Career calling among active-duty, enlisted military Generation Z members: a narrative analysis.

• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/2047/D20350248

As members of Generation Z transition to adulthood, they face a substantial struggle to find meaningful work. Their career decisions will influence both their well-being and the more significant industrial landscape, and those who can articulate a purpose for their career are better positioned to navigate the changing labor force. A theory that addresses this stage of identity exploration is that of a career calling, defined as a method of addressing what and why individuals build their careers as they understand their narrative identity into various occupational roles. A calling is a dynamic construct that is experiential, and this study utilizes narrative research to understand newly military-enlisted Generation Z members' experiences of developing a career calling. From the participants' career calling stories, a meta-narrative emerged. First, participants discussed their enlistment reasoning and military influences, which guided them at a young age toward initial career decisions. Then, during their journeys into their new workforce, each participant experienced a turning-point event, categorized as a workplace trauma. The participants responded to this event by (1) re-examining their enlistment motives, (2) understanding their needs, and (3) defining what a career calling means to them. This process resulted in an understanding of their callings and values. Lastly, the participants demonstrated agency and adaptability as they envisioned the future of their callings as well as their new 5-year plans. Overall, these findings provide a framework for individuals, the military, and organizations to design interventions to guide not only members of Generation Z but also members from other generations towards developing a calling--Author's abstract