This is an R package of datasets, functions, and course materials to go along with the second edition of the book Data Visualization: A Practical Introduction (Princeton University Press, 2026).
What’s in this Package
The socviz package contains about thirty datasets and a number of utility and convenience functions. Most of them are used in Data Visualization: A Practical Introduction (http://socviz.co), and there are also a few others as well for self-learners and students to practice their skills on.
Installation
To install the package, you can follow the instructions in the Preface to the book. Alternatively, first download and install R for MacOS, Windows or Linux, as appropriate. Then download and install RStudio. Launch RStudio and then type the following code at the Console prompt (>), hitting return at the end of each line:
my_packages <- c("tidyverse", "fs", "devtools", "sf")
install.packages(my_packages)
install.packages("socviz")To install the development version of socviz, instead of install.packages("socviz") do the following:
remotes::install_github("kjhealy/socviz")Once everything has downloaded and been installed (which may take a little while), load the socviz package:
More about the Datasets and Functions
The included datasets and functions are documented at http://kjhealy.github.io/socviz/reference/.