Reflections on Sustaining Morale and Combat Motivation in Soldiers

Abstract

Military morale and motivation formulate the signature strength of a fighting force. However, sustenance of these faculties is a bigger challenge than generating them. The exponential development in the neo-cortex and emerging social structure has made human beings hardcore individualistic. The sense of ‘self’ has become much stronger than the sense of the whole. This results in the recurrent violation of collective identity, as evidenced by the rise in numbers of misconduct behaviors, mutinies, estranged leader-led relations, desertion, fragging, and suicides. Utilizing the lessons from various ecological systems and derived scientific principles, the present paper takes note of significant researches in the area to arrive at a reflective model of Morale and Combat Motivation in soldiers. Firstly, it attempts to understand ‘why and why not the soldiers shall fight’ and subsequently give suggestive guidelines to ‘how they will continue to fight’ with particular reference to the Indian military setup. The model can be utilised by military leaders and policymakers alike who are entrusted with the herculean task of upkeeping battle-mind state of soldiers in military organisations.