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Protestant work ethic
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<p>The Protestant work ethic, also known as the Calvinist work ethic or the Puritan work ethic, is a <a href="/facts/Work_ethic/Pu7AkCrE">work ethic</a> concept in <a href="/facts/Sociology/d2Fd0N87">sociology</a>, <a href="/facts/Economics/HYctA2Dn">economics</a>, and <a href="/facts/History/bSKgXaCA">history</a>. It emphasizes that a person's subscription to the values espoused by the <a href="/facts/Protestantism/NXja4K3g">Protestant faith</a>, particularly <a href="/facts/Calvinism/l95AzJtn">Calvinism</a>, result in <a href="/facts/Diligence/3KS28V6m">diligence</a>, <a href="/facts/Discipline/1RItfSbh">discipline</a>, and <a href="/facts/Frugality/wxUWsy6K">frugality</a>. </p><p>The phrase was initially coined in 1905 by sociologist <a href="/facts/Max_Weber/MF3HU6bN">Max Weber</a> in his book <i><a href="/facts/The_Protestant_Ethic_and_the_Spirit_of_Capitalism/JK02Uyey">The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism</a></i>. Weber asserted that Protestant ethics and values, along with the Calvinist doctrines of <a href="/facts/Asceticism/s3szkXBx">asceticism</a> and <a href="/facts/Predestination/yd1eyA0G">predestination</a>, enabled the rise and spread of <a href="/facts/Capitalism/FbPc6TTw">capitalism</a>. Just as priests and caring professionals are deemed to have a <a href="/facts/Vocation/QzuEEenv">vocation</a> (or "calling" from God) for their work, according to the Protestant work ethic the "lowly" workman also has a noble vocation which he can fulfill through dedication to his work. </p><p>Weber's book is one of the most influential and cited in sociology, although the thesis presented has been controversial since its release. In opposition to Weber, historians such as <a href="/facts/Fernand_Braudel/nDLEwsM2">Fernand Braudel</a> and <a href="/facts/Hugh_Trevor-Roper/CX6nlPz1">Hugh Trevor-Roper</a> assert that the Protestant work ethic did not create capitalism and that capitalism developed in pre-<a href="/facts/Reformation/9ClEbhnL">Reformation</a> Catholic communities. Historian Laurence R. Iannaccone has written that "the most noteworthy feature of the Protestant Ethic thesis is its absence of empirical support." </p><p>The concept is often credited with helping to define the self-view of societies of Northern, Central and <a href="/facts/Northwestern_Europe/d8zrdArn">Northwestern Europe</a> as well as the United States. </p>