Date: Fri, 11 Jun 2004 23:45:50 -0400
Reply-To: Richard Ristow <wrristow@mindspring.com>
Sender: "SPSSX(r) Discussion" <SPSSX-L@LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
From: Richard Ristow <wrristow@mindspring.com>
Subject: Re: Multiple response field
In-Reply-To: <40C879EC.6060708@pcmail.maricopa.edu>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"; format=flowed
At 11:10 AM 6/10/2004, Emily Lander wrote:
>Is there a way for SPSS to recognize multiple responses in one field?
There is not, but there are other ways to solve this problem.
>I am going to be doing a frequency table with this variable, so I
>simply need it to list each of the 3 responses in the frequency table.
This is what MULT RESPONSE is for. From the syntax manual,
"MULT RESPONSE displays frequencies and optional percentages for
multiple-response items in univariate tables and multivariate
crosstabulations. Multiple-response items are questions that can have
more than one value for each case. [...] You can organize
multiple-response data in one of two ways for use in the program.
* For each possible response, you can create a variable that can have
one of two values, such as 1 for no and 2 for yes; this is the
multiple-dichotomy method.
* Alternatively, you can estimate the maximum number of possible
answers from a respondent and create that number of variables, each of
which can have a value representing one of the [...] answers, such as 1
for Time, 2 for Newsweek, and 3 for PC Week. If an individual did not
give the maximum number of answers, the extra variables [should]
receive a missing-value code. This is the multiple-response or
multiple-category method of coding answers."
Now, the question is, how to get there? I'll suggest the second method
for your situation. You wrote,
>I have a survey where respondents "check all that apply." I use
>another program to scan in survey responses, and when it encounters a
>multiple response it enters all the responses into the field as:
>(1,4,5), for example.
The following code is UNTESTED:
/* Assumptions: */
/* 1. The original data is in a string */
/* variable named RESPONSS, in its */
/* original form, e.g. "(1,4,5)", of */
/* length 12. */
/* 2. No person has more than 5 responses.*/
/* 3. No response has more than two */
/* digits. */
/* 4. The maximum numerical value for a */
/* response is 10. */
/* 5. Responses are terminated ONLY by */
/* commas or right parentheses, and a */
/* right parenthesis ends the string. */
/* */
/* NOTES:
/* A. The limits of 12 character for */
/* "RESPONSS", 5 responses maximum, */
/* two digits for a response, and a */
/* maximum value of 10, can be */
/* increased easily. */
/* B. This code has almost no checking */
/* for errors such as a string that */
/* does not start with a left paren. */
VECTOR RESP(5,F2).
VALUE LABELS RESP1 to RESP5
1 'Meaning of response 1'
<etc.>.
STRING #ALL_RSP (A12)./* All responses, to parse */
STRING #ONE_RSP (A2). /* One response, as string */
NUMERIC #STR_LOC (F2). /* Pointer, into the string*/
NUMERIC #RSP_NUM (F2). /* Response counter */
COMPUTE #ALL_RSP = LTRIM(RESPONSS).
LOOP #RSP_NUM = 1 TO 5.
* Find a response: i.e., any numeral .
. COMPUTE #STR_LOC = INDEX(#ALL_RSP),'0123456789',1).
. DO IF #STR_LOC = 0.
* If no response is found, stop .
. BREAK.
. ELSE.
* Drop everything before the response .
. COMPUTE #ALL_RSP = SUBSTR(#ALL_RSP,#STR_LOC).
* Find the punctuation that ends the response .
. COMPUTE #STR_LOC = INDEX(#ALL_RSP,',)',1).
. DO IF #STR_LOC = 0.
* The response is the rest of the string .
. COMPUTE #ONE_RSP = #ALL_RSP.
. ELSE.
* The response is up to the punctuation .
. COMPUTE #ONE_RSP = SUBSTR(#ALL_RSP,1,
#STR_LOC-1).
. END IF.
* Convert the response to a number, and save .
. COMPUTE RESP(#RSP_NUM) = NUMBER(#ONE_RSP,F2).
. END IF.
END LOOP.
* Then, use the responses as a mult-response set.
MULT RESP
GROUPS=RESPS 'Responses to the survey question'
RESP1 TO RESP5 (0,10)
/FREQUENCIES RESPS.
Also from the syntax manual:
"Another procedure that analyzes multiple-response items is TABLES,
which has most, but not all, of the capabilities of MULT RESPONSE.
TABLES has special formatting capabilities that make it useful for
presentations."
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