A latent profile analysis of perceiving and living a calling

In the current study we used latent profile analysis (LPA) to construct profiles according to employed adult's feelings of perceiving and living out calling. A large sample of employed adults completed surveys at three time points over a six-month period. LPA was used to construct profiles at Time 1 and Time 2 and group differences among the profiles were examined according to job and life satisfaction at Time 2 and Time 3, respectively. At Time 1 and Time 2, a four-profile solution emerged as the best fit to the data with the following profiles: Enacted (high perceiving, high living), Average (average scores on both), Absent (low perceiving, low living), and Unanswered (high perceiving, low living). At both time points, participants in the Absent and Unanswered groups had significantly lower job and life satisfaction compared to the Enacted and Average groups three and six months later. Additionally, at both time points participants in the Unanswered group had lower job satisfaction, but not life satisfaction, than those in the Absent group three and six months later. Post hoc analyses suggested that participants in the Unanswered group may have more limited access to opportunity by way of lower levels of educational attainment, annual household income, and social class compared to most other profile groups. Implications for future research and practice are discussed.