A new study in Science analyzing survey data from more than 580,000 U.S. workers finds remote work is associated with larger increases in social isolation—and may account for roughly one-third of the rise in mental distress seen since the pandemic.
The quiet shift started as a perk—then the numbers turned it into a warning.
Working from home became routine for many employees after the pandemic, offering flexibility and control over where work gets done. But new research suggests that same shift may be feeding rising mental health distress through one blunt mechanism: people spending far less time around other people.
In a study published in the journal Science, researchers analyzed data from five large surveys covering more than 580,000 U.S. workers between 2011 and 2024. Their findings suggest that the rise of remote work significantly increased social isolation and may account for roughly one-third of the increase in mental distress observed since the pandemic.
The study zeroed in on occupations that can be performed remotely—such as software development and office work—and compared them with jobs that require workers to be physically present. The contrast was stark.
Workers in remote-friendly occupations spent 58% more hours working alone than those in jobs that cannot be done remotely. The likelihood of spending an entire day without any in-person human contact also increased by 72%.
The impact looks even sharper when you look at where people live. The study found that the rise in full days without interacting with another person was more common among people living alone. Those workers also experienced a much larger increase in mental distress than workers living with family members.
The researchers’ framing lands on a question that many conversations about remote work have quietly sidestepped: what happens when millions of people spend much less time around other people every day?
For many adults, work is one of the few places where they regularly interact with people outside their households. Casual conversations, team meetings, lunch breaks, and other everyday interactions can feel minor. Yet the study describes those moments as potentially meaningful in maintaining social connections—especially for people who don’t have a lot of other daily outlets.
Importantly, the researchers are not arguing that companies should pull back and bring everyone back to the office full time. Instead, the findings suggest something more complicated: as remote and hybrid arrangements become more common, social connection may become a bigger challenge.
What the study leaves readers with is a practical pressure point. If workplace flexibility reduces how often people are physically around others. then employers and workers are forced to think beyond productivity and convenience—about how people keep meaningful social ties when work isn’t a place many will visit every day.
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