While rspec automatically creates specs for any helpers created by the Rails generators, I was wondering if other Rails developers find it important/useful to spec the helpers in real-world or if they often don't bother, since the helpers are often tested by proxy through testing of the components that use them?
Personally I do test helper methods, because I like to test them in isolation. If the following feature specs fails I know I probably made a mistake in my test setup because I already ensured that the helper method works.
It is also easier to test all possible scenarios. If you want to test all possibilities as part of a whole you need more test setup and sacrifice performance.