Please explain to an evaluative researcher, the procedure for computing chi square for two groups on a dichotomous variable using SPSS.

Question

What will be an ideal response?

Answer 1

Ans: Computing chi square for two groups on a dichotomous variable in SPSS requires a series of steps that begins with going to the “Data View” screen and clicking on “Analyze” on the top taskbar. From the drop-down menu, clicking first on “Descriptives” and then on “Crosstabs” will bring a window that shows the two variables in the box to the left and two other boxes on the right titled “Column” and “Row.” The researcher needs to select the appropriate variables and move them to the boxes titled, “column” and “row” respectively. In order to obtain percentages of those who improved or did not improve in the comparison and treatment group, clicking on the box labeled “cells” and selecting the box titled “column percentages” would be sufficient. Once these procedures are completed, returning to the previous window by clicking “Continue” at the bottom of the screen and selecting the box labeled “Statistics” would open a window with different statistical non parametric tests. When the box next to “Chi square” is checked from that drop-down menu, the researcher will select the option “Continue” which will take the researcher back to the previous screen, where he or she will click “ok” to complete the steps and view the output.