LAUSR

This qualitative study examined the perceptions of career agency and career calling among 35 U.S. mid-career foreign missionaries from four organizations who reported a sense of living out a calling. In-depth interviews were analyzed using grounded theory methodology to describe participant perspectives on calling and agency with the goal of understanding factors that contribute to living a calling. Data analysis revealed two main themes, nine categorical sub-themes, and 18 base concepts. The first theme, calling as a dynamic lived experience, affirms elements of Work as Calling Theory and indicates a need to clarify the role of prosocial orientation in calling. The second theme, socio-contextual factors perceived as influencing lived callings, offers insights regarding the need to explore a more robust integration of socio-contextual factors into Work as Calling Theory. A hypothesis regarding the relation between cultural competence and living a calling is proposed for future testing.