Documenting your work

Variable labels: describe your variables.

Variable labels document your data and make it more user-friendly.

Examples of the label variable command are shown below in a do-file.

---

#delimit;

version 6.0;

clear;

use "t:\statatut\examfac2.dta";

keep facid q102_1-q102_5 q103_1-q103_5;

/** show variable labels **/
describe;

/************************* from log *********************************************
Contains data from t:\statatut\examfac2.dta
  obs:           503                          1999 Tanzania Facility Survey
 vars:            11                          7 Sep 2000 16:59
 size:        11,066 (98.7% of memory free)
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
   1facid     double %12.0g                 
   2q102_1    byte   %13.0g      title      Staff member job title
   3q102_2    byte   %13.0g      title      Staff member job title
   4q102_3    byte   %13.0g      title      Staff member job title
   5q102_4    byte   %13.0g      title      Staff member job title
   6q102_5    byte   %13.0g      title      Staff member job title
   7q103_1    byte   %8.0g                  Staff member hours/week in FP
   8q103_2    byte   %8.0g                  Staff member hours/week in FP
   9q103_3    byte   %8.0g                  Staff member hours/week in FP
  10q103_4    byte   %8.0g                  Staff member hours/week in FP
  11q103_5    byte   %8.0g                  Staff member hours/week in FP
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
*********************************************************************************/

/** remove variable labels **/

label variable q102_1 "";

label variable q102_2 "";

label variable q102_3 "";

label variable q102_4 "";

label variable q102_5 "";

label variable q103_1 "";

label variable q103_2 "";

label variable q103_3 "";

label variable q103_4 "";

label variable q103_5 "";

describe;

/************************* from log *********************************************
Contains data from t:\statatut\examfac2.dta
  obs:           503                          1999 Tanzania Facility Survey
 vars:            11                          7 Sep 2000 16:59
 size:        11,066 (98.8% of memory free)
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
   1facid     double %12.0g                 
   2q102_1    byte   %13.0g      title      
   3q102_2    byte   %13.0g      title      
   4q102_3    byte   %13.0g      title      
   5q102_4    byte   %13.0g      title      
   6q102_5    byte   %13.0g      title      
   7q103_1    byte   %8.0g                  
   8q103_2    byte   %8.0g                  
   9q103_3    byte   %8.0g                  
  10q103_4    byte   %8.0g                  
  11q103_5    byte   %8.0g                  
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sorted by:  
     Note:  dataset has changed since last saved
********************************************************************************/

/** re-create variable labels */
label var q102_1 "Staff member job title";

label var q102_2 "Staff member job title";

label var q102_3 "Staff member job title";

label var q102_4 "Staff member job title";

label var q102_5 "Staff member job title";

label var q103_1 "Staff member hours/week in FP";

label var q103_2 "Staff member hours/week in FP";

label var q103_3 "Staff member hours/week in FP";

label var q103_4 "Staff member hours/week in FP";

label var q103_5 "Staff member hours/week in FP";

describe;

exit, clear;

Questions:

1. How many characters long can a variable label be? Answer.

2. Can more than one variable be assigned a variable label in one label command? Answer.

---

Answers:

1. The maximum length for a variable label is 80 characters. See help limits for this an almost every other limit in Stata. Back to question.

---

2. No. Only one variable can be processed in a label variable command. Back to question.

---

Review again?
Another topic?

---

Questions or comments?  If you are affiliated with the Carolina Population Center, send them to Phil Bardsley.