6.1 Making calculations

We can now analyse employment-status spells. First calculate duration and save the current file (duration is end + 1 - start because the end date is defined as the start of the next spell minus one).

compute duration = end + 1 - start.
if missing(start) or missing (end) duration = -9.
if lcens duration = -9.
missing values duration (lo thru -1).

descr duration.

save out = "m:\empspells.sav".

Let's investigate how duration varies across the three broad statuses:

means duration by empstat.

And by whether we observe the end of the spell (think first: should we expect spells to be shorter or longer, if we don't observe their ends?):

means duration by endtype.