Sunday, January 19, 2014
Lawyers have 4th highest suicide rate among professions
Thanks to Stephanie West Allen for the link to this story from CNN reporting the results of a CDC study that found among professions, lawyers rank 4th behind dentists, pharmacists and physicians (in that order) in terms of the highest per capita suicide rate. Compare that figure to a previous National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health that ranked lawyers 12th among all other occupations based on data collected from 1984 to 1998. Some have have cautioned that the link between certain occupations and suicide may not be well established. This latest report found that among lawyers, it is middle aged, white trial lawyers who are most likely to commit suicide. The report from CNN also notes that some believe that lawyers' problems with depression that lead to suicide start in law school where up to 40% suffer from depression by the time they graduate according to one source interviewed for the article.
Click here to watch a video report by CNN accompanied by an article the discusses the steps state bar associations have taken to address the issue.
(jbl).
https://lawprofessors.typepad.com/legal_skills/2014/01/lawyers-have-4th-highest-suicide-rate-among-professionals-.html
Have you seen this piece by David Shearon? http://positivepsychologynews.com/news/dave-shearon/2008121780
"Lawyers may not be doing well today. And their lack of well-being may be impairing their abilities, both to represent clients well and to craft legal institutions for society that achieve legal agreements and organizational structures, civil dispute resolution, and society’s response to criminal behavior in the most positive, productive ways. But lawyers can improve their well-being and their commitment, engagement, and energy with their practices, and they can do so based on learning opportunities short of therapy or personal coaching. "
Posted by: J. Kim Wright | Jan 21, 2014 12:55:33 AM