Managing Stress: The Needs of Autistic Adults in Video Calling
Abstract
Video calling (VC) aims to create multi-modal, collaborative environments that are "just like being there." However, we found that autistic individuals, who exhibit atypical social and cognitive processing, may not share this goal. We interviewed autistic adults about their perceptions of VC compared to other computer- mediated communications (CMC) and face-to-face interactions. We developed a neurodiversity-sensitive model of CMC that describes how stressors such as sensory sensitivities, cognitive load, and anxiety, contribute to their preferences for CMC channels. We learned that they apply significant effort to construct coping strategies to support their sensory, cognitive, and social needs. These strategies include moderating their sensory inputs, creating mental models of conversation partners, and attempting to mask their autism by adopting neurotypical behaviors. Without effective strategies, interviewees experience more stress, have less capacity to interpret verbal and non-verbal cues, and feel less empowered to participate. Our findings reveal critical needs for autistic users. We suggest design opportunities to support their ability to comfortably use VC, and in doing so, point the way towards making VC more comfortable for all.
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Research has shown that autistic people may find video calling (in non-work contexts) stressful due to struggling with eye contact, distracting background noises, feeling self-conscious and concerns about misreading conversations due to missing non-verbal cues.
“research has shown that autistic people may find video calling (in non-work contexts) stressful due to struggling with eye contact, distracting background noises, feeling self-conscious and concerns about misreading conversations due to missing non-verbal cues [18].”
From Homeworking experiences of neuro-divergent workers: systematic review (2024) · cites this paper as [18]
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Homeworking experiences of neuro-divergent workers: systematic review
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Self-citationAccessibility through Awareness of Noise Sensitivity Management and Regulation Practices
Hicks, E., Mavrovounioti, A., Du, W., Ankrah, E. A., Johnson, J., Min, A., & Hayes, G. R. (2024) · International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS) · doi:10.1145/3663548.3675630 · Cited by 7 · see citing works
Older Autistic People, Access and Experiences of Services, and the Factors That Affect This
Hersh, M. A., Mery, P., & Dawson, M. (2024) · International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health · doi:10.3390/ijerph21111535 · Cited by 6 · see citing works
“They managed this by connecting with the video off, minimising bright lights, adjusting the volume, taking notes, and faking eye contact [22].”
InfluentialMoon, J., Choi, G. W., & Seo, J. (2023) · Virtual Reality · doi:10.1007/s10055-023-00856-2 · Cited by 9 · see citing works
“However, Zolyomi et al. (2019) found that autistic learners might experience cognitive overload during computer-mediated communication.”
BackgroundBartholomaeus, V., Chronowski, N. H., Santiago, P. H. R., Kuring, J. K., & Sawyer, A. C. P. (2024) · The Clinical Neuropsychologist · doi:10.1080/13854046.2024.2335117 · Cited by 6 · see citing works
“For example, individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder may experience hyper or hyposensitivity to sensory inputs, visual, and auditory stimuli (e.g. bright or flashing screens, and loud sounds) which can lead to distraction during a telehealth interaction (Zolyomi et al., 2019).”
Understanding Design Preferences for Sensory-Sensitive Earcons with Neurodivergent Individuals
Race, L., El-Amin, K., Anoke, S. C., Hayward, A., James, A., Hurst, A. K., Davis, A., & Mershon, T. (2022) · International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS) · doi:10.1145/3517428.3550365 · Cited by 5 · see citing works
To understand the experiences of autistic counsellors: A United Kingdom phenomenological study
Taylor, J., & Sims, M. H. (2024) · Counselling and Psychotherapy Research · doi:10.1002/capr.12839 · Cited by 4 · see citing works
“…interviews are known to induce anxiety and sensory or cognitive overwhelm, potentially leading to communication breakdowns, appeasement, misunderstandings or even triggering the fight- or-flight response (Booth & McDonnell, 2016; Heidel, 2020 ; Wilson & Bishop, 2020; Zolyomi et al., 2019 ).”
Equity: What Model Should We Use When We Talk About Autism?
Kintzinger, R. (2021) · Canadian Journal of Autism Equity · doi:10.15173/cjae.v1i1.4982 · Cited by 4 · see citing works
Exploring Videoconferencing for Older Adults with Cognitive Concerns Using a Dramaturgical Lens
Hu, R., Gao, G., & Lazar, A. (2024) · International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS) · doi:10.1145/3663548.3675647 · Cited by 4 · see citing works
Encouragement of Turn-Taking by Real-Time Feedback Impacts Creative Idea Generation in Dyads
Hosseini, S., Deng, X., Miyake, Y., & Nozawa, T. (2021) · IEEE Access · doi:10.1109/access.2021.3072790 · Cited by 4 · see citing works
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Remote autism assessments – lessons learned from the Covid-19 pandemic: a service evaluation
Hartley, J., Purrington, J., & Hartley, G. (2023) · Advances in Autism · doi:10.1108/aia-08-2022-0043 · Cited by 3 · see citing works
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Teleassistance and Telerehabilitation: COVID-19, Other Epidemic Situations and Future Prospects
Bertelli, M. O., Zorzi, S., Buonaguro, E. F., Bianco, A., Armellini, M., & Scattoni, M. L. (2022) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-3-319-95720-3_43 · Cited by 3 · see citing works
MILAP: A Gamified System To Ease Conversations For ASD
Jain, H., Jhaveri, D., Deo, A., & Joshi, A. R. (2023) · International Conference on Advanced Computing Technologies and Applications (ICACTA) · doi:10.1109/icacta58201.2023.10393447 · Cited by 3 · see citing works
ADHD and Knowledge Work: Exploring Strategies, Challenges and Opportunities for AI
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Self-citationNavigating Neurodivergence with AI Chatbots: Benefits, Tensions, and Implications for HCI
Giri, D., Brady, E. L., & Marathe, M. (2026) · CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems · doi:10.1145/3772318.3791334 · Cited by 2 · see citing works
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Mok, T., Hartley, T., Tang, A., McCrimmon, A. W., & Oehlberg, L. (2024) · ACM Transactions on Accessible Computing · doi:10.1145/3706575 · Cited by 2 · see citing works
The relaxed tutorial project: designing synchronous online tutorials for autistic students
Fraser, C. B., Yamagata, N., & Mahon, A. M. (2025) · Open Learning: The Journal of Open, Distance and e-Learning · doi:10.1080/02680513.2025.2530595 · Cited by 3 · see citing works
“(Zolyomi et al., 2019) A similar discomfort with webcams is repeated in more general studies without a neurodiversity focus (e.g. Castelli & Sarvary, 2021; Kozar, 2016) while Yeung et al. (2023) observe that tutors consistently overestimate students’ preference for webcam use; but this appears to…”
Lessons Learned Conducting Online Qualitative Interviews during Covid-19
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Exploring Autistic Coping through Participatory Design
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Intelligent Emotion Prediction System for Help in Telemedicine Therapies of Children with ASD
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Effects of Stress on Physical and Psychological Health of Women in Delhi, India
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Bridging Communication Gaps: Conceptual Enhancements for Video Conferencing with Autistic Users
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““Moving objects or interesting objects in the background” can sometimes hinder the attention of autistic people to conversation in online communication (Zolyomi et al., 2019).”
Adapting Design Workshops for Autistic Adults
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Older autistic people and ICT: experiences, attitudes and support needs
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“The latter parallels the literature on autistic people’s need to manage sensory issues in videocalling (Zolyomi et al. 2019).”
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Fostering Psychological Safety for Learning in Neurodiverse Software Teams
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Under the Neurodivergent Umbrella: A Qualitative Exploration of Neurodivergence and Remote Work
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- Authors
- Zolyomi, A., Begel, A., Waldern, J. F., Tang, J., Barnett, M., Cutrell, E., McDuff, D., Andrist, S., & Morris, M. R.
- Affiliations
- Microsoft (United States) (US)
- ORCID
- Venue
- Proceedings of the ACM on Human-Computer Interaction
- Published
- 2019-11-07
- Volume
- 3
- Issue
- CSCW
- Pages
- 1-29
- ISSN
- 2573-0142 (ISSN-L)
- OpenAlex
- W2970436446
- Cited by
- 101
- References
- 55
- Citations by year
- 2026: 14 · 2025: 20 · 2024: 22 · 2023: 19 · 2022: 11 · 2021: 13 · 2020: 2
- FWCI
- 19.03
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Proceedings of the ACM on Human-Computer Interaction (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Human Factors and Ergonomics › Digital Accessibility for Disabilities
- Physical Sciences › Computer Science › Human-Computer Interaction › Innovative Human-Technology Interaction
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Autism Spectrum Disorder Research
- Keywords
- video calls, autism spectrum disorder, autistic adults, neurodiversity, computer-mediated communication, stress, sensory sensitivity, cognitive load, anxiety, coping strategies, masking, user needs, inclusive design
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