Moral injury among journalists: A scoping review

Moral injury refers to the psychological, social, functional, and spiritual impacts of experiencing an event that transgresses one's deeply held moral beliefs. Recent research has documented the relevance of moral injury among various occupations. This may be of particular applicability to journalists, who operate within ethically complex landscapes and often cover morally reprehensible events. This scoping review aimed to synthesize the existing literature concerning moral injury among journalists to explore (a) the extent to which research has been undertaken, (b) what potentially morally injurious events are experienced by journalists, and (c) how moral injury is measured and defined. Online databases were used to identify sources reporting on moral injury among journalists. A total of 20 articles met the inclusion criteria, with only 10 instances of empirical data on moral injury, highlighting a lack of empirical work in this field. Occupational support, mental health literacy, and avoiding potentially morally injurious events were highlighted as key protective and preventative factors. Future research would benefit from clearly conceptualizing moral injury in alignment with current theoretical frameworks and selecting measures that provide information about psychological experiences. Overall, these findings provide a foundation for improving understanding, awareness, intervention, and preventative strategies to support the mental health of journalists.