// HACKER NEWS — CYBERSECURITY
Remote workers report the highest well-being in study of 7,700 employees
For years, many employers have worried that work-from-home arrangements leave employees isolated, disconnected from coworkers and more likely to leave their jobs.
But according to a new study, remote workers are doing better than many employers realize.
Researchers analyzed survey data from 7,704 employees at a large healthcare organization. One pattern stood out: Employees who worked fully remotely reported the highest levels of well-being, while those who worked entirely onsite reported the lowest. The study also found little evidence that remote workers felt less connected to colleagues or workplace culture.
"This suggests you let people work remotely if they want to work remotely," said Stefanie Johnson, professor of organizational leadership and information analytics at the Leeds School of Business and co-author of the study, published in July 2026 in the journal Frontiers in Psychology. "Taking away people's choice of how they work is probably not going to help them in terms of their well-being."
"The data from our study and others suggest remote and hybrid work result in better outcomes than return-to-office mandates," she said. "Leaders are not making decisions based on data. I think they are just returning to what they are used to."
Johnson, who co-authored the study with Alyssa Lezcano, Stephanie Zajac and Courtney Holladay of the MD Anderson Leadership Institute in Houston, said the results surprised her. She thought employees who split their time between home and the office might have the best of both worlds.
"I actually thought you would be happiest if you were part time out of the office," she said. "Then every once in a while you get to see people, get that human connection."
Instead, the data pointed in a different direction.
Among employees in the study, well-being was highest for fully remote workers, followed by hybrid employees and then onsite workers.
The findings also cast doubt on one of the main arguments for bringing employees back to the office: that people need to be together in person to feel connected.