CHAPTER 6: Religion, Spirituality, and a Sense of Calling in the Workplace

People approach their work in a lot of different ways. For some, work is the burden of the beast—a place to punch in, punch out, earn a living, and little more. For others, work provides a status ladder to climb—a pathway for meeting esteem needs, obtaining approval, attaining prestige, and earning lots of money. Still others approach their work as an opportunity for experiencing and expressing a sense meaning and purpose, sometimes motivated by a sense of being drawn or compelled to promote the greater good. This latter approach is indicative of individuals who think of their work as a calling (Bellah, Madsen, Sullivan, Swidler, & Tipton, 1986; Dik & Duffy, 2009; Wrzesniewski, McCaulin, Rozin, & Schwartz, 1997), a concept often discussed among scholars of religion, spirituality, and work (e.g., Davidson & Caddell, 1994; Hardy, 1990; Schuurman, 2004; Steger, Pickering, Shin, & Dik, 2010). In this chapter, we explore the religious context of the concept of calling; research and theory on calling within psychology and allied fields; possible applications of this scholarship to the workplace; and future directions for organizational practice, theory, and research.