Audience Segmentation to Improve Flood Inundation Mapping Engagement and Testing with Technical Users and Impacted Communities.
Research Team Members
Objective:
The primary objective of this project is to develop a novel, empirically based testing procedure that will provide operational improvements, enhancing the understandability and interpretation of FIM forecast graphics among targeted audiences. As a new decision-support product, FIMs require timely usability testing across key user groups; however, limited research exists on how effectively they support interpretation, communication, and informed decision-making. This project addresses that gap through user-centered research to generate evidence-based improvements in FIM design and application. Outcomes of the project include engagement with tribal government liaisons to identify flood risk communication strategies, two peer-reviewed articles presenting novel methods for evaluating user-controlled visualizations, and technical memos outlining operational design recommendations grounded in visualization best practices and empirical testing to improve the usability, clarity, and effectiveness of FIMs as decision-support tools.
Approach:
This project takes a multi-method, user-centered approach to evaluate and improve NOAA’s Flood Inundation Maps (FIMs), through user engagement, diagnostic assessments, iterative re-design, and empirical testing. It includes four key components:
1. To understand needs related to National Weather Service (NWS) products to support Tribal government emergency management, early discussions with USACE emergency managers and NOAA Tribal Liaisons clarified roles, identified service gaps, and highlighted the importance of a tailored flood risk communication strategy.
2. To identify FIM product goals and usability challenges, the team conducted interviews with nine FIM producers to gather insights on design intent and usage. Eleven emergency managers from the 10% FIM release areas were also interviewed to understand their needs, expectations, and challenges using FIM products.
3. To assess the visualization and audience utilization of FIM products, a task-based heuristic evaluation of eight global FIM tools, including NOAA FIM, was conducted. This evaluation identified common approaches and diagnosed design elements that facilitate or impede effective flood risk communication.
4. To test evidence-based design alternatives for FIM services, the project developed and empirically tested FIM prototypes in collaboration with NOAA. These prototypes are evaluated through large-scale, control-treatment survey experiments, addressing identified interpretation challenges and operational needs.
Impact:
The project will enhance the usability of FIMs for various audiences, including the general public, and improve users’ ability to accurately and effectively interpret and act on flood forecasts. The project will result in two manuscripts - one already submitted and another planned for submission in the fall. Both will provide operational, evidence-based design recommendations to enhance the clarity, usefulness, and understandability of FIMs for flood risk communication. These findings will also inform the development of future operational, user-controlled ensemble forecast and visualization tools, ensuring they are intuitive, actionable, and grounded in user needs. Finally, the project advances NOAA and CIROH’s goals of evidence-based science-based communication for climate resilience and risk mitigation, improving impact-based decision support services.Abstract:
Flood Inundation Maps (FIMs) provide information on current, future, historical, and/or hypothetical flood extent in river systems, typically based on hydrodynamic or simplified conceptual models. Current FIM products, while technically robust, can be challenging to interpret, especially for non-technical audiences, given the need to manage varying data complexities while conveying forecasts and uncertainties to different audiences. Thus, research and operational gaps persist, particularly with respect to whether FIMs are appropriately designed, communicated, translated, and interpreted to support effective near-term flood response decisions. This research addresses the critical gap in understanding whether FIMs are effectively designed for intuitive use, accurate interpretation, and clear communication of flood risk.
The intended product is a user-tested, evidence-based design recommendation for enhancing the usability of NOAA’s operational FIM interface prior to its nationwide release. By evaluating how users engage with ensemble-based flood visualizations, this project aims to identify design strategies that enhance usability, promote understanding, and improve decision confidence during flood events. Specific products include the development of novel methods for evaluating user-controlled ensemble forecasts and interactive visualization tools like FIMs, and providing evidence-based operational improvements to NOAA’s FIM tool to improve the clarity, accessibility, and usability of FIMs for targeted audiences.
The project contributes to enhancing the clarity and usability of FIMs, supporting more timely and confident flood-related decisions. It provides NOAA with actionable design and communication strategies that can be integrated into future flood risk products. The research advances CIROH’s capacity in user-centered design and evaluation methods, while generating policy-relevant insights on how to communicate flood risk more effectively to different user groups, including at-risk communities. Ultimately, the project strengthens NOAA’s efforts to deliver science-based, user-responsive tools that support climate resilience and public safety.