A psycholinguistic analysis of the narratives of young adults with moral injury and post-traumatic stress disorder

Abstract

Traumatic social upheavals such as war actualise the need to investigate the interrelation between moral injury (MI) and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), particularly in young adulthood, a developmental period marked by heightened moral sensitivity and vulnerability. Although MI and PTSD are conceptually distinct, moral injury may contribute to the emergence or intensification of PTSD symptoms. This study examines the manifestation of MI and PTSD symptoms in young adults and analyses their narratives of war experience. The sample comprised 300 Ukrainian young adults aged 18–26, screened using the PTSD Checklist for DSM-5 (PCL-5) and the Moral Injury Symptom Scale (MISS-M-SF). Based on screening results, three groups were identified: individuals with PTSD, individuals with pronounced MI without PTSD, and a non-diagnosed comparison group. Participants produced written narratives on the topic “My experience of living through war,” which were analysed using a narrative-psycholinguistic approach focusing on orientation, emotional valence, and narrative organization. The results demonstrate statistically significant differences in MI symptom profiles between respondents with and without PTSD, as well as meaningful correlations between PTSD symptom clusters and specific MI components, including moral conflict, shame, self-condemnation, and loss of meaning. Narrative analysis revealed predominantly negative orientations toward traumatic experience across groups, alongside differences in behavioural strategies, emotional focus, and the balance between individual and collective experience. Narratives of participants with PTSD showed extensive detailing of traumatic events and active coping strategies, whereas narratives of participants with MI without PTSD were characterised by ambivalence and social withdrawal. The findings underscore the close relationship between MI and PTSD in young adults experiencing war and highlight the diagnostic and therapeutic value of narrative analysis in understanding trauma-related experiences.