Journal of Business and Technical Communication Jul 2015 Open Access

Evaluating the Utility and Communicative Effectiveness of an Interactive Sea-Level Rise Viewer Through Stakeholder Engagement

Sonia H. Stephens University of Central Florida ; Denise E. DeLorme University of Central Florida ; Scott C. Hagen University of Central Florida

Abstract

The design of interactive applications for online communication is an ongoing area of research within technical communication. This study reports on the development of an interactive sea-level rise (SLR) viewer, a data visualization tool that communicates about the potential effects of SLR along coastlines. It describes the formative evaluation of a location-specific SLR viewer created via integral stakeholder engagement. Participants performed a series of tasks, answered questions about the tool's usability and communicative effectiveness, and made suggestions for ways to improve its application to desired tasks. The authors discuss the implications of this study for visual risk communication and make recommendations for others developing similar interactive data visualization tools with audience input.

Journal
Journal of Business and Technical Communication
Published
2015-07-01
DOI
10.1177/1050651915573963
Open Access
OA PDF Green
Topics
multimodality technical communication

Citation Context

Cited by in this index (6)

  1. Stephens et al. (2024)
    Envisioning User Agency During Development of a Website for Natural Hazard Comm…
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  2. DeVasto (2024)
    Toward Rhetorically Infused Methods for Relational Network Modeling: The Visual…
    Technical Communication Quarterly
  3. Stephens et al. (2019)
    A Framework for User Agency during Development of Interactive Risk Visualizatio…
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  4. Richards (2019)
    An Ethic of Constraint: Citizens, Sea-Level Rise Viewers, and the Limits of Agency
    Journal of Business and Technical Communication
  5. Meloncon et al. (2019)
    Empirical Research in Technical and Professional Communication: A 5-Year Examin…
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Show all 6 →
  1. Wilson et al. (2018)
    Agency in Action
    Journal of Technical Writing and Communication

Cites in this index (6)

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    Technical Communication Quarterly
  2. Northcut (2007)
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    Journal of Technical Writing and Communication
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    Journal of Technical Writing and Communication
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    Argument and Authority in the Visual Representations of Science
    Technical Communication Quarterly
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    Toward a critical rhetoric of risk communication: Producing citizens and the ro…
    Technical Communication Quarterly
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