Cross-Linguistic and Cultural Adaptation of the Mini-VLAT: A Study on Visualization Literacy Assessment in Ukrainian

This study explores the impact of cultural adaptation, beyond simple translation, on visualization literacy assessment. Most assessment tools are developed for English-speaking audiences. We designed and compared three versions of the Mini-VLAT (a shortened, validated visualization literacy test) among Ukrainian speakers: an original English version, a directly translated Ukrainian version, and a culturally adapted Ukrainian version. The adapted version showed significantly higher accuracy compared to the original English version overall. Per-chart analysis revealed that some adapted charts led to statistically significant improvements in assessed metrics compared to both the original and translated versions. These findings demonstrate that cultural adaptation, specifically addressing context-specific knowledge, can enhance the validity and usability of visualization literacy assessments for non-native English speakers with moderate-to-high English proficiency.