Findind the sum of all variables

[Guerraje]

I am working with survey data. I have been asked to create a new variable which is the sum of all of the variables below,  and then run a t-test so that we can use the standard deviation. 

I have tried to use proc means and proc summary but they are providing me with the sums of the rows now the sums of all the variables added up, so I can't quite figure out the right statements to use.

Thank you! 

 My example of proc summary code is here below, to show how I am trying to enter these variables 

PROC SUMMARY DATA= WORK.vaccine_hesitancy_data SUM PRINT; 

 VAR vaccinefactors1 vaccinefactors2 vaccinefactors3 vaccinefactors4 vaccinefactors5 vaccinefactors6 vaccinefactors7 vaccinefactors8 vaccinefactors9 vaccinefactors10 vaccinefactors11;

OUTPUT OUT= vaccinefactors

SUM= sum_of_vaccinefactors;

RUN; 

PROC TTEST ;

var vaccinefactors1 vaccinefactors2 vaccinefactors3 vaccinefactors4 vaccinefactors5 vaccinefactors6 vaccinefactors7 vaccinefactors8 vaccinefactors9 vaccinefactors10 vaccinefactors11;

CLASS VACCINEHESITANT; 

RUN;

	Total	%	Hesitant -1	%	NotHesitant -0	%
	N = 7197		N = 281		N = 6916
	n (%)		p-value
What factors affect yout attitudes and thoughts about getting the COVID- vaccine? n (%)
Politics	694	9.64%	100	35.59%	594	8.59%	0.0001
The timeline in which the vaccines were developed and approved	1383	19.22%	207	73.67	1176	17.00%	0.0001
The frequently changing messages around COVID-19	918	12.76	174	61.92	744	10.76%	0.0001
Actions and opinions of my friends and family regarding the vaccine	841	11.69	41	14.59	800	11.57%	0.122
My trust in scientists	5147	71.52%	54	19.22	5093	73.62	0.0001
My trust in doctors	4601	63.93%	51	18.15	4550	65.79	0.0001
My trust in public health officials	3890	54.05%	133	47.33	3757	54.32	0.0211
My own reading and research on coronavirus (COVID-19) vaccines	4396	61.08	169	60.14	4227	61.12	0.742
The country in which a vaccine is manufactured	662	9.20%	22	7.83	640	9.25	0.4179
The potential cost of a coronavirus (COVID-19) vaccine	284	3.95%	4	1.42	280	4.05	0.0267
Other factors	734	10.2	84	28.89	650	9.4	0.0001
Total factors considered, mean (SD)

[sbxkoenk]

Try this :

data have;
vaccinefactors1 = 7; 
vaccinefactors2 = 3;
vaccinefactors3 = 2.58; 
vaccinefactors4 = 1.20; 
vaccinefactors5 = 17; 
vaccinefactors6 = 18; 
vaccinefactors7 = 7; 
vaccinefactors8 = 7; 
vaccinefactors9 = 5; 
vaccinefactors10= 7; 
vaccinefactors11= 3;
output;
run;

data want;
 LENGTH sum_vaccinefactors 8;
 set have;
 sum_vaccinefactors=sum(of vaccinefactors1-vaccinefactors11);
run;
/* end of program */

Koen

[Kurt_Bremser]

So you want to get the horizontal sum of all vaccine... variables in every observation?

[Guerraje]

We have 11 choices a person could have selected as a reason for their vaccine hesitancy. We decided we want to get the sum of all of them now and create a new variable we could title it:
"vaccinefactor"
which is just the total of all the data.

[Kurt_Bremser]

Then you build the sum as already suggested.

[Guerraje]

Is there a way to calculate the sum and give that sum the variable name of "vaccinefactor" so that I can then use that variable attached to that sum to use later?

[Reeza]

DATA need;
   set WORK.vaccine_hesitancy_data; 
   VaccineFactor = sum(of vaccinefactors1-vaccinefactors11);
run;

[Kurt_Bremser]

---

@Guerraje wrote:
We have 11 choices a person could have selected as a reason for their vaccine hesitancy. We decided we want to get the sum of all of them now and create a new variable we could title it:
"vaccinefactor"
which is just the total of all the data.

---

The suggested codes do exactly that, you only need to change the name of the target variable.

[Guerraje]

When running that code, I happen to get an error that my variable is not found. I am attaching my code and my log.

Thank you 

 

[Kurt_Bremser]

The sum variable is in the new dataset, so you need to use that in the TTEST procedure.

[Reeza]

I'm assuming your values are hardcoded for us? To show the screenshot? Otherwise you're doing something very inefficient and possibly incorrect here.

[ballardw]

---

@Guerraje wrote:
We have 11 choices a person could have selected as a reason for their vaccine hesitancy. We decided we want to get the sum of all of them now and create a new variable we could title it:
"vaccinefactor"
which is just the total of all the data.

---

Summing this coding sounds like an exercise in adding up football team names.

What exactly do some of the "numbers" mean? Even with a rating scale adding responses from multiple responses from the scale does not mean that a total of 12 for one person is anything at like a total of 12 for a different respondent.

[ballardw]

It might not hurt to provide a very small example of something and show the expected results from that.

I think that you may need to sum the variables in each row such as in a data step

DATA need;
   set WORK.vaccine_hesitancy_data; 
   VacTot = sum(of vaccinefactors1-vaccinefactors11);
run;

HOWEVER, there is a concern with this data starting from a SURVEY. Does your data include weights for the observations? If so you may need to use another approach to use the weights properly after getting that total.