Working remotely or in an office requires a routine that includes having other interests and hobbies scheduled and on the calendar.
At the same time, a person working in an office has the illusion of social activity.
Just because a person works in an office doesn't mean they're more well adjusted socially, or more active.
Just because a person works remotely doesn't mean they're a recluse.
Life requires effort and being engaged. Though as a remote worker myself, I do appreciate the tendency to not make an effort. However, when I do make an effort, the effort is easier and the reward greater than social activities that'd be available during an office job.
To an extreme, reclusion rids one of the input from living life around.
Need input and reflection to be an upward spiral, otherwise input without reflection, or reflection without new input trends towards putting a person into a downward spiral.
The existence of families and housemates reveals this to be a false dichotomy: either you're spending in-office time with coworkers or you don't like being around any people, seems to be the claim.
But I do agree that the claim being made is the false dichotomy you point out
This is so spot on.
I would like to see stats for introverts who do not have mental health issues. Those living alone and working from home probably have the best outcomes across the board.
My intention for using that specific language was less with the implied language of introvert/extrovert, and was more intended to point out how simply going to an office is not enough to qualify as "socialization". Compulsory attendance in exchange for financial gain isn't a great example of voluntary socialization....
This may turn out to be a huge wake-up call, perhaps even for the best. People may start going back to a proper 9-to-5, closing their laptops at the end of the day and actually living their lives. Let's hope that the next time the market goes crazy, we remember these lessons - though I'm very doubtful.
About the most absurd thing is twisting the people who socialize in office building for fun into grinding hard workers.
So, I have enough experience to go meh on this rationalization too. Nah, you can have trust, alliances and human relationships without moving all the hobby and relax time to work. Not just "can" in an abstract theoretical term, but they simply happen.
You can design the workplace so that the above is impossible, but that is the deliberate choice. The idea that you need to spend 12 hours a day in the workplace to be liked is a product of kind of management trying to create a cultish culture. Sometimes because they are lonely, sometimes because the frauds they want to happen are easier that way. But, it is not something that becomes a necessity in healthy workplace with various people. And people who are capable to keep relationships dont need that to have them.
And conversely, people with issue in the relationship department need them as a clutch, but then pretend it is necessary for work.
I'm not talking about doing all your hobbies in the office and staying 4 hours more than your official hours just shmoozing every day.
Working effectively with people requires some level of personal connection, whether that's shared lunches, chatting over coffee etc. Some just want to plug their earbud in and clock out at 5, and insist to only spend time by typing code in the IDE. I'm saying that this won't work, no matter how they complain online. Humans are social, you have to deal with it.