Renaming ESS variables in R
The European Social Survey is the most advanced academic survey in Europe, with over 20 years of collecting data every two years.
It is organised on rounds, with core and rotating modules which means questions names (or numbers) are not fixed from one round to another. To integrate the datasets from multiple countries and multiple rounds, ESS uses a mnemonic system, for instance PPLTRST referring to the question if most people can be trusted. This question was named A4 in round 8 and it can have different other names in other rounds.
While using a mnemonic system is the only solution with integrated data files, it makes the life of regular users somewhat difficult if searching for a particular variable in a particular round. The connection with the questionnaire gets lost, as the name A4 from the questionnaire is not found in the dataset for round 8.
It is in fact a Frequently Asked Question, found in the Data section at question: “How do I use question numbers as variable names?”. The ESS provided solution is to use software specific script files, and rename variables from the mnemonic system to the actual question names from the ESS questionnaire.
The current scripts cover the needs of most ESS users, with different versions written for SAS, SPSS and Stata. However (and this is a general matter which will soon be addressed by ESS) there is no such script for the R programming environment, which is also in high demand.
Until there will be an R version of the ESS datasets, one possible solution is to download any of the currently provided versions (for instance SPSS) and convert it into an R data frame using the package DDIwR. The big advantage of this package, besides converting to and from various statistical software, is to create a special type of R object where each variable is a vector of class “declared”, via another recent package called declared, which allows R users to define specific missing values in a similar fashion as most users do in SPSS, Stata or SAS (this was not directly possible until now, given that base R has one and only one type of missing value, NA).
Below is an actual example of how to convert, also containing the code to rename the ESS round 8 variables:
# Encoding: UTF-8.
# RENAME ESS round 8
# The program renames variable names from mnemomic to question numbers,
# for example NWSPOL to A1.
# Exceptions are country specific variables (party, education etc.)
# and variables from the household grid (F2, F3 and F4).
# -----
# Modify the path to the ESS8 file in line 89.
# Uncomment line 91 if you want <both> mnemonic and question numbers,
# for example rename NWSPOL to A1_NWSPOL
# Renaming can be reversed by running line 95.
# -----
oldvar <- c(
"nwspol", "netusoft", "netustm", "ppltrst", "pplfair", "pplhlp", "polintr",
"psppsgva", "actrolga", "psppipla", "cptppola", "trstprl", "trstlgl",
"trstplc", "trstplt", "trstprt", "trstep", "trstun", "vote", "contplt",
"wrkprty", "wrkorg", "badge", "sgnptit", "pbldmn", "bctprd", "pstplonl",
"clsprty", "prtdgcl", "lrscale", "stflife", "stfeco", "stfgov", "stfdem",
"stfedu", "stfhlth", "gincdif", "mnrgtjb", "freehms", "hmsfmlsh", "hmsacld",
"euftf", "imsmetn", "imdfetn", "impcntr", "imbgeco", "imueclt", "imwbcnt",
"happy", "sclmeet", "inprdsc", "sclact", "crmvct", "aesfdrk", "health",
"hlthhmp", "atchctr", "atcherp", "rlgblg", "rlgdnm", "rlgblge", "rlgdnme",
"rlgdgr", "rlgatnd", "pray", "dscrgrp", "dscrrce", "dscrntn", "dscrrlg",
"dscrlng", "dscretn", "dscrage", "dscrgnd", "dscrsex", "dscrdsb", "dscroth",
"dscrdk", "dscrref", "dscrnap", "dscrna", "ctzcntr", "ctzshipc", "brncntr",
"cntbrthc", "livecnta", "lnghom1", "lnghom2", "blgetmg", "facntr",
"fbrncntb", "mocntr", "mbrncntb", "gvrfgap", "rfgfrpc", "rfgbfml", "eneffap",
"rdcenr", "cflsenr", "elgcoal", "elgngas", "elghydr", "elgnuc", "elgsun",
"elgwind", "elgbio", "wrpwrct", "wrenexp", "wrdpimp", "wrdpfos", "wrntdis",
"wrinspw", "wrtcfl", "wrtratc", "clmchng", "clmthgt1", "clmthgt2", "ccnthum",
"ccrdprs", "wrclmch", "ccgdbd", "lkredcc", "lklmten", "gvsrdcc", "ownrdcc",
"inctxff", "sbsrnen", "banhhap", "dfincac", "smdfslv", "uemplwk", "slvpens",
"slvuemp", "gvslvol", "gvslvue", "gvcldcr", "sbstrec", "sbprvpv", "sbeqsoc",
"sbbsntx", "sblazy", "sblwcoa", "imsclbn", "uentrjb", "lbenent", "bennent",
"admub", "ubpay", "ubedu", "ubunp", "ub50pay", "ub50edu", "ub50unp",
"ub20pay", "ub20edu", "ub20unp", "ubsppay", "ubspedu", "ubspunp", "bnlwinc",
"eduunmp", "wrkprbf", "basinc", "eusclbf", "eudcnbf", "lkuemp", "lknemny",
"vteurmmb", "vteubcmb", "hhmmb", "icpart1", "rshpsts", "lvgptnea",
"dvrcdeva", "icpart2", "iccohbt", "marsts", "maritalb", "chldhm", "chldhhe",
"domicil", "edulvlb", "eisced", "eduyrs", "pdwrk", "edctn", "uempla",
"uempli", "dsbld", "rtrd", "cmsrv", "hswrk", "dngoth", "dngref", "dngdk",
"dngna", "icomdng", "mainact", "mnactic", "icpdwrk", "crpdwk", "pdjobev",
"pdjobyr", "emplrel", "emplno", "wrkctra", "estsz", "jbspv", "njbspv",
"wkdcorga", "iorgact", "wkhct", "icwhct", "wkhtot", "nacer2", "tporgwk",
"isco08", "wrkac6m", "uemp3m", "uemp12m", "uemp5yr", "mbtru", "hincsrca",
"hinctnta", "hincfel", "icpart3", "edulvlpb", "eiscedp", "pdwrkp", "edctnp",
"uemplap", "uemplip", "dsbldp", "rtrdp", "cmsrvp", "hswrkp", "dngothp",
"dngdkp", "dngnapp", "dngrefp", "dngnap", "icomdnp", "mnactp", "icppdwk",
"crpdwkp", "isco08p", "emprelp", "wkhtotp", "edulvlfb", "eiscedf", "emprf14",
"occf14b", "edulvlmb", "eiscedm", "emprm14", "occm14b", "atncrse", "anctry1",
"anctry2", "ipcrtiv", "imprich", "ipeqopt", "ipshabt", "impsafe", "impdiff",
"ipfrule", "ipudrst", "ipmodst", "ipgdtim", "impfree", "iphlppl", "ipsuces",
"ipstrgv", "ipadvnt", "ipbhprp", "iprspot", "iplylfr", "impenv", "imptrad",
"impfun"
)
newvar <- c(
"a1", "a2", "a3", "a4", "a5", "a6", "b1", "b2", "b3", "b4", "b5", "b6", "b7",
"b8", "b9", "b10", "b11", "b12", "b13", "b15", "b16", "b17", "b18", "b19",
"b20", "b21", "b22", "b23", "b25", "b26", "b27", "b28", "b29", "b30", "b31",
"b32", "b33", "b33a", "b34", "b35", "b36", "b37", "b38", "b39", "b40", "b41",
"b42", "b43", "c1", "c2", "c3", "c4", "c5", "c6", "c7", "c8", "c9", "c10",
"c11", "c12", "c13", "c14", "c15", "c16", "c17", "c18", "c19a", "c19b",
"c19c", "c19d", "c19e", "c19f", "c19g", "c19h", "c19i", "c19j", "c19k",
"c19l", "c19m", "c19n", "c20", "c21", "c22", "c23", "c24", "c25a", "c25b",
"c26", "c27", "c28", "c29", "c30", "c42", "c43", "c44", "d1", "d2", "d3",
"d4", "d5", "d6", "d7", "d8", "d9", "d10", "d11", "d12", "d13", "d14", "d15",
"d16", "d17", "d18", "d19", "d20", "d21", "d22", "d23", "d24", "d25", "d26",
"d27", "d28", "d29", "d30", "d31", "d32", "e1", "e2", "e3", "e4", "e5", "e6",
"e7", "e8", "e9", "e10", "e11", "e12", "e13", "e14", "e15", "e16", "e17",
"e18", "e20", "e21", "e22", "e23", "e24", "e25", "e26", "e27", "e28", "e29",
"e30", "e31", "e32", "e33", "e34", "e35", "e36", "e37", "e38", "e39", "e40",
"e41", "e42", "f1", "f5", "f6", "f7", "f8", "f9", "f10", "f11", "f11b",
"f12", "f13", "f14", "f15a", "f15b", "f16", "f17aa", "f17ab", "f17ac",
"f17ad", "f17ae", "f17af", "f17ag", "f17ah", "f17ai", "f17aj", "f17ak",
"f17al", "f17b", "f17ca", "f17cb", "f17d", "f18", "f19", "f20", "f21", "f22",
"f23", "f24", "f25", "f26", "f27", "f28", "f29", "f29a", "f30", "f31",
"f32", "f33", "f35", "f36", "f37", "f38", "f39", "f40", "f41", "f42", "f43",
"f44a", "f44b", "f45aa", "f45ab", "f45ac", "f45ad", "f45ae", "f45af",
"f45ag", "f45ah", "f45ai", "f45aj", "f45ak", "f45al", "f45am", "f45b",
"f45c", "f45d", "f46", "f47", "f50", "f51", "f52a", "f52b", "f53", "f55",
"f56a", "f56b", "f57", "f59", "f60", "f61a", "f61b", "ha", "hb", "hc", "hd",
"he", "hf", "hg", "hh", "hi", "hj", "hk", "hl", "hm", "hn", "ho", "hp", "hq",
"hr", "hs", "ht", "hu"
)
library(DDIwR)
ess8 <- convert("path/to/ESS8file.sav")
# newvar <- paste(newvar, oldvar, sep = "_")
names(ess8)[match(oldvar, tolower(names(ess8)))] <- newvar
# reverse rename
names(ess8)[match(newvar, tolower(names(ess8)))] <- oldvar
Adrian Dușa
Full Professor
My research interests include social statistics, research methodology and QCA