Social support on calling: Mediating role of work engagement and professional identity

Abstract Researchers suggest that personal and contextual factors may interact to predict career calling; however, the antecedents of career calling have received less research attention. Consequently, the aim of this research is to develop and test a research model that investigates work engagement and professional identity as mediators of the effect of social support on career calling among 456 Chinese special education teachers. Structural equation modeling analyses revealed that perceived social support predicted high levels of work engagement, professional identity, and career calling. Furthermore, work engagement and professional identity simultaneously and sequentially mediated the relationship between perceived social support and career calling. Our findings suggest that supportive social relationships may increase the willingness to dedicate one's time and efforts and enhance the clarity of professional identity, ultimately fostering a sense of career calling. This research would be valuable to both academics and practitioners who are seeking to explore various antecedents of career calling.