All the Lonely People: An Integrated Review and Research Agenda on Work and Loneliness.

ABSTRACT: Decades of studies spanning multiple disciplines have provided insight into the critical role of loneliness in work contexts. In spite of this extensive research, a comprehensive review of loneliness and work remains absent. To address this gap, we conducted a multidisciplinary review of relevant theory and research and identified 213 articles reporting on 233 empirical studies from management, organizational psychology, sociology, medicine, and other domains to uncover why people feel lonely, how different features of work can contribute to feelings of loneliness, and the implications of employee loneliness for organizational settings. This enabled a critical examination of the distinct conceptualizations and operationalizations of loneliness that have been advanced and the theories under

SUBMITTER: McCarthy JM 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12701760 | biostudies-literature | 2026 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature