What does aggregation mean in Tableau?

Aggregation in Tableau refers to the process of summarizing data to reduce the volume of data points. It allows users to compute summary statistics such as sums, averages, counts, and other calculations on data sets, which helps in obtaining a high-level view of the data rather than working with individual data points. This summarization is essential for making data analysis manageable and interpreting it more easily, especially when dealing with large datasets.

By aggregating data, you can focus on overall trends and patterns rather than getting lost in the minutiae of every individual entry. This is particularly useful in visualizations where drawing attention to the big picture is often more informative than displaying every piece of data. For example, instead of showing every transaction, you might aggregate sales data by month to illustrate overall sales trends.

The other options discuss different concepts that are not specifically related to aggregation. Sorting data into categories involves organizing data but does not necessarily involve summarizing it. Clickable visual elements pertain to interactivity within Tableau dashboards, and combining fields to create a single new field relates to data preparation and transformation rather than aggregation itself.