Your data deserve better than pies and bars: An R graphics workshop for the timid
Richard A. Layton · 2014
Conventional data displays such as pie charts, bar charts, and tables are generally ineffective at communicating the logic of an argument. Effective alternatives exist are less well-known. Reasons for the prevalence of pie charts, bar charts, and tables include: they are native to Office software; engineers and engineering educators generally lack training in visual rhetoric; new designs require additional work and technical skill of the author; and audiences resist change. This workshop addresses some of these barriers to change. The superior alternative to pie charts, bar charts, and (some) tables is the dot plot, a display type absent from Office but native to R, an open-source software environment originating in the statistics community. Workshop participants learn why dot plots are effective and how to create them using R. The workshop is designed for R beginners. The agenda includes active learning, demonstration, and discussion. Programming topics are developed using self-paced tutorials. Participants, from any discipline, interested in learning why and how to improve their graphical communication of quantitative data are welcome. Participants should bring wireless-capable laptops. After completing the workshop, participants should be able to describe the limitations of pie charts, bar charts, and tables, cite principles underlying more effective graphs, and use R to create dot plots. By developing participants' technical skills and rhetorical skills in this way, we serve the greater goal of improving their abilities to explore data and communicate findings, helping them use the logic of a display design to better support the logic of their argument.