My Research

My Focus

My research is in the field of Data Visualizations, with a particular focus on the realm of trust in Data Visualizations. Specifically, I have been researching whether and how the design elements of a visualization impact the viewer’s trust, accounting for the demographic characteristics of the user.

Recently, I have also been interested in Design Guidelines. This includes what makes a visualization confusing or unclear, determining the perception of users, and solutions to help improve visualization designs.

VIBE Lab

The Visual Interface and Behavior Exploration (VIBE) Lab at Washington University in St. Louis uses interdisciplinary approaches to study visual interfaces, explore human behavior in decision-making processes, and advance the understanding of how people interact with visualizations. The lab is led by Dr. Alvitta Ottley.

Published Works

Trustworthy by Design: The Viewer’s Perspective on Trust in Data Visualization
Oen G. McKinley, Saugat Pandey, Alvitta Ottley
ACM CHI, Apr 2025
Using qualitative user responses to gain a deeper understanding on the user perspective on trust and generate design guidelines to make more trustworthy visualizations.

Exogenous and Endogenous Factors that Influence Subjective Trust in Visualization
R. Jordan Crouser, Syrine Matoussi, Lan Kung, Saugat Pandey, Oen G. McKinley, Alvitta Ottley
IEEE VIS, Oct 2024
Modeling the distinct contributions of endogenous design features (such as visualization type, or the use of color) and exogenous user characteristics (such as visualization literacy).

Do You Trust What You See? Towards A Multidimensional Measure of Trust in Visualization
Saugat Pandey, Oen G. McKinley, R. Jordan Crouser, Alvitta Ottley
IEEE VIS, Oct 2023
Exploring the dimensions influencing trust in information visualization design: Credibility, clarity, reliability, familiarity, and confidence.