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This may be of interest to some of you:In one of my Facebook groups, I'm noticing talk about moral injury. But this is not in relationship to soldiers/military.

This quiz was created by Perplexity AI. (there were two research articles shared at the end that the AI said it used, one of them is from istss.org--from Australia)

MORAL INJURY QUIZ. "Moral Injury" is not just a term for for combat veterans who were betrayed by their leaders. It's also for anyone whose deeply held moral beliefs and ethical standards are violated, often due to circumstances beyond their control, especially marital abuse victims who were betrayed by partners, church leaders, counselors, and the court system.

Moral Injury Symptom Scale

—Abuse Survivor Version

Introduction:

The following statements describe common feelings of people who have experienced intimate partner violence. These questions focus on your relationship experiences and how you feel now. Circle a number between 1 and 10 for each (“strongly disagree” to “strongly agree”):

Guilt

1. I feel guilty for staying in the relationship longer than I should have.

2. I feel guilty about things I did to survive the abuse (e.g., lying, hiding the truth).

3. I’m troubled by times I lashed out verbally or physically during the abuse.

4. I feel guilty for not protecting others (e.g., children, pets) from my partner.

Shame

5. If people knew the full story of my relationship, they would look down on me.

6. I feel ashamed that I didn’t leave sooner.

7. I feel ashamed of how the abuse changed me (e.g., becoming withdrawn, angry).

Betrayal

8. I feel betrayed by my partner, who I once trusted deeply.

9. I feel betrayed by friends/family who didn’t help me when I needed it.

10 I feel betrayed by institutions (e.g., church, pastor, church counselors, the court) that failed to protect me.

Violation of Moral Values

11. I’m haunted by things my partner made me do against my values.

12. I’m troubled by actions I took to survive that violated my morals (e.g., stealing, lying).

13. I’m angry at myself for ignoring “red flags” in the relationship.

Loss of Meaning

(“Absolutely untrue” to “Absolutely true”)

14. I struggle to find purpose in life after the abuse.

15. My life feels empty compared to how it was before the relationship.

16. I no longer recognize who I am.

Difficulty Forgiving

17. I can’t stop criticizing myself for choices I made during the abuse.

18. I hold grudges against myself for “letting” the abuse happen.

19. I can’t forgive others who witnessed the abuse but did nothing.

Loss of Trust

(“Strongly disagree” to “Strongly agree”)

20. I no longer trust my own judgment about people.

21. I believe most people would hurt me if given the chance.

22. I feel unsafe in relationships now.

Self-Condemnation

23. I feel permanently damaged by the abuse.

24. I see myself as weak for not escaping sooner.

25. I feel like a failure because of how the relationship ended.

Spiritual/Existential Struggles

(“Not at all” to “A great deal”)

26. I question why a loving God allowed the abuse to happen.

27. I feel abandoned by my faith/community during the abuse.

28. The abuse made me doubt my beliefs about love or justice.

Scoring & Notes

• Reverse-score items: 14–16 (loss of meaning), 24 (self-condemnation).

• Interpretation: Higher total scores (45–450) indicate greater moral injury severity.

• Key differences from military version: Focuses on betrayal by intimates/institutions, self-blame for “failure” to leave, and erosion of identity/trust.

This adaptation addresses IPV-specific moral injuries like coerced complicity, institutional betrayal, and internalized stigma. It retains the original scale’s structure while replacing combat-related items with experiences of entrapment, gaslighting, and post-abuse alienation.

International Society for Traumatic Stress Studies |

A post from aisaeva@parthenonmgmt.com on International Society for Traumatic Stress Studies provided by: https://istss.org