Psychological features of professional burnout of lawyers

Introduction. The paper contains the results of the empirical psychological research of professional burnout in lawyers. The aim was to reveal the level of professional burnout, deformation and destruction of a lawyer through establishing the avenues to overcome lawyers’ professional burnout, and, consequently, to reveal the means of increasing the lawyers’ effectiveness. Materials and Methods. The author employed two methods of psychological diagnostics: V. V. Boyko methodics as the main one and C. Maslach/S. Jackson methodics adapted by N. E. Vodopianova as the control one. The main methodics was used to interview forty-five lawyers, the control one was applied for questioning forty-seven lawyers with work experience ranging from one year to ten years not intersecting with each other. To estimate the results methods of mathematical statistics were used. Results and Discussion. The author establishes the crucial psychological aspects of manifestation of lawyers’ professional burnout in their advocacy, behaviour and relations as well as psychological connections. The lawyers’ professional burnout is expressed in inadequate selective emotional reaction; reduced professional responsibilities; extended sphere of emotion economy; experiencing psycho-traumatizing circumstances; personal detachment as depersonalization. The most stable manifestations of the lawyers’ professional burnout are emotional detachment, dissatisfaction with oneself, emotionally-moral disorientation, psychosomatic disorders. Conclusions. The fact of widely spread lawyers’ professional burnout is proved. Professional burnout begins with emotional disorders of the lawyers’ personality. The solution of the problems connected with the increase of lawyers’ performance effectiveness must be based on accurate and comprehensive vision of psychological peculiarities as subjects of professional activity.