Presenting and communicating statistics: principles, components, and their quality assessment. A proposal Filomena Maggino & Marco Trapani Università degli

Presenting and communicating statistics: Presenting and communicating statistics: principles, components, and their quality principles, components, and their quality

assessment. assessment. A proposalA proposal

Filomena Maggino & Marco Trapani

Università degli Studi di Firenze, Italy

[email protected]

1. Communication: integral component of statistical work

2. Communicating statistics

3. Assessing statistical communication

Contents

4. The way forward




Contents

4. The way forward

Communication in statistics: From DATA to MESSAGE

DATA PRODUCTION objective observation

transformed in

aseptic data

DATA ANALYSIS,

RESULTS AND INTERPRETATION

data information

PRESENTATION information message




Contents

4. The way forward

1. Fundamental aspects

Aspects ofstatistical

presentations

Correspondingdiscipline

Content EthicsAppeal Aesthetics

Persuasion Rhetoric

Theory of presentation

2. Main components

T RCODE

CODE

Message

Channel

Context - setting

FEEDBACK

Noise

in statistical communication

A. Outline telling statisticsB. tools Depicting statisticsC. cloths Dressing statistics

3. Codes

INVENTIO

DISPOSITIO

ELOCUTIO

ACTIO

3a. Outline telling statistics

START

1- Inventio (invention)

•Who the subject of telling•What the fact •When the time location•Where the field location•Why the causes


2- Dispositio (layout)

Premise

General Principles

Developing arguments

Pratical consequences/examples

Deductive approach

Case / specific situation

Reflection

Concepts

Consequences / other cases

Inductive approach

Once upon a time…

Why something changed

Yesterday… Today…

Tomorrow

Time progression approach

Meaningful questions

Why in important to talk about…

Solutions (and concepts)

Conclusions and consequences

Problems approach

Subject

Advantages-disadvantages approach

Point to be evaluated

Advantage

Disadvantages

Subject

From point of view approach

Pont of view 1

… values

… defects

Pont of v

iew 4

… va

lues

… defe

cts

Pont of view 3

… values

… defects

Pont o

f view 2

… va

lues

… de

fects

Top-down approach

General Reflections Concepts Consequences…

Particular Reflections Concepts Consequences…

Specific Reflections Concepts Consequences…

Detail Reflections Concepts Consequences…

Micro Reflections Concepts Consequences…

Premise Reflections Concepts Consequences…


3- Elocutio (expression)

Figures of Definition

Thinkingchange in words’ or propositions’ invention and imaginative shape

Meaning (or tropes) change in words’ meaning

Diction change in words’ shape

Elocutionchoice of the most suitable or convenient words

Constructionchange in words’ order inside a sentence

Rhythm phonic effects


4- Actio (execution)

Stages:

1. Introduction2. Development3. Comments4. Time/space use5. Ending6. Receivers’ feedback (Q&A)


functions

Supporting attention

Activating and building prior knowledge

Minimizing cognitive load

Building mental models

Supporting transfer of learning

Supporting motivation

3b. Tools Depicting statistics

Perception of statistical Graph

Recognizing the codeRecognizing regularities

Carrying out comparisions and identify differences


(i) Choosing a graph …… by taking into account

• number of involved variables• nature of data (level of measurement)• statistical information to be represented

… by preferring

• a simple graph with reference to the audience• a clear graph instead of an attractive one• a correct graph with reference to data


(ii) Preparing a graph

Scale definition correctly defining and showing scale/s

Dimensionalityreducing dimensionality as much as possible by showing few variables for each graph using no meaningless axis

Colours as statistical codes

using colours consistently with statistical information

Rounding off values

rounding up and down through standard criteria

Dynamics presentation

dynamic perspective should reflect a dynamic phenomenon

Legibilityfew elements as possible. Wise use of legends and captions


Different aspects: Text arrangementCharacters and fontsColoursOther aspect

With reference to:BalanceHarmonyProportionEleganceStyle

3c. Cloths dressing statistics




Contents

4. The way forward

aspects allowing the assessing

1.1 the dimensions to evaluate1.2 the evaluating criteria1.3 the components of the transmission process

1. Conceptual Framework

1.1 the dimensions to evaluate

(i) Outline(ii) Tools(iii) Cloths


1.2 the evaluating criteria

(A) Suitability / consistency(B) Correctness(C) Clarity


1.3 the components of the transmission process

• receiver / audience• available channel• available context / setting• Message’s Contents


ASSESSMENT TABLE

1.2 EVALUATING CRITERIA

(A) SUITABILITY (B) CORRECTNESS (C) CLARITY

with reference to

(i)audience

(ii)channel

(iii)context

(i)audience

(ii)channel

(iii)context

(i)audience

(ii)channel

(iii)context

1. OUTLINE

1.1 Invention

1.2 Layout

1.3 Expression

1.4 Execution

2. TOOLS

Tables

Graphs

Pictograms

3. CLOTHS

-Text arrangement

-Characters (fonts)

-Colours

-Other effects

1.1

Dim

ensi

ons

to

evalu

ate

Tra

nsm

itte

r’s

code


2. Need of standarded codes

Communication of statistics needs to be assessed through standardized methods and techniques in order to improve its impact

Developing and adopting standardized codes allow transmitters to warrant:

objectivity of data presentation, by avoiding introduction of any subjective component

comparability between different presentations and along time,

economicity and efficiency

in preparing presentation,

generalization by avoiding any kind of “adaptability” of codes to “subjective” messages,

understanding

of data structure.




Contents

4. The way forward

The way forward …

Emphasizing communicative aspects does not aim at exasperating the importance of

communication with respect to the rest of statistical activities.

ICT societies increasingly require statistical information.

In order to attribute more value to statistics and to increase impact of statistics on reality, two processes need to be assessed:

data production and analysis communication

The presented work summarizes the first stage of our study, aimed at

defining the framework for quality assessment of communication in

statistics.

The goal is to define the assessment technology by discussing with all the

willing colleagues.

The way forward …

The way forward …

[email protected]

Documents

Presenting and communicating statistics: principles, components, and their quality assessment. A proposal Filomena Maggino & Marco Trapani Università degli