Mar 22, 2021 Visualizing U.S. Occupational Market Trends – Past, Present, and Future

By Justin Sorensen

Have you ever wondered what trends in U.S. occupational markets look like over time? Where are higher areas of demand presenting themselves and where are they projected to be in the near future? This week’s Map Monday release visualizes these questions by examining various occupational markets and their geospatial changes at various temporal levels. #Map Monday

This week’s geospatial visualization is a simple representation of how programs such as Social Explorer can be utilized to quickly visualize changes in data over time. Our analysis focuses on available Market Profile data for 2010 (Past), 2020 (Present), and 2025 (Future) in the following occupational categories:

• Management, Business, and Financial Operations
• Professional and Related
• Sales and Office
• Service
• Farm, Fishing, and Forestry
• Construction, Extraction, and Maintenance
• Production, Transportation, and Material Moving

Each visualization employees a dot-density analysis where individual points represent a minimum of 2,500 jobs. While these visualizations are presented at a national perspective, more detailed and refined findings can be obtained by analyzing the data on a smaller scale, such as state, county, or metropolitan levels. Comparing each set of temporal data side-by-side presents viewers with the story of where occupational markets have been, where they are now, and where they are expected to go in the years to come.

Can you identify the patterns and trends presented in this data? Consider examining or working with these and other informative data sets available to you through Social Explorer – (see below for information on accessing the software).

Happy Mapping!

Justin Sorensen | GIS Specialist
Creativity & Innovation Services / GIS Services
justin.sorensen@utah.edu

• Did you know as students, staff, and faculty of the University of Utah, you have free access to the tools and datasets available through Social Explorer? Check out this past blog post for additional information: Exploring Demographic Data Through Social Explorer
• Interested in creating or collaborating on a similar project? Please visit the GIS Services website to connect with me.

About Map Monday Releases from GIS Services

Throughout the semester, GIS Services will be releasing bi-weekly maps on a variety of topics, demonstrating ideas and uses for incorporating geospatial technology into projects and research you are developing. To view our collection of maps, projects, or to learn more about the geospatial services offered through the J. Willard Marriott Library, please visit the GIS Services website @ www.lib.utah.edu/services/geospatial