User choice of interactive data visualization format: The effects of cognitive style and spatial ability

Abstract

Interactive data visualization has become an important tool for business executives in monitoring key performance indicators, analyzing business process data, and managing individual and organizational performances. One of the key features in interactive data visualization is that users have direct control over how information is presented during the decision-making process. Few studies have examined how users choose visualization formats in such an environment. In this study, we investigate how cognitive style, spatial ability, and task difficulty affect the preference and choice of visualization formats and how the chosen visualization format in turn affects decision accuracy and confidence. Our results show that the choice of visualization format is affected by a user's cognitive style and task difficulty. While decision performances in accuracy and confidence are affected by task difficulty, spatial ability, and visualization format, they are largely not affected by the interactions between visualization format and cognitive style, spatial ability, and task difficulty.