Avocation, in vocational psychology dictionary

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Dictionary of Vocational Psychology

Avocation

Traditionally, an avocation has been described as a secondary occupation that an individual might pursue outside of the hours of his or her primary one. Thus, a politician might paint as an avocation (this was the case with Winston Churchill, for example); thus, avocation was a form of leisure activity. In a related vein, avocation has been used to refer to unpaid work pursued for love of the activity; for example, the National Collegiate Athletics Association (NCAA) has referred to the athletic avocations of its amateur athletes. However, it has always been the case that individuals might pursue multiple lines of expertise development, for any of a variety of reasons. For example, the pursuit of an avocation over many years might develop sufficient expertise to permit a shift to it as the primary occupation, should economic factors or changing personal interests make that change attractive or imperative. Many mid-career changes might be of this sort, reflecting the change of priority of a long-pursued avocation. Thus, avocations represent a way-station between occupation and leisure, neither fully one nor the other. Finally, the pursuit of an avocation is generally motivated for reasons that are less strictly economic than is the case with the primary occupation. Most research in vocational psychology has focused on paid, primary occupations and not on avocations.

References

Leisure by John Kelly, 3rd ed.