How to Code, Encode and Analyze Rank Order Data

To code, encode, and analyze rank order data in SPSS, you'll first need to re-enter the data in an Excel spreadsheet, and then import it into SPSS for analysis. Below are step-by-step instructions, including an example table for visualization:

Step 1: Re-enter Rank Order Data in Excel

• Create a New Excel Spreadsheet: Open Excel and create a new spreadsheet. Label the columns appropriately. You'll typically have one column for the subject or respondent ID and several columns for the items to be ranked.
• Enter Your Data: In each row, enter the subject's ID and rank the items according to their preferences. Assign a rank of 1 to the most preferred item, 2 to the second most preferred, and so on. You can leave gaps in the rankings if two or more items are considered equally preferable.

Here's an example table:

Respondent ID	Pepsi	Coke	Gatorade
1	3	1	2
2	1	2	3
3	2	1	3

In this example, three respondents ranked three items (Item 1, Item 2, Item 3). Each number in the table represents the rank given by the respective respondent.

Step 2: Import Data into SPSS

• Save the Excel File: Save your Excel file with the rank order data.
• Open SPSS: Launch SPSS and open a new data file.
• Import the Excel Data: Go to "File" > "Read Text Data" > "Excel." Browse and select your Excel file. Follow the import wizard to specify which sheet contains your data and set the data types correctly.
• Review Data in SPSS: After importing, check that your data has been loaded correctly into SPSS. Each column should represent a variable (e.g., Respondent ID, Item 1, Item 2, Item 3), and each row represents a case (respondent).

Step 3: Analyze Rank Order Data

• Determine Analysis Goals: Decide what you want to learn from the rank order data. Common analyses include assessing preferences, identifying trends, or comparing groups.
• Use Appropriate Statistical Tests: Depending on your goals, you can use various statistical tests, such as Friedman's test for overall ranking differences or Wilcoxon signed-rank tests for pairwise comparisons. These tests assess the significance of rank differences.
• Perform Data Transformation (Optional): If needed, you can transform rank order data into preference scores or other numerical metrics for further analysis.
• Run Statistical Analysis: Conduct your chosen statistical tests in SPSS based on your research questions.
• Interpret Results: Analyze the results to draw conclusions about preferences, trends, or differences among groups based on the rank order data.

Hope this helps.