A challenge to identity: Identity processing style and moral injury

Abstract

Moral injury is a potentially deleterious mental health outcome that can result from exposure to morally challenging events. Treatment of moral injury is currently hindered by incomplete understanding of its underlying mechanisms. Theories of adaptation posit that maintaining a coherent sense of self while realigning one's sense of self with reality aids in adaptation following a disruptive life event. Differences in identity processing style are thought to impact the extent to which an individual engages with the challenges of maintaining a coherent sense of self following identity‐related challenges. However, little is known about how identity processing style relates to moral injury event‐related distress. This study sought to investigate a hypothesized relationship between identity processing style and event‐related distress as well as alternative outcomes including traumatic stress, depression and anxiety. Adults (N = 167) who had been exposed to a potentially morally injurious event were recruited online and completed validated measures of event‐related distress, traumatic stress, depression, anxiety and identity processing style. There were significant positive associations between diffuse‐avoidant processing and all mental health outcomes, no significant associations between informational processing and any mental health outcomes, and significant negative associations between normative processing and event‐related distress and depression.