Visual Displays
Ronald A. Rensink, Departments of Psychology and Computer Science, University of British Columbia, Vancouver BC, Canada.

In E. Bruce Goldstein (ed). Encyclopedia of Perception. (pp. xx). Thousand Oaks CA: Sage Publications. 2009 [pdf]

Introduction

Visual displays are depictions that convey information by means of elements beyond pure text. Examples include diagrams, maps, and computer interfaces. The common factor in all of these is their reliance on the "visual intelligence" of humans to organize graphically-presented information in a way that makes it easier to understand. The design of an effective visual display is based on general principles involving both the nature of human vision and the nature of the task. The particular medium used--paper, canvas, computer monitor, etc.--is irrelevant.

The use of visual displays has a long history. Drawings were used tens of thousand of years ago, likely for teaching. With the advent of writing, text became the dominant means of transmitting information, and reduced the involvement of visual perception to that of recognizing characters or words. But the use of drawings never completely disappeared. And displays such as maps were discovered to be a highly effective way of describing the two-dimensional surface of the Earth. More generally, it has been found that when a visual display draws on the appropriate mechanisms of visual perception, it can present information in a way that allows a viewer to understand it far more quickly, accurately, and memorably than if presented by text alone. It has also been found that successful design techniques sometimes point to previously unknown mechanisms.

When used to convey more abstract information by more metaphoric means, visual displays cross over into the domain of fine art. The two domains have a great deal of overlap, drawing on many of the same perceptual mechanisms. They are also very compatible—an effective visual display can have great esthetic appeal. However, the focus of visual display design is on the communication of relatively concrete information, with emphasis on speed and accuracy. As such, different principles are often involved, principles that depend on the nature of the task and on the tradition in which they were developed.

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