Introduction

In this chapter, we explore the meaning work has for the individual. This meaning is expressed in the individual's emotional investment in work. Our emotions mark the significance objects, activities, and persons have for us. The importance of emotions lies in the way they provide the individual with “an orientation toward the world,” a “framework through which the world is viewed” (Lear 1990: 51–52). This orientation is not, however, of the sort provided by a map or a compass. The difference lies both in the nature of the space we find ourselves in, and in the nature of the orientation we need within it. The space in which our emotions orient us, unlike the physical space of the map or compass, is the interpersonal space of relatedness with others. Furthermore, maps and compasses offer a sense of position in space, whereas emotions invest our position in space with its significance. Our emotions tell us what matters and what does not; and they tell us how it matters, especially whether it is good for us or poses a danger to our well-being. The emotional orientation is subject to distortion and the guidance it provides is not always accurate. It is, nonetheless, vital to any study that concerns itself with the meaningful orientation of the individual in the space of interaction and social organization.