Changing a variable’s label

Survey Tabulation > Working with variables > Changing a variable’s label

You can choose whether to show variable names or descriptions (which are also called labels) in your tables. When you use variable labels, provided translations are available, you can select the language in which the labels are displayed. Changes apply to all tables.

When using the variable labels, you may sometimes find that you want to change the label for a variable – for example, to make it shorter so that it fits the available space better.

Switching between variable names and labels

1 From the menu, choose Tools > Options.

2 In the Options dialog box, click the View Table button. This opens the View Table Options dialog box: see View Table Options dialog box.

3 In the Display variables using list, select Names or Labels.

4 If required, select the language in the Display labels in language list.

Changing a variable’s description

1 Select the Define tab.

2 In the Variable List, select the variable you want to change.

3 From the menu, choose Variables > Edit.

This opens the Edit Variable dialog box: see Edit Variable dialog box.

4 Edit the text in the Description text box at the top of the dialog box, and then click OK.

Note Any changes you make to the variable’s description (label) are applied to any existing tables that include the variable next time you populate them.