EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

Determinants of Stress and Satisfaction Levels among Lawyers in Different Fields of Practice
de Vesa, S., Guiang, A., Luzano, G.

Job stress is a significant factor which affects the overall quality of life of people from all kinds of
profession. In the Philippines, limited studies have been conducted in order to determine the stress and
satisfaction levels among lawyers. This descriptive quantitative study aims to help address this research
gap through a survey of Filipino lawyers in two fields of law practice litigation and corporate law.
Moreover, the study aims to identify the major determinants or causes of stress and satisfaction levels
among Filipino lawyers in their workplace and their personal life.

Background of the Study
Job stress is a condition which arises from the interaction of people with their jobs. Job stressors cause a
disruption in a persons equilibrium, inevitably inducing the person to recover from the disruption in
order to restore normal functioning.
1
Job stressors which have been accorded with significant research
attention in the international arena include role ambiguity and conflict; workload; control; and machine
pacing.
2
Prolonged exposure to these job stressors may eventually lead to burnout a psychological state
of distress wherein an employee may experience feelings of emotional exhaustion, low work motivation,
reduced personal accomplishment, and depersonalization. As a result, the person manifests with little
energy and enthusiasm for the job, low motivation, poor performance, hostility toward people, uncaring
treatment of clients, frequent work absences, and overfatigue.
3


There are numerous studies pertaining to the stress and satisfaction specifically for lawyers in the
international field. Christison identified the usual sources of stress among lawyers in the United States,
namely, xxx long dehumanizing hours; burdens of responsibility for someone else's money, family, and
freedom; omnipresence of trained adversaries eager to pounce on any opening; judges, juries, others
constantly passing judgment on your performance; ever-present deadlines; ever-present interruptions like
telephone calls and emails; instant communication causing ever-faster documents and decisions;
competition for clients; clients' stress and anger transferred to their lawyers; job security concerns; the gap
between the ideals of those entering the profession and the reality; and, a gap between lawyers'
intelligence and[,] the mind-numbing nature of the work.
4
Meanwhile, lawyers reported so-so
satisfaction in their profession, primarily because of their quality of life issues because of the presence
of gap between the ideals and the reality, and the stressful work because of the overwhelming long
hours.
5


Significantly, there were limited studies which pertain to the stress levels among lawyers in the
Philippines. This could be explained by the fact that only 5% of the total health budget is allocated for
mental health. Moreover, a substantial portion of this budget is primarily spent on the operation and
maintenance of mental hospitals. Thus, it is apparent that mental health promotion, under which stress
management is subsumed, is not one of the priorities of the government.
6
On the other hand, there has
been a Social Weather System Philippines survey in 2003 which reported that Filipino lawyers perceive
that the profession rewards them with high job satisfaction despite the low income levels. The same study

1
ARTHUR BRIEF, ET AL., MANAGING STRESS (1991 ed.).
2
PAUL E. SPECTER, INDUSTRIAL AND ORGANIZATIONAL PSYCHOLOGY 260-263 (2000).
3
C.L. CORDES & T.W. DOUGHERTY, ACADEMY OF MANAGEMENT REVIEW 621-656 (1993).
4
Randall B. Christison, Burnout: A Necessary Part of Lawyers' Lives? available at
http://www.wolfmotivation.com/articles/burnout-a-necessary-part-of-lawyers-lives (last accessed Sept. 18, 2014).
5
NANCY LEVIT & DOUGLAS O. LINDER, THE HAPPY LAWYER: MAKING A GOOD LIFE IN THE LAW (2010).
6
WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION & DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH PHILIPPINES, A REPORT OF THE ASSESSMENT OF THE MENTAL
HEALTH SYSTEM (2007).
revealed that a high job satisfaction among lawyers prevails 34% were very satisfied, while 59% were
satisfied.
7


Methodology
This study sought to answer the following research questions:
a. What is the average level of stress among lawyers in different fields of law practice, i.e.
litigation and corporate law?
b. What is the average level of personal and professional satisfaction among lawyers in
different fields of law practice, i.e. litigation and corporate law?
c. What are the causes or determinants of stress and satisfaction levels among lawyers?
Descriptive, quantitative research methodology was employed. Study participants were selected through
convenience, non-probability sampling using the following inclusion criteria:
1. Must be a lawyer
2. Must be working in either of the following fields of practice:
a. Litigation (includes prosecutors, Public-Attorneys Office lawyers, Office of the
Solicitor General lawyers, and lawyers working in law firms); or
b. Corporate law (includes lawyers working in law firms, private companies, and the
Office of the Government Corporate Counsel).
Respondents were asked to answer a modified standardized stress level survey tool from the American
Psychological Association. Survey data were encoded and analyzed using the e-survey application.

Results and Discussion
The survey yielded a total of 34 responses. Of the 34 lawyers, 18 (52.94%) of them are men and 16
(47.06%) are women. Mean age is between 26 years old to 45 year old. Roughly half are corporate
lawyers and the other half are litigators. Their careers span from 1 to 5 years up to 31 to 40 years of legal
practice. Almost all of the respondents are in active practice. The work hours are consistently between 1
to 12 hours per day and from 20 to 60 hours per week. As for those who opted to reveal their monthly
income, the least number earn 20 to 40 thousand pesos, most earn around 40,000 to 80,000 pesos, and the
biggest earners receive 150,000 to 300,000 pesos per month.

Analysis of the results shows that, in general, Filipino lawyers are satisfied with their careers despite the
high levels of job stress. This is consistent with the findings of the Social Weather System in 2003. The
nature of stress that is prevalent is psychological in nature, as opposed to emotional or physical.
Interestingly, it can be observed that those lawyers with higher salaries tend to have a more positive
responsewhile those with middle salaries tend to answer with neutral to agree. Respondents also stated
causes of stress which were not listed in the survey. These include disorganized work system, the need to
perform beyond expectations, presence of government bureaucracy and incompetence of government
employees for job stressors and their duties to their children and agefor personal life stressors.

Table 1 shows the comparison of the stress and satisfaction variables between corporate lawyers and
litigators. Comparison of the stress and satisfaction levels among corporate lawyers vis--vis litigators
showed no significant difference. The only difference can be observed in the causes of stress.
Variable Overall Litigators Corporate lawyers
Work stress level 7 (high) 7 (high) 7-9 (high)
Work stressors 1. Too heavy workload
2. Long work hours
3. Unrealistic job
expectations
4. Problems with clients
1. Too heavy workload
2. Problems with clients
3. Work interfering
during personal or
family time
1. Too heavy workload
2. Long hours
3. Unrealistic job
expectations
4. Low salaries

7
Id.
5. Low salaries 4. Physical illnesses or
ailments
5. Uncertain or
undefined job
expectations
Personal life
stressors
1. Economic problems
2. Personal injuries or
illnesses
3. Death of family
members or relatives
4. Changing living
conditions
5. Marital problems
1. Death of family
member or relative
2. Personal injury or
illness
3. Economic problems
4. Changes in family
structure
5. Changes in living
conditions
1. Economic problems
2. Personal injury or
illness
3. Death of family
member or relative
Work
satisfaction level
7-8 (high) 7-8 (high) 6-9 (high)
Personal life
satisfaction level
8-9 (high) 8-9 (high) 9 (high)
Overall
satisfaction
okay to more or less
satisfied
okay to more or less
satisfied
more or less satisfied
Table 1. Comparison of stress and satisfaction levels of litigators and corporate lawyers.

Table 2, on the other hand, shows the comparison of the stress and satisfaction variables between males
and females. Their stress and satisfaction levels also showed no significant difference. The only
difference can be observed in the causes of stress.

Variable Male Female
Work stress level 7 (high) 7-9 (high)
Work stressors 1. Too heavy workload
2. Long hours
3. Unrealistic job expectations
4. Low salaries
5. Uncertain or undefined job
expectations
1. Too heavy workload
2. Long hours
3. Problems with clients
4. Unrealistic job expectations
5. Work interfering during
personal or family time
Personal life stressors 1. Economic problems
2. Personal injury or illness

1. Death of family member or
relative
2. Economic problems
3. Personal injury or illness
Work satisfaction level 8 (high) 7 (high)
Personal life satisfaction
level
9 (high) 8 (high)
Overall satisfaction more or less satisfied more or less satisfied
Table 2. Comparison of stress and satisfaction levels of male and female lawyers.

Conclusion and Recommendations
In conclusion, it was shown by this study that the Filipino lawyers are satisfied with their careers despite
the high levels of job stress. Nonetheless, researchers recommend that policy measures should be
advanced in order to develop and enhance the stress management skills of lawyers. The common job and
personal life stressors identified in this study can be used as a guide in designing these policies. Also, the
researchers recommend that this study be replicated in a larger of scale and that it be conducted using a
non-probability sampling technique in order to ensure more representative results.