Visualizing Contraceptive Use Trajectories in Kenya

Amy Finnegan , Duke University

Objective: Apply a novel approach to visualizing contraceptive histories from the Demographic and Health Surveys (DHS) contraceptive calendar that illuminates trajectories of contraceptive use. Method: This paper makes use of the contraceptive calendar from the 2014 Kenya Demographic and Health Survey (DHS). We used R and R Shiny and the chorrdiag package to create interactive data visualizations of contraceptive use trajectories. Results: We find that interactive chord diagrams are visually appealing, easy to understand, and provide greater ability for users to investigate contraceptive trajectories from the DHS. Conclusion: The chord diagram is a potentially useful way to visualize women’s contraceptive trajectories and provides additional insights to a single, static indicator of contraceptive discontinuation.

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 Presented in Session 1. Fertility, Family Planning, Sexual Behavior, & Reproductive Health 1