Moral injury exposure among offenders in Türkiye: Experiences, coping, and values.

Abstract

Objective: A growing body of research on moral injury (MI) has focused on various occupational groups, particularly on military personnel and veterans. However, there is a notable gap in investigations of MI in offender populations. This study was conducted to investigate the experiences and coping strategies of MI among offenders. Researchers have also identified the specific values that have been violated in MI.

Method: The phenomenological design employed semistructured interviews to examine the offenders' MI experiences. Thematic analysis techniques were used to investigate the participants' feelings, thoughts, and behaviors. We recruited 15 participants from a larger sample based on their scores obtained on the administered scales and conducted in-depth interviews along with memos.

Results: Three superordinate themes were conceptualized: (a) violated values, (b) experiences of MI, and (c) strategies for coping with MI. The empirical findings suggest that offenders have various experiences. These include frequent engagement in feelings, thoughts, and behaviors related to MI. Participants also demonstrated five categories of coping strategies: emotional, cognitive, behavioral, social, and spiritual. MI involves violation of numerous values.

Conclusion: All offenders described in detail how they experienced and coped with moral injuries. Based on these findings, researchers suggest that mental health professionals working in penal institutions should implement programs to improve offenders' well-being, particularly when encountering morally injurious events. This intervention could involve identifying personal values in order to develop strategies. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2025 APA, all rights reserved).