Work as a Calling in China: A Qualitative Study of Chinese College Students

This study explored how the perception of work as a calling, a construct with a long history in Western culture, is experienced within Chinese culture. A qualitative study was conducted with 210 Chinese college students. Using emergent qualitative document analysis, results revealed four dimensions of general calling and career-related calling: Guiding Force, Meaning and Purpose, Altruism, and Active Tendency. These results largely converge with those found using samples within Western cultures, although the label sense of duty was found to be a unique and salient aspect of calling among Chinese college students. Results also revealed that effect of calling was not always positive. This study provides the first evidence that many aspects of the multidimensional construct of calling may be shared within Chinese culture, at least with college student participants. Implications for research and practice are explored.