valueLabels Property (Python)

The valueLabels property of a Variable object gets or sets value labels. It can also be used to clear any value labels. The valueLabels property behaves like a Python dictionary in terms of getting, setting, and deleting values. A Python dictionary consists of a set of keys, each of which has an associated value that can be accessed simply by specifying the key. In the case of value labels, each key is a value and the associated value is the label.

• When setting value labels for string variables, values must be specified as quoted strings.

Retrieving Value Labels. You retrieve value labels for a specified variable from the valueLabels property of the associated Variable object. You retrieve the label for a particular value by specifying the value, as in the following, which retrieves the label for the value 1:

varObj = datasetObj.varlist['origin']
valLab = varObj.valueLabels[1]

You can iterate through the set of value labels for a variable using the data property, as in:

varObj = datasetObj.varlist['origin']
for val, valLab in varObj.valueLabels.data.iteritems():
   print val, valLab

Adding and Modifying Value Labels. You can add new value labels and modify existing ones. For example:

varObj = datasetObj.varlist['origin']
varObj.valueLabels[4] = 'Korean'

• If a label for the value 4 exists, its value is updated to 'Korean'. If a label for the value 4 doesn't exist, it is added to any existing value labels for the variable origin.

Resetting Value Labels. You can reset the value labels to a new specified set. For example:

varObj = datasetObj.varlist['origin']
varObj.valueLabels = {1:'American',2:'Japanese',3:'European',
                      4:'Korean',5:'Chinese'}

• You reset the value labels by setting the valueLabels property to a new Python dictionary. Any existing value labels for the variable are cleared and replaced with the specified set.

Deleting Value Labels. You can delete a particular value label or the entire set of value labels for a specified variable. For example:

varObj = datasetObj.varlist['origin']
#Delete the value label for the value 1
del varObj.valueLabels[1]
#Delete all value labels
del varObj.valueLabels