The Congressional Medal of Honor in Three Wars

Profiling the heroic leader: Empirical lessons from combat-decorated veterans of World War II

“…Consider the dramatic contexts involving soldiers who receive medals for heroism. The criteria for awarding medals such as the Bronze Star, Silver Star, Distinguished Service Cross, and Congressional Medal of Honor include, can include rescue (such as saving a comrade at great personal risk), extra aggressiveness (such as single-handedly charging a pillbox), grenade situations (such as absorbing the full brunt of enemy firepower), rear defense (such as delaying or holding off the enemy while fellow soldiers escape), refusing medical aid (such as continuing to fight despite physical injury), and leadership (such as spontaneously taking command or showing leadership under extremely difficult circumstances) (Gal, 1981;Blake, 1976).…”

“…Perhaps the most common characteristic anecdotally associated with acts of heroism is that of taking a risk (see Egbert et al, 1954;Ambrose, 1993;Blake, 1976;Stouffer et al, 1949;Lord, 1967;Rachman, 1990). This is consistent regardless of whether it involved a lone individual saving a drowning person or a captain fighting alongside his company of soldiers.…”

Studies on Documented Historical Cases of Civil and War Heroism: A Mini-Review

“…Riemer published four quantitative analyses of data extracted from MOH case reports (Blake, 1973(Blake, , 1978Blake & Butler, 1976;Riemer, 1998). In his first two studies, Blake categorized the heroic actions performed and analyzed the correlation of these different kinds of actions with the ranks of the soldiers performing them (Blake 1973;Blake & Butler 1976). In addition, he also analyzed the correlation of soldiers" ranks and their mortality during or as an immediate consequence of their heroic actions.…”

Green Berets and the Symbolic Meaning of Heroism

“…In the United States, Blake (1973) suggests that providing propaganda material for the &dquo;home front&dquo; and maintaining troop morale are two of the three major reasons (the third reason being to further the careers of promising officers) for awarding the Congressional Medal of Honor, the nation's highest award for military valor. Because the Medal of Honor is an award that any military person is supposed to be proud to receive, Blake indicates that presumably it also gives pride to both relatives and friends of the recipient because in the process they become relatives and friends of a hero.…”