But I’ve also never understood why anyone works longer than they need to if they have the means to live comfortably in the first place.

In the USA one of the best reasons to keep working is the healthcare gap before Medicare kicks in.

Also, when you're approaching "early retirement age" you're likely at the peak of your earning potential. Working 1 more year could be equal to 3x or 4x a single year of retirement spending.

Another thing happens when you're still working but you don't absolutely need to. You recognize working is optional and you can take the risk and push back on work you don't like. It gives you the power to take the risk. If you get fired, you're already set up to continue life without working. This makes the work itself usually much more pleasant/tolerant so there's a lower desire to quit early.

Institutionalization.

It's like that one movie...pretty sure its Shawshank Redemption? There's that one guy that gets out of jail and then commits suicide in a few months or so, because he can't handle the real world after spending most of their life in jail.

I think work operates in a similar way...but the cruelty of the trap is that the things that make life worth living, i.e. hobbies, friends, a life outside of work, etc. kind of interferes with your ability to get that high level income you need for early retirement.

I think a lot of people that work even though they have the means to live comfortably for the rest of their lives are there because...work is their entire life. They have nothing outside of it. No purpose.

We talk about retirement as a question of resources: do we have the financial resources to live x years? What we don't talk about is every other resource. Social, emotional, physical (in the does your body work sense) etc. Sure, you've got the house and the money...but your friends are all at work, and making new ones is pretty hard...even if you manage to make bank and retire in your mid 30s.