As emerging adults, college students are beginning to craft a life narrative that provides purpose and direction, part of which is the identification and pursuit of a meaningful career. It may even include a calling, a sense of being summoned to a vocational role that helps others and offers purpose. Another piece of many students’ narratives is trauma, which may alter one’s identity and, possibly, career development. Some trauma survivors report posttraumatic growth (PTG), positive changes resulting from struggling with a traumatic event. PTG is associated with increased prosocial values, which may foster students’ desire to contribute to others’ welfare through a meaningful career. Despite its potential for guiding vocational development, PTG has not been examined as it relates to calling. The present study examined differences in calling based on past trauma; tested whether PTG predicts calling among students with trauma experience; and explored how other variables may impact PTG and calling. Undergraduate students (N = 218) completed online questionnaires assessing calling, PTG, and other variables. Although calling did not differ between students who reported trauma (n = 119) and those who did not (n = 99), PTG positively predicted calling among the former. In addition, religious commitment partially mediated the PTG-calling relationship. These results suggest that psychological growth from trauma may inform emerging adults’ pursuit of a purposeful, fulfilling career, and that additional variables may help explain this positive effect. Future research should examine whether students explicitly and meaningfully associate their trauma experience with their calling.
