Demoralization ( warfare ) Demoralization is , in a context of warfare and national security , a process in psychological warfare with the objective to erode morale among enemy combatants and / or non - combatants , to encourage them to retreat , surrender or defect , rather than defeating or imprisoning them in combat . Methods of demoralization include hit - and - run attack s such as sniper s , commerce raiding , strategic bombing , static operations such as siege s and naval blockade s , disturbing the enemy with less - lethal weapons and incapacitating agent s , intimidation such as display of force concentration , and propaganda . Importance of morale . Morale is often perceived as a necessary precursor to success in international relations because success most often goes to those who believe in their cause , as they more easily maintain a positive outlook that contributes to their ability to work harder for the cause . High morale can directly contribute to “ an economy of food , textiles , fuel , and other commodities , and to stimulate recruiting , employment in war industries , service in relief work , and the purchase of bonds . ” Writing in 1965 , French philosopher and sociologist Jacques Ellul described the importance of morale in modern society by saying : Though variations are possible , the most common indicators of high morale are determination , enthusiasm , self - confidence , and a relative absence of criticism or complaint . While contributors to the level of morale are essentially endless , common examples consist of the level to which : individuals identify with a nation or cause ; have their basic needs of food , clothing , shelter met ; have confidence in the justness of their cause ; have confidence in the ability of their cause to overcome obstacles ; the means through which authorities instill discipline ; and a sense of unity with other supporters of the cause . Demoralization as means of psychological warfare . In an environment in which two belligerents compete , the chances of success greatly diminish if those whose actions are necessary don ’ t have faith in the justness of the cause or its chance for success , are discouraged , morally defeated , disconsolate , uncooperative , sullen , inattentive , or lazy . Demoralization can be used to lessen the chances of success for an opponent by fostering these attitudes , and can generally be done in one of two ways : demoralization through objective conditions or demoralization through perception . Demoralization through objective conditions most commonly takes the form of a military defeat on the battlefield that has tangible consequences directly resulting in the indicators of a demoralized party , though it can also result from an adverse physical environment where basic needs go unmet . Demoralization through perception , however , is the most commonly referred to means of demoralization even though its operation and results , like political warfare and psychological warfare in general , are the most difficult to gauge . This is the form of demoralization that is referred to as a tool of psychological warfare , and it is most commonly implemented through various forms of propaganda . Propaganda as a tool of demoralization refers to influencing opinion through significant symbols , through means such as rumors , stories , pictures , reports , and other means of social communication . Other means of political and psychological warfare – such as deception , disinformation , agents of influence , or forgeries - may also be used to destroy morale through psychological means so that a belligerent starts questioning the validity of their beliefs and actions . Means of strategic demoralization . While demoralization may use propaganda , deception , disinformation , agents of influence , forgeries , or any other political warfare tool in isolation to accomplish its ends , a strategic demoralization effort will use more than one of these means as determined by its target and will not limit itself to the strict limits of attacking another belligerent ’ s morale . A strategic demoralization campaign will navigate what Harold D . Lasswell describes as roughly three avenues of implementation : divert the hatred normally directed towards the enemy , thereby denying a unified outlet of frustration ; sow seeds of self - doubt ( classic demoralization ) ; and provide a new focus of hatred and frustration . A strategic demoralization campaign should tailor its strategy to the specific target and situation . Denial of an enemy image . An important precursor to successful demoralization is an effort to deny the target the ability to project their frustrations and hatred upon a common enemy . Such efforts will affect the tendency of the target ’ s citizenry to project their discontent towards a common enemy identified by their government . As a result , frustrations will build until it is necessary to divert them elsewhere , and seeds of doubt are then sown in the minds of the citizenry who now question the capability of their leadership in identifying the most ominous threat . The operations of the German " Gazette des Ardennes " , published in occupied areas of France during WWI , are an example of this aspect of strategic demoralization . The " Gazette des Ardennes " regularly published propaganda articles that sought to deny the French of a German enemy image . These articles would carry such themes as : the Kaiser has always been known and respected for promoting peace , even among the British and French intellectual elite ; the Kaiser is a kind and gentle family man ; “ all the stories about the German barbarities are poisonous lies ” ; German occupying soldiers are kind to and loved by French children ; Germans have an irrepressible love of music , religion , and morality that permeates wherever they are , etc . These themes are illustrative of “ defense by denial . ” It is also possible to use “ defense by admission accompanied by justification . ” Using this technique , the " Gazette des Ardennes " would admit that a German atrocity occurred , but then publish accounts that the event was exaggerated in earlier reports and that such events occurred in every army , and nowhere did they occur less often than in the German army . Articles in " Gazette des Ardennes " that attempted to justify German unrestricted submarine warfare as an unavoidable consequence of the British blockade are also examples of defense by admission and justification . Sowing seeds of doubt and anxiety . Causing self - doubt or doubt in a cause is the simple definition most commonly ascribed to demoralization . Though this is only one aspect of a successful strategic demoralization campaign , it is the most pronounced and essential part . As noted by Harold D . Lasswell , “ the keynote in the preliminary spade work is the unceasing refrain : Your cause is hopeless . Your blood is spilt in vain . ” Propaganda can be an indispensable tool in fostering an environment of doubt and anxiety . Propaganda may be used to ensure the antagonist is the most feared party , give a feeling of non - worth to the target , exploit internal fissures inherent within the target group , or use the element of surprise to show a target population that their leadership and cause are unable to protect them from the impending enemy threat . Many studies have been conducted that indicate fear is one of the most widespread psychological traits , and this trait can be manipulated for the purposes of demoralization if it can be expanded into anxiety . In order for anxiety to demoralize it must result in a distancing of the individual or group from their cause or leadership because they no longer believe them capable of offering a solution to the source of their anxiety . Real and conscious threats that normally inspire disquiet and fear can be made to cause anxiety and borderline neurosis through the use of such propaganda tools as fables and rumors . Using multiple tools of political warfare – such as deception , disinformation , agents of influence , or forgeries – can expedite the onset of anxiety by overwhelming the target with a constant onslaught of information saying their current cause or leadership is incapable of relieving the anxiety now felt . This anxiety cannot be calmed through a rational explanation of facts , and is in fact exacerbated by such an approach . This newly onset anxiety places mass groups of individuals on the border of neurosis and can make them feel conflicts inherent within society or their past . As a result of contradictions and threats , “ man feels accused , guilty . ” The target will then begin their search for a cause that will provide a sense of righteousness . The pivotal moment of a successful demoralization campaign is when the target is doubt - ridden and anxious , as this is the point at which individual members of a citizenry or group are detached from their current loyalty to their state or cause , and are then able to be focused in another direction more suitable to the antagonist ’ s needs . If not done properly , this manufactured sense of anxiety can backfire on the antagonist and cause the subject to cling closer to their original cause or government . Diverting frustrations and hatred to a new target . The most powerful strategy of demoralization is diversion , though this is an extremely difficult and multifaceted operation . Lasswell notes that , “ To undermine the active hatred of the enemy for its present antagonist , his anger must be distracted to a new and independent object , beside which his present antagonist ceases to matter . ” Because it is such a distinct change , the diversion of hatred towards a new target is necessarily predicated upon the antagonist both diverting hatred away from themselves and fostering a level of anxiety that cannot be mitigated by their existing cause or leadership . Once the antagonist has met these two precursors of demoralization , they can then “ concentrate upon the particular object of animosity about which it is hoped to polarize the sentiment of the enemy . ” This diversion of hatred can be towards an ally , towards the enemy ’ s government or governing class , or directed towards anti - state sentiment to foster secession of minority nationalities if they exist . The attempt to exacerbate relations between allies is one method of diverting hatred from an enemy , and was attempted by both the Allied and Central Powers in World War I . The Germans made efforts to dig up historical animosity between the French and British , using such themes as : the British were just letting the French bleed for them ; the British intended to stay on French soil ; offering a German - French alliance against the British ; and offering to expand French colonial domain at the expense of the British Empire . Meanwhile , the Allies tried to exacerbate the relationship between Austria - Hungary and Germany , using such themes as : separate peace talks were being held with Austria - Hungary ; Austria - Hungary had a plethora of food while Germans starved ; Germans thought of Austrians as slaves ; and the familiar promise of territorial expansion should Austria - Hungary abandon their German alliance . The antagonist can also attempt to divert hatred and frustration upon the target ’ s government or ruling class , and this is often the most widely attempted method . One technique of diverting frustration in this manner is to convince a target that their government or leadership is committing unjust and immoral acts ; this is especially effective if the antagonist can convince their target that their leadership has forced them to commit equally unjust and immoral acts out of trickery or desperation . If successfully and fully implemented , the leadership of a cause can be made sufficiently troublesome to inspire revolution during which time there will be insufficient capacity to exercise active hatred towards the external enemy . Diverting frustration to one ’ s own leadership is often the method most commonly seen in wartime propaganda , as the photographs below attest . With the implementation of modern warfare in World War I and all its associated stresses , “ every belligerent took a hand in the perilous business of fomenting dissension and revolution abroad , reckless of the possible repercussions of a successful revolt . ” Example from WWI included : German forces providing revolutionary literature to Russian prisoners of war that were expected to return through exchange or release ; French use of propaganda leaflets to demonstrate how unaffected by war the Kaiser and his family were ; technical encouragement and amplification of national dissent ; Wilsonian propaganda stressing peaceful settlement terms ; British planting of stories attesting to underground German resistance movements and their subsequent oppression by the German government ; propaganda deflecting war guilt ; propaganda exposing or exaggerating the desired post - war peace terms ; and the promotion of the belief that infidelity was rampant among soldiers and their families back home . Finally , the antagonist can attempt to divert frustration towards the growth of secessionist causes , though this is only possible in heterogeneous nations . Under this method , attempts are made to fan the flames of discontent one segment of the nation feels towards another . An example of this was the Congress of Oppressed Hapsburg Nationalities that met in Rome in April 1918 , at which all delegates to the Convention signed a Declaration of Independence and whose actions were widely reported in US and European circles . Another successful example of this was the encouragement of Zionism as a means of securing Jewish support for World War I via the Balfour Declaration . The Central Powers of WWI likewise tried to encourage Ukrainian , Irish , Egyptian , North African , and Indian secessionist movements , though all of these efforts ultimately failed . Tactics of pursuing demoralization . There are many tactics of pursuing a strategy of demoralization , with the nature of the target and the environment at the time determining the best method to employ . Below is a non - exhaustive list that demonstrates some tactics of pursuing demoralization , though any tactic of political and psychological warfare may be used in pursuit of demoralization as appropriate to the situation : Defense against demoralization . Morale can be difficult to maintain in large part due to the diffuse nature of demoralization attacks , though a strong leadership can largely mitigate any such attacks against their group ’ s morale . Morale will quickly deteriorate if members of the group perceive themselves as victims of injustice or indifference on part of their leadership , or if they perceive their leadership as being acting ineptly , ignorantly , or in pursuit of personal ambition . As noted by Angello Codevilla , the clearest indicators that morale can withstand a demoralization campaign are also hallmarks of a well - led organization , and can be explained through five main questions :