We increasingly live in a very hands-off society in the U.S. If a person were to put their hand on the shoulder of a colleague at work to say, "great work," it could be misconstrued as inappropriate. Therefore, for liability purposes, we are being coached by the organizations we represent in our work lives to not use the innate gestures that indicate closeness and intimacy. We are throwing out the baby with the bath water, so to speak.
Indeed. We're hesitant to do a lot of things these days because people are so quick to accuse others of inappropriate behavior. Even though, context is still a thing. Unless there was a situation that directly called for it, I'd never hug a coworker, however I wouldn't hesitate to hug a friend if that's what they were expecting from me. At the same time, the type of hug I'd give to my friend would be different from the type of hug I'd give my wife. In all those situations still, there's even more context. When, where, and why all dictates how and how long I'd hug someone. We're a very nuanced society with a lot rules, both spoken and un.