Here are a couple of easy suggestions to:

• RECODE a variable
• COMPUTE a new variable

• RECODE marital status

  The variable 'MARITAL' has 5 categories:

  • 1 = Currently married
  • 2 = Widowed
  • 3 = Divorced
  • 4 = Separated
  • 5 = Never married

  Recode 'MARITAL' into 2 categories, so that 1=Currently married and 2=The other categories (2-5).
  Use the following recode rules:

  
  Output  Value of 'MARITAL'
  
    1          1
    2         2-5
  
  

  Call the new variable 'MARITAL2'

  Use the new variable in a crosstabulation, with the original 'MARITAL' variable.
  Then use it in a crosstabulation with some other variable such as 'SEX' or 'YEAR'.

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• COMPUTE an average

  Create a variable which is the average score on three variables.

  There is a series of questions asking whether we are spending too much, too little, or the right amount on certain things. Three of those variables are:

  • NATENVIR - Improving and Protecting the Environment
  • NATHEAL - Improving and Protecting the Nation's Health
  • NATCITY - Solving the Problems of the Big Cities

  All are coded as follows:

  • 1 = Too little
  • 2 = About right
  • 3 = Too much

  Compute the mean of the three items, and call it 'SPENDMEAN', by specifying the following expression:

  SPENDMEAN = mean(NATENVIR, NATHEAL, NATCITY)

  Then use the new variable in a comparison of means. For example, you could make 'SPENDMEAN' the dependent variable, and 'SEX' or 'YEAR' the row variable.

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