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Session 1

SPSS Overview and Basic Operations

Once you have installed the SPSS software you will find the SPSS short cut in the start menu or SPSS for Windows menu in the Start / All Programs. Clicking on SPSS 15.0 for Windows Evaluation version opens the SPSS software.

This is the start up screen, which looks like the familiar Excel worksheet. Click on the Cancel button to remove the start up box.

Row We have a matrix with rows and columns

Column The first column has numbers 1,2,3,4. And the first row has var on top of each column. The var stands for variable.

Lets input some data

O.Chandra Shekar Aparna.A K.Adeep

Click in the cell where you want to type in the data. After you have finished typing press enter to move to next cell.

You will notice that as soon as you complete the first data entry and press enter the name of the variable on the top of the column changes (by default it is var00001).

Case 1 Case 2 Case 3

Now, lets add some more data in the next two columns. Notice that the variable names on top of each column are assigned automatically. Each row represents a case or record. Each case has variables attached to it. For example for case 1 the name of the respondent is O. Chandra Shekar and his age is 17 and he is male. It would be nice to have variable names that tell us what the variables stand for.

If you glance at the left hand bottom of the sheet, you will see two tabs. Right now you are in Data View and are therefore able to view the data that is being entered.

Clicking on the variable view data will take you to the sheet which holds information about the variable. This is one of the features which you will find different from excel.

name age gender

The Variable view sheet holds information about the variables. You can change the names of the variables by simply clicking in the cell and typing in the appropriate name.

In SPSS version 15, the length of the variable names is limited to 8 characters and all characters are in lower case. A space in the name is not accepted.

SPSS allows data type for each variable to be customized. The variable type selection box can be popped up by clicking in the space to the extreme right of the Type column. By default all variables are designated as numeric variables.

Some data types such as date have many formats which can be selected from a scrollable list. The best part about SPSS is the context specific help that is available by right clicking on the object for which you need help. For example if you right click on string you are prompted with Whats This? Clicking on Whats This? gives you more information about the selected object.

Width denotes the number of characters in the case of string variables or the number of digits in the case of numeric variables

Sometimes the limitation of eight characters for the name of the variable leads to gibberish names. You can give a label to each variable using up to 256 characters. This label can give a more elaborate description of the variable.

1
Male 1=Male

The values column in the variable view sheet allows us to assign different values to the same variable. To assign values click in the extreme right side of the cell for the pop up.

This is related to the codes that we use especially while collecting primary data through questionnaires. Here for example if we had coded male as 1 and female as 2 we would input these values in the Value Labels pop up box.

The Width column decides on the number of characters or digits that the variable can accept while the Columns column specifies the width of column to be displayed. A small number in the columns will allow only that much portion of the variable to be seen although the variable may contain much larger data. The visible column width can also be adjusted by dragging the variable border in the grey area at the top of the column much like we do in excel.

The last column titled Measure, requires some explanation.

Statistical packages classify variables into four types: Nominal, Ordinal, Interval and Ratio. SPSS combines interval and ratio data to call them scale. Clicking on the extreme right of the measures column will drop the menu from where the data type can be selected.

Nominal Ordinal

In nominal measurement each numeric value represents a category or group identifier. for ordinal measures the data values represent ranking or ordering information. In interval measurement, a unit increase in numeric value represents the same change in quantity regardless of where it occurs on the scale. Ratio measures have interval scale properties with the addition of a meaningful zero point, that is, zero indicates complete absence of the characteristic measured.

Interval

Ratio

Very often the data required by us is available in other formats such as excel or text (asci) format. Or usually data is entered by persons who may not have knowledge of SPSS and as such it may be easier to enter the data in a more familiar form such as excel. SPSS can import data from various popular and not so popular formats. Click on File / Open / Data.

This pops up the Open File dialogue box

Clicking on the Files of type drop down arrow gives a list of file formats that SPSS can import.

Select Excel (*.xls) option and choose the file to be opened from the appropriate folder. Please note that SPSS version 15 does not support to import *.xlsx file format. You can select the worksheet and range to be copied.

Check the sheet number to ensure the correct data to import if data is distributed in different sheets and also check the range and correct if it is not taken by default.

Click on ok to proceed

The data file is ready in SPSS for editing and formatting as shown

Assign the Labels for each variable in the Lebel Column

Assign the Values for each variable in the Values Column

Income Gender