An Introductory Guide to SPSS for Windows

Do you need to conduct data analysis with SPSS but are unfamiliar with the software? This user-friendly book—a SAGE bestseller—helps you become proficient in SPSS by teaching you the fundamentals of SPSS. An Introductory Guide to SPSS® for Windows®, Second Edition develops SPSS skills using sample programs illustrating how to conduct the analyses typically covered in an introductory statistics course. Throughout the book, data are analyzed and SPSS output are interpreted in the context of research questions. Boldface text is used to indicate operations or choices the reader will need to make when running SPSS. Exercises are also included, with solutions provided in the appendix.

"I want to commend the author for including a chapter on using the SPSS manuals. I would not have thought of this addition, and the information helps the reader go on to learn the more complex components of SPSS."
—Laura Myers, University of Georgia

This Second Edition has been updated to SPSS Version 12.0, although its approach makes it useful for readers running other versions. Each chapter in this updated text includes a statement of its purpose and goal, as well as a chapter glossary. The updated text includes new SPSS features, including how to recode data using the Visual Bander and how to read text data using the Text Import Wizard. Author Eric L. Einspruch thoroughly covers critical basic skills:

• How to create data sets by defining and coding data, using a codebook, and entering data
• How to run SPSS and work with different SPSS files
• How to manipulate data by recoding values, computing values, and selecting subsets of cases to include in an analysis
• How to manage data files by reading data that have been entered using other software, appending files, and merging files
• How to analyze data using SPSS pull-down menus
• How to analyze data using programs written in SPSS syntax

This outstanding book concludes with a discussion of how to get help in SPSS, suggestions on how to make the most of SPSS manuals, and directions for taking the next steps toward software mastery.