmful effects of childhood adversity.

Objective: This study aims to assess whether lower mentalizing mediates the relationship between poly-victimization and PTSS in youth with care experience.

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The influence of childhood trauma on social media-induced secondary traumatic stress among college students : the chain mediating effect of self-compassion and resilience

Background: Studies have shown that media exposure to critical public events can lead to secondary traumatic stress (STS). Personal trauma history, self-compassion and resilience are important factors influencing STS in healthy professionals. However, whether these variables are associated with social media-induced STS in college students and the underlying mechanisms remain unclear. The purpose of this study was to explore the complex relationship linking childhood trauma to social media-induced STS in a large sample of college students.

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The Effectiveness of Debriefing on the Mental Health of Rescue Teams : A Systematic Review

Background: Rescue teams and emergency services face high levels of mental health problems due to their frequent exposure to traumatic situations. Critical incident stress debriefing (CISD) is widely used as a psychological intervention for emergency responders and military personnel exposed to traumatic events. However, its effectiveness remains controversial, with systematic reviews yielding mixed results and some evidence of negative and harmful outcomes.

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Intergenerational Colonial Trauma Syndrome (ICTS) : A Critical Framework for Understanding the Continuum of Genocidal Trauma

This paper introduces the concept of Intergenerational Colonial Trauma Syndrome (ICTS) as a necessary intervention in trauma studies, critiquing the Western psychiatric model that frames trauma as a discrete past event. PTSD, a widely accepted framework, assumes that trauma occurs as an isolated moment, after which healing is possible. However, for colonized and oppressed populations experiencing ongoing systemic violence, forced displacement, and genocide, trauma is not a past event but a continuous, inherited condition that is structurally reinforced. 

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