TRADOC Pam 525-3-7-01 - TRADOC - U.S. Army
TRADOC Pam 525-3-7-01 - TRADOC - U.S. Army TRADOC Pam 525-3-7-01 - TRADOC - U.S. Army
TRADOC Pam 525-3-7-01one’s own moral conduct and but also refusing to tolerate immoral acts in fellow Soldiers orleaders. It is especially critical for leaders to set the moral climate within their units. Soldierscannot remain passive when they determine that an immoral act has occurred or is going to occur.This includes the ability to foresee the logical consequences one’s actions and the actions ofothers.The Army must develop Soldiers who have the autonomy and capacity to challenge unethicaldecisions and address ethical dilemmas regardless of the will of their subordinates, peers, orsuperiors. When making moral judgments in complex situations followers normally defer to thehigher authority. Disengagement from the responsibility to act explains why subordinatesserving under immoral leaders did not intervene to prevent the My Lai massacre in Vietnam andthe Abu Ghraib abuses in Iraq. It is through moral disengagement that people find excuses fornot doing the right thing, often rationalizing that it is not their responsibility (“I was followingorders” or “everyone else is doing it”), and an almost natural tendency to dehumanize the enemyor local populace through racial slurs or other derogatory terms. Soldiers do not have the optionto recognize moral wrongdoing and then fail to take action. Soldiers with well developed senseof moral agency are better able to recognize the moral implications present in a situation,determine the right thing to do, take responsibility, and summon the courage to do the right thing.Having the confidence, courage, and resilience to act when faced with a moral dilemmarequires moral strength to overcome strong social or command pressures, to “choose the harderright instead of the easier wrong, and never be content with the half truth when the whole can bewon.” 84 Sometimes doing what is right results in threats, ostracism, and alienation from fellowSoldiers and leaders. To face such pressure requires moral confidence and courage.Moral confidence comes from the belief that one has the capability to act successfully in theface of a moral dilemma. It also includes the ability to intervene effectively, using stronginterpersonal skills to communicate the dilemma to others and overcome any potential resistanceto doing the right thing. These skills develop through frequent and deliberate exposure intraining to complex and realistic moral dilemmas followed by open discussion in advance ofdeployment. As Soldiers increase their experience through these situational exercises they refinetheir judgment, which further builds self-confidence. Once deployed, when Soldiers experienceactual moral dilemmas, leaders must continue discussing the circumstances, decisions, andoutcomes in order to help Soldiers make sense of their experiences, improve moral reasoningskills, and build confidence. Over time these experiences transform Soldiers into confident moralindividuals better able recognize and make judgments on complex moral issues, who possess theconfidence and personal moral courage to act in difficult circumstances.The attributes of moral confidence and individual moral courage can thrive only inorganizations with a strong leadership climate supportive of subordinates’ moral development.Soldiers should learn to challenge ethical decisions or report immoral or illegal acts without fearof retribution. Those who report such acts should be recognized, rewarded, and celebrated by theunit. The impact of such an environment on Soldier morale and psychological resilience as wellas unit cohesion is self-evident.70
TRADOC Pam 525-3-7-01The moral development of Soldiers is a complex subject. The rules of engagement carefullyestablished for every operation still cannot foresee all the situations that Soldiers and their leaderswill face. The moral dilemma’s faced by Soldiers in future full spectrum operations are likethose Soldiers have always faced in battle; morally ambiguous situations where there appears tobe no clear solution. In order for the Army to be a moral organization, it is essential for Soldiersto understand the moral reasoning process, moral recognition, moral judgment, moral intent, andmoral behavior. More than understanding, Soldiers must repetitively exercise their moraljudgment while making decisions and taking actions consistent with professional military values.To navigate through this process with confidence and courage requires developing early andcontinuously in Soldiers the three key capabilities of dealing with moral complexity, acceptingmoral agency and achieving moral efficacy. This triad of capabilities is the foundation of moraldevelopment.The Army must provide for the strong ethical grounding of its members and particularly itsleaders. A check-the-block program of annual briefings, or en mass generic character guidancesessions, is not adequate. Every transformational experience or “trigger point” in individualdevelopment must have ethical content integrated to insure attachment of its proper meaning(understanding) and internalization of principals by the subject. 85 In line units, ethical leadershipis a chain of command function. Institutionally, at every level of formal individual development,units must allocate time and resources in proportion to the institutional costs of individual andcollective ethical failure. Though in ethical terms such failures have always borne their costs, inthis period of instant global visibility ethical lapses can have extraordinary strategic costs tomission accomplishment and America’s reputation.3-4. Developing Socio-cultural AwarenessIn 1969, British historian, Sir Michael Howard, pointed out that modern armed conflicts (postWorld War II) were “not simply military conflicts with a complex political background; they arerather political conflicts which involve an unusually high level of violence” 86 Howard wroteprincipally of post-colonial wars, where developed industrial powers (including the U.S. andSoviet Union) sought either to extend collapsing colonial mandates or influence the character ofsuccessor governments as they, an ally, or a rival power, withdrew.Today’s “Wars amongst the peoples,” 87 as General Sir Rupert Smith has characterizedinterventions into areas lacking effective civil powers, share with the conflicts Howardcharacterized the fundamental fact that foreign military forces employ for political purposes. Inthe case of post-modern conflicts, those political purposes often have the aim of producingsufficient local public stability and support to permit building or rebuilding a reasonablyresponsible civil society. This can require operations against other dedicated foreign fighterswho claim to share common values with the host society, hostile factions within the host societycontending for power within the wider emerging or declining political structure, or a shiftingcombination of both. After Vietnam, the U.S. and the Army avoided accepting nation building asa core mission. American military culture and Army mantra and doctrinal preference goes toclosing with and destroying the enemy in decisive battle. However, most conflicts since 1945have been at the lower end of the spectrum. These kinds of interventions will likely continue todominate military activities in future full spectrum operations.71
- Page 26 and 27: TRADOC Pam 525-3-7-01to Army member
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<strong>TRADOC</strong> <strong>Pam</strong> <strong>525</strong>-3-7-<strong>01</strong>one’s own moral conduct and but also refusing to tolerate immoral acts in fellow Soldiers orleaders. It is especially critical for leaders to set the moral climate within their units. Soldierscannot remain passive when they determine that an immoral act has occurred or is going to occur.This includes the ability to foresee the logical consequences one’s actions and the actions ofothers.The <strong>Army</strong> must develop Soldiers who have the autonomy and capacity to challenge unethicaldecisions and address ethical dilemmas regardless of the will of their subordinates, peers, orsuperiors. When making moral judgments in complex situations followers normally defer to thehigher authority. Disengagement from the responsibility to act explains why subordinatesserving under immoral leaders did not intervene to prevent the My Lai massacre in Vietnam andthe Abu Ghraib abuses in Iraq. It is through moral disengagement that people find excuses fornot doing the right thing, often rationalizing that it is not their responsibility (“I was followingorders” or “everyone else is doing it”), and an almost natural tendency to dehumanize the enemyor local populace through racial slurs or other derogatory terms. Soldiers do not have the optionto recognize moral wrongdoing and then fail to take action. Soldiers with well developed senseof moral agency are better able to recognize the moral implications present in a situation,determine the right thing to do, take responsibility, and summon the courage to do the right thing.Having the confidence, courage, and resilience to act when faced with a moral dilemmarequires moral strength to overcome strong social or command pressures, to “choose the harderright instead of the easier wrong, and never be content with the half truth when the whole can bewon.” 84 Sometimes doing what is right results in threats, ostracism, and alienation from fellowSoldiers and leaders. To face such pressure requires moral confidence and courage.Moral confidence comes from the belief that one has the capability to act successfully in theface of a moral dilemma. It also includes the ability to intervene effectively, using stronginterpersonal skills to communicate the dilemma to others and overcome any potential resistanceto doing the right thing. These skills develop through frequent and deliberate exposure intraining to complex and realistic moral dilemmas followed by open discussion in advance ofdeployment. As Soldiers increase their experience through these situational exercises they refinetheir judgment, which further builds self-confidence. Once deployed, when Soldiers experienceactual moral dilemmas, leaders must continue discussing the circumstances, decisions, andoutcomes in order to help Soldiers make sense of their experiences, improve moral reasoningskills, and build confidence. Over time these experiences transform Soldiers into confident moralindividuals better able recognize and make judgments on complex moral issues, who possess theconfidence and personal moral courage to act in difficult circumstances.The attributes of moral confidence and individual moral courage can thrive only inorganizations with a strong leadership climate supportive of subordinates’ moral development.Soldiers should learn to challenge ethical decisions or report immoral or illegal acts without fearof retribution. Those who report such acts should be recognized, rewarded, and celebrated by theunit. The impact of such an environment on Soldier morale and psychological resilience as wellas unit cohesion is self-evident.70