Editor’s Note: This story originally appeared on Zety.com.
Imagine a world where you could completely separate your work and personal life — no stress from the office bleeding into your evenings, no worrying about how your personal beliefs might affect your career.
The hit TV show “Severance” explores this concept as science fiction, but for many workers, the idea feels closer to reality than fiction.
Based on a survey of 1,000 U.S. workers, Zety’s Workplace Identity Report reveals the impact of workplace expectations on personal identity, job satisfaction, and well-being.
The findings suggest that modern work culture often forces workers to compartmentalize their lives — sometimes to the extent that they would even consider a “Severance”-style solution.
Inspired by the show’s premise, in which workers undergo a medical procedure to erase memories of their job outside of work and vice versa, the study uncovers that many workers are already experiencing a real-world version of this divide, often at the expense of their well-being and authenticity.
Key Findings From the Report
- Pressure to conform: 60% of workers believe maintaining a separate “work identity” is necessary for career success.
- Real-life severance: Over one-third (35%) would “sever,” or separate, their work self from their personal self if they could.
- Reasons for severing: Improved work-life balance (16%) and escaping a toxic work environment (12%) are the top factors that would drive workers to consider “severing.”
- Hiding personal identity: Workers feel most pressure to conform when sharing personal beliefs or values at work, such as political views, sexual orientation, or religion (18%).
- Gender and race bias: 44% believe both gender and race influence how much employees feel the need to conform at work.
Conformity in the Workplace
