Which careers are most enjoyable? A study from the University of Chicago yielded the following answers to that question (The number to the right is the percentage of people in that profession claiming to be very happy with their job).
1 Clergy 87.2
2 Physical Therapists 78.1
3 Firefighters 80.1
4 Education Administrators 68.4
5 Painter, Sculptors, Related 67.3
6 Teachers 69.2
7 Authors 74.2
8 Psychologists 66.9
9 Special Education Teachers 70.1
10 Operating Engineers 64.1
11 Office Supervisors 60.8
12 Security & Financial Services Salespersons 65.4
The least enjoyable are below.
1 Roofers 25.3
2 Waiters/Servers 27.0
3 Laborers, Except Construction 21.4
4 Bartenders 26.4
5 Hand Packers and Packagers 23.7
6 Freight, Stock, & Material Handlers 25.8
7 Apparel Clothing Salespersons 23.9
8 Cashiers 25.0
9 Food Preparers, Misc. 23.6
10 Expediters 37.0
11 Butchers & Meat Cutters 31.8
12 Furniture/Home Furnishing Salespersons 25.2
At first glance, there seems to be a slight correlation with income, but you would probably get a tighter fit with respect than income.
One has to wonder if clergy are more likely to say they are happy, regardless of whether they really are, because happiness is one of their job requirements. I'm sure the creators of the survey thought of a way to deal with this, but I can't find a specific acknowledgment of how they corrected for this bias.
It could simply be the case that they believe in the notion of vocation, and feel as if they have found theirs. If God intended them to do that which they are doing, who are they to complain?
Another interesting question is how these results would change outside the US.
HT: Richard Florida
