Jereme Outerleys

3. Disable auto-numbering of records to set up your own record identifier for the project using your chosen predefined unique identifier variable name and criteria.

2. Create one project for each level in your study (school, teacher, student). Utilize Cross-Project Piping to pull information across projects, removing the need to duplicate information (e.g., pull teacher information into a student project by linking a common unique ID).

Consistency is important in data management. Switching variable names from "s_gad1_w1" in wave 1 to "s_W2_gad_1" in wave 2 adds an unnecessary level of complication in interpreting and using your variables. Instead, be consistent. "s_gad1_w1" and "s_gad1_w2"

Believe it or not, assigning research participant study IDs is not a quick and thoughtless process. It requires careful planning and consideration to ensure ability to track and link information, as well as maintain privacy. Read here for more info: datamgmtinedresearch.com/tra…

I can't remember the last time I renamed variables manually in #rstats. I always use my data dictionary for renaming! That way, if I ever need to update names in the future, I'm only updating once in my data dictionary, not in both my data dictionary and script. 🙌