Title: Different techniques for different data
Course: UGQuants (SSPS) > Section: Data Visualisation

Different techniques for different data

It goes without saying that no single type of visualisation is appropriate for answering all questions.  The choice of an appropriate visualisation is driven by the number of variables which need to be considered and the nature of those variables (categorical or continuous).  A summary of the visualisations covered in this module, along with details of when their use is appropriate are given in the table below.

Number of variables | Type of Variable(s) | Appropriate Visualisation
1
Continuous
Histogram

Boxplot
Categorical | Pie Chart Bar/Column Chart
2 | Both continuous | Scatter Plot
One continuous and one categorical | Bar chart Multiple Boxplots Multiple Histograms
Both categorical | Heat Map
3 or more
All continuous
Bubble Plot

Heat Map

Spider Graphs

Parallel Coordinates Plot

Scatter Plot Matrix
Two continuous and one categorical | Scatter Plot with multiple series
One continuous and multiple categorical | Multiple Boxplots