Using the S-DIKW framework to transform data visualization into data storytelling

Abstract

Communicating insights from data effectively requires design skills, technical knowledge, and experience. Data must be accurately represented with aesthetically pleasing visuals and engaging text to effectively communicate to the intended audience. Data storytelling has received much attention lately, but as of yet, it does not have a theoretical and practical foundation in information science. A data story adds context, narrative, and structure to the visual representation of data, providing audiences with character, plot, and a holistic experience of narrative. This paper proposes a methodological approach to transform a data visualization into a data story based on the Data-Information-Knowledge-Wisdom (DIKW) pyramid and the S-DIKW Framework. Starting from the bottom of the pyramid, the proposed approach defines a strategy to represent insights extracted from data. Data is then turned into information by identifying character(s) facing a problem, adding textual and graphic content; information is turned into knowledge by organizing what happens as a plot. Finally, a call to wise action—always informed by cultural and community values—completes the storytelling transformation to create a data story. This article contributes to the theoretical understanding of data stories as emerging information forms, supporting richer understandings of a story as information in the information sciences.