How Tech Can Accommodate Working Women with Autism

With the push for DEI&B (diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging) initiatives for many companies comes an increased interest in neurodiversity – the diversity of how our brains function and interact with the world. While many people have what is considered a standard, or neurotypical, brain, as much as 20% of the world population is neurodivergent. Under this neurodivergent umbrella are conditions like dyslexia and dyscalculia, and mental illnesses that can affect brain function, like depression, anxiety, and PTSD. It also includes ADHD and autism.

Autism changes how someone thinks, processes their senses, moves, communicates, and socializes. It is different for everyone – if you’ve met one person with autism, then you’ve met one person with autism. Generally, autism affects how the brain works, often described as web-like thinking. It also can create difficulty with self-regulation, ranging from energy and emotional responses to body temperature and the senses.

Rising Adult Diagnosis and Unmasking

One common characteristic of autism is masking, or hiding autistic traits to “act normal.” This greatly impacts the ability to thrive in the workplace. You could think of it as using your customer service voice all the time – it is just as exhausting and contributes to burnout. Some people with autism mask on purpose based on the situation while others go their whole lives doing it unknowingly.

Most of the diagnosed population are white male children due to diagnostic criteria for autism. Girls, women, other people assigned female at birth (AFAB), and people of color (POC) are frequently undiagnosed or are diagnosed later in life. This is especially true considering the way AFAB and POC are already socialized to code switch, and may not realize they are essentially masking. 

During the Covid-19 pandemic and initial lockdown, everything stopped, and people were not in front of other people every day. With no necessary social cues and minimized interaction, many people began to unmask without realizing it. When people began to return to the office, many found that they could no longer mask, no matter how hard they tried. This led to an increase in adult diagnosis of autism and other neurodivergence. This is considered a late-diagnose because autism is typically diagnosed during childhood. The pandemic also made a lot of people seek out community online, and it was easier to see that autism, like many other things, is nothing like how it is portrayed in the media.

The internet & social media make other people’s experiences more accessible. When you hear the stories of others and how close they are to your own, it becomes easier to think, “maybe I should look into this.” This caused a rise in both medical and self-diagnosis. 

Women Working in Tech

Studies show only 15% of diagnosed autistic people in the US are employed. Recently, a TikTok video has gone semi-viral asking autistic adults who are employed how they are able to work. The video has received responses ranging from job-hopping and dealing with meltdowns at work to advocating for accommodations. Many responses also admitted burnout and said they were likely leaving their jobs soon.

Many people with autism gravitate towards the technology field because it often aligns with how their brains work. Code full of if/then statements, data analytics, logic systems – these all mesh well with how individuals with autism tend to process information and think through things. Research shows this as well – around 34% of autistic children end up choosing a STEM major in college, higher than the general population. On the other side of the coin, tech companies are interested in the unique skills people with autism can bring to the table – like spider-web, analytical thinking and faster information processing – and how that translates to the workplace. Several studies have even shown higher productivity and more accurate results from autistic employees. So why the high unemployment rate for people with autism? 

It often boils down to two things: hiring processes and a lack of accommodations. Women in tech are already faced with inherent biases during the hiring process. When neurodivergence is factored in as well, it becomes even more difficult. However, some tech companies have created hiring programs specifically for people with autism. This can include a longer interview process that allows people to show their skills over time or replacing a formal interview with a written one. Each company’s initiative works a little differently. For example, WWCode partner Deloitte has worked with Specialisterne USA to develop a three-month apprenticeship program with an opportunity for hiring at the end. SAP’s program, one of the first and better-known, has a variety of accommodation options for their hiring process and includes a buddy program upon hiring.

SAP has the right idea – accommodations and support shouldn’t stop with an offer letter. There’s still work that must be done to retain these new employees. We see that frequently with women in tech as well – many leave the field by year 10. For autistic women in tech, it’s often even sooner. If there is a lack of accommodations available on top of the “boys club” that tech can be, it becomes very difficult to stay within the 15% of employed autistic individuals. Some of these accommodations are simple – removing awful fluorescent overhead lighting, providing noise-canceling headphones, and sticking to a set schedule can all help people with autism stay focused and comfortable throughout the day. 

This is even simpler in a remote work setting, where employees can control their environments. However, the work culture also needs to be accepting and affirming. This includes educating employees on autism and neurodivergence during DEI training, as well as having systems and policies in place that are autism-friendly. Something as simple as a “cameras optional” policy or not calling on people for input out of the blue for virtual meetings can make them less stressful for individuals with autism without singling out those who need accommodations. 

Additional Resources

April is Autism Acceptance Month – acceptance, not awareness. This shift in language is important, focusing on inclusivity and celebrating differences. Here are a few things to keep in mind as we celebrate this month:

• Avoid outdated language/symbols

  • Many organizations use a puzzle piece to symbolize autism. This portrays people with autism as a problem to be fixed and focuses on the negative aspects of autism. A rainbow infinity symbol is used instead to reflect the diversity of the community.

  • Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) used to be called Aspergers Syndrome, named for the psychologist who first diagnosed it. This term is not used or accepted within the community, as the man it was named for, Hans Asperger, actively supported and participated in the Nazi’s “child euthanasia” program, only saving children he deemed intelligent.

• Support groups that are centered around people with autism

There are many organizations that focus on autism as a disease to be cured, that focus on support for the parents of autistic children rather than those with autism, and/or that use very little of the donated money to support people with autism. Autism Speaks, arguably one of the better-known organizations, does all of the above. Consider organizations such as the Autistic Self Advocacy Network (ASAN), created by and for people with autism, instead.