Autism and software testing

Autism spectrum disorder is a neurological disorder that works on three levels: biologically in genes and brain metabolism, cognitively in information processing and behaviorally in social interaction, communication and the need for routines. For software testers, autism means increased perception of detail, stronger analytical thinking and a memory that precisely recalls connections and previous errors.

Key Takeaways

• Autistic people actively perceive changes instead of blocking them out, which leads to errors and deviations becoming apparent more quickly than with non-autistic colleagues.
• Burnouts as a warning signal: Anyone who repeatedly experiences burnouts as an adult should check autism as a possible cause, because the permanently increased energy output for social interaction and stimulus processing systematically exhausts resources.
• Direct, unfiltered feedback is an advantage in software testing: those who do not wrap feedback in absorbent cotton provide complete information, while socially cushioned feedback conceals problems.
• Autistic testers do not actively search for errors, they find them passively, because any deviation from the memorized pattern immediately triggers a reaction without the need for a systematic search.
• Colleagues who work closely with autistic people need to classify social behavior, otherwise a misunderstanding arises: lack of small talk or lack of reaction to jokes is interpreted as rejection, although it is simply a different way of processing.

What constitutes autism on three levels

Autism is a medical diagnosis, officially autism spectrum disorder. The term “disorder” is controversial, but that is how it is used in medicine. The spectrum is broad, and no two autistic people are the same.

Medicine describes autism on three levels. The first is biological: genes, mirror neurons, metabolism. Research assumes that the cause lies primarily in the genes, but has not yet been able to name a specific gene.

The second level is cognitive and concerns the way the brain processes information. Autistic brains are more aware of details and work from the bottom up rather than from the top down. This often leads to autistic people getting lost in the details.

The executive functions also belong to the cognitive level. Autistic people find it difficult to adapt to constantly changing environments. Few and slow changes are easier to process than fast ones.

The third level is behavioral, and this is where autism is most visible. It is about social interaction, communication and stereotypical patterns. It is difficult to intuitively assess other people. Communication is primarily about conveying information, rather than small talk, joking or non-verbal communication.

Why a diagnosis often comes late

Many autistic people don’t realize for a long time that they perceive things differently. Those who find it difficult to empathize with others intuitively assume that everyone experiences the world in the same way as they do.

Autism often first manifests itself through psychological stress. More problems in adolescence than in peers, a lack of explanations and the hope that “it will get better with age” does not work. Sometimes it gets worse instead of better. Several burnouts can be the point at which autism comes into view as an explanation.

Only those who understand what autism is can recognize their own differences. That non-verbal communication is easier for others. That a conversation is less tiring for others. That a quick change costs others less energy.

Diagnosis is the first step to appropriate help, because no one is treated for autism in a meaningful way without being diagnosed with autism. The capacity for diagnoses is limited. It can take two years instead of two weeks for confirmation. For people who find it difficult to cope with uncertainty, that is two years of ambiguity.

Lower stress tolerance characterizes everyday working life

The stress tolerance of autistic people is often lower than average. Surprises, rapid changes and social interactions cost more energy and require more breaks.

If these breaks are missing, the situation turns sour. Nervousness and irritability increase and this also becomes unpleasant for those around them. Working with an irritable person is not pleasant for anyone.

Multitasking is particularly difficult. Several systems in parallel, plus changing customers without a break, all combined with social interaction: this quickly pushes you to the limit. The more issues are running simultaneously, the greater the energy consumption.

Social interaction can be scaled according to workload. A planned one-to-one meeting with a known agenda is easy to manage. The more unknown people, unknown topics and unplanned situations are added, the more difficult it becomes. In one such meeting, you can run out of energy after ten minutes, whereas in another, you can last an hour and a half.

If you work with autistic colleagues, it helps to keep meetings small and share an agenda in advance. This is not special treatment, but a condition under which good work is possible.

Autistic testers don’t look for mistakes, they find them

A strong perception of detail often makes autistic testers better than average at detecting errors. Typos in a document catch the eye without having to check each word individually.

The mechanism behind this is patterns. Language, code or XML follow clear rules. If something deviates from the learned pattern, a red light goes on immediately. This works where experience is available, for example in a mastered language.

Autistic people don’t look for errors, they find them. And that helps in testing. Robert

There are also two sides to dealing with change. Others cope well with change because they block out a lot of it. Those who block out little actively perceive almost every deviation. This costs energy, but mistakes are often just such deviations, which makes them immediately noticeable.

In-depth knowledge of the system shortens the troubleshooting process

When analyzing, it pays to delve deep into an individual system. If you have a lot of background knowledge about a system, you can identify the possible causes of an error more quickly.

The cause of an error rarely lies where the error is visible. Everyone finds the error in the obvious place. The difficult errors are located elsewhere, and those who have a clearer idea of the dependencies have to search less.

A second lever is responsibility. Instead of assuming that the fault lies in your own area, it is worth asking the first question: Is it even ours? If the cause lies elsewhere, the error can be passed on. Otherwise, every minute spent searching in other people’s code is a bad investment.

Memory also helps. An error message that occurred years ago and has long been in the archive can be retrieved if a similar problem returns.

Direct feedback is an advantage in testing

Less empathy in expression often means clearer feedback in testing. Where others wrap criticism in absorbent cotton, direct feedback comes across undisguised.

The difference is concrete. If something works halfway, one piece of feedback is “you did a great job”, the other is “that’s not good enough”. If the goal is maximum improvement of the software, the honest version helps more.

This directness requires classification. The other person must know that the openness applies to the matter and is not a rejection of the person. Otherwise misunderstandings will arise.

Distribute tasks according to strengths instead of managing weaknesses

Teams get the most out of tasks when they focus on strengths instead of just managing deficits. Those who present poorly should not be forced to present, because weak arguments are poorly received.

A realistic model separates the roles. One person prepares a precise document with the arguments, while a person with stronger communication skills presents them. This makes the arguments more effective, which benefits the team.

A common misconception is that if you can’t do one thing, you can’t do another. In fact, weaknesses and strengths go hand in hand. Those who shine less in social skills are often stronger analytically.

What autistic colleagues wish for

The most important thing is acceptance: being different without “different” being equated with “worse”. Pity doesn’t help anyone.

In close-knit working groups, it is worth explaining social behavior in particular, because this affects collaboration the most. Direct expression, little small talk, sometimes a joke that is not understood: those who can classify this will not interpret it as personal rejection.

The information can be dosed. No one in the team needs to become an autism expert, and too much explanation tends to be overwhelming. It is enough that the few people who work closely together are aware of the altered social behavior and can classify it correctly.

Tolerance and utilization belong together. Appreciate what a person is particularly good at, use it, and at the same time be lenient where they struggle. It is precisely this combination that makes a team with autistic members strong.