Abstract
Data is central to countless recent discussions, but the most recurrent approach is still graphic visualizations. As new technologies and platforms have allegedly democratized and expanded access to information, these visual charts are likely saturating our cognitive efforts. Data physicalization – an emerging research area that conveys data through objects – attempts to present information more efficiently and memorably. Due to its embodiment potential, the approach encourages and invites people to reflect on their social and cultural surroundings while engaging their bodies and imagination. Acknowledging that, the research presented in this paper tries to tackle the impacts of material-weight strangeness in data physicalization by evaluating four experiments conducted with 41 international participants. It compares the performance of physicalizations and visualizations to foster emotional engagement and awareness regarding abstract data. Since the COVID-19 pandemic restrictions significantly increased self-reported chronic loneliness across all the EU macro-regions, initiating meaningful discussions around the topic became our motivation. The results suggest the physical interactions enhanced the selected dataset memorability rather than the virtual ones. On the other hand, the strangeness provoked by material-weight illusion treatments either improved or jeopardized the physicalization's efficiency. Furthermore, based on the research findings, design is likely to be an appealing tool for enhancing engagement in data communication.
Keywords
Data Physicalization; Strangeness; Memorability; Efficiency; Loneliness
DOI
https://doi.org/10.21606/eksig2023.147
Citation
Guedes Mesquita, R.,and Thoring, K.(2023) The eloquent void: strangeness in data physicalization about loneliness, in Silvia Ferraris, Valentina Rognoli, Nithikul Nimkulrat (eds.), EKSIG 2023: From Abstractness to Concreteness – experiential knowledge and the role of prototypes in design research, 19–20 June 2023, Milan, Italy. https://doi.org/10.21606/eksig2023.147
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License
The eloquent void: strangeness in data physicalization about loneliness
Data is central to countless recent discussions, but the most recurrent approach is still graphic visualizations. As new technologies and platforms have allegedly democratized and expanded access to information, these visual charts are likely saturating our cognitive efforts. Data physicalization – an emerging research area that conveys data through objects – attempts to present information more efficiently and memorably. Due to its embodiment potential, the approach encourages and invites people to reflect on their social and cultural surroundings while engaging their bodies and imagination. Acknowledging that, the research presented in this paper tries to tackle the impacts of material-weight strangeness in data physicalization by evaluating four experiments conducted with 41 international participants. It compares the performance of physicalizations and visualizations to foster emotional engagement and awareness regarding abstract data. Since the COVID-19 pandemic restrictions significantly increased self-reported chronic loneliness across all the EU macro-regions, initiating meaningful discussions around the topic became our motivation. The results suggest the physical interactions enhanced the selected dataset memorability rather than the virtual ones. On the other hand, the strangeness provoked by material-weight illusion treatments either improved or jeopardized the physicalization's efficiency. Furthermore, based on the research findings, design is likely to be an appealing tool for enhancing engagement in data communication.