SQLBits 2026
Ethos, Pathos & Logos: Aristotle’s Lesson for Ethical Data Design
Discover how Ethos, Logos, and Pathos shape ethical, accessible, and persuasive dashboards. Learn practical techniques to strengthen credibility, improve understanding, and design inclusive data communication users can trust and act on.
Aristotle argued that persuasion rests on three pillars: Ethos (credibility), Logos (logic), and Pathos (emotion). These same principles apply to data communication, because every dashboard we create persuades users what to trust, how to interpret information, and what action to take.
In this session, we explore how these 2,000-year-old ideas map directly to modern dashboard design, and why they matter for anyone building reports that influence decisions.
Using practical examples, we will explore how ethics strengthens credibility (Ethos), how human perception and cognitive design principles improve understanding (Logos), and how accessibility and empathy driven design, creates more inclusive and effective dashboards (Pathos).
Attendees will leave with clear, practical principles they can immediately apply to design dashboards that people trust, understand, and act on, ethically.
In this session, we explore how these 2,000-year-old ideas map directly to modern dashboard design, and why they matter for anyone building reports that influence decisions.
Using practical examples, we will explore how ethics strengthens credibility (Ethos), how human perception and cognitive design principles improve understanding (Logos), and how accessibility and empathy driven design, creates more inclusive and effective dashboards (Pathos).
Attendees will leave with clear, practical principles they can immediately apply to design dashboards that people trust, understand, and act on, ethically.