Quiet Quitting in America: An Empirical Assessment of Three Explanations

Since 2022, quiet quitting has captured widespread public and scholarly attention, yet its causes remain poorly understood. This article advances the literature by identifying and empirically testing three explanations. Regression analyses using the 2014, 2018, and 2022 waves of the General Social Survey show that quiet quitting is more common among workers who enjoy better work environments and higher job satisfaction—contradicting the mainstream management explanation that portrays unhealthy environments and job dissatisfaction as the chief culprits. We also find that workers in more advantageous labor market positions and those permitted to work remotely are more likely to practice quiet quitting, supporting the a rational response explanation that conceptualizes workers as opportunistic actors with an inherent tendency to minimize effort. Consistent with the cultural shift explanation, workers who view work as an economic means rather than an intrinsically valuable activity are more likely to quietly quit, and the phenomenon has grown more prevalent in the postpandemic era. Together, these findings suggest that quiet quitting is not a new label for old problems addressable through managerial interventions but an emerging trend shaped by broader socioeconomic contexts. We conclude by discussing sociology’s crucial role in understanding quiet quitting and the underlying shifts in how individuals approach work in advanced capitalism.