  We developed and validated a rating scale to assess the aesthetic pleasure
(or beauty) of a visual data representation: the BeauVis scale. With our work
we offer researchers and practitioners a simple instrument to compare the
visual appearance of different visualizations, unrelated to data or context of
use. Our rating scale can, for example, be used to accompany results from
controlled experiments or be used as informative data points during in-depth
qualitative studies. Given the lack of an aesthetic pleasure scale dedicated to
visualizations, researchers have mostly chosen their own terms to study or
compare the aesthetic pleasure of visualizations. Yet, many terms are possible
and currently no clear guidance on their effectiveness regarding the judgment
of aesthetic pleasure exists. To solve this problem, we engaged in a multi-step
research process to develop the first validated rating scale specifically for
judging the aesthetic pleasure of a visualization (osf.io/fxs76). Our final
BeauVis scale consists of five items, "enjoyable," "likable," "pleasing,"
"nice," and "appealing." Beyond this scale itself, we contribute (a) a
systematic review of the terms used in past research to capture aesthetics, (b)
an investigation with visualization experts who suggested terms to use for
judging the aesthetic pleasure of a visualization, and (c) a confirmatory
survey in which we used our terms to study the aesthetic pleasure of a set of 3
visualizations.
