The article discusses the theoretical and methodological aspects of psychological mechanisms in the development of legal identity of the individual. In legal behavior, an essential role belongs to self-awareness, which is knowledge of oneself, attitude towards oneself, self-esteem, an opinion about oneself as a person. Legal identity predetermines the nature of human legal relations, his legal position, actions and legal behavior. The development of a person's legal self-awareness is based on psychological mechanisms that represent a dynamic psychological system, which includes various conditions, factors, means, structures, relationships, connections and other mental phenomena that ensure the formation, formation, flow and regulation of this process. The work provides a classification of the main psychological mechanisms for the development of legal self-awareness. The development of legal consciousness is the result of the activity of the entire system of psychological mechanisms. Depending on the specific situation and development of the individual (her age, psychological properties and qualities, health, social role, interpersonal relations, etc.), the significance of individual mechanisms changes. The essence of psychological mechanisms is shown, the history of their study is briefly considered, the structure is revealed. The role of legal socialization in the legal development of an individual is revealed. Particular attention is paid to the analysis of the fundamental psychological mechanisms in the development of legal identity of the individual: motivation and reflection. In the development of a person's legal self-awareness, psychological mechanisms perform the following main functions: reflective, incentive, regulatory and controlling.