# Data Humanism Decoded: A Characterization of its Principles to Bridge Data Visualization Researchers and Practitioners

## TL;DR

This paper systematically characterizes the principles of Data Humanism to bridge the gap between visualization research and practice, providing clear definitions and a common language for human-centered data visualization.

## Contribution

It offers a systematic characterization of Data Humanism principles, translating them into concrete, operational definitions for visualization researchers and practitioners.

## Key findings

- Validated principles through expert consultation with Lupi.
- Mapped principles to specific visual design choices.
- Provided a common language for human-centered visualization.

## Abstract

Data Humanism is a human-centered design approach that emphasizes the personal, contextual, and imperfect nature of data. Despite its growing influence among practitioners, the 13 principles outlined in Giorgia Lupi's visual manifesto remain loosely defined in research contexts, creating a gap between design practice and systematic application. Through a mixed-methods approach, including a systematic literature review, multimedia analysis, and expert interviews, we present a characterization of Data Humanism principles for visualization researchers. Our characterization provides concrete definitions that maintain interpretive flexibility in operationalizing design choices. We validate our work through direct consultation with Lupi. Moreover, we leverage the characterization to decode a visualization work, mapping Data Humanism principles to specific visual design choices. Our work creates a common language for human-centered visualization, bridging the gap between practice and research for future applications and evaluations.