Exploring Career Calling in Slovakia: A Qualitative Investigation into its Meaning and Development

The quest for a meaningful life remains a profound concern for many (Frankl, 1966; 1985), given that people spend a considerable portion of their time at work, it is no surprise that the concept of calling has raised significant interest. Career calling represents a perception of a passion (modern approach) and a transcendent force (neoclassical approach) for involvement in a job that is not only personally fulfilling and purposeful but also serves a broader social function. The concept of calling has never been studied in Slovakia, limiting its empirical exploration within this cultural context. Furthermore, a reflection on how people develop a sense of calling remains understudied, with existing theories and empirical evidence mainly focusing on its outcomes. To address these gaps, semi-structured qualitative interviews with ten Slovak workers across diverse fields have been conducted. The interviews focused on participants' perception of their work as a calling, followed by event-based theory exploration of its development. Thematic analysis was conducted with the additional support from ChatGPT in order to explore the potential of AI in qualitative research. Our findings suggest that (1) the concept of calling is relevant for Slovak workers; (2) their definitions integrate both modern and neoclassical components; (3) its development is shaped by personal and event-based factors such as feedback, social environment or personal growth and it is a gradual process that comes only after living out the calling. This study has some limits. Participants were selected based on their type of work orientation, the sample size is small and results might be biased by memory effects and potential self-serving biases. With the results of our study, we provide the first contribution to the understanding of calling in the Slovak context and enrich the discussion about the development of career calling.