PSYCHOLOGICAL COMPONENTS OF THE DEVELOPMENT OF LEGAL CONSCIOUSNESS OF FUTURE LAWYERS

Abstract

The paper examines the features of methodological approaches to the development of psychological and pedagogical aspects of shaping the legal consciousness of students in a higher educational establishment, as future legal professionals. A comprehensive model of the development of legal consciousness is described, as the development of legal consciousness of lawyers is of great practical importance since legal consciousness serves as a guideline for subjects of law in social and legal situations, it allows them to make appropriate ethical and legal choices on the basis of which they can make legally meaningful decisions. In the formation of the legal consciousness of students, a special focus should be placed on the control and assessment component, because the level of development of students’ legal consciousness can be judged by objective and subjective indicators. Objective indicators of legal education are indicators of a student’s educational activity (academic performance, discipline, activity in various spheres of life, legal knowledge and skills). Subjective indicators of legal education are attitudes towards law, assessment of law, legal values, legal attitudes, motives. The main result of the development of students’ legal consciousness should be an understanding of the priority of legal norms, the special significance of law and the development of legal means of its enforcement in modern society. A student’s legal shaping is manifested in the integration of legal knowledge, skills, experience of lawful behavior, personal attitudes. Successful development of students’ legal consciousness depends on organizing their educational and cognitive activities, taking into account the peculiarities of the psychology of students, making use of modern intensive psychological and pedagogical technologies, building education on the principles of humanism, democracy and pluralism, use of cooperation technologies, development of students’ needs for lifelong learning and self-education.