Cognitive Aspects of Visualization Use

Although some research has examined effects of various features of visualizations on users’ cognition, most of the focus has been on perception and low-level cognitive processes, rather than on high-level cognitive processes and structures (e.g., mental models, metaphors, and abstract reasoning). Because visualizations are used for more than simple and quick perceptual judgments—and because data visualization is moving increasingly beyond specialist-use only and into the realm of general public use—it is important to have a principled understanding of the high-level cognitive processes and structures with which average users interpret and make sense of visualizations. In this area of research, we investigate effects of different visualization and interaction techniques on user cognition. We also investigate how cognitive structures, like mental models and metaphors, influence how people interpret and reason with visual information.

Related Publications

2023

Zhang, Zixu; Parsons, Paul

Designing Visual Displays for Deep Space Habitats: Challenges and Opportunities from a Cognitive Task Analysis with ISS Conference Forthcoming

Proceedings of the 67th Human Factors and Ergonomics Society Annual Meeting, Forthcoming.

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2022

Parsons, Paul; Zhang, Zixu

Visual Communication of Potential Anomalies with Boundary Lines in ISS Mission Control Workshop

IEEE VIS Workshop on Visualization for Communication (VisComm ’22), Late-Breaking Work, 2022.

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Parsons, Paul; Zhang, Zixu; Murray, Jackson

Adaptive Performance: A Generative Theory for HCI Design in Extraterrestrial Habitats Workshop

SpaceCHI 2.0: Advancing Human-Computer Interaction for Space Exploration. A Workshop at ACM CHI 2022, 2022.

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2018

Parsons, Paul

Promoting Representational Fluency for Cognitive Bias Mitigation in Information Visualization Book Section

In: Ellis, Geoffrey (Ed.): Cognitive Biases in Visualizations, pp. 137–147, Springer International Publishing, Cham, 2018, ISBN: 978-3-319-95830-9 978-3-319-95831-6.

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Parsons, Paul

Conceptual Metaphor Theory as a Foundation for Communicative Visualization Design Conference

IEEE VIS Workshop on Visualization for Communication (VisComm), Berlin, Germany, 2018.

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Baigelenov, Ali; Parsons, Paul

Interactivity Factors in Visualization-Based Exploratory Search Conference

Extended Abstracts of the ACM SIGCHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (CHI LBW), CHI EA '18 ACM, New York, NY, USA, 2018, ISBN: 978-1-4503-5621-3.

Abstract | Links | BibTeX

2017

Saenz, Michael; Baigelenov, Ali; Hung, Ya-Hsin; Parsons, Paul

Reexamining the cognitive utility of 3D visualizations using augmented reality holograms Proceedings Article

In: IEEE VIS Workshop on Immersive Analytics, pp. 5, Phoenix, AZ, 2017.

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Baigelenov, Ali; Saenz, Michael; Hung, Ya-Hsin; Parsons, Paul

Toward an Understanding of Observational Advantages in Information Visualization Conference

IEEE VIS '17: Proceedings of the 2017 IEEE Conference on Information Visualization, Poster Abstracts, Phoenix, AZ, 2017.

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Hung, Ya-Hsin; Parsons, Paul

Evaluating User Engagement in Information Visualization Using Mixed Methods Proceedings Article

In: IEEE VIS '17: Proceedings of the 2017 IEEE Conference on Information Visualization, Poster Abstracts, pp. 2, Phoenix, AZ, 2017.

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Hung, Ya-Hsin; Parsons, Paul

Assessing User Engagement in Information Visualization Proceedings Article

In: Extended Abstracts of the ACM SIGCHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (CHI LBW), pp. 1708–1717, ACM, New York, NY, USA, 2017, ISBN: 978-1-4503-4656-6.

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2016

Sedig, Kamran; Parsons, Paul; Liang, Hai-Ning; Morey, Jim

Supporting Sensemaking of Complex Objects with Visualizations: Visibility and Complementarity of Interactions Journal Article

In: Informatics, vol. 3, no. 4, pp. 20, 2016.

Abstract | Links | BibTeX

2014

Sedig, Kamran; Parsons, Paul; Dittmer, Mark; Haworth, Robert

Human-centered interactivity of visualization tools: Micro- and macro-level considerations Book Chapter

In: Huang, Weidong (Ed.): Handbook of Human-Centric Visualization, pp. 717–743, Springer, New York, 2014.

Abstract | Links | BibTeX

Parsons, Paul; Sedig, Kamran

Distribution of Information Processing while Performing Complex Cognitive Activities with Visualization Tools Book Chapter

In: Huang, Weidong (Ed.): Handbook of Human-Centric Visualization, pp. 693–715, Springer, New York, 2014.

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Parsons, Paul; Sedig, Kamran

Common visualizations: Their cognitive utility Book Chapter

In: Huang, Weidong (Ed.): Handbook of Human-Centric Visualization, pp. 671–691, Springer, New York, 2014.

Abstract | Links | BibTeX

Parsons, Paul; Sedig, Kamran

Adjustable properties of visual representations: Improving the quality of human-information interaction Journal Article

In: Journal of the Association for Information Science and Technology, vol. 65, no. 3, pp. 455–482, 2014, ISSN: 23301635, (arXiv: 0803.1716 ISBN: 978-0-88986-920-2).

Abstract | Links | BibTeX

2013

Sedig, Kamran; Parsons, Paul

Interaction Design for Complex Cognitive Activities with Visual Representations: A Pattern-Based Approach Journal Article

In: AIS Transactions on Human-Computer Interaction, vol. 5, no. 2, pp. 84–133, 2013.

Abstract | Links | BibTeX