help dta2sav
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Title

    dta2sav - Create SPSS syntax to convert Stata data into SPSS data

Syntax

    dta2sav [varlist] [if] [in] [, options]

    option      description
    -------------------------------------------------------------------------
    NODots      supress dots showing progress
    Verbose     show MISSING VALUES commands of SPSS syntax in listing
    name(name)  specify (path and) name of .dts and .sps files
    replace     replace existing .dts (Stata data) and .sps (SPSS syntax)
                files

Description

    dta2sav creates SPSS syntax and a Stata data file to convert Stata data
    into SPSS data. Extended missing values (see: missing) which are labeled
    will be encoded into "numeric" values which will be defined as missing by
    using SPSS syntax commands created by dta2sav. This allows to preserve
    labels of missing values as defined in Stata for subsequent use in SPSS.
    dta2sav saves data in memory into a file in Stata 9/Stata 10 format with
    the extension .dts. The respective SPSS commands will be saved into an
    SPSS syntax file with the extension .sps. varlist and [if] [in] can be
    used to restrict data to be imported by SPSS.

    The rule to encode the extended missing values into "numeric" values is
    easier to understand by an example than by an abstract description:
    Imagine that the maximum valid value is a one digit integer, say 1, and
    there are two extended missing values .a and .b which are labeled. In
    this case .a will be encoded into 9, the maximum possible one-digit
    integer. .b will be encoded into a next smaller integer, in this case 8.
    If, however, the maximum valid value is 998 and there are three extended
    missing values .a, .b, and .d which are labeled (e.g. "not known", "not
    applicable", and "> 998"), there are not enough three-digits integers
    greater than 998. Therefore, .a will be encoded into 9999, .b into 9998,
    and .d into 9997 and SPSS syntax will be created that defines the values
    9999, 9998, and 9997 as missing (after the task dta2sav is completed, the
    original data will be restored in memory).

    In general, dta2sav will determine the number of digits D of the maximum
    valid integer and, if possible, will encode the first extended missing
    value (normally .a) (if it is labeled) into the maximum integer which can
    be displayed using D digits. Subsequent extended missing values
    corresponding to the remaining extended missings will be (if labeled)
    encoded into consecutively descending integers. If D is too small to
    encode all extended missings that way, the digits D to display the
    encoded "numeric" missings will be increased by one.

    If no path and filename is specified by using the option name(name), the
    name of the Stata data file in memory will be used for the filenames of
    the Stata data file with the extension .dts and the SPSS syntax file with
    the extension .sps. If not specified, the path will be extracted from the
    path of the Stata data file in memory.

Example

    . sysuse auto
    .
    . recode rep78 (.=.a), gen(rep78m) // note: no label of .a
    . recode price (10000/max = .a ">= 10,000"), gen(pricem)
    . label define origin .a "n.k." .b "n.a." .d "ambiguous", modify
    .
    . dta2sav, nod v name(`"`c(pwd)'/foo"') // use working directory

    Depending on the paths actually used, the result window will show the
    following listing of SPSS commands saved into the file foo.sps:

SPSS syntax:
  +--------------------------------------------------------------------------+
  | /* ------------------------------------------------------------------ */ |
  | /* 1978 Automobile Data */                                               |
  | /* Filename: 'C:\Program Files (x86)\Stata12\ado\base/a/auto.dta' */     |
  | /* File changed since 13 Apr 2011 17:45 */                               |
  | /* Cases: 74 (exported 74), variables: 14 (exported 14) */               |
  | /* Exported from Stata: 18 Jan 2012 19:07:28 */                          |
  | /* ------------------------------------------------------------------ */ |
  |                                                                          |
  | GET STATA FILE='d:\Statist\Stata\Data/foo.dts'.                          |
  | FILE LABEL 1978 Automobile Data.                                         |
  |                                                                          |
  | MISSING VALUES foreign (7 THRU 9).                                       |
  | MISSING VALUES pricem (9999).                                            |
  |                                                                          |
  | SAVE OUTFILE = 'd:\Statist\Stata\Data/foo.sav'.                          |
  +--------------------------------------------------------------------------+

Author

    Dirk Enzmann
    Institute of Criminal Sciences, Hamburg
    email: mailto:dirk.enzmann@uni-hamburg.de