Comicification: Human-centered approach to data visualization and participant autonomy by redesigning surveys

Traditional surveys, while essential for data collection in research, often struggle to maintain participant engagement, leading to low response rates and compromised data quality. This study explores an alternative approach: integrating comics and visual storytelling into survey design—a process we term “comicification.” Through a series of co-creation workshops, artists and researchers collaboratively transformed text-based surveys into visual narratives. Initial thematic analysis of the workshop process highlights how artists used images, character-driven storytelling, and interactive elements to make survey questions more intuitive, relatable, and engaging. While the project is ongoing, our process and initial findings are meant to provide provocation and inspiration for future "comicification" research.