Presenting Data: How to Communicate Your Message Effectively

Introduction

Data are everywhere! Data provide the vital evidence to develop modern society and there has been a boom in the number of people and organisations collecting, handling and trying to interpret data. However, many do not recognise the issues of presenting data. The result is that there is often poor public understanding of the data and statistics presented.

It is most important that the handling, interpretation and communication of data and the statistics derived from them are made as easy as possible for the wide and diverse audience of people who try to understand and use statistics and data.

The importance of making presentation as clear as possible has been magnified since the Internet has made data and statistics even more widely available to audiences for whom they might not originally have been intended. There is no hiding the fact that the data and statistical skills of the majority of the population are weak. Therefore, the more help that is given through good presentation, the better chance that the message will be understood. It must not be assumed that, without the help of clear presentation, the audience will be able quickly to grasp the message, meaning or relevance of the data or statistics.

The aim of this book is to look at numerical information through the eye of the audience or user. It builds on the fundamentals of numeracy that are taught in schools to all and examines cases where the interpretation would be helped by better presentation.

The ...