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Newsgroups: bit.listserv.spssx-l
Date:         Thu, 17 Dec 1992 01:04:36 WET
Reply-To:     Ran Chermesh <chermesh@BGUMAIL.BGU.AC.IL>
From:         Ran Chermesh <chermesh@BGUMAIL.BGU.AC.IL>
Subject: Re: Is it a bug? Means in NPAR TEST
Comments: To: SPSS Users' Group <spssx-l@marist.bitnet>

Melvin Klassen responded to my inquiry by raising a few questions?
He asks, how did I treat the missing values on the NPAR TEST
procedure? Since it wasn't explicitly specified, it followed the
"ANALYSIS" default option. I ran the program again, this time,
specifying the three MISSING options explicitly. As you can see
below, when SPSS acted by its defaults, it opted for the "ANALYSIS"
option. The "ANALYSIS" is described as "Exclude missing values on a
test-by-test basis." (SPSS Reference Guide, Ver. 4, p. 505). Since
the program has a legitimate missing values specification, this
default mode should have created a correct solution. Nevertheless,
the only legitimate solution is reached when a "MISSING=LISTWISE" is
included in the NPAR TEST instruction. In the present, two variable case,
both options, the "ANALYSIS" and the "LISTWISE" are identical, which
make my wonder even clearer. Thus, there seems to be a bug on the default
("ANALYSIS") sub-parameter on NPAR TEST.  Am I not right?!

>
>    5  0  missing values x1 (0,3 thru 9)/x2 (0,8,9)/x3, x4 (0,6 thru 9)/x5 (801
 thru hi)/
>    6  0   x6 to x15 (0,3 thru 9)/v16 to v25 (0,3 thru hi).
>    7  0  npar test /M-W = x3 x4 by x1(1,2).
>    8  0  descr x3 x4/stat=min max mean stdvt.
>
>    9  0  NPAR TESTS SIGN X3 X4 /statistics=descriptives.
>
>
>                 N        Mean     Std Dev  Minimum  Maximum   Label
>
> X3            103  -62035.063   61738.984        .        5
> X4            103  -73965.539   60444.898        .        5
>
>
>   10  0  NPAR TESTS SIGN X3 X4 /statistics=descriptives/missing=analysis.
>
>
>  17 Dec 92   SPSS Release 4.0  Risc System 6K
                                                Page 10
>                 N        Mean     Std Dev  Minimum  Maximum   Label
> X3            103  -62035.063   61738.984        .        5
> X4            103  -73965.539   60444.898        .        5
>
>
>   11  0  NPAR TESTS SIGN X3 X4 /statistics=descriptives/missing=listwise.
>
>
>                 N        Mean     Std Dev  Minimum  Maximum   Label
>
> X3             21       2.857       1.493        1        5
> X4             21       2.571       1.248        1        5
> 00:35:34    Ben Gurion University SPSS4.0  Risc System 6000 Aix 3.1
>
> - - - - - Sign Test
>
>   12  0  NPAR TESTS SIGN X3 X4 /statistics=descriptives/missing=include.
>
>
>                 N        Mean     Std Dev  Minimum  Maximum   Label
>
> X3            103   -1188.747   12108.149        .        9
> X4            103       4.466       3.274        0        9
>
>
>


--
Ran Chermesh                                  E - M A I L
Behavioral Sciences Dept.                     ===========
Ben-Gurion University                  Internet: CHERMESH@BGUVM.BGU.AC.IL
Beer-Sheva 84105                                 CHERMESH@BGUMAIL.BGU.AC.IL
Israel                                 Bitnet  : CHERMESH@BGUVM.BITNET
Phone: 972-57-472-057                  Fax: 972-57-232-766
Comments: Gated by NETNEWS@AUVM.AMERICAN.EDU