Morale

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Morale

Morale, also known as esprit de corps when discussing the morale of a group, is an intangible term used for the capacity of people to maintain belief

Belief

Belief is the psychological state in which an individual holds a proposition or premise to be true....
in an institution or a goal, or even in oneself and others. The second term applies particularly to military

Military

A military is an organization authorized by its nation to use force, usually including use of weapons, in defending its country by combating actual or Threat of force ....
personnel and to members of sport

Sport

Sport is an activity that is governed by a set of regulation of sport or traditions and often engaged in competitively. Sports commonly refer to activities where the physical capabilities of the competitor are the sole or primary determinant of the outcome , but the term is also used to include activities such as mind sports and motor...
s team

Team

A team comprises a groups of people or animals linked in a common purpose. Teams are especially appropriate for conducting tasks that are high in complexity and have many interdependent subtasks....
s, but is also applicable in business and in any other organizational context, particularly in times of stress or controversy.

According to Alexander H. Leighton

Alexander H. Leighton

Alexander "Alec" H. Leighton was a sociologist and psychiatrist of dual citizenship . He is best known for his work on the Stirling County Study and his contributions to the field of psychiatric epidemiology....
, "morale is the capacity of a group of people to pull together persistently and consistently in pursuit of a common purpose".

Morale is unrelated to morality

Morality

Morality has three principal meanings.In its first, descriptive usage, morality means a code of conduct which is held to be authoritative in matters of right and wrong....
(the ability to distinguish right and wrong).

military sense

Military science

Military science is the process of translating national defence policy to produce military capability by employing military scientists, including: theorists, researchers, experimental scientists, applied scientists, designers, engineers, test technicians, and military personnel responsible for prototyping....
, there are two meanings to morale.

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Encyclopedia

Morale, also known as esprit de corps when discussing the morale of a group, is an intangible term used for the capacity of people to maintain belief

Belief

Military

Sport

Team

Alexander H. Leighton

Morality

Military morale

In a military sense

Military science

Military Supply Chain Management

Military supply chain management is a cross-functional approach to procurement, manufacturing and delivery product s and Service s. The broad management scope includes sub-suppliers, suppliers, internal information and Funding....
, sound air cover and a clear objective can be said to possess, as a whole, "good morale" or "high morale." Historically, elite military units such as the Praetorian Guard

Praetorian Guard

The Praetorian Guard was a special force of guards used by Roman empire List of Roman Emperorss. Before being appropriated for the use of the Emperors' personal guards, the title was used for the guards of Roman generals, at least since the rise to prominence of the Scipio family around 275 BC....
, Napoleon's Imperial Guard

Imperial Guard

The Imperial Guard was originally a small group of elite soldiers of the La Grande Armee under the direct command of Napoleon I, but grew considerably over time....
, Hitler's elite Waffen-SS

Waffen-SS

The Waffen-SS was the combat arm of the Schutzstaffel or SS. It was founded in Germany in 1939 after the SS was split into two units but the title of Waffen-SS only became official on 2 March, 1940....
divisions and many Special Forces or elite units like the Israeli Golani Brigade

Golani Brigade

The Golani Brigade is an Israeli infantry brigade which was formed on February 28, 1948 when the Levanoni Brigade in the upper Galilee was merged with the Carmeli Brigade to form the Golani Brigade....
, French Foreign Legion

French Foreign Legion

The French Foreign Legion is a unique unit separate from the regular French Army, established in 1831. The legion was specifically created as a unit for foreign volunteers, to be commanded by French officers; it is however also open to France citizens, who amount to 24% of recruits....
, United States Army Special Forces

United States Army Special Forces

The United States Army Special Forces is a Special Operations Force of the United States Army tasked with five primary missions: unconventional warfare , foreign internal defense, special reconnaissance, direct action , and counter-terrorism....
, SAS

Special Air Service

The Special Air Service is a special forces regiment within the British Army which has served as a model for the special forces of other countries....
, Australian SASR and Spetsnaz

Spetsnaz

Russian special purpose regiments or Spetsnaz, Specnaz is a general term for "special forces" in Russian language, literally "special purpose"....
, have "high morale" due to both their elite training and pride in their unit. When a unit's morale is said to be "depleted", it means it is close to "crack and surrender", as was the case with Italian units in North Africa

North Africa

North Africa or Northern Africa is the northernmost region of the African continent, separated by the Sahara from Sub-Saharan Africa.Geopolitically, the United Nations subregion of Northern Africa includes the following seven countries or territories:...
during World War II. It is well worth noting that generally speaking, most commanders do not look at the morale of specific individuals but rather the "fighting spirit" of squadrons, divisions, battalions, ships, Marine Safety Detachments, etc.

Factors affecting military morale

Despite the intangible nature of morale, improvements in material factors (such as remuneration

Remuneration

Remuneration is pay or salary, typically a monetary payment for services rendered, as in an employment. Usage of the word is considered formal....
, food and shelter) can improve the morale. However, history is filled with stories of the self-will and determination of a poorly supplied army maintaining morale to the very end, such as the Army of Northern Virginia

Army of Northern Virginia

The Army of Northern Virginia was the primary military force of the Confederate States of America in the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War of the American Civil War....
in the American Civil War

American Civil War

The American Civil War , also known as the War Between the States and several Naming the American Civil War, was a civil war in the United States....
.

Military morale can benefit from

Adequate quantity, and quality of food
Food

Food is any substance, usually composed of carbohydrates, fats, proteins and water, that can be Eating or Drinking by an animal or human for nutrition or pleasure....
, water
Water

Water is a common chemical substance that is essential for the survival of all known forms of life. In typical usage, water refers only to its liquid form or States of matter, but the substance also has a solid state, ice, and a gaseous state, water vapor or steam....
, and shelter.
The quality of military leadership
Leadership

Leadership is one of the most salient aspects of the organizational context. However, defining leadership has been challenging. The following sections discuss several important aspects of leadership including a description of what leadership is and a description of several popular theories and styles of leadership....
.
The quality of military training
Training

The term training refers to the acquisition of knowledge, skills, and Competence as a result of the teaching of vocational education or practical skills and knowledge that relate to specific useful competencies....
.
Having a volunteer
Volunteer

A volunteer is someone who works Community service or for the benefit of environment primarily because they choose to do so. The word comes from France, it can also be translated as "will" ....
military, as opposed to a force made up of potentially less motivated conscripts
Conscription

Conscription is a general term for involuntary labor demanded by an established authority. It is most often used in the specific sense of government policies that require citizens to serve in the military....
.
A belief in the values the military represents, and fights for.
A belief in, and loyalty
Loyalty

Loyalty is faithfulness or a devotion to a person or cause....
towards the nation
Nation

A nation is a cultural and social community. In as much as most members never meet each other, yet feel a common bond, it may be considered an imagined community....
and culture
Culture

Culture is difficult to define. For example, in 1952, Alfred Kroeber and Clyde Kluckhohn compiled a list of 164 definitions of "culture" in Culture: A Critical Review of Concepts and Definitions....
the military fights on behalf of.
How often the army wins or loses a confrontation with the enemy.
A sense of pride, belonging and inheritance by its members of the traditions and honour of a military unit or corps and a determination to live up to those traditions.
Creating a sense of camaraderie
Comrade

Comrade means "friend", "colleague", or "ally", often with a military or Left-wing politics connotation. The term was also used by Italian Fascists and the German Nazi Party ....
between the members of a unit. In the past this has been done by recruiting units locally, for example the Pals battalion
Pals battalion

The Pals battalions of World War I were specially constituted units of the British Army comprising men who had enlisted together in local recruiting drives, with the promise that they would be able to serve alongside their friends, neighbors and work colleagues , rather than being allocated to regular Army regiments....
s of WWI with brothers and friends fighting in the same unit, or other selection criteria for example the Sacred Band of Thebes
Sacred Band of Thebes

The Sacred Band of Ancient Thebes was a troop of picked soldiers, numbering 150 age-structured pairs, which formed the elite force of the Theban army in the 4th century BC....
. The advantage of such units is that since cowardice
Cowardice

Cowardice describes a personality trait which is typically viewed as a negative characteristic and has been generally frowned upon within most, if not all global cultures, while courage - typically viewed as its direct opposite - is generally rewarded and encouraged....
or desertion
Desertion

In military terminology, desertion is the abandonment of a "duty" or post without permission from one's Government or superior. Ultimate "duty" or "responsibility," however, under International Law, is not necessarily always to a "Government" nor to a "superior," as seen in the fourth of the Nuremberg Principles, which states:...
would mean the abandoning of friends, loved ones, and family to die, such units would continue fighting long after the call of prudence. The disadvantage of such units is that any disaster will have disproportionate effect on a community. In modern militaries camaraderie is fostered through shared experiences, hardships and deprivations in training.

National public morale in war

Morale in war

War

...
fare is also related to the morale of a nation's population. A nation's population is likely to retain high wartime morale when:

The objectives
Goal

Goal may refer to:* An objective or desired outcome** Goal , a desired state of affairs of a person or of a system** Goal in systemics and cognition engineering, a state of the domain of activity of an intelligent entity which she/he/it try to achieve;...
of a war are clearly understood by the public
Public

Public, adj, is of or pertaining to the people; relating to, or affecting, a nation, state, or community; opposed to Private sector; as, the public treasury, a road or lake....
.
The objectives of a war are valued by the public.
A public believes the war can be won.
A public believes the war is worth winning.
A public fears the consequences of losing the war.

The morale of a civilian

Civilian

A civilian under international humanitarian law is a person who is not a member of his or her country's armed forces. The term is also often used colloquially to refer to people who are not members of a particular profession or occupation, especially by law enforcement agency, which often use rank structures similar to those of military units...
population can also increase or decrease due to exposure to propaganda

Propaganda

Propaganda is the dissemination of information aimed at influencing the opinions or behaviors of large numbers of people. As opposed to Objectivity providing information, propaganda in its most basic sense presents information in order to influence its audience....
from their government or opposition

Opposition

* Opposition , a term describing the position of a celestial body* Opposition , a term describing the position of the kings relative to each other* Opposition proceeding, an administrative process available under some patent or trademark laws...
forces, respectively. Psychological warfare

Psychological warfare

The U.S. Department of Defense defines psychological warfare as:"The planned use of propaganda and other psychological actions having the primary purpose of influencing the opinions, emotions, attitudes, and behavior of hostile foreign groups in such a way as to support the achievement of national objectives."...
is a major part of modern warfare. Nation states, politically motivated individuals, religious activists, and secular pressure groups employ psychological warfare to target the minds of citizens in nations and cultures they are opposed to.

Since at least the time of Carl von Clausewitz

Carl von Clausewitz

Carl Philipp Gottlieb von Clausewitz was a Prussian soldier, military historian and military theorist. He is most famous for his military treatise On War, translated into English as On War....
' On War
On War

Vom Kriege is a book on war and military strategy by Prussian general Carl von Clausewitz, written mostly after the Napoleonic wars, between 1816 and 1830, and published posthumously by his wife in 1832....
, maintenance of morale has been considered one of the fundamental "Principles of War". Sir Basil Liddell Hart regarded morale even more fundamentally:

The aim of a nation in war is to subdue the enemy's will to resist,...

Sun Tzu

Sun Tzu , also called Sun Wu , is traditionally believed to be the author of The Art of War, sometimes called the Sun Tzu, an influential ancient China book on military strategy considered to be a prime example of Taoism strategy....
, in his book The Art of War
The Art of War

The Art of War is a China military science treatise that was written during the 6th century BC by Sun Tzu. Composed of 13 chapters, each of which is devoted to one aspect of warfare, it has long been praised as the definitive work on military strategy and Military tactics of its time....
, also mentions morale of nations, as well as armies.

Morale in the workplace

Workplace events play a large part in changing employee morale, such as heavy layoff

Layoff

Layoff is the temporary suspension or permanent termination of employment of an employee or a group of employees for business reasons, such as the decision that certain positions are no longer necessary or a business slow-down or interruption in work....
s, the cancellation of overtime, cancelling benefits programs, and the lack of union representation. Other events can also influence workplace morale, such as sick building syndrome

Sick building syndrome

Sick building syndrome is a combination of ailments associated with an individual's place of work or residence. A 1984 World Health Organization report into the syndrome suggested up to 30% of new and remodelled buildings worldwide may be linked to symptoms of SBS....
, low wages, and employees being mistreated.

Factors influencing morale within the workplace include:

Job security
Job security

Job security is the probability that an individual will keep his or her job ; a job with a high level of job security is such that a person with the job would have a small chance of becoming unemployed...
.
Management
Management

Management in business and human organization activity is simply the act of getting people together to accomplish desired goals. Management comprises planning, organizing, staffing, leadership or directing, and Control an organization or effort for the purpose of accomplishing a goal....
style.
Staff
Staff

Staff may refer to:* Staff , a stick or pole to assist with walking, or sometimes used as a weapon* Staff , artificial stone product used as ornament...
feeling that their contribution is valued by their employer.
Realistic opportunities for merit
Merit

The term merit is used in both Christianity and Buddhism. See:* Merit * Merit * Meritocracymerit can also mean:* Merit , a rock band from Syracuse, New York....
-based promotion.
The perceived social
Social

Social refers to a characteristic of living organisms . It always refers to the interaction of organisms with other organisms and to their collective co-existence, irrespective of whether they are aware of it or not, and irrespective of whether the interaction is voluntary or involuntary....
or economic value
Value

Value may refer to:*Value , the non value of the perpindicular quantity of the quadratic function of the tenth value.*Value , the degree of importance, including the value independent on subjective valuations by any individual la la la...
of the work being done by the organization as a whole.
The perceived status
Status

Status is a state, condition or situation. In common usage it may refer to:*Social status*Economic status*HIV status*Status *Status quo*Status symbol...
of the work being done by the organization as a whole.
Team
Team

A team comprises a groups of people or animals linked in a common purpose. Teams are especially appropriate for conducting tasks that are high in complexity and have many interdependent subtasks....
composition.
The work culture
Culture

Culture is difficult to define. For example, in 1952, Alfred Kroeber and Clyde Kluckhohn compiled a list of 164 definitions of "culture" in Culture: A Critical Review of Concepts and Definitions....
.

Morale

Military morale

Factors affecting military morale

Military morale can benefit from

National public morale in war

Morale in the workplace

Factors influencing morale within the workplace include:

See also