A Smorgasbord of Data Visualization Methods and Best Practices Across Projects, Topics, Tools, and Audiences

• Activity Number: 206 - A Smorgasbord of Data Visualization Methods and Best Practices Across Projects, Topics, Tools, and Audiences
• Type: Topic-Contributed
• Date/Time: Tuesday, August 10, 2021 : 1:30 PM to 3:20 PM
• Sponsor: Section on Statistical Graphics
• Author(s): Rene Bautista* and Kiegan Rice* and Peter Herman* and Patrick Coyle*
• Companies: NORC at the University of Chicago and NORC at the University of Chicago and NORC at the University of Chicago and NORC at the University of Chicago
• Keywords: Visualization; Infographic; Interactive; Dashboard; Audience; Survey data

Abstract

Data visualizations in the non-profit sector encompass a wide range of formats, including static charts, interactive dashboards, maps, infographic reports, newsletters, and tweets. These cover a variety of topics, including health, public opinion, social problems, and geographic data, and are built using many tools, such as html, JavaScript, R, D3, PowerPoint, and Illustrator. Audiences include government clients, policy makers, news outlets, social media, researchers, and the general public. Panelists will discuss the tools, dissemination formats, audience considerations, obstacles, and best practices that go into a collection of data graphics. The panel discusses presenting over 40 years of social survey data from the General Social Survey (https://gssdataexplorer.norc.org/, Rene Bautista); applying communication principles to qualitative data visualization and infographics (https://www.norc.org/Research/Projects/Pages/norc-numbers.aspx, Kiegan Rice); making geographic data understandable, using drug overdose data as an example (https://opioidmisusetool.norc.org/, Peter Herman); and digging into a COVID-19 data story (https://mcbs-covid.norc.org/, Patrick Coyle).