SPSS - Working with sample data files

A) OPENING SAMPLE DATA FILES 
B) RUNNING AN ANALYSIS
C) VIEWING RESULTS
D) CREATING CHARTS

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A) OPENING SAMPLE DATA FILES 

1) From the menus choose: File > Open > Data... 

2) Alternatively, you can use the Open File button on the toolbar. A dialog box for opening files is displayed. 

3) The data file is displayed in the Data Editor.

4)In the Data Editor, if you put the mouse cursor on a variable name (the column headings), a more descriptive variable label is displayed (if a label has been defined for that variable). 

5)By default, the actual data values are displayed. To display labels: 

From the menus choose: View > Value Labels 

6) Alternatively, you can use the Value Labels button on the toolbar.

7) Descriptive value labels are now displayed to make it easier to interpret the responses.

B) RUNNING AN ANALYSIS

If you have any add-on options, the Analyze menu contains a list of reporting and statistical analysis categories.

We will start by creating a simple frequency table (table of counts). This example requires the Statistics Base option.

1) From the menus choose: Analyze > Descriptive Statistics > Frequencies... 

2) The Frequencies dialog box is displayed.

An icon next to each variable provides information about data type and level of measurement. 

3) Click the variable Income category in thousands [inccat].

4) If the variable label and/or name appears truncated in the list, the complete label/name is displayed when the cursor is positioned over it.

5) The variable name inccat is displayed in square brackets after the descriptive variable label.

6)Income category in thousands is the variable label.

 If there were no variable label, only the variable name would appear in the list box.

7) You can resize dialog boxes just like windows, by clicking and dragging the outside borders or corners. For example, if you make the dialog box wider, the variable lists will also be wider.

8) In the dialog box, you choose the variables that you want to analyze from the source list on the left and drag and drop them into the Variable(s) list on the right.

9) The OK button, which runs the analysis, is disabled until at least one variable is placed in the Variable(s) list.

10) In many dialogs, you can obtain additional information by right-clicking any variable name in the list. For example, you could click Income category in thousands [inccat] and choose Variable Information.

11) Click the down arrow on the Value labels drop-down list.

12) All of the defined value labels for the variable are displayed.

13) All of the defined value labels for the variable are displayed.

14) Click OK to run the procedure.

C) VIEWING RESULTS

1) Results are displayed in the Viewer window.

2) Suppose you have done the two parts above, you can quickly go to any item in the Viewer by selecting it in the outline pane. For example, you could... Click Income category in thousands [inccat].

 

3) The frequency table for income categories is displayed.

4) This frequency table shows the number and percentage of people in each income category.

D) CREATING CHARTS

Although some statistical procedures can create charts, you can also use the Graphs menu to create charts.

1) For example, you can create a chart that shows the relationship between wireless telephone service and PDA (personal digital assistant) ownership. 

From the menus choose: Graphs > Chart Builder... 

2) Click the Gallery tab (if it is not selected).

3) Click Bar (if it is not selected).

4) Drag the Clustered Bar icon onto the canvas, which is the large area above the Gallery.

5) Scroll down the Variables list, right-click Wireless service [wireless], and then choose Nominal as its measurement level.

6) Drag the Wireless service [wireless] variable to the x axis.

7) Right-click Owns PDA [ownpda] and choose Nominal as its measurement level.

8) Drag the Owns PDA [ownpda] variable to the cluster drop zone in the upper right corner of the canvas.

9) Click OK to create the chart.

10) The bar chart is displayed in the Viewer. The chart shows that people with wireless phone service are far more likely to have PDAs than people without wireless service.

  

11) You can edit charts and tables by double-clicking them in the contents pane of the Viewer window, and you can copy and paste your results into other applications.