Thinking graphically: Connecting vision and cognition during graph comprehension.

Abstract

Public reporting burden for the collection of information is estimated to average 1 hour per response, including the time for reviewing instructions, searching existing data sources, gathering and maintaining the data needed, and completing and reviewing the collection of information. Send comments regarding this burden estimate or any other aspect of this collection of information, including suggestions for reducing this burden, to Washington Headquarters Services, Directorate for Information Operations and Reports, 1215 Jefferson Davis Highway, Suite 1204, Arlington VA 22202-4302. Respondents should be aware that notwithstanding any other provision of law, no person shall be subject to a penalty for failing to comply with a collection of information if it does not display a currently valid OMB control number. Task analytic theories of graph comprehension account for the perceptual and conceptual processes required to extract specific information from graphs (Carpenter & Shah, 1998 Kosslyn, 1989; Lohse, 1993; Pinker, 1990). Comparatively, the processes underlying information integration have received less attention. We propose a new framework for information integration that highlights visual integration and cognitive integration. During visual integration, pattern recognition processes are used to form visual clusters of information; these visual clusters are then used to reason about the graph during cognitive integration. In three experiments the processes required to extract specific information and to integrate information were examined by collecting verbal protocol and eye movement data. Results supported the task analytic theories for specific information extraction and the processes of visual and cognitive integration for integrative questions. Further, the integrative processes scaled up as graph complexity increased, highlighting the importance of these processes for integration in more complex graphs. Finally, based on this framework, design principles to improve both visual and cognitive integration are described. Ratwani, Trafton, & Boehm-Davis: Thinking Graphically 2 AbstractTask analytic theories of graph comprehension account for the perceptual and conceptual processes required to extract specific information from graphs (Carpenter & Shah, 1998;Kosslyn, 1989;Lohse, 1993;Pinker, 1990). Comparatively, the processes underlying information integration have received less attention. We propose a new framework for information integration that highlights visual integration and cognitive integration. During visual integration, pattern recognition processes are used to form visual clusters of information; these visual clusters are then used to reason about the graph during cognitive integration. In three experiments the processes required to extract specific information and to integrate information were examined by collecting verbal protocol and eye movement data. Results supported the task analytic theories for specific information extraction and the processes of visual and cognitive integration for inte...

An Eye-Tracking Study of Integrative Spatial Cognition over Diagrammatic Representations

“…Gilhooly et al [8] found the use of "specialist schemata" in geographers' reading of contour maps, where visual patterns formed by several contour lines indicate some global structures in the area, such as valleys and interlocking spurs. Ratwani et al [21] distinguished "specific information" and "integrating information" that can be extracted from choro- Fig. 1.…”

Early warning systems in the UK: variation in content and implementation strategy has implications for a NHS early warning system

“…They are believed to assist in the recognition of patient deterioration, 14 particularly if they are in spectral colour palates. 15 Computer-based systems are used in around one in 12 London hospitals but have yet to be introduced to acute trusts in Scotland. The merits of computer-based systems are in the speed and accuracy of recording patient observations 16 and in the collation of data to validate and optimise the performance of TTS.…”

A framework for unpacking cognitive benefits of distributed complex visual displays.

“…Different visual displays of the same information (i.e., informationally equivalent displays) can often yield drastically different task performance because different visual displays are not computationally equivalent (Carpenter & Shah, 1998;Gattis & Holyoak, 1996;Hegarty, Canham, & Fabrikant, 2010;Kroft & Wickens, 2002;Larkin & Simon, 1987;Ratwani, Trafton, & Boehm-Davis, 2008;Sanfey & Hastie, 1998). For example, two sets of informationally equivalent graphs were found to be computationally different, and the computational advantages of a new representation could even outweigh the disadvantages of unfamiliar representations (Peebles & Cheng, 2003).…”