Multi-level exercises
Two datasets are supplied for exercises throughout the course on multi-level analyses. The first, TEACHER98, contain information from a Danish study of working conditions among Danish teachers in 88 different public schools in 1998/99. The dataset contains both responses at individual levels and context variables describing properties of schools where the teachers work. The second, SCHOOLS, contains one record per school with all available context variables.
The data is described in the copies of the overheads from the lectures on the first day of the course. Additional information may be found form the so-called SPSS file infos added to these notes.
Data is available as both SPSS and SAS files. During the course of the analysis you should perform multi-level analyses of at least two response variables of your own choice. We suggest that you plan the analysis in the following way:
a) Two initial conventional regression analysis including all relevant individual variables plus either the School variable or the context variables as explanatory (independent) variables.
b) An additional conventional regression analysis at school level examining the dependence of the mean value of the response variable of interest on the available contextual variables.
The purpose of the first two steps is to identify the explanatory variables to be included in the multi-level analysis.
Finally the last part of the analysis should be
c) Multi-level analyses using including relevant explanatory variables with fixed effects together with a random school effect. At the end of the analysis you should be able to point out which variables to include in the model together with the random school effect and to compare the fixed effects to the random effects.
We assume that you have knowledge and experience with conventional regression analyses and suggest that you do these analyses in the time between course dates, such that the time on the course can be used to work on and discuss the results of the multi-level analyses. We will use SAS during exercises because SPSS does not have adequate facilities for multi-level analyses, but you may of course use SPSS (or any other statistical program that you may have experience with) for the initial regression analyses. The results should, of course, not depend on your choice of software.
Finally, we suggest that you try to write a short informal report summarising the results of the analysis and your conclusion concerning the need for random effects in the models. If you send us this report shortly after the course we will return it with some comments before summer vacation.
The SAS data sets come without value labels. The labels of the variables may be found in the SPSS file infos on the following pages. The missing labels should be of no problem during the multi-level analyses.
File info for TEACHER98
List of variables on the working file
Name (Position) Label
school (1)
Measurement Level: Scale
Column Width: 8 Alignment: Right
Print Format: F2
Write Format: F2
sex (2)
Measurement Level: Ordinal
Column Width: 8 Alignment: Right
Print Format: F1
Write Format: F1
Value Label
1 Male
2 Female
age (3)
Measurement Level: Scale
Column Width: 8 Alignment: Right
Print Format: F2
Write Format: F2
nlessons (4) Number of lessons per week
Measurement Level: Scale
Column Width: 8 Alignment: Right
Print Format: F9.2
Write Format: F9.2
merged (5)
Has previously worked on a school that have been merged with the current
school
Measurement Level: Ordinal
Column Width: 8 Alignment: Right
Print Format: F1
Write Format: F1
Value Label
1 No
2 Yes
ancien (6) Number of years at school
Measurement Level: Scale
Column Width: 8 Alignment: Right
Print Format: F2
Write Format: F2
happy (7) Are you happy, being a teacher?
Measurement Level: Ordinal
Column Width: 8 Alignment: Right
Print Format: F8.2
Write Format: F8.2
Missing Values: 9,00
Value Label
1,00 No, not at all
2,00 No, not really
3,00 yes, to some degree
4,00 Yes, absolutely
move (8) Do you want to move to a different school?
Measurement Level: Ordinal
Column Width: 8 Alignment: Right
Print Format: F9.2
Write Format: F9.2
Missing Values: 9,00
Value Label
1,00 No
2,00 Ia am considering
3,00 I will lokk for a different school
4,00 I have applied for a job at a different school
5,00 I have been accepted for a job at a different school
6,00 Jeg, men jeg tror ikke, jeg kan få andet job
absence (9) Number of periods with absence from work due to health problems
Measurement Level: Ordinal
Column Width: 8 Alignment: Right
Print Format: F8.2
Write Format: F8.2
qualfreq (10) Relative frequency of lessons with special qualifications
Measurement Level: Scale
Column Width: 8 Alignment: Right
Print Format: F8.2
Write Format: F8.2
Missing Values: 100,00 thru 100000,0
collab (11) Experienced degree of collaboration among teachers
Measurement Level: Scale
Column Width: 8 Alignment: Right
Print Format: F8.2
Write Format: F8.2
demands (12) Experienced magnitude of demands
Measurement Level: Scale
Column Width: 8 Alignment: Right
Print Format: F8.2
Write Format: F8.2
influenc (13) Degree of influence
Measurement Level: Scale
Column Width: 8 Alignment: Right
Print Format: F8.2
Write Format: F8.2
managemt (14) Satisfaction with the management of the school
Measurement Level: Scale
Column Width: 8 Alignment: Right
Print Format: F8.2
Write Format: F8.2
psychoso (15) Psychosomatic stress symptoms
Measurement Level: Scale
Column Width: 8 Alignment: Right
Print Format: F8.2
Write Format: F8.2
psycholo (16) Psychological stress symptoms
Measurement Level: Scale
Column Width: 8 Alignment: Right
Print Format: F8.2
Write Format: F8.2
stress (17) Total number of stress symptoms
Measurement Level: Scale
Column Width: 8 Alignment: Right
Print Format: F8.2
Write Format: F8.2
physcond (18) Dissatisfaction with physical conditions at the school
Measurement Level: Scale
Column Width: 8 Alignment: Right
Print Format: F8.2
Write Format: F8.2
schyear (19) The year the school was build
Measurement Level: Ordinal
Column Width: 8 Alignment: Right
Print Format: F9.2
Write Format: F9.2
Value Label
1,00 Forrige århundrede
nteacher (20) Number of teachers working at the school
Measurement Level: Scale
Column Width: 8 Alignment: Right
Print Format: F9.2
Write Format: F9.2
families (21) Description of families of school children
Measurement Level: Scale
Column Width: 8 Alignment: Right
Print Format: F8.2
Write Format: F8.2
Value Label
1,00 badly functioning
2,00 neither/nor
3,00 well functioning
multilan (22) More that 20 % of children from multilanguage families
Measurement Level: Scale
Column Width: 8 Alignment: Right
Print Format: F8.2
Write Format: F8.2
Value Label
1,00 No
2,00 Yes
educlead (23)
To which degree has the school principal has received supplementary
training as a leader
Measurement Level: Scale
Column Width: 8 Alignment: Right
Print Format: F8.2
Write Format: F8.2
Value Label
1,00 no
2,00 minor degree
3,00 some degree
4,00 high degree
case (24)
Measurement Level: Nominal
Column Width: 5 Alignment: Right
Print Format: F5
Write Format: F5
Value Label
0 mean value at school
sch_sex (25)
Measurement Level: Nominal
Column Width: 8 Alignment: Right
Print Format: F8.4
Write Format: F8.4
sch_age (26)
Measurement Level: Nominal
Column Width: 8 Alignment: Right
Print Format: F8.4
Write Format: F8.4
sch_merg (27)
Measurement Level: Nominal
Column Width: 8 Alignment: Right
Print Format: F8.4
Write Format: F8.4
sch_anci (28)
Measurement Level: Nominal
Column Width: 8 Alignment: Right
Print Format: F8.4
Write Format: F8.4
sch_happ (29)
Measurement Level: Nominal
Column Width: 8 Alignment: Right
Print Format: F8.4
Write Format: F8.4
sch_move (30)
Measurement Level: Nominal
Column Width: 8 Alignment: Right
Print Format: F8.4
Write Format: F8.4
sch_abse (31)
Measurement Level: Nominal
Column Width: 8 Alignment: Right
Print Format: F8.4
Write Format: F8.4
sch_qual (32)
Measurement Level: Nominal
Column Width: 8 Alignment: Right
Print Format: F8.4
Write Format: F8.4
sch_coll (33)
Measurement Level: Nominal
Column Width: 8 Alignment: Right
Print Format: F8.4
Write Format: F8.4
sch_dema (34)
Measurement Level: Nominal
Column Width: 8 Alignment: Right
Print Format: F8.4
Write Format: F8.4
sch_infl (35)
Measurement Level: Nominal
Column Width: 8 Alignment: Right
Print Format: F8.4
Write Format: F8.4
sch_mana (36)
Measurement Level: Nominal
Column Width: 8 Alignment: Right
Print Format: F8.4
Write Format: F8.4
sch_soma (37)
Measurement Level: Nominal
Column Width: 8 Alignment: Right
Print Format: F8.4
Write Format: F8.4
sch_psyc (38)
Measurement Level: Nominal
Column Width: 8 Alignment: Right
Print Format: F8.4
Write Format: F8.4
sch_stre (39)
Measurement Level: Nominal
Column Width: 8 Alignment: Right
Print Format: F8.4
Write Format: F8.4
sch_phys (40)
Measurement Level: Nominal
Column Width: 8 Alignment: Right
Print Format: F8.4
Write Format: F8.4
Mergesch (41) More than 5 % of teachers come from merged schools
Measurement Level: Scale
Column Width: 8 Alignment: Right
Print Format: F8.2
Write Format: F8.2
Value Label
,00 no
1,00 yes
sch_nles (42) nlessons Number of lessons per week
Measurement Level: Nominal
Column Width: 8 Alignment: Right
Print Format: F8.4
Write Format: F8.4
happy2 (43)
Measurement Level: Scale
Column Width: 8 Alignment: Right
Print Format: F8.2
Write Format: F8.2
Value Label
,00 no, not absolutely
1,00 yes, absolutely
File Info for Schools
List of variables on the working file
Name (Position) Label
school (1)
Measurement Level: Scale
Column Width: 8 Alignment: Right
Print Format: F2
Write Format: F2
schyear (2) The year the school was build
Measurement Level: Ordinal
Column Width: 8 Alignment: Right
Print Format: F9.2
Write Format: F9.2
Value Label
1,00 Forrige århundrede
nteacher (3) Number of teachers working at the school
Measurement Level: Scale
Column Width: 8 Alignment: Right
Print Format: F9.2
Write Format: F9.2
families (4) Description of families of school children
Measurement Level: Scale
Column Width: 8 Alignment: Right
Print Format: F8.2
Write Format: F8.2
Value Label
1,00 badly functioning
2,00 neither/nor
3,00 well functioning
multilan (5) More that 20 % of children from multilanguage families
Measurement Level: Scale
Column Width: 8 Alignment: Right
Print Format: F8.2
Write Format: F8.2
Value Label
1,00 No
2,00 Yes
educlead (6)
To which degree has the school principal has received supplementary
training as a leader
Measurement Level: Scale
Column Width: 8 Alignment: Right
Print Format: F8.2
Write Format: F8.2
Value Label
1,00 no
2,00 minor degree
3,00 some degree
4,00 high degree
case (7)
Measurement Level: Nominal
Column Width: 5 Alignment: Right
Print Format: F5
Write Format: F5
Value Label
0 mean value at school
sch_sex (8)
Measurement Level: Nominal
Column Width: 8 Alignment: Right
Print Format: F8.4
Write Format: F8.4
sch_age (9)
Measurement Level: Nominal
Column Width: 8 Alignment: Right
Print Format: F8.4
Write Format: F8.4
sch_merg (10)
Measurement Level: Nominal
Column Width: 8 Alignment: Right
Print Format: F8.4
Write Format: F8.4
sch_anci (11)
Measurement Level: Nominal
Column Width: 8 Alignment: Right
Print Format: F8.4
Write Format: F8.4
sch_happ (12)
Measurement Level: Nominal
Column Width: 8 Alignment: Right
Print Format: F8.4
Write Format: F8.4
sch_move (13)
Measurement Level: Nominal
Column Width: 8 Alignment: Right
Print Format: F8.4
Write Format: F8.4
sch_abse (14)
Measurement Level: Nominal
Column Width: 8 Alignment: Right
Print Format: F8.4
Write Format: F8.4
sch_qual (15)
Measurement Level: Nominal
Column Width: 8 Alignment: Right
Print Format: F8.4
Write Format: F8.4
sch_coll (16)
Measurement Level: Nominal
Column Width: 8 Alignment: Right
Print Format: F8.4
Write Format: F8.4
sch_dema (17)
Measurement Level: Nominal
Column Width: 8 Alignment: Right
Print Format: F8.4
Write Format: F8.4
sch_infl (18)
Measurement Level: Nominal
Column Width: 8 Alignment: Right
Print Format: F8.4
Write Format: F8.4
sch_mana (19)
Measurement Level: Nominal
Column Width: 8 Alignment: Right
Print Format: F8.4
Write Format: F8.4
sch_soma (20)
Measurement Level: Nominal
Column Width: 8 Alignment: Right
Print Format: F8.4
Write Format: F8.4
sch_psyc (21)
Measurement Level: Nominal
Column Width: 8 Alignment: Right
Print Format: F8.4
Write Format: F8.4
sch_stre (22)
Measurement Level: Nominal
Column Width: 8 Alignment: Right
Print Format: F8.4
Write Format: F8.4
sch_phys (23)
Measurement Level: Nominal
Column Width: 8 Alignment: Right
Print Format: F8.4
Write Format: F8.4
Mergesch (24) More than 5 % of teachers come from merged schools
Measurement Level: Scale
Column Width: 8 Alignment: Right
Print Format: F8.2
Write Format: F8.2
Value Label
,00 no
1,00 yes
sch_nles (25) nlessons Number of lessons per week
Measurement Level: Nominal
Column Width: 8 Alignment: Right
Print Format: F8.4
Write Format: F8.4
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