On Killing : The Psychological Cost Of Learning... Page

: Evidence from the Battle of Gettysburg showed that 90% of recovered muskets were still loaded—many with multiple rounds—suggesting soldiers chose to go through the motions of loading rather than actually firing to kill.

While conditioning makes soldiers more efficient in the moment, it does not protect them from the aftermath. Grossman identifies several "killing response" stages, including . On killing : the psychological cost of learning...

Grossman’s analysis begins with a striking historical observation: in World War II, only about of combat soldiers actually fired their weapons at the enemy. : Evidence from the Battle of Gettysburg showed