Abstract
Research on meaningful work has blossomed over the past few decades, linking meaningful work to positive work and non-work outcomes. Scholars have primarily explored meaningful work from the employee perspective; however, rarely does research consider the broader context within which meaningful work is embedded and its impact on how people experience meaning at work. This is problematic because meaning is not constructed in isolation; rather, it is shaped by broader social, cultural, and institutional contexts. Macro-level forces likely shape the extent to which people are able to access meaningful work and the sacrifices they are willing to make in pursuit of such work. Considering these macro-level influences allows scholars to move beyond individual perceptions of meaningful work, offering a more complete account of when, for whom, and at what cost work becomes meaningful. Collectively, the papers in this symposium theorize meaningful work as fundamentally shaped by macro-level forces (including technological regimes, institutional hierarchies, organizational value shifts, and sociopolitical climates) that redefine values, influence agency, and disrupt identity-relevant practices.