Is there a relationship between work orientation and job satisfaction?
Going in, I expected that people who saw their work as a Calling would be more satisfied, those with Jobs would be the least satisfied because, again, it’s not about the job for them, it’s about the income, and that those with Careers would be somewhere in the middle. Surprisingly, those with Jobs and Careers look very much like each other and those with Callings look different than the other two groups on almost every variable around satisfaction, engagement, motivation, and so forth. Calling people are more satisfied with their work and their life; they are marginally more satisfied with their health; they are more likely to work more hours at their jobs on a voluntary basis; and they miss less work. They look like workaholics. They could look like workaholics. But you can make an argument that someone with a Career orientation does these same things to get ahead. Someone with a Calling orientation does these things because work is like play for them. It’s so much fun that they would
