Learning how to analyze data can be frustrating at times. Why do statistical software companies have to add to our confusion?
I do not have a good answer to that question. What I will do is show examples. In upcoming blog posts, I will explain what each output means and how they are used in a model.
We will focus on ANOVA and linear regression models using SPSS and Stata software. As you will see, the biggest differences are not across software, but across procedures in the same software.
If you’ve ever tried sharing SPSS output with your collaborators, advisor, or statistical consultant, you have surely noticed that the output is often not compatible across different versions of SPSS.
And if you work in a company where everyone is working on the same site license, it’s not a problem. But if you’re collaborating with colleagues at different universities on different upgrade schedules, you might run into some problems.
It’s true that most software programs aren’t back-compatible. You can’t read documents created in newer versions in older versions of software.
But SPSS’s sharing capabilities are more, um, interesting.
The syntax and data files are back and forward-compatible across many versions, at least since v9 or so. (I don’t (more…)