A Psychologist’s Take on Loneliness within Organisations

Posted On June 7, 2020

How organisations can help solve the loneliness epidemic

Cigna’s 2020 Loneliness at the Workplace report shows that 61%, or every 3 in 5 of US adults, are lonely. In the UK, more than 9 million people report feeling lonely either often or always. In Japan, more than a third of households are single occupant, and around 15% of Japanese say they have no social contact outside of their family. Loneliness has become a global issue, resulting in economic losses and a major decrease in the general health and well-being of our societies. Because we spend the majority of our waking hours working, and since loneliness can significantly damage our productivity, it is crucial that organisations take an active role in the fight against it.

Impacts of loneliness on our health and work
In his latest book Together, Vivek Murthy explains that human beings have evolved to be social creatures – connecting with others is one of our most fundamental needs. When this need is not met, it can have a detrimental impact on our health – those with strong social relationships are 50% less likely to die prematurely than those with weak social relationships. Loneliness can lead to high blood pressure, anxiety, depression, lack of quality sleep and a host of other illnesses. It also makes us more irritable and more prone to perceiving those around us as a threat. The impact that loneliness has on our bodies and minds also results in an enormous impact on our work and productivity. The 2020 workplace report showed that lonely people are 45% less productive, 5 times more likely to miss work due to stress, and spend twice as much time thinking about quitting their job than their colleagues who aren’t lonely.

The work / life divide is making the problem worse
Our societal norms generally separate work and personal life, and most organisations take little responsibility for their employees’ well-being. However, we don’t stop being human the moment we enter our office, and our fundamental need for social connection doesn’t go away either. The fact that we are spending increasing amounts of time working, makes it even more difficult to establish a good social network outside of working hours. Work environments are thus one of the main areas of life where we can build connections, yet most organisations invest little effort into creating environments where this is actively encouraged. Even if we argue that mental health and well-being are personal matters and a responsibility of each individual alone, just looking at the economic costs that loneliness can incur should encourage organisations to be actively involved in solving the problem.

Networking events and socials aren’t enough
A first instinctual response to reducing the rates of loneliness within the organisation might be to increase the number of group gatherings and networking events (or, at present, group Zoom calls). These are often a big part of an organisation’s culture, and one of the key ways that organisations promote socializing and connecting among employees. While these can be rewarding for many of the employees, those who are lonely are unlikely to benefit from them. One of the key characteristics of loneliness is that a person who is lonely is more likely to perceive everything around them as a threat, including any attempts to connect with others. When we are lonely and we see others having fun together, we have a tendency to withdraw, in fear of being labelled as social outcasts. Loneliness makes it harder to reach out to others, especially when there is a large number of them. For people who are lonely, these kinds of gatherings can be intimidating and further increase their sense of isolation.

So what can organisations do?

1. Understand the problem
Whether it be through conversations or anonymous surveys, take the time to understand how widespread loneliness is within your organisation. Don’t assume that loneliness isn’t there if nobody is speaking up about it – the very nature of loneliness will prevent people from doing so. Even cultures that appear extremely social and fun on the outside could have a significant amount of employees struggling with loneliness. This is especially important in times like the current pandemic, when many employees are working from home, with some living alone or having little to no contact with their family and friends.

2. Introduce structured and purposeful activities
Lonely employees are less likely to take part in and enjoy group gatherings. These employees will benefit more from activities that are social, but not purely focused on the act of socializing. Such structured and purposeful activities will take the pressure off the employees and allow them to socialize with others, without the anxiety associated with having to approach new people. Mentoring schemes, buddy programs and group trainings are all formal and widely spread initiatives which can contribute to both career progression and building meaningful connections. In addition, organisations can come up with other structured ways of connecting employees from across the organisation. This can be done by introducing a variety of after-work activities (e.g. sports or culture clubs), or something like a voluntary scheme that connects different pairs of employees to meet for a 30 min coffee (or a Zoom call) once a month. Whatever the format, it’s important that these activities are open to all and actively encouraged by the organisation.

3. Introduce and encourage regular volunteering
One of the best structured activities that will make employees feel needed and appreciated, while at the same time allowing them to connect with others, is volunteer work. Many organizations offer some form of paid volunteer work, but more often than not it’s only one day per year, and it’s not actively encouraged. With meaningful work being cited as the number one reason for employee well-being and its strong potential for reducing loneliness, an increase in volunteer work, even if it is organised outside of working hours, could provide enormous benefits to employee engagement, well-being and productivity.

There is no one right approach to reducing loneliness within organisations, and there might be some trial and error involved until we find the right one. We need to get an accurate understanding of loneliness within organisations and come up with concrete ways to address it – both for the sake of employee well-being and the success of the business. Considering just how big of an issue loneliness is becoming and how detrimental it is to our health, our productivity and our societies, we need to act now.

Further reading on the topic: Together by Vivek Murthy, Hivemind by Sarah Rose Cavanagh, Social: Why our brains are wired to connect by Matthew D Lieberman, Lost Connections by Johann Hari and The Village Effect by Susan Pinker