Yale University Library Research Guides: Data Visualization: Resources for Creating Data Visualizations

Guides and Tutorials on Data Visualization

Guides on the mechanics and ethics of data visualization and figure creation:

Grootendorst, M. (2021). Misleading graphs… and how to fix them [blog]. Towards Data Science. https://towardsdatascience.com/misleading-graphs-e86c8df8c5de
Hooper, L. (2019). Tips and tools for visualizing qualitative data [blog]. http://lydiahooper.com/blog/visualizing-qualitative-data
Radečić, D. (2022). 5 key data visualization principles explained - examples in R [blog]. R-bloggers. https://www.r-bloggers.com/2022/05/5-key-data-visualization-principles-explained-examples-in-r/
Rougier, N.P., Droettboom, M., & Bourne, P.E. (2014). Ten simple rules for better figures. PLoS Comput Biol 10(9): e1003833. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1003833
Schwabish, J. & Feng, A. (2021). Do no harm guide: Applying equity awareness in data visualization [research report]. Urban Institute. https://urban.org/research/publication/do-no-harm-guide-applying-equity-awareness

Data visualization tutorials:

Wickham, H. & Grolemund, G. (2017). Data visualization. R for Data Science. O'Reilly. https://r4ds.had.co.nz/data-visualisation.html
Busch, T., Michonneau, F., & Seok, B. (2022). Data analysis and visualization in R. Data Carpentry. Carpentries. https://datacarpentry.org/R-ecology-lesson/
Gosset, J. & Wright, A. (2017). Data analysis and visualization in Python. Data Carpentry. Carpentries. https://datacarpentry.org/python-ecology-lesson/

Related information:

Data Management Guide
Academic Poster Resources Guide
Yale School of Medicine's Inclusive Language Initiative & Glossary — recommended reading for creating inclusive titles, labels, captions, legends, and more in data visualizations.

Visualizations Gone Wrong

Feeling like you can't achieve your data visualization dreams? You're not alone. Check out this fun Tumblr blog showcasing R visualizations that didn't come out as expected. Visualization is an iterative process ⁠— it's okay to learn as you go!

accidental aRt

Visualizing in Spreadsheets

To create data visualizations in spreadsheet programs such as Excel and Sheets, see the documentation below:

Visualizing in Python

Python, a free and open-source programming language, has many libraries that you can install and use to visualize data. A few of the most popular ones include:

Visualizing in R

R, a free and open-source programming language, has many libraries that you can install and use to visualize data. A few of the most popular ones include: