Visualizations at First Sight: Do Insights Require Traininig?

Teaser Image
Author
Michael Smuc
Eva Mayr
Tim Lammarsch
Alessio Bertone
Wolfgang Aigner
Hanna Risku
Silvia Miksch
Conference Paper
Editor
Andreas Holzinger
Abstract
Understanding novel visualizations can be a challenge even for experienced users. During iterative usability engineering phases in the DisCo project, visualizations of time-oriented data are explored by domain experts and non-experts. The aim of our study is to analyze the generation of knowledge and understanding by means of visualizations without previous user training. Focusing on applicability in various business domains for personnel planning and time scheduling, we tested mockups of visualizations with a method based on user-reported insights. Results show almost identical behavior of domain experts and non-experts when generating insights into the data from scratch. In the course of working with a visualization, an interchange of insights into the visualization and insights into the data was found.
Year of Publication
2008
Conference Name
Proceedings of 4th Symposium of the Workgroup Human-Computer Interaction and Usability Engineering of the Austrian Computer Society (USAB 2008)
Date Published
November
Publisher
Springer
Conference Location
Graz, Austria
ISBN Number
978-3-540-89350-9
URL
http://publik.tuwien.ac.at/files/PubDat_217821.pdf
DOI
10.1007/978-3-540-89350-9_19
Funding projects
DisCō - Visual DIScovery and COmmunication of complex time patterns in non regularly gathered multigranular and multivariate data
Download citation