Visual Literacy in the Context of Data Literacy in Higher Education: A Systematic Review of Competencies, Empirical Findings and Assessment Approaches

In increasingly data-driven societies, data literacy is regarded as a key competence for informed decision-making. Within higher education, students are increasingly expected not only to analyze data but also to critically evaluate and communicate data-driven insights. In this context, visual literacy and data visualization literacy represent important dimensions of data literacy, as they support the creation, interpretation, and critical evaluation of data visualizations. However, these constructs remain conceptually fragmented, and existing research in higher education lacks consistent assessment approaches. The study presents a systematic literature review of empirical and conceptual research on visual literacy within the context of data literacy in higher education. Following PRISMA guidelines, studies published between 2010 and 2025 were identified through interdisciplinary database searches. Higher education institutions increasingly face the challenge of preparing students for data-driven communication and decision-making. 27 studies explicitly addressing higher education contexts were included in the final analysis. The review examined competence dimensions, students’ competency levels, and assessment instruments. The findings indicate that visual literacy within the context of data literacy constitutes a multidimensional construct encompassing interpretative, analytical, productive, cognitive, and critically reflective dimensions. While prior research has primarily focused on methodological skills, such as visualization creation and interpretation, cognitive competencies, particularly critical evaluation, mental model construction, and reflective decision-making, remain underrepresented. Empirical evidence further suggests that students possess basic visualization skills but struggle with complex visualizations, critical interpretation, and audience-oriented communication. In addition, existing assessment instruments are heterogeneous, only partially validated, and rarely capture cognitive dimensions of competence. The review highlights the need for theoretically grounded and empirically validated assessment and instructional approaches that integrate cognitive and critically reflective aspects of visual literacy into broader data literacy frameworks. The findings provide implications for higher education teaching, curriculum development, and further research on data-informed communication and decision-making.