The detachment paradox: Employers recognize the benefits of detachment for employee well-being and performance, yet penalize it in employee evaluations

Abstract

The present research establishes what we call the “detachment paradox.” Managers recognize that psychological detachment from work during non-work hours benefits workers’ well-being and, critically, enhances their performance during working hours. Yet, these same managers penalize employees who are perceived to detach when evaluating their promotability. Using a variety of methodologies across 16 studies, we test the existence and the boundaries of this paradox. The detachment paradox is observed among various samples ranging from experienced managers to lay individuals, for commonly used detachment strategies (e.g., out-of-office emails, requesting vacation days), for hypothetical workers as well as for managers’ own workers, and even when detachment strategies are used for virtuous reasons (e.g., taking care of a sick relative). In addition, these studies establish that inferences about commitment to work drive the associated detachment penalty. Accordingly, workers are penalized less if detachment strategies are used for reasons that indicate a commitment to work. Lastly, we provide initial evidence that implementing formalized detachment policies (e.g., no emails over weekends) may reduce the detachment penalty and call for future research on this important topic.