1. A computer implemented method comprising: providing a control within a graphical user interface to a user, the control comprising a plurality of graphical user interface elements corresponding to linked nodes within a hierarchical structure; receiving a user-generated input identifying a selected graphical user interface element within the control; identifying a selected node within the hierarchical structure corresponding to the selected graphical user interface element; receiving a user-generated request for modifying an appearance of a subset of the linked nodes within the hierarchical structure based on desired visualization criteria, the linked nodes within the hierarchical structure and the selected node; and, modifying an appearance of one or more graphical user interface elements corresponding to the received request.