Visactivism: A Conceptual Model to Identify Information Visualization as an Expression of Design Activism

Abstract

Can Information Visualization be an expression of Design Activism? This question leads an exploratory research that seeks to identify parallelisms between these two domains of design practice. Following an interpretive approach and a case study methodology, the research focus on three Information Visualization projects aiming to identify Design Activism characteristic attributes, namely the kind of motivation, purpose and discourse inherent to these projects. The results show that a visualization may be an example of Design Activism when three conditions are combined: the project is motivated by the ethical stance of the designer towards a specific cause; the designer aims to contribute to the disclosure, awareness and/or public discussion about the subject addressed; the visualization is designed as a persuasive discourse that challenge and/or influence the end user. These results allow us to propose the conceptual model of Visactivism that describes the practice of Information Visualization as an expression of Design Activism. As well as nurturing the relationship between the field of Design Activism and the specific domain of Information Visualization, this model is also a theoretical contribution to deepening the interpretation of the specific foundations, objectives and characteristics that identify Design as an Activist practice.