ABSTRACT
Fiction is frequently employed as a didactic tool in professional higher education programmes, including military education, but there are few empirical studies of its efficacy in a military educational setting. This chapter presents the first findings from a reading study in higher professional military education. It analyses the learning activity LITLEAD (Literature and Leadership) in which a novel is used as a vehicle for reflection on military leadership. The primary findings presented are, first, that reading a literary narrative provided structured impetus for reflection on future leadership behaviour and integration of new and previous knowledge, as well as buttressing professional identity formation. Second, the study shows how fiction may be used as a social technology to engineer a common arena of experience for a diverse group of students.
