Workplace Ambiguity and Technology Support for Autistic and IDD Workers

Silas Curry; Rishit Singh; Heekyoung Jung; Angel Hsing-Chi Hwang; Fan Yang; Ce Zhong; Nicholas Lindgren; Chen Chen; Lingyao Li; Renkai Ma

arXiv · 2610.21236

Workplace Ambiguity and Technology Support for Autistic and IDD Workers

Silas Curry·Rishit Singh·Heekyoung Jung·Angel Hsing-Chi Hwang·Fan Yang·Ce Zhong·Nicholas Lindgren·Chen Chen·Lingyao Li·Renkai Ma

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Abstract

Workplace ambiguity, where expectations, evaluations, or procedures are left unstated, acts as a structural access barrier for autistic and IDD workers, routinely forcing them to act on guesses. To investigate how these barriers operate, we interviewed 11 caregivers, concluding with an AI co-design activity to explore technological solutions. Their perspectives revealed five themes of workplace ambiguity, which we synthesize into a conceptual framework comprising three intersecting dimensions: evaluative, procedural, and relational. To address these barriers, participants proposed three forms of technology support, including ambient real-time redirection, feedback processing, and physiological guidance, designed to make hidden expectations perceptible and actionable. However, this exposes a core tension: technologies designed to make the workplace legible can inadvertently make the worker hyper-legible to employers through surveillance. We argue that ambiguity-aware workplaces must make expectations explicit before they carry consequences, and assistive technologies must remain accountable to the worker.

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Silas Curry, Rishit Singh, Heekyoung Jung, Angel Hsing-Chi Hwang, Fan Yang, Ce Zhong, Nicholas Lindgren, Chen Chen, Lingyao Li, Renkai Ma. 2026-10-15. Workplace Ambiguity and Technology Support for Autistic and IDD Workers. https://arxiv.org/abs/2610.21236

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