No more Jim Halpert-Pam Beesly or Jake Peralta-Amy Santiago in offices anymore: Study shows a drop in office romance

Office romance couples in pop culture have always left us swooning, but a study shows office romance trends are going down.

Office romance has been portrayed a lot in media, from classic sitcoms like The Office and Brooklyn Nine-Nine to the more contemporary TikTok-popular book-turned-movie The Hating Game.

Jim and Pam(from The Office), along with Jake Peralta and Amy Santiago (from Brooklyn Nine-Nine), are some of the most iconic couples in pop culture whose relationships began in the office.(Pinterest)

Couples like Jim-Pam and Jake-Amy are in fact all time endearing couples, making a place in the audience's heart.

A fleeting glance across the meeting room, a competitive tiff over targets, playful banter during coffee breaks, and so much more. Think of a trope, you can fit it into an office scenario somehow. It's dreamy to find someone despite the rush of targets, and meetings in the workplace.

But all this romance in office is rapidly dwindling. A survey by SHRM found that workplace crushes and dating are going down, despite many companies relaxing policies on office romance. Let's see what's driving this shift.

Decline in workplace crushes and dating

As per the SHRM survey, the number of workers reporting a crush on a coworker has decreased significantly by 27% over the past year. From 49% of workers admitting to having a workplace crush, the number has now sharply dropped to just 22%.

Similarly, workplace dating has also seen a slight decline. In the previous year, 21% of employees reported going on a date with a colleague, but that number has now fallen to 16%.

These findings indicate a reluctant behaviour to date coworkers, despite many offices easing office dating policies. Even if people do have crushes in office, they don't act on it.

Maybe it's going down because of the shift in work mode, like hybrid and work-from-home setups. Sometimes, workers also want to be professional and clearly distinguish work from personal life, avoiding any awkward situations in the workplace. Lastly, there could also be hesitation because of power dynamics, especially when someone dates a person in a higher position, as ethical and favouritism-related issues may arise, undermining their actual hardwork.

What motivates romance in office

The survey also assessed what drives some people to engage in office romance. According to the findings, over half of those surveyed (53%) cited love-related motivations, such as seeking companionship or sincere affection, as the most important reasons for workplace romance. On the other hand, almost half (40%) of workers were driven by more self-interested factors, like the excitement of an adventure or physical attraction. A smaller portion (29%) viewed office relationships as a means to achieve job-related goals, such as career advancement or job security.

Even if the portion is less, some people do pursue romance due to job-related motivations, like job security or advancement. But this raises ethical problems. It may lead to a conflict of interest too.