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Related Experiment Videos

Why Authors Don't Visualize Uncertainty.

Jessica Hullman

    IEEE Transactions on Visualization and Computer Graphics
    |August 20, 2019
    PubMed
    Summary
    This summary is machine-generated.

    Many visualization authors avoid depicting uncertainty due to practical challenges and assumptions, despite recognizing its value. This research explores these reasons and offers recommendations for better uncertainty communication in data visualizations.

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    Area of Science:

    • Data Visualization
    • Information Design
    • Human-Computer Interaction

    Background:

    • Clear communication of uncertainty in data visualizations is often lacking in media, reports, and applications.
    • Existing techniques for visualizing uncertainty are not widely adopted by visualization authors.

    Purpose of the Study:

    • To investigate why visualization authors frequently omit the depiction of uncertainty.
    • To characterize the practices, associations, and attitudes of visualization authors regarding uncertainty communication.

    Main Methods:

    • Surveying 90 authors who create visualizations for others.
    • Interviewing 13 influential visualization designers.

    Main Results:

    • Identified challenges and inconsistencies in authors' beliefs about visualizing uncertainty.

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  • Revealed a contradiction between the acknowledged value of uncertainty depiction and the common practice of omission.
  • Proposed a rhetorical model for uncertainty omission and adapted a statistical model to explain reduced inferential degrees of freedom.

    • Conclusions:

    • Authors face significant challenges in effectively communicating uncertainty.
    • Assumptions and norms reinforce the omission of uncertainty in visualizations.
    • Recommendations are provided to improve uncertainty communication research and practice.