"I Need to Find That One Chart": How Data Workers Navigate, Make Sense of, and Communicate Analytical Conversations

Fuente: arXiv
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Autori principali: Gu, Ken, Palani, Srishti, Setlur, Vidya
Natura: Preprint
Pubblicazione: 2026
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author Gu, Ken
Palani, Srishti
Setlur, Vidya
author_facet Gu, Ken
Palani, Srishti
Setlur, Vidya
contents Conversational interfaces are increasingly used for data analysis, enabling data workers to express complex analytical intents in natural language. Yet, these interactions unfold as long, linear transcripts that are misaligned with the iterative, nonlinear nature of real-world analyses. Revisiting and summarizing conversations for different contexts is therefore challenging. This paper investigates how data workers navigate, make sense of, and communicate prior analytical conversations. To study behaviors beyond those supported by standard interfaces (i.e., scrolling and keyword search), we develop a design probe that supplements analytical conversations with structured elements and affordances (e.g., filtering, multi-level navigation and detail-on-demand). In a user study (n = 10), participants used the probe to navigate and communicate past analyses, fulfilling information needs (recall, reorient, prioritize) through navigation strategies (visual recall, sequential and abstractive) and summarization practices (adding process details and context). Based on these findings, we discuss design implications to support re-visitation and communication of analytical conversations.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2603_00485
institution arXiv
publishDate 2026
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle "I Need to Find That One Chart": How Data Workers Navigate, Make Sense of, and Communicate Analytical Conversations
Gu, Ken
Palani, Srishti
Setlur, Vidya
Human-Computer Interaction
Conversational interfaces are increasingly used for data analysis, enabling data workers to express complex analytical intents in natural language. Yet, these interactions unfold as long, linear transcripts that are misaligned with the iterative, nonlinear nature of real-world analyses. Revisiting and summarizing conversations for different contexts is therefore challenging. This paper investigates how data workers navigate, make sense of, and communicate prior analytical conversations. To study behaviors beyond those supported by standard interfaces (i.e., scrolling and keyword search), we develop a design probe that supplements analytical conversations with structured elements and affordances (e.g., filtering, multi-level navigation and detail-on-demand). In a user study (n = 10), participants used the probe to navigate and communicate past analyses, fulfilling information needs (recall, reorient, prioritize) through navigation strategies (visual recall, sequential and abstractive) and summarization practices (adding process details and context). Based on these findings, we discuss design implications to support re-visitation and communication of analytical conversations.
title "I Need to Find That One Chart": How Data Workers Navigate, Make Sense of, and Communicate Analytical Conversations
topic Human-Computer Interaction
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2603.00485