Thursday 23 July 14:05
- 15:35
Hall: 02 - Teatrino
Chair and Discussant:
Dalla Rosa Anna
Division: Division 1: Work and Organizational Psychology
The pursuit of calling and meaningful work has gained increasing scholarly and practical attention. Researchers are asking: What does it mean to experience work as a calling, how does it develop, and under what conditions does it backfire? These questions remain pressing, yet important challenges persist. Advancing the field requires valid measures across cultures, deeper understanding of developmental pathways, and knowledge of their pitfalls. Addressing these challenges through five complementary studies, this symposium aligns with the congress theme of offering new directions in applied psychology and innovative approaches to the study of calling and meaningful work in diverse global settings.
The first presentation introduces the adaptation and validation of the Unified Multidimensional Calling Scale for Türkiye exploring the methodological foundation needed for reliable, cross-cultural assessment of calling. The second reports on the LIVE Project, the largest-ever longitudinal study of vocational exploration in North America, tracking students and faculty to analyse developmental pathways and institutional practices that shape calling and meaning. The third presents results from iWORK, a smartphone-based intervention experimentally testing whether calling can be cultivated by enhancing work and life meaning, using character strengths, and engaging in job crafting through daily micro-activities. The fourth examines a dual pathway model of meaningful work in Türkiye, showing how systemic constraints and resources shape professionals' experiences amid turbulence. The symposium closes with a critical perspective: using cross-national data from 13 countries and a person-centered approach, the final study investigates cultural conditions under which calling may lead to workaholism and organizational exploitation.
Together, these contributions move beyond positive correlates, tracing a narrative from measuring and cultivating calling to the contextual conditions that shape it. Integrating psychometric, longitudinal, and experimental approaches, the symposium highlights both the promise and pitfalls of calling and meaningful work.
