“It Was Something I Naturally Found Worked and Heard About Later”: An Investigation of Body Doubling with Neurodivergent Participants
Summary & key facts
Researchers surveyed 220 people who identify as neurodivergent to learn how they use a community strategy called "body doubling." Body doubling means having someone else present so you can start, keep going on, or finish a task. The study found many forms of body doubling (same room, on a video call, or even a recorded video) and many uses (studying, work, chores, exercise, or leisure). The researchers describe why people choose it—mainly to build momentum and stay focused—and offer a simple model to explain the different ways it happens. The results describe people's experiences, but they do not prove that body doubling makes task performance better.
- The study asked 220 people who identify as neurodivergent about their experiences with body doubling.
- People in the community roughly define body doubling as using someone else’s presence to start, stay focused on, or finish a task.
- Body doubles can be physically in the same room, remote on a live call, or even a recorded video like a YouTube video.
- People use body doubling for many tasks, including studying, working, washing dishes, cleaning, exercising, and leisure activities.
- The main reasons people use body doubling were to generate momentum and to help them stay on task.
- Many participants had used this strategy for years but did not have a name for it until the researchers described it.
- The paper presents a two-part model to explain body doubling that looks at where and when it happens (space/time) and how mutual or interactive the other person is (mutuality).
- This was a survey of people’s reports, so the findings describe what participants say they do and why, rather than testing whether body doubling causes better results.
Abstract
Body doubling has emerged as a community-driven phenomenon primarily employed by neurodivergent individuals. In this work, we survey 220 people to investigate how, when, and why they engage in body doubling and their own definitions for it. The community roughly defines it as using the presence of others to start, stay focused on, or accomplish a task. Tasks can be productivity or leisure-related. A body double can be collocated or remote, recorded or live, known or a stranger. This phenomenon remains nameless to many neurodivergent individuals; however, once presented with the term and concept, many recognize it as a strategy they have engaged in for years. We present the variety of ways people engage in body doubling (e.g., at a café, with YouTube videos), the diverse range of tasks people utilize it for (e.g., studying and working, doing dishes, cleaning, and exercising), and their motivations for doing so (e.g., generating momentum, staying on task). Lastly, we present implications for future work based upon a two-part model of body doubling as a continuum of space/time and mutuality.
