ABSTRACT
Moral injury (MI) refers to pronounced and functionally incapacitating guilt and shame following actions or inactions that violate one’s ethical code and mores and that cause significant harm to others. Though moral emotions following common or minor transgressions are appropriate and non-pathological, in the context of actions that cause significant harm to others, the severity of these emotions can impair adaptive functioning. The MI literature has focused on emotional phenomenology as well as assessment and treatment considerations. In this chapter, we make a case for a prominent feature of MI experiences that differentiates it from other syndromes and conditions. Specifically, individuals engaging in perpetration-based behaviors often experience alterations in how they perceive themselves and a shift in self-identity. Depending on the impact of the harm caused, individuals may begin to conceptualize the self as bad or evil on the basis of a single action (or inaction) that is at odds with prior perceptions of oneself as good and virtuous. Implications for treatment and future research considerations are discussed.
