ABSTRACT
Work is central to human existence. It provides the necessities for life, offers opportunities for service and achievement, and determines social standing and reputation. Work is also linked to personal identity and offers the full range of existential experiences. This may include pride in a job well done, satisfaction with one’s efforts, joy in accomplishing a valued goal, and hope for achievement and progress in the future. At other times, the experience of work can be characterized by disappointment, anger, despair, and a sense of failure and futility. The range of experiences can be understood through its extremes. The United States military offers potential recruits the opportunity to “be all that you can be”, while the term “going postal” has become part of the US vernacular in reference to the tragic events of disgruntled employees of the US Postal Service engaging in shooting sprees in their former places of work. Aside from these extreme examples, however, it is through work that all individuals participate in the wider society and come to know its good and bad sides. Through work, individuals experience themselves in relation to others, and learn about their strengths and weaknesses, preferences and dislikes, and resources and limitations. As John Dewey observed, work is the primary means by which individuals connect with the broader society though contributing effort and receiving benefits in various forms (Dewey 1938).
