SPSS Variable Name

Variables are key part of any dataset. They signify how your research is conducted and what types of analysis methods can be used. When using SPSS, it is important to know how to define and compute variables for your analysis.

Why should I use question codes in variable name?

QuestionPro auto-generates variable names by default and you generally don't need to change these. However, if you have customized question codes which you want to use in SPSS variable names, for better readability, you can select the option to use question codes in variable name when exporting a SPSS file for your survey data.

How to use question codes in variable names when exporting my survey data in SPSS?

To download a SPSS file of your data, go to: My Surveys (Select Survey) » Analytics

Under Manage Data click on the Export option.

Scroll down to the Statistical Package Export (SPSS) section.

Select the toggle (switch) for display question code in variable name and click on download.

On the popup, you can fix errors if any and click on export.

SPSS variable name has following limitations:

SPSS variable names cannot start with numbers
SPSS variable name cannot include spaces.
SPSS variable names cannot include special characters
Duplicate variable names are also not permitted in SPSS
For older versions of SPSS (pre 12.0) there is a character limit of 8
Variable names cannot end with an underscore or a period
Variable names with reserved words are not allowed

Any changes made to question code in the SPSS variable name pop-up will be applicable only to SPSS variable name in the export file. Question codes for your survey questions will not be updated.