APL Applications To Social Science Research: An Alternative to Macrocomputer Dependent Statistical Packages

Although social science research has been greatly facilitated by the advent ofpreprogrammed "statistical packages,"such as SPSS and SAS, these generally require relatively large scale computer resources which are often unavailable to social science researchers at smaller colleges and unive...

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Veröffentlicht in:Sociological methods & research 1978-05, Vol.6 (4), p.469-492
Hauptverfasser: Marshall, Kimball P., Wilson, Stanley E.
Format: Artikel
Sprache:eng
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Zusammenfassung:Although social science research has been greatly facilitated by the advent ofpreprogrammed "statistical packages,"such as SPSS and SAS, these generally require relatively large scale computer resources which are often unavailable to social science researchers at smaller colleges and universities. However, recent advances in computer technology have increased the availability of mini- and microlevel computers while significantly reducing equipment costs. Complementary advances in interactive programming languages have enhanced the research and instructional potentials of these new systems. In this paper, one such interactive language, APL, is discussed as to potential applications in social science research. This relatively easy to learn language is available on many large scale installations, as well as on mini-and microlevel, low cost systems. Specifically, this paper presents generalizable APL programming techniques to guide the social science researcher in the use of this language. Topics covered include: (1) organization of data for input to the computer: (2) selection of subsets of cases for mathematical manipulation; (3) data modification and creation of new variables; and (4) application of analyti cal statistical procedures.
ISSN:0049-1241
1552-8294
DOI:10.1177/004912417800600403