Studying the Utilization of a Map-Based Visualization with Vitality Datasets by Domain Experts

Abstract

With the rapid growth of information technology and geographic information science, many map-based visualization applications for decision-making have been proposed. These applications are used in various contexts. Our study provides empirical evidence of how domain experts utilize map-based data visualization for generating insights into vitality with respect to health-related concepts. We conducted a study to understand domain experts’ knowledge, approach, and experience. Nine domain experts participated in the study, with three experts each from the fields of government, business, and research. The study followed a mixed-methods approach involving an online survey, open-ended tasks, and semi-structured interviews. For this purpose, a map-based data visualization application containing various vitality-related datasets was developed for the open-ended tasks. Our study confirms the importance of maps in this domain but also shows that vitality is strongly geographical. Furthermore, we found that map-based visualizations require multiple data sources and dimensions to enhance the utilization of them in the context of vitality. Therefore, our study suggests the necessity of a combination of multiple datasets as ‘vitality themes’ to efficiently communicate this particular subject to experts. As such, our results provide guidelines for designing map-based data visualizations that support the decision-making process across various domain experts in the field of vitality.

Exploring Crowdsourced Hard—Acceleration and Braking Event Data for Evaluating Safety Performance of Low-Volume Rural Highways in Iowa

“…Furthermore, the lack of sufficient documentation describing the factors contributing to a crash and frequent time lags in crash reporting is quite common in historical crash data. Despite these limitations, detecting areas with excessively high crash rates or crash hot spots aids transportation agencies in identifying where safety improvements are needed [18] [19] [20].…”