Radar chart

MER Star Plot

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Wiki Radar Chart Example

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Star Plot of 16 cars

Radar chart, also known as a spider chart, web chart, star chart, or polar chart, is a graphical method of displaying multivariate data in the form of a two-dimensional chart of three or more quantitative variables represented on axes starting from the same point. The relative position and angle of the axes are typically arbitrary. Each variable is provided with its own axis, all of the axes are arranged radially around a central point and have equal distances between them. This chart type is used to plot one or more groups of values over multiple common variables, which are represented on the axes.

Overview

Radar charts are used in various fields such as business, engineering, and statistics for comparative analysis of multiple quantitative variables. They are particularly useful for visually identifying similarities or differences in the data set, making them a popular choice for performance analysis, skill assessments, and product comparisons.

Structure

The structure of a radar chart consists of a sequence of equiangular spokes, called radii, with each spoke representing one of the variables. The data length of a spoke is proportional to the magnitude of the variable for the data point relative to the maximum magnitude of the variable across all data points. A line is drawn connecting the data values for each spoke, which forms a polygon that represents the data set.

Usage

Radar charts are most effective when the number of variables and the data sets are relatively small. They can become cluttered and hard to read with too many variables or when comparing multiple groups of data. It is also important to consider the scale of measurement for the variables, as differing scales can distort the chart, making interpretation difficult.

Advantages and Disadvantages

Advantages

• Useful for displaying data that is categorized around a central point.
• Can display multiple variables in a way that is easy to visualize comparisons and patterns.
• Helpful in identifying outliers and anomalies in the data.

Disadvantages

• Can become cluttered and difficult to interpret with too many variables or data sets.
• The relative positioning of the axes can affect interpretation, as there is no natural ordering of the variables.
• Differences in scale among variables can mislead the interpretation unless carefully normalized.

Applications

Radar charts are widely used in various applications, including:

• Business intelligence for comparing different business metrics.
• Human resources for assessing employee performance across several dimensions.
• Sports and health for visualizing an athlete's performance or a patient's health indicators.
• Education for comparing different educational institutions or programs based on multiple criteria.

See Also

• Data visualization
• Multivariate statistics
• Chart