Adapting the automatic Summary Report

This worksheet describes how to adapt the Summary Report that is automatically generated by Snap so it is more appropriate for your organisation. It tells you how to:

  • Change the descriptive text.
  • Change the default headers and footers.
  • Select which analyses appear in the report.

Background

Snap automatically generates the report based on the variables used in your questionnaire. It puts in one analysis per variable. You cannot change the style of analysis in a summary report. They have been developed to work with a wide variety of questions and data.

You can:

  • select which questions or variables are included in your report
  • set the number of codes in a bar chart and/or entries in a list
  • change the default description.
  • filter and weight your data.

The analyses used:

  • Multiple and single response questions are displayed as horizontal bar charts

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  • Literal (free text) responses are displayed as lists.

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  • Quantities are displayed as statistics tables

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Summary of steps

Step 1: Changing the report description
Step 2: Changing the report headers and footers
Step 3: Choosing the content of the report

Step 1: Changing the report description

  1. Click Batches button on the Snap toolbar to open the Reports window.
  2. Select the Summary report and click Clone button to make a copy of it. This will ensure that you can go back to the original if you make any mistakes.
    The cloned report contains five instructions; the first three that lay out the report, an Information instruction giving the title and a brief description and a Summary Report instruction which displays the analysis charts, tables and lists.
    rep_sum_inst_new
  3. Double-click the Information instruction to open it and edit the description as you require. The default description uses survey fields to insert information automatically. If you wish to use a survey field, click the [Insert] button on the toolbar and select the field.
  4. Click [OK] to save your changes.
  5. Click the Play/run button button on the report window toolbar to run the report so you can check the changes made.

Step 2: Changing the report headers and footers

If you wish to have graphics in your header or footer, it is best to create them at the correct size before you start creating your report.

You can place a running header or footer in your report by using a page layout instruction. This also allows you to put thumb text in your report. (This is text that runs vertically in the margin of your report.)

  1. Open your cloned summary report.
  2. Double-click the Page Layout instruction to open it.
  3. Select the Page Setup tab.
  4. Check the Headers, Footers and Thumb Text box.
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  5. Click [Header/Footer…] to open the Headers/Footers dialog. It opens with default values.
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The header and footer each consist of the three areas (left, centre and right). The header/footer may contain:

  • free format text
  • survey fields (auto text)
  • date and time of printing/publication
  • images

The contents can be formatted using the format buttons and fields at the top of the dialog to set the font name, size, style and color. The justification is fixed for each area.

To a survey field:

Either select the survey field from the drop-down list in the top left corner in the dialog toolbar, or click the [Insert] button and select Survey Field from the menu. Using the [Insert] button gives more flexibility in the way the text is displayed. Select a field property to insert from the list in the New Survey Field dialog.

To add the date/time:

Click [Insert] and select Date/Time Field from the menu.

To add an image:

Click [Insert] and select Image… from the menu. Images can be graphics files of type .jpg, .gif or .bmp.

To set up thumb text:

Thumb text runs from bottom to top in the margin. You can use it to include titles for different parts of your report. By default it appears in the right margin of every page.

Enter the text and/or keywords in the Thumb Text box.

Set the Margin value according to where you want the thumb text to appear. Right edge places it on the right hand edge of every page, Left edge is the left edge of every page (suitable for single-sided reports). Outside edge alternates between the left and right starting on the right edge, Inside edge alternates starting on the left edge (suitable for double-sided reports).

When you have set up the headers, footers and thumb text, click [OK] to leave the Headers/Footers dialog. Click [OK] to close the Page Layout instruction.

Step 3: Choosing the content of the report

The default Summary Report includes all the variables that are visible in the questionnaire. You can choose which variables are in the report by listing them in the Content field of the Summary Report instruction. You can add any variable to your report except date and time variables. This includes derived variables and system variables (paradata).

You can enter:

  • A list of variable names, where the names are separated by commas (e.g. Q1, Q2, Q4, Q5).
  • A range of variables, where you have the first and last variables separated by the character ~ or the word TO.

For example, enter Q6a ~ Q10, V1a to create analyses for the questions from Q6a to Q10, followed by an analysis of the derived variable V1a.

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The analyses will always appear in the order they are in the questionnaire, rather than the order that you enter them in the Content field.

If you wish to use the default list of variables, leave the Content field blank.

You can limit the size of your analyses by setting the maximum number of bars in bar charts and items in lists. If you limit the number of codes, Snap will show bars for the codes with the most responses. You can choose whether to limit list entries to the earliest or most recent responses. Check the Describe limits with the report box to add a line to your report describing the limits you have set.

  1. Click [OK] to save your changes.
  2. Click the Play/run button button on the report window toolbar to run the report.

Advanced: Changing your report data

You can change the data in your summary report using filters and/or weights. If you add a filter to the whole report, the default Information instruction will include a reference to it. If you add a weight, you should edit the Information instruction to describe how your data has been weighted.

Adding a filter to the whole report

  1. Open your cloned report.
  2. Add the filter to the Filter field at the top of the report window. For example, using the demographic question Q10. Are you male or female?
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    Enter Q10=2 in the Filter field to create a report using only the data from women.
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Weighting your data

  1. If you wish to weight your data, create a weight as described in Changing the proportions (balance) of a sample group.
  2. Open the Summary Report instruction.
  3. Apply the weight to the report by entering it in the Weight field and click [OK]. For example, WT1 has been created to balance the numbers of men and women and then been applied to the gender variable (Q10). This weights the data supplied by men and women. sum_weight_new
  4. Add the information about the weight that you have applied to the Information instruction and save your changes.
  5. Click the Play/run button button on the report window to run the report.

Conclusion

This worksheet has described how to make changes to the default Summary Report.

If you would like to find out more about Snap reports, see the help section Introduction to Smart Reports.

For information about the report instructions see Types of report instructions.

To find out about filtering your data, see Browsing case data using a filter.

For more information about weighting your sample data, see Changing the proportions (balance) of a sample group and Increasing or decreasing the size of a sample group.

If there is a topic you would like a worksheet on, email to snapideas@snapsurveys.com