Dos and Don’ts of Data Visualisation
Whether on purpose or not, a statistician can mislead an audience with a chart. This article explains some chart design principles and common mistakes novice data analysts make. Think about the statistical charts you have seen on billboards, in the news, and in research studies. Using these principles as a guide, would you classify any of those charts as misleading? Be sure to take note of the suggestions for successful dashboards.
Choose your chart
Tables are preferable to graphics for many small data sets
Tables are clearly the best way to show the exact numerical values, although the entries can also be arranged in semi-graphical form. Tables are preferable to graphics for many small data sets... Tables also work well when the data presentation requires many localised comparisons... One supertable is far better than a hundred little bar charts.
Edward R. Tufte
'A chart is worth more than ten thousand words' but, on the other hand, graphical representation is a less rich source of information compared, for instance, to a good old table.
In most cases, a chart and a table are complementary, and both should be used in data representation: figures in the table show the analysis of the phenomena in question, while a graphical representation provides a synthesis, allowing for integral and clear understanding.