[drweevil]

The subject may sound silly, but we evolved this way. For the greatest part of human existence we were part of small social groups. We each took part in every activity. Our 'work' was for the group, and for ourselves. Those we worked with, we lived with, so in order to maintain group cohesion (and to not get stabbed in our sleep) we learned to get along. Current work practices violate a lot of those deeply set social mores. I'd love to see a study that looks into this hypothesis. Could explain a lot of the misery and depression in our modern life.

[nicbou]

Isn't that Karl Marx's theory of alienation?

[MSFT_Edging]

I believe that's more along the lines of being alienated from the work itself.

IE a potter sees the results of his work in the pots he creates.

A worker in an assembly line sees a small aspect of the pot creation and is separated from the end result.

Many of us will understand the joy of a personal project and the lack of joy in completing an issue ticket. It's generally good for one's mental health to have some kind of purpose behind their work.