My argument against that narrative is if you crave interpersonal connection, there are healthier ways to engage in that through actual friendships and hobbies,

My argument against that narrative is if you crave interpersonal connection, there are healthier ways to engage in that through actual friendships and hobbies, than within the forced artificial construct of corporate hierarchy, rules, incentives and power structures. I can't imagine as an independent contributor this would be productive or desired. In my experience, I've found managers very enthusiastic to RTO as it gives them more validation, and increased productivity through monitoring - under the guise of building team rapport.