Personally I think it has more to do with the conditions of work. For example, working autonomously and not interacting much with others. Validation comes from

Personally I think it has more to do with the conditions of work. For example, working autonomously and not interacting much with others. Validation comes from shared experiences, but it doesn't have to be limited to programming. Just having the odd conversation with people about anything mildly intellectually stimulating helps so much.