---
title: "vayr"
output: rmarkdown::html_vignette
vignette: >
%\VignetteIndexEntry{vayr-vignette}
%\VignetteEngine{knitr::rmarkdown}
%\VignetteEncoding{UTF-8}
---
```{r, include = FALSE}
knitr::opts_chunk$set(
collapse = TRUE,
comment = "#>",
out.width = "100%"
)
```
The goal of `vayr` is to provide `ggplot2` extensions that foster "visualize as
you randomize" principles. These principles are outlined in detail in "Visualize
as You Randomize: Design-Based Statistical Graphs for Randomized Experiments."
That paper can be accessed as a [PDF](https://alexandercoppock.com/coppock_2020.pdf).
The package includes position adjustments to avoid over-plotting, facilitating
the the organization of "data-space" to better contextualize statistical models.
## Installation
The release version of `vayr` can be installed from CRAN, and the development
version can be installed from [GitHub](https://github.com/) using a package like
`remotes`, `devtools `, or `pak`. It is important to note that `vayr` relies on
`ggplot2`, `packcircles`, and `withr`, so these must be installed as well.
``` r
# From CRAN
install.packages("vayr")
# From GitHub
# install.packages("pak")
pak::pak("acoppock/vayr")
```
## Contents
`vayr` contains a handful of `ggplot2` functions that apply as position adjustments
to "point-like" geoms such as `geom_point` or `geom_text`:
+ `position_jitter_ellipse()` and `position_jitterdodge_ellipse()`
+ `position_sunflower()` and `position_sunflowerdodge()`
+ `position_circlepack()` and `position_circlepackdodge()`
These functions avoid over-plotting, so they are especially useful when plotting
discrete rather than continuous data. As a matter of demonstration, they are used
below to visualize synthetic data, over-plotted at the origin.
```{r, echo = FALSE}
suppressMessages(library(dplyr))
```
```{r setup}
library(dplyr)
library(estimatr)
library(ggplot2)
library(patchwork)
library(vayr)
dat <- data.frame(
x = c(rep(0, 200)),
y = c(rep(0, 200)),
group = (rep(c("A", "B", "B", "B"), 50)),
size = runif(200, 0, 1)
)
```
If position is the product of discrete variables alone, then over-plotting is of
particular concern. `position_jitter()` can mitigate this concern. It introduces
variation by randomly sampling points on a rectangle. This approach is effective
but can be unattractive. The position adjustments in `vayr` are attempts to do better.
```{r contents_0, dpi = 96, fig.width = 12, fig.height = 6, fig.alt = 'perfect over-plotting and position_jitter()'}
# perfectly over-plotted points
over_plot <- ggplot(dat, aes(x = x, y = y)) +
geom_point() +
coord_equal(xlim = c(-1.1, 1.1),
ylim = c(-1.1, 1.1)) +
theme_bw() +
theme(axis.title = element_blank(),
plot.title = element_text(hjust = 0.5, face = "bold")) +
ggtitle('"perfect over-plotting"')
# position_jitter()
jitter_plot <- ggplot(dat, aes(x = x, y = y)) +
geom_point(position = position_jitter(width = 0.5,
height = 0.5)) +
coord_equal(xlim = c(-1.1, 1.1),
ylim = c(-1.1, 1.1)) +
theme_bw() +
theme(axis.title = element_blank(),
plot.title = element_text(hjust = 0.5, face = "bold")) +
ggtitle("position_jitter()")
over_plot + jitter_plot
```
### Position Jitter Ellipse
This position adjustment adds elliptical random noise to perfectly over-plotted
points, offering a pleasing way to visualize many points that represent the same
position. The benefit of sampling on an ellipse of a given `height` and `width`
rather than on a rectangle is that the resulting dispersion retains the impression
of a single point. The size of the ellipses stays constant, while their density
varies depending on the amount of data.
```{r contents_1, dpi = 96, fig.width = 12, fig.height = 6, fig.alt = 'position_jitter_ellipse() and position_jitterdodge_ellipse()'}
# position_jitter_ellipse()
jitter_ellipse_plot <- ggplot(dat, aes(x = x, y = y)) +
geom_point(position = position_jitter_ellipse(width = 0.5,
height = 0.5)) +
coord_equal(xlim = c(-1.1, 1.1),
ylim = c(-1.1, 1.1)) +
theme_bw() +
theme(axis.title = element_blank(),
plot.title = element_text(hjust = 0.5, face = "bold")) +
ggtitle("position_jitter_ellipse()")
# position_jitterdodge_ellipse()
jitterdodge_ellipse_plot <- ggplot(dat, aes(x = x, y = y, color = group)) +
geom_point(position = position_jitterdodge_ellipse(dodge.width = 2,
jitter.width = 0.5,
jitter.height = 0.5)) +
coord_equal(xlim = c(-1.1, 1.1),
ylim = c(-1.1, 1.1)) +
theme_bw() +
theme(legend.position = "none",
axis.title = element_blank(),
plot.title = element_text(hjust = 0.5, face = "bold")) +
ggtitle("position_jitterdodge_ellipse()")
jitter_ellipse_plot + jitterdodge_ellipse_plot
```
### Position Sunflower
This position adjustment arranges perfectly over-plotted points using a sunflower
algorithm, which produces a pattern that resembles the seeds of a sunflower,
working from the inside out in the order of the data. The parameters for this
position adjustment are `density` and `aspect_ratio`. The size of the flowers
varies depending on the amount over over-plotting, but the density of the pattern
remains constant. It is generally recommended that the position adjustment be
used along with `coord_equal()`, in which case the default aspect ratio of 1 yields
perfectly circular flowers, but the aspect ratio of the flowers can be adjusted
if need be.
```{r contents_2A, dpi = 96, fig.width = 12, fig.height = 6, fig.alt = 'position_sunflower() and position_sunflowerdodge()'}
# position_sunflower()
sunflower_plot <- ggplot(dat, aes(x = x, y = y)) +
geom_point(position = position_sunflower(density = 1,
aspect_ratio = 1)) +
coord_equal(xlim = c(-2.1, 2.1),
ylim = c(-2.1, 2.1)) +
theme_bw() +
theme(axis.title = element_blank(),
plot.title = element_text(hjust = 0.5, face = "bold")) +
ggtitle("position_sunflower()")
# position_sunflowerdodge()
sunflowerdodge_plot <- ggplot(dat, aes(x = x, y = y, color = group)) +
geom_point(position = position_sunflowerdodge(width = 4,
density = 1,
aspect_ratio = 1)) +
coord_equal(xlim = c(-2.1, 2.1),
ylim = c(-2.1, 2.1)) +
theme_bw() +
theme(legend.position = "none",
axis.title = element_blank(),
plot.title = element_text(hjust = 0.5, face = "bold")) +
ggtitle("position_sunflowerdodge()")
sunflower_plot + sunflowerdodge_plot
```
The `density` parameter controls the density of the pattern. A density of 1 is
normalized to 100 points in a unit circle; a density of 2, 200 points; and a
density of 0.5, 50 points. Because density is normalized relative to Cartesian
units, its visual effect depends on the ranges of the axes and the dimensions of
the saved image. Smaller ranges or larger dimensions require a greater density to
produce the same visual effect. The size of points should also be taken into account.
``` {r contents_2B, dpi = 96, fig.width = 12, fig.height = 12, fig.alt = 'density', echo = FALSE}
densities <- rep(c(0.5, 1, 2), each = 3)
ns <- rep(c(50, 100, 200), 3)
density_plots <- list()
for (i in 1:9) {
density_dat <- data.frame(x = c(rep(0, ns[i])), y = c(rep(0, ns[i])))
density_plots[[i]] <- ggplot(density_dat, aes(x, y)) +
geom_point(position = position_sunflower(density = densities[i])) +
coord_equal(xlim = c(-2, 2),
ylim = c(-2, 2)) +
theme_bw() +
labs(title = paste0("n = ", ns[i], ", density = ", densities[i])) +
theme(axis.title = element_blank(),
panel.grid.minor = element_blank(),
plot.title = element_text(face = "bold"))
}
wrap_plots(density_plots, ncol = 3)
```
The `aspect_ratio` parameter changes the aspect ratio of the flowers, which is
their width divided by their height. This is useful when using the position
adjustment without `coord_equal()`. The flowers can be made wider or taller to
compensate for the aspect ratio of the axes or the image. The aspect ratio of the
flowers should be set to the opposite of the aspect ratio for which it must compensate.
For instance, consider a plot with an x axis that ranges from 0 to 1, and a y axis
that ranges from 0 to 2. Saving this plot as a square image would squish the y
axis, resulting in wider flowers. Setting the aspect ratio of the flowers to 0.5
would offset this distortion. Note that while the aspect ratio is parameterized as width to height,
the `ratio` parameter for coord_fixed() is height to width. So in this case, setting
`aspect_ratio` equal to `ratio` results in non-distorted distributions.
``` {r contents_2C, dpi = 96, fig.width = 12, fig.height = 12, fig.alt = 'aspect_ratio', echo = FALSE}
flower_ratios <- rep(c(0.5, 1, 2), each = 3)
axis_ratios <- rep(c(2, 1, 0.5), 3)
aspect_ratio_dat <- data.frame(x = c(rep(0, 100)), y = c(rep(0, 100)))
aspect_ratio_plots <- list()
for (i in 1:9) {
aspect_ratio_plots[[i]] <- ggplot(dat, aes(x, y)) +
geom_point(position = position_sunflower(aspect_ratio = flower_ratios[i])) +
coord_fixed(xlim = c(-2, 2),
ylim = c(-2, 2),
ratio = axis_ratios[i]) +
theme_bw() +
labs(title = paste0("aspect_ratio = ", flower_ratios[i], "\ncoord_fixed(ratio = ", axis_ratios[i], ")")) +
theme(axis.title = element_blank(),
panel.grid.minor = element_blank(),
plot.title = element_text(face = "bold", size = 10))
}
wrap_plots(aspect_ratio_plots, ncol = 3)
```
### Position Circle Pack
This position adjustment uses circle packing algorithms from `packcircles` to
arrange perfectly over-plotted points of varying sizes into an elliptical area.
It also takes `density` and `aspect_ratio` as parameters. This position adjustment
should not be confused with `geom_circlepack()` from `ggcirclepack` which can be
found on [GitHub](https://github.com/EvaMaeRey/ggcirclepack).
```{r contents_3A, dpi = 96, fig.width = 12, fig.height = 6, fig.alt = 'position_circlepack() and position_circlepackdodge()'}
# position_circlepack()
circlepack_plot <- ggplot(dat, aes(x = x, y = y, size = size)) +
geom_point(alpha = 0.25,
position = position_circlepack(density = 0.25,
aspect_ratio = 1)) +
coord_equal(xlim = c(-1, 1),
ylim = c(-1.1, 1.1)) +
theme_bw() +
theme(legend.position = "none",
axis.title = element_blank(),
plot.title = element_text(hjust = 0.5, face = "bold")) +
ggtitle("position_circlepack()")
# position_circlepackdodge()
circlepackdodge_plot <- ggplot(dat, aes(x = x, y = y, color = group, size = size)) +
geom_point(alpha = 0.25,
position = position_circlepackdodge(width = 2,
density = 0.25,
aspect_ratio = 1)) +
coord_equal(xlim = c(-1, 1),
ylim = c(-1.1, 1.1)) +
theme_bw() +
theme(legend.position = "none",
axis.title = element_blank(),
plot.title = element_text(hjust = 0.5, face = "bold")) +
ggtitle("position_circlepackdodge()")
circlepack_plot + circlepackdodge_plot
```
Like `position_sunflower()` `position_circlepack()` works from the inside out
in the order of the data. So arranging the data by size organizes the points
accordingly.
```{r contents_3B, dpi = 96, fig.width = 12, fig.height = 4, fig.alt = 'random, ascending, descending'}
# random size, base plot
random <- ggplot(dat, aes(x = x, y = y, size = size)) +
geom_point(alpha = 0.25,
position = position_circlepack(density = 0.075,
aspect_ratio = 1)) +
coord_equal(xlim = c(-1, 1),
ylim = c(-1.1, 1.1)) +
theme_bw() +
theme(legend.position = "none",
axis.title = element_blank(),
plot.title = element_text(hjust = 0.5, face = "bold")) +
ggtitle("random")
# ascending size
ascending <- random %+%
arrange(dat, size) +
ggtitle("ascending")
# descending size
descending <- random %+%
arrange(dat, desc(size)) +
ggtitle("descending")
random + ascending + descending
```
## Example
`vayr` also includes data from the Patriot Act experiment described in
[*Persuasion in Parallel*](https://alexandercoppock.com/coppock_2022.html).
The Patriot Act was an anti-terrorism law, and the `patriot_act` dataset contains
data relating to an experiment that measured support for this law after randomly
exposing participants to statements that cast the legislation in either a negative
or positive light. The experiment was conducted in 2009 with a nationwide sample,
and it was replicated in 2015 with a sample of MTurkers. In both instances, the
treatments had a similar effect on Democrats and Republicans. There are four
variables in the data:
+ `sample_label`, the study to which the participant belonged
+ `pid_3`, the partisanship of the participant
+ `T1_content`, the statements to which the participant was exposed
+ `PA_support`, the participant's post-treatment support for the Patriot Act
The data is visualized below using `position_sunflowerdodge()` from `vayr`. Note
that both `density` and `aspect_ratio` are adjusted. A high `density` is needed
because of a small point size, and a tall `aspect_ratio` accounts for a wide plot.
```{r patriot_act_visualization, dpi = 96, fig.width = 12, fig.height = 6, fig.alt = "patriot_act"}
# A df for statistical models
summary_df <- patriot_act |>
group_by(T1_content, pid_3, sample_label) |>
reframe(tidy(lm_robust(PA_support ~ 1)))
# A df for direct labels
label_df <- summary_df |>
filter(sample_label == "Original Study", T1_content == "Control") |>
mutate(
PA_support = case_when(
pid_3 == "Democrat" ~ conf.low - 0.15,
pid_3 == "Republican" ~ conf.high + 0.15
)
)
ggplot(patriot_act, aes(T1_content, PA_support, color = pid_3, group = pid_3)) +
# the data
geom_point(position = position_sunflowerdodge(width = 0.5,
density = 50,
aspect_ratio = 0.5),
size = 0.1, alpha = 0.5) +
# the statistical model
geom_line(data = summary_df, aes(x = T1_content, y = estimate),
position = position_dodge(width = 0.5), linewidth = 0.5) +
geom_point(data = summary_df, aes(x = T1_content, y = estimate),
position = position_dodge(width = 0.5), size = 3) +
geom_linerange(data = summary_df, aes(x = T1_content, y = estimate,
ymin = conf.low, ymax = conf.high),
position = position_dodge(width = 0.5)) +
# the direct labels
geom_text(data = label_df, aes(label = pid_3)) +
# the rest
scale_color_manual(values = c("blue4", "red3")) +
scale_y_continuous(breaks = 1:7) +
coord_fixed(ratio = 0.5) + # ratio for coord_fixed is y/x rather than x/y
facet_wrap(~sample_label) +
theme_bw() +
theme(legend.position = "none",
strip.background = element_blank(),
panel.grid.minor = element_blank()) +
labs(y = "Do you oppose or support the Patriot Act?
[1: Oppose very strongly to 7: Support very strongly]",
x = "Randomly assigned information")
```