2.1 Identifying and understanding different emotions

This section includes:

  • Explanatory text
  • An information box on “Digging down to up-skill”
  • 2 videos
  • 1 activity on “Using emotions productively in legal work”.
Considering what’s under the surface

As this diagram demonstrates, it is not always easy to identify which emotion you are experiencing. You may think you are feeling one particular emotion, but there may actually be a number of different emotions contributing to your experience. If your reaction to an emotion is to “think like a lawyer” and try to ignore or rationalise it, the likelihood is you will only identify what’s on the surface. This can lead to you misunderstanding what’s happening and missing valuable information and cues, as demonstrated by the following examples.

Digging down to up-skill

Examples adapted from Silver (2004).

You find one elderly client particularly difficult to deal with, often getting annoyed when they seem to talk around issues without getting to the point. You initially feel that the client is being deliberately difficult and obstructive However, when you think about why this is so annoying, you realise it reminds you of an elderly relative who you feel guilty about avoiding visiting. You also realise you are very anxious about having enough time to submit an important document on another case and that this has affected your response.

You look forward to seeing one of your clients who you feel has a similar outlook on life and who you get on with extremely well. You are particularly sympathetic to your client’s case and feel strongly that they are in need of your help. However, when you begin to add up the time you have spent on this case you realise that you are attracted to the client and that these feelings (sometimes known as “counter-transference”) are influencing your perception of their case. There is also an element of pride, as you are keen to demonstrate your abilities to the client and impress them.

This video of occupational psychologist, Dr Rajvinder Samra, explains more about how identifying and understanding emotions can impact on your work.

Emotions in the workplace

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RAJVINDER SAMRA
Identifying and understanding emotions are really important in the workplace, because emotions from our personal life can spill over into our work life and vice versa. So it's key to understand what they are and where they come from.
In the first instance, it's useful to think, what am I feeling, and label that emotion.
And secondly, in order to work out what the cause of it is, think about, when did it start and what triggered it? And that might help you work out if it's from something that happened at home or something that happened at work.
It's really important for legal professionals to understand the role of emotion in the workplace, because they have specific demands on them. The time pressures are extreme on legal professionals. And so that lends itself to not examining your emotions. You don't have time for it, and suppressing them. But it's key to remember that if you just take a minute here to process that, you can save time further down the road, in which case, unattended emotions can wreak a bit of havoc on your workplace, on your health, and career.
Also, there is the perception in law that emotions are the complete opposite of the rationality and objectivity you need in law. But in reality, all humans experience emotions, so that's quite unrealistic, that perception. So there needs to be an acceptance that emotions will happen in the workplace.
Incidental emotions are one of the two types of emotions you might experience in the workplace that can have effect on decision making. They're generally emotions that aren't useful for the task at hand. They might come from your personal life, for example.
In the first scenario, the anxiety about not submitting a document on time is an example of an incidental one, because it's not useful for the client encounter.
And also, the guilt at not visiting a relative is an example of incidental emotion. So it's important to recognise that these aren't really useful for what you're doing now. And have some strategies in place to deal with that. For example, if it's not relevant, try to put it aside in your mind. Try to park it. You can always come back to it later. In fact, you probably will.
And also, there are always emotions that might feel overwhelming, such as anger and frustration. And if they're incidental emotions, not relevant, it can be harder to deal with those. But think about distracting yourself. If you have music or a video that will cheer you up, just take you out of that place, maybe just spend one minute on that, and do something that completely takes you out that space.
There are also-- if an emotion is useful for your work, it's relevant, it's called an integral emotion. And it's useful to pay attention to that. It can help improve decision making.
Integral emotions, they come about from thinking through a situation and its implications. And they're useful for workplace decision making. For example, if you're thinking through a decision of something you're going to do at work, and it's resulting in a lot of anxiety, anxiety is a sign that danger is lurking. So generally, it might mean that you need to be more risk averse with this decision, rather than risk taking, and you have to be cautious.
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This video gives examples of how one legal professional has learnt to acknowledge her emotions.

Acknowledging emotions

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PATRICIA WHITE
It's important not to suppress the way that you feel about a situation and to address that because otherwise, certainly, it can lead to mental health issues where you suppress your emotions. And that's what I would regard as being emotionally competent. I think where a situation perhaps arises where you have a family upset or a family situation to deal with and you have to then carry out your work on a normal basis and be professional at all times. So it's really about managing how you feel personally and then adapting within the professional role to be able to put that to one side.
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Activity 2: Using emotions productively in legal work

Timing: You should allow yourself around 20 minutes for this activity

Identify any times when you have made a work decision based (at least in part) on your emotions?

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2. Exercising your judgement

2.1.1 Some practical tips