Women, Hardships, and Calling

Earlier this year, Fida Afiouni and Charlotte M. Karam published an interesting paper in the Journal of Vocational Behavior titled “The formative role of contextual hardships in women's career calling.” I love the topic of “calling,” and the study participants were women from the Middle East, one of my areas of specialty, so this article caught my eye. Although this study is focused on women who have experienced, and continue to go through, what the authors call “harsh and complex…contextual hardships,” I was most interested in the article for its potential application to women and careers more generally. I have wondered if having a sense of career calling, particularly when women are going through hardships, helps in some way. And, does going through hardships ever help women develop a career calling? Although this is not an uplifting topic to think about sometimes, I continue to be surprised at how many women tell me they struggle with these types of experiences in the U.S. and in other countries around the globe.  

Career Calling & Hardships

The findings of this study are based on 20 in-depth qualitative interviews with successful women in Lebanon whose work, according to the authors, fits the scholarly definition of career calling. According to scholars, people feel “career calling” when they see their careers as one or more of the following: a duty to society, transcendent summons, sense of destiny, originating beyond the self, sense of purpose or meaningfulness, other-oriented values and goals, toward positive societal impact, a duty to the self, meaningful passion, focus on a better world, or a psychological engagement with the meaning of one’s career work. Afiouni and Karam also note the importance of identity, self-understanding, self-fulfillment, and the pursuit of happiness in finding and hearing the call. 

In terms of hardships, these researchers looked at those in educational, labor, cultural, political, and financial contexts. They focused on marginalization, cultural imperialism, powerlessness, violence, and exploitation, which could include things like discrimination, bias, bullying, or other types of unpleasant circumstances in various settings.

Results

They found that women can “develop a career calling in response to an oppressive environment as opposed to in spite of it.” So, in some cases, the hardships and oppression that women experience can actually inspire a sense of career calling. In addition, my own literature review on the topic of calling found that when women have a sense of career calling to begin with, they will step into difficult leadership roles because they feel called to do so. With this sense of calling, they can remain and thrive in settings or contexts they had not envisioned being in previously. 

Concluding Thoughts

Now, I’m not saying that women should seek out painful workplaces. However, I do believe that finding a career calling can really make a difference in meaningful work and by so doing, women in oppressive or difficult contexts can endure and even thrive. This may not apply to all of us, but I think it is interesting research to consider. Fida and Charlotte, thanks for the fabulous article!

Dr. Susan R. Madsen is a global thought leader, author, speaker, and scholar on the topic of women and leadership. She is also the Orin R. Woodbury Professor of Leadership and Ethics in the Woodbury School of Business at Utah Valley University and the Founder of the Utah Women & Leadership Project. Learn more about her Utah work at http://www.utwomen.org and her global efforts at http://madsengloballeadership.com/.