Introduction
Gender equality has been a pressing global issue for decades. Despite some progress, women continue to face inequality in education, employment, and marriage, among other areas. This project focuses on gender equality, using global statistics and representative examples of China’s gender equality condition.
Datasets
The primary data source for this project is the Gender Equity Gap Reports from 2022, by the World Economic Forum. I have referred to this report’s organization, such as listing key findings, global results, progress over time, performance by regions, focusing on specific countries, and gender gaps in different workforces like care work, leadership, industry, education, and income. Additionally, I also use the labor participation rate from the Gender Data Portal by the World Bank (https://genderdata.worldbank.org/).
For China-related data, my primary sources are the “Outline of Women’s Development in China (2011-2020)” published by the National Bureau of Statistics of the People’s Republic of China (http://www.gov.cn/xinwen/2021-12/21/content_5663667.htm) and the 2022 China Women’s Workplace Status Survey Report, published by China’s largest recruitment platform, similar to LinkedIn, with extensive influence and authority, and often cited in various fields.
Visualization Critique
Gender equity is a popular topic in data visualization and infographics. For example, the gender equality gap report contains a wealth of data, and I have found many detailed reports during my preliminary research, such as a report focusing on the economic gap. If the existing visualizations are already diverse, is it necessary for me to create a new one? Selecting materials and telling a coherent and impressive story is my goal for this project.
User Research
Zhuoyu, a feminist expert from a related major at Zhongshan University, has been invited to evaluate the data’s relevance and validity from an academic perspective. She has provided much assistance since confirming the topic.
The graphic is intended for public education; thus, students are suitable users. Three students were invited to test how engaging the graphic is and how clear the information is through casual browsing and completing tasks such as understanding the meaning of “73%.” The participants included a graduate student from IXD projects at Pratt, an undergraduate student in music, and a high school student.
Design Process
The design project is an infographic containing 13 charts with maps, histograms, and other charts with a consistent design style and color palette.
4 of them were made with Tableau, 2 of them were made with QGIS, and 4 of them were made with Excel. However, for visual and storytelling purposes, 3 charts might have been made by other graphic tools such as PS and Figma.
One issue I encountered was the inability to unify colors across platforms. When using Tableau to create colors, I couldn’t adjust the intermediate colors to match the specific values in QGIS, and the range of the color represented is slightly different, but at least the color palette is consistent and I maintained the same color usage throughout the infographic, with fixed data intervals represented by different colors.
Another challenge was finding a usable profile for the 2022 gender equality gap rankings, as only PDF reports were available, which are not easily readable or copyable. Finally, I have to use data from 2021, Fortunately, the changes between 2021 and 2022 are mostly below 0.01/1, so the data remains relevant.
I encountered a similar issue in QGIS when mapping regions, but using another shapefile kind of resolved the problem.
Infographic
Initially, my design approach was to display global data in one graph and then focus on specific countries. I chose four countries: Iceland, which ranks first in gender equality gaps, China, the United States, and India, which were selected purely out of personal interest. I conducted user testing primarily with this graphic and received feedback that users needed to repeatedly zoom in and move the canvas to read specific content on desktop/laptop devices. If the graphic were an interactive map, users could explore by clicking on individual countries, providing a better user experience. When I mentioned to one user that the graphic was intended for a large-scale poster, she asked, “How large do you plan to print it?” Honestly, I had not considered this aspect, but I should have, as factors like color and pixel are affected by the intended size.
Users were also curious about the selection of countries and wondered why their own country or a country of interest was not included. Based on this feedback, I eventually narrowed the focus to a single country, China. After deciding to focus on China as a single country, I also changed the primary color scheme since I wanted to use Red to represent China.
After making improvements, user testing showed that the revised graphic provided effective visual guidance, and the information was clear and concise.
Global Data
Initially, my main graphic used the female labor participation percentage. Zhuoyu advised that the ratio of female to male labor force participation rates would be more appropriate to reflect gender differences. When she learned about the core purpose of the graphic, she suggested that the data should be more representative, as employment is only one aspect of gender equality, which also includes political indicators, marriage, and childbirth. I eventually replaced it with the Global Gender Equality Gap Index, an annual gender equality scoring system published by the World Economic Forum.
Country Rankings
Most data sources on the gender gap include rankings of the top ten countries in gender equality, which is undoubtedly a point of interest for users. I created a Tableau visualization that includes 146 countries, but directly exporting it as an image is not optimal for browsing, so I provided an online Tableau link instead.
China’s Data
I aim to tell a story through data, focusing on a narrative rather than different areas. The story includes time changes and key points, with each graphic highlighting specific data, using different presentation methods while maintaining design consistency.
Gender Equality Gap Scores and Rankings
Explore the history
Current Situation
Reflection
Female data is human data, encompassing politics, the economy, living conditions, and other aspects. At the same time, it involves the most basic binary comparison: how men and women fare in various contexts. Often, a key number carries more weight than a series of complex charts. My personal takeaway is that when a graphic contains a lot of information, it’s crucial to identify the most impressive data point and build the narrative around it, rather than presenting all the information without clear priorities.
Additionally, women’s stories are our own stories. If possible, in the future I would like to create an online interactive map where users can share their experiences or feelings about gender inequality, supplementing the gaps that big data cannot cover with individual experiences.
Citation
National Bureau of Statistics of the People’s Republic of China. (2021). 中国妇女发展纲要 (2011—2020年) [Outline of China Women’s Development (2011-2020)]. Retrieved from http://www.gov.cn/xinwen/2021-12/21/content_5663667.htm
World Bank. (n.d.). Labor force participation rate, female (% of female population ages 15+) (modeled ILO estimate). World Bank Data. Retrieved from https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SL.TLF.CACT.FE.ZS