Leadership in moral awareness: Initial evidence from U.S. Army soldiers returning from deployment

Abstract: Objective: To determine whether moral awareness leadership moderated the relationship between combat experiences and soldier mental health symptoms following deployment. Method: The Leadership in Moral Awareness Scale (LIMAS) was evaluated using anonymous surveys completed by 177 U.S. Army National Guardsmen. The survey also assessed general leadership, combat experiences, and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), anxiety, and depression symptoms. Following factor analyses of the LIMAS, moderated regression models examined interactions between the LIMAS and combat experiences on mental health symptoms. Results: Six items were selected to comprise the LIMAS. No main effect of the LIMAS was found for mental health variables after adjusting for general leadership. There were significant interaction effects between the LIMAS and combat experiences for depression and anxiety symptoms. Soldiers with higher levels of combat experiences reported fewer mental health symptoms if their leaders were rated highly on the LIMAS. Conclusions: The LIMAS may offer a useful tool for assessing leader behaviors that can counteract negative mental health outcomes associated with combat. Findings provide support for encouraging leaders to focus on moral awareness during deployment.

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