Date:         Wed, 14 Nov 2007 17:12:20 -0500
Reply-To:     Peter Flom <peterflomconsulting@mindspring.com>
Sender:       "SAS(r) Discussion" <SAS-L@LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
From:         Peter Flom <peterflomconsulting@MINDSPRING.COM>
Subject:      Re: Transforming negative numbers
Comments: To: William Elliott <elliott.willie@SBCGLOBAL.NET>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=UTF-8

William Elliott <elliott.willie@SBCGLOBAL.NET> wrote
>
>Hello, I am trying to transform an income variable and a wealth variable,
>however, my understanding is that you cannot use log when the data has
>negative numbers. What would be an alternative method? Thanks

Indeed, you cannot take the log of 0 or a negative number.

Before I can suggest an alternative, I'd like to know why you want to transform income and wealth, how people get negative income and wealth, what you will do with the transformed variables, and so on.

Sorry not to be more immediately helpful, but the question is too broad to be easily answered

Peter