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New studies help to explain why return-to-office and flexible work policies often fail to achieve their desired outcomes.

In the first, a team led by King's College London professor of work psychology Michael Clinton examined the relationship between return-to-office (RTO) policies, office attendance, and workers' wellbeing, drawing on theories of boundary control.

Based on post-lockdown studies of hybrid workers in the UK, the researchers found that personal experiences of an enforced RTO policy were related to higher office attendance, however policies weren't often enforced by managers at the individual level.

Further, they report in their paper that when RTO policies were enforced, employees reported lower levels of work-related vitality ("the sense of being alive, passionate, and excited within the work context") and work meaningfulness...