Are aspies more productive then NT people in the work place?

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It's something I've been curious about. I know that, at least for me I am. One thing I've noticed when working with NT people is that I always stay focused on the task at hand and don't like to stop till I am finished doing what I'm doing and don't get distracted by others. Whereas NT people so often spend half the time that could be used to be productive just joking around and doing mindless chit chat that I find infuriating.

Sure we may not be "social" but work is where you....work! It's not meant to be some little fun get together for idle conversation!

I would think that it would really depend on the individuals involved, the type of work involved, and the person's approach to doing the work.

Look at it this way -- if workers with Aspergers were nearly alway more productive than the other workers, many employers would be actively seeking employees with Aspergers and maybe even paying a premium to get them.

Yes, it depends a lot on the work--in a lot of modern jobs these days, it is important to be able to multi-task--instead of hiring a lot of workers to do things assembly line style they have fewer workers who have to do a lot of things.

It may sound like idle chatter, but perhaps your co-workers are also trading valuable tips on dealing with customers--as well as other work related information that helps them do their jobs more efficiently.

Also, many folks just aren't as productive unless they get regular breaks--sticking it out to the completion of the task isn't such a great achievement if it results in mistakes or errors that could have been easily avoided.

It really would depend on the task. If I had a big job to do, no matter how monotonous, e.g. making up packs or name badges for a conference, I could work like a machine, at more than double the speed of my colleagues. But, the other 'bitty' jobs that I had, especially those that involved interactions with others, e.g. phonecalls, I would procrastinate over those for hours or days on end and feel bad about not getting them done. Meanwhile, my other work suffer, due to my anxiety about my procrastination.

The OP asks a question which is always going to be situational and I don't think the Aspie/NT WP paradigm fits here.

To eric's point bolded above, I cannot agree. Judging from what I see in the "Work" sub-forum, Aspies are often forced out accross the board, sometimes for being too good. I've seen enough cases of that over the years.

If one went to a HR seminar, asking about Aspies would probably be a good way to get escorted off the property.

Not all NTs use their workplace as a social place. That sort of behaviour is more common in young people who are extroverted and full-of-it and get really pally with others of the same kind. Otherwise, people generally just get on with their work, at least where I work anyway.

I've often been told off, in fact shouted at, before, when standing around talking during work time. There's this one teenage girl who doesn't get on with her work at all and just does little bits and spends the rest of her time going up to the other workers and chatting. She's even asked me to come with her to speak to someone else, and this woman looked quite agitated when this young girl was standing there yapping, as though this woman wanted her to go away so she could get on with her work before the day finished (we don't get paid for overtime).

We're all only cleaners at a care home.