When to Use Maps

Geographical information doesn't always have to be represented using maps.

Maps use space to depict geographical space. This is both an advantage and a disadvantage. Using space as a channel to visualize space is intuitive, but this also means that we can no longer use the space channel to encode any other information.

Maps should be used when:

• the question is inherently spatial

  • questions that correlate a phenomenon to spatial locations/objects

  • questions pertaining to phenomena for which spatial proximity or extent is relevant

• a map is needed to find certain information

The main advantage of using maps is familiarity: people know where to look at in a map and may know where things are on a map, assuming that they are familiar with the region. This is an advantage over visualizations that don't use a map.

However, it is important to first determine if the question warrants the use of a map.