Cartesian displays of many interval estimates

Abstract

We consider the problem of constructing static graphical representations of a large number of interval estimates. Because of clutter, traditional graphical summaries are visually ineffective for representing more then a few intervals. The Cartesian displays introduced in this article overcome the limitations stemming from visual clutter and can represent effectively very many intervals. The construction of a Cartesian display for symmetric intervals is first presented in the context of a multiple comparisons application. Generalizations involving the representation of asymmetric intervals are then introduced and used to summarize aspects of the posterior distributions of numerous parameter contrasts in two hierarchical Bayes models.