by Katie M. Smith, LMSW
The American people trust the Army not only to fight and win the Nation’s wars, but to do so with integrity and honor. Combat is demanding–physically, mentally, and morally. With lives on the line, Soldiers must make ethical decisions and hold themselves to the highest standards. At the same time, Soldiers trust their leaders to value their lives and never take risks unnecessarily. This mutual trust is at the core of the Army’s strength.
The Army Values include Loyalty, Duty, Respect, Selfless Service, Honor, Integrity, and Personal Courage. They are the foundation of every decision and action, guiding Soldiers through daily challenges and extraordinary circumstances. When the values are ignored, trust erodes and causes damage to the legitimacy of the Army profession. Soldiers must often make decisions in the grey areas in complex missions, and the Army Values ensure those decisions uphold the profession’s high standards.
Amidst the fog of war, the Army Values anchor principled choices and actions that solidify trust in the force. Leaders must weave these values into daily routines in ways that feel natural, not burdensome. By making value-based behavior second nature, the Army strengthens its bond with the Soldiers and nation it serves.
A Case to Go Beyond Modeling
Doctrinal references indicate a heavy level of expectation that modeling the proper behavior will lead to values indoctrination. Yet, training adjustments which paint a clear picture of a Soldier displaying their Army Values within the context of their daily actions, not just heroic circumstances, would serve to crystalize value concepts in a more relatable way.
We’ve already seen progress in this area. For example, the Department of Defense directive to “Educate the Force about Sexual Harassment and Sexual Assault within the Context of Core Values,” based on recommendations from the Independent Review Commission on Sexual Assault in the Military, is a great step forward. This training clearly connects harmful behaviors to violations of Army Values and highlights the honorable actions that uphold those values. It’s a powerful shift, spelling out what’s expected and showing exactly how Soldiers can live their values daily.
Connecting Personal Values to the Army Values: an Enterprise Approach.
Based on feedback from their annual Soldier survey, the Center for the Army Profession and Leadership’s Annual Study of Army Leadership recommended a prioritization of leader development through ‘what we say and what we do.’ Simple adjustments to existing activities can reinforce the Army’s commitment to caring for the team while connecting the Army Values to Soldiers’ individual needs. For example, the 2023 update to the Army Developmental Counseling form includes a section on values, signaling progress. However, it still doesn’t fully address how Soldiers identify and connect their personal values to the Army Values.
Research by Kouzes and Posner in The Leadership Challenge highlights this gap. Their findings show that organizational commitment is strongest (63% on average) when individuals clearly understand both their personal and organizational values. Without clarity of personal values, commitment drops to around 40%, regardless of organizational value clarity. This underscores the need to help Soldiers define their personal values, not just Army Values.
One way to address this is through progressive training during initial and advanced individual training, encouraging trainees to explore their personal values alongside Army Values. Drill Sergeants can guide these discussions, helping Soldiers see how their values align with the Army’s mission.
(Ft. Eisenhower, GA) Trainees of the 551st Signal Battalion practice active listening skills as they wait for classes to begin.
Sustained reflection throughout a Soldier’s career is just as critical. Initiatives like the Chaplain-led “Keys to Connection” program are a step in the right direction. Starting during in-processing at new duty stations, Soldiers and Families discuss personal goals, strengths, and values in small groups. Over the next six months, follow-up with religious support teams reinforces these lessons, helping Soldiers build a sustained network for personal and professional growth.
Ways to Routinize Values
Leaders should expand the concept of incorporating values into all training opportunities and actively integrate Army Values into existing unit operations.
Here are a few ideas leaders can operationalize right now!
1. Modernization Cycles. Army lethality and modernization efforts are driving shifts in training cycles. Planned training into these cycles should not just focus on lethal equipment updates and familiarity, but also with Soldier development. Command teams can integrate protected times into their long-range training calendars for people-focused growth activities such as Army Values training. Planning will set reasonable boundaries and expectations, decreasing the likelihood of prioritizing superfluous, short-notice tasks over long-term benefits.
The time allotted can also be concurrent with existing cycle training. For example, after a training center rotation, units have many equipment reset, cleaning, and maintenance tasks. While conducting simple tasks like vehicle cleaning, leaders could initiate a semi-structured discussion about the Army Values, explore how the values affect their lives now, and support value-centered goals for the future. Command Teams should personally spot check trainings to punctuate their importance and participate when able.
(Ft. Moore, GA) Soldiers from the Ft. Moore Experimental Force conduct vehicle inspections after a training exercise in October, 2024.
2. Experiential Training. New Army Values training should be experiential in nature, versus the typical classroom or online slides, supported by the learning principle ‘intensity.’ The Warrior Adventure Quest model from Family, Morale Welfare and Recreation can be incorporated, emulated, or even expanded to include values reflection for all Army training or morale events. The Warrior Adventure Quest team conducts debriefs after high adrenaline team activities to discuss physiological reactions and reflect on positive team behaviors. The Army Values would be a natural extension of this review. For example, during an escape room activity, a teammate volunteers to be the lone member executing a piece of the challenge that is particularly scary. In the guided debrief, the team members would be able to recognize the value of ‘Selfless Service’ from their battle buddy that stepped up.
(Ft. Eisenhower, GA) Soldiers from the installation conduct tests with concealment tools and artillery.
Battle Lab simulations can also be utilized for real life situational and ethical challenges which tie back to Army Values. In the electronic warfare simulation, one option to circumvent an attack could be to violate security protocols and use an unsecure line of communication. Soldiers would be faced with an ethical dilemma between compromising a rule or getting the mission done. After the simulation, they can discuss their feelings about the issue and reflect on what thoughts led to what choices. The added benefit for both these approaches is the opportunity to build team cohesion through shared experiences and integrate unit equipment for familiarization.
3. Deliberate Risk Assessment and After-Action Review. Ideas to incorporate values into established tasks should always consider the existing strain on Soldier time and resources. Additive procedures are less likely to be adopted and could become burdensome. As the Deliberate Risk Assessment Worksheet is a routine document prepared during planning and preparation for training, the risk of Army Values violations should be considered valid entries into the document, with counterpart leader actions to control and reduce the risk.
For example, when executing a competitive lane training exercise, Soldiers could feel pressure to win and may cheat. The worksheet could identify a risk to the value ‘Integrity,’ assign the Platoon Sergeant to acknowledge the risk in the pre-briefing, and stress that learning is the true purpose of the exercise, not winning.
In kind, the After-Action Review creates a space to reflect on what happened and voice if values were upheld and mitigation measures appeared effective.
(Ft. Eisenhower, GA) Trainees of the 551st Signal Battalion conduct an after-action review with their leaders.
4. Strategic Messaging. Familiarity, recency, and repetition have the potential to influence daily language patterns. Leaders can directly influence the patterns of Soldiers in their organizations through open and frequent discussion that ties desired behaviors to the Army Values. One such opportunity to interact with the larger group is through safety briefs. Commanders should be supported to craft weekly engagements with Soldiers, in person, and within the context of values.
For example, during a safety brief, a commander could recognize a Soldier from the company that displayed ‘Loyalty’ to a battle buddy by conducting an extra hour of physical training with them as they recovered from an injury. Leaders should be encouraged to repeat the message and refer to a Commander’s statements or actions as evidence. This could be as simple as a squad leader recognizing their squad’s excellent cooperation aloud, and stating it reminded them of what the Commander had mentioned about loyalty at the last safety brief.
Frequent exposure to values concepts in various and relevant contexts increases the likelihood of the Army Values becoming habitual behavior, and would have a proportional effect on compliance and team cohesion under a shared understanding.
Conclusion
This list includes only a few mechanisms of reinforcement which could be leveraged to increase the likelihood of internalization and display of Army Values. Yet, I challenge leaders to begin their quest in value-based leadership by bolstering their own integration of values into daily practice. Army leaders are charged with creating the conditions for Soldiers to develop into smart, thoughtful, and innovative leaders of character. Your ability to train your Soldiers hinges on your own mastery, belief, and deliberate action.
Leaders who take steps to routinize values will instill them into the next generation of Army professionals. It’s up to us to build Soldiers who are comfortable with complexity and capable of operating in hyperactive, exponentially more deadly, and unforgiving large-scale combat environments in ways the Nation will always be proud of.
Master Sergeant Katie Smith has experience as a signal and public affairs Soldier over her 18 years of service, and is a Licensed Master of Social Work. She currently supports the Army’s transformation mission under Army Futures Command, Communication Directorate. Connect on YouTube @AlicePackTools.
