Theory development in visual language research: Beyond the cognitive dimensions of notations

The cognitive dimensions of notations (CDs) framework has become the predominant theoretical paradigm for analysing visual languages (VLs). This paper evaluates the CDs framework using established conceptual frameworks for analysing scientific theories. It concludes that while it is a paradigm, it is not scientific according to standards normally applied in scientific research. It also represents the earliest evolutionary form of theory, which is appropriate when no prior theory exists. This paper asks whether such a theory is an appropriate paradigm for VL research after a quarter of a century of research in this field. The CDs framework has performed a valuable role in advancing the analysis of VLs beyond the level of intuition, but should not be seen as the end point for theory development in this field. This paper proposes a more powerful, domain-specific theory (the physics of notations) as an alternative paradigm for VL research.