Well-being and a positive professional identity in the legal profession: A snapshot of the UK Bar

There is now a strong body of empirical evidence and theoretical analysis establishing that psychological well-being is an issue for all arms of the legal profession - for law students, for solicitors and barristers, and for legal academics. Psychological distress hinders the ability of lawyers to thrive in their professional and personal lives. Positive psychology tells us that finding purpose and meaning in life is important to well-being and thriving. Meaning and purpose in professional life can be sustained through a positive professional identity. This article presents the results of a study of the UK Bar in which issues of psychological well-being and professional identity were explored. It argues that a strong sense of professional identity exists for members of the UK Bar even if barristers find it difficult to expressly articulate what that identity looks like. We consider whether this may be related to barristers continuing to experience psychological distress and other influential factors. We argue that an important component of promoting the well-being of the Bar - and by extension other aspects of the profession - is to assist barristers in identifying, understanding and enacting a positive professional identity. Indeed, we consider this critical to ensuring the future well-being and viability of the legal profession at large. This chapter argues that possible strategy to promote and support lawyer well-being is the inculcation and endorsement of a positive professional identity across the legal profession, beginning at law school. It considers the nature of a professional identity, and how a legal professional identity might manifest itself. Upholding the rule of law is a particularly central and bonding value element of the social identity of the legal profession. The professional ideology of law that informs the role and social identities of members of the legal profession provides lawyers with a sense of professional meaning and purpose. The chapter presents a small-scale qualitative study of UK barristers' perceptions of a professional identity and its relationship to well-being, along with the potential role legal education may have in inculcating a professional identity. This study suggested a strong emphasis in the participant barristers' minds on role identity, somewhat to the detriment of personal and social identities.