VisiStat: visualization-driven, interactive statistical analysis

Abstract

To promote the practice of sound statistical analysis in HCI, we introduce VisiStat, a tool that allows users to perform statistical analysis by interacting with visualizations. It guides users to select the appropriate statistical analysis tasks based on the research questions they want to answer. By collocating statistical analysis results with appropriate visualizations, users are made aware of data-specific knowledge, which consequently improves their understanding of data and reduces common statistical analysis mistakes. In our user study, VisiStat helped users to answer 90% of the research questions they posed. On average, the users performed four statistical analysis tasks beyond their prior experience.