Sage Journals: Discover world-class research

Abstract

The literature separately addresses issues related to mobile visualization techniques (Chae & Kim, 2004; Chittaro, 2006; Chittaro & Camaggio, 2002; Gutwin & Fedak, 2004) and visuospatial working memory demand (Baddeley & Hitch, 1994; Huang et al., 2006; Plumlee & Ware, 2006; Lecerf & de Ribaupierre, 2005). The current study investigated the effect of zooming on graph-reading performance under lower and higher cognitive loads, finding that a visualization that reduced working memory demands both stabilized performance under different task load conditions and reduced error. We propose a theory of mobile visualization that capitalizes on a reduction in working memory demand to reduce errors in performance.

Get full access to this article

View all access options for this article.

References

Apple, Inc. (2009). Apple — iPhone — App Store and Applications for iPhone. Retrieved February 17, 2009, from the World Wide Web: http://www.apple.com/iphone/appstore/.

Baddeley

A.D.

Hitch

G. J.

(1994). Developments in the concept of working memory. Neuropsychology, 8(4), 485–493.

Chae

Kim

(2004). Do size and structure matter to mobile users? An empirical study of the effects of screen size, information structure, and task complexity on user activities with standard web phones. Behaviour & Information Technology, 23(3), 165–181.

Chittaro

(2006). Visualizing information on mobile devices. Computer, 39(3), 40–45.

Chittaro

Camaggio

(2002). Visualizing Bar Charts on WAP Phones. Lecture Notes in Computer Science, 2411, 414–418.

Gillan

D. J.

(1995). Visual Arithmetic, Computational Graphics, and the Spatial Metaphor. Human Factors, 37(4), 766–780.

Gutwin

Fedak

(2004). Interacting with big interfaces on small screens: A comparison of fisheye, zoom, and panning techniques. ACM International Conference Proceeding Series, 62, 145–152.

Huang

Hong

Eades

(2006). Predicting graph reading performance: A cognitive approach. ACM nternational Conference Proceeding Series, 164, 207–216.

Lecerf

de Ribaupierre

(2005). Recognition in a visuospatial memory task: The effect of presentation. European Journal of Cognitive Psychology, 17(1), 47–75.

10.

Plumlee

M. D.

Ware

(2006). Zooming versus multiple window interfaces: Cognitive costs of visual comparisons. ACM Transactions on Computer-Human Interaction, 13(2), 179–209.

11.

Sweller

(1988). Cognitive load during problem solving: Effects on learning. Cognitive Science, 12(2), 257–285.

Bar Graphs and Small Screens: Mitigating Cognitive Load in Mobile Visualizations

Abstract

Get full access to this article

References