Columns/Blogs Mental Health
Beyond the 13 factors: Understanding and addressing workplace isolation and loneliness

In our first article in the “Beyond the 13 Factors” series, we considered inclusion and belonging. A critical part of belonging includes developing authentic connections. Because psychosocial factors are perceived at an individual level, their threat can vary.

An employee may feel included and that they belong in their workplace, but not experience meaningful social connections, which can lead to feelings of isolation and loneliness. Because healthy humans are hardwired to move towards social relationships, good is defined at an individual level. The psychosocial hazard when good is not fulfilled can be perceived as isolation and loneliness.

Perceived isolation is a cognitive barrier that prevents a person from believing they can have authentic connections in the workplace. This cognitive schema can result in loneliness, the emotional byproduct of not having fulfilling intimate, family, social, community or workplace social connections.

Many factors can contribute to isolation, including mental illness, geographic location, title, status and gender.

Perceived isolation can happen, especially with employees who work remotely. Consider a lighthouse keeper who may feel included and have a sense of belonging. However, the inability to access and engage in informal conversations becomes a barrier.

Isolation can also happen within teams in the workplace. Everyone on the team appears to be nice and feels psychologically safe in team meetings, valued and welcomed. They feel included in all team decisions and have a sense of belonging within their team and organization. However, many feel isolated outside of team meetings. This also occurs in marriages, where a person who appears happy feels isolated.

The combination of perceived isolation and loneliness in the workplace can result in a psychosocial hazard that can have negative impacts on physical and psychological health. The U.S. Surgeon General suggested in 2023 that isolation and loneliness are at epidemic levels that negatively impact employees by increasing the risk of mortality, cardiovascular disease, hypertension, diabetes, infectious disease, cognitive functioning, suicide, depression and anxiety.

Considering the number of hours employees spend in the workplace, employers should consider the potential impact of perceived isolation and loneliness on their well-being.

Loneliness extends beyond individual impacts to the workplace, decreasing job performance, reducing organizational commitment, and increasing absenteeism and turnover intentions. Lonely employees are five times more likely to miss work due to stress and twice as likely to consider leaving their positions.

Assessment methods and tools

Employers can measure isolation and loneliness by building in workplace risk assessments, such as the Workplace Psychological Safety Assessment, which measures these factors. They may explore validated tools such as the UCLA Loneliness Scale or Loneliness at Work Scale. Developed by Wright, Burt and Strongman,[i] it is a 16-item validated instrument that evaluates emotional deprivation and social companionship dimensions. Items include statements such as “I often feel abandoned by my co-workers when I am under pressure at work” and “there is no one at work I can share personal thoughts with if I want to.” These tools can help inform items or scales to be added to a workplace assessment data collection device.

Another way to psychosocially educate employees on isolation and loneliness is to provide awareness training and encourage them to do self-assessments such as the Perceived Isolation-Loneliness Effect Assessment, which are confidential and provide a personalized report with suggestions for action. The goal is to offer employees at risk education and guidance to access support. Participation levels in such open training can provide data on potential risk.

Beyond formal assessments and psychosocial education, managers should be trained to detect and intervene with employees who appear to be socially withdrawn from team activities, show decreased participation in meetings, prefer to work alone, exhibit changes in communication patterns or have lower engagement in workplace social events. Because leaders interact with their teams, they can observe behaviours and act in real time rather than waiting for planned assessments and training.

Stigma can also be a factor affecting isolation and loneliness, hindering workers dealing with mental health concerns from reaching out. In addition, loneliness can amplify other feelings such as anxiety and depression.

Immediate actions

We encourage prevention and coach employers to add psychoeducation on isolation and loneliness to their psychological health and safety programs and screen for this hazard. It will not go away quickly, and it requires action to reinforce learning. Employers should track how their workforces are doing after a workplace assessment through regular pulse checks to determine if this issue is improving or getting worse.

We also promote the value of talking openly about the importance of having authentic connections at work and letting people know that if they feel lonely, they are likely not alone.

Employers are advised to consider how the workplace can create immediate opportunities for informal connections such as virtual coffee breaks, walking meetings and brief team huddles that encourage personal sharing.

Planning for systematic changes

Some preventions and controls for reducing employees’ risk of isolation and loneliness from the U.S. Office of the Surgeon General include:

• Train leaders (supervisors and managers) to recognize loneliness indicators and initiate supportive conversations with team members. Implement daily check-ins that go beyond task-focused discussions to include genuine inquiry about employee well-being. As part of the training, ensure managers are equipped with conversation starters and empathy-building skills to create psychological safety for employees to express feelings of disconnection. Embed loneliness prevention into your organizational culture through comprehensive leadership development programs that emphasize relationship-building skills and emotional intelligence. Train managers to recognize that their quality of interaction with direct reports is the strongest predictor of workplace loneliness.
• Develop structured interventions focused on relationship building and social support within the workplace.
• Design team-building activities that move beyond superficial interactions to foster genuine connections. Consider storytelling sessions, collaborative problem-solving exercises or shared learning experiences. Implement cross-functional projects that naturally bring together employees from different departments.
• Create employee resource groups or interest-based communities using digital platforms where geographically dispersed workers can connect around shared hobbies, professional development goals or life experiences. Establish mentorship programs that provide both professional guidance and social connection opportunities.
• Consider how the organization can establish “buddy systems,” pairing new employees with experienced team members and extend this concept to support existing staff during challenging periods.
• Review organizational policy, practices and even workplace layout (meeting structures, workspace design and work processes) to identify opportunities for meaningful collaboration and interaction.
• Create comprehensive employee assistance programs that address loneliness and social connection challenges. Integrate loneliness awareness into broader mental health and well-being initiatives, ensuring that support systems are accessible, confidential and culturally appropriate.

Some additional coaching ideas

• Leadership scorecards and emotional intelligence badging: Provide managers with quarterly wellness dashboards for their teams based on pulse check data and train them in empathy skills to promote psychological safety.
• Relationship mapping and inclusive outreach: Conduct confidential workplace “connection audits” to identify isolated employees and guide them towards meaningful group activities.
• Cross-functional social design: Boost interaction by adjusting policies, workspaces and meeting formats to encourage collaboration across departments.
• Digital nudges for well-being: Use innovative tools in platforms like Teams or Slack to prompt check-ins, share kind messages and celebrate shared experiences.
• Loneliness risk in policy reviews: Add loneliness impact criteria into routine HR, facilities and culture evaluations, then act on the findings visibly.
• Enhance non-work relationships: Ensure some policies protect workers’ ability to nurture their relationships outside work, including respecting boundaries between work and non-work time, supporting caregiving responsibilities and creating a culture of norms and practices such as work-life blending that support these policies.

No single pill or exercise offers an escape from isolation; the cure for loneliness lies in a combination of realizing where you’re stuck and closing social connection gaps in meaningful ways. Employers can play a role in making this happen!

– Bill Howatt, author of The Cure for Loneliness

Make every employee having authentic social connections in the workplace a success goal

Employers should establish regular measurement and monitoring systems for isolation and loneliness to assist with early detection and intervention. Isolation and loneliness do not exist alone; they can interact and amplify other psychosocial hazards such as stress, fatigue and anxiety.

Isolation and loneliness can go undetected or unnoticed, so the more vigilance, the better, as well as a commitment to not just random acts of wellness but also discipline. Loneliness isn’t just a personal struggle; it’s a workplace hazard that erodes engagement, stifles collaboration, and quietly undermines mental health.

When employees feel disconnected, productivity suffers, retention drops and burnout creeps in. Caring employers focus on prevention because building connections is not a perk; it’s a protective factor. Investing in emotional well-being is smart risk management, not soft leadership.

[i] Wright, S. L., Burt, C. D., & Strongman, K. T. (2006). Loneliness in the workplace: Construct definition and scale development. New Zealand Journal of Psychology, 35(2), 59-68.