Cross-tabulation of 3 variables with display of percentages

[Fahim Ahmad]

Dear Stata users,
Can anyone help me how to have three-way tables with display of percentages, which aweights are allowed with too.

[Marcos Almeida]

I believe the command - table - can handle 3 variables as well as aweights. I'm not sure about percentage, but you may store the results, then produce these values.

[Nick Cox]

Here's a three-way table.

The code is based on an example in the help of tabplot (Stata Journal). That command allows calculation of percents and also weights. The example here uses frequency weights, but analytic weights are allowed too.

  clear
    input str6 sex str8 year str1 policy int freq
    "male" "1" "A" 175
    "male" "1" "B" 116
    "male" "1" "C" 131
    "male" "1" "D" 17
    "male" "2" "A" 160
    "male" "2" "B" 126
    "male" "2" "C" 135
    "male" "2" "D" 21
    "male" "3" "A" 132
    "male" "3" "B" 120
    "male" "3" "C" 154
    "male" "3" "D" 29
    "male" "4" "A" 145
    "male" "4" "B" 95
    "male" "4" "C" 185
    "male" "4" "D" 44
    "male" "Graduate" "A" 118
    "male" "Graduate" "B" 176
    "male" "Graduate" "C" 345
    "male" "Graduate" "D" 141
    "female" "1" "A" 13
    "female" "1" "B" 19
    "female" "1" "C" 40
    "female" "1" "D" 5
    "female" "2" "A" 5
    "female" "2" "B" 9
    "female" "2" "C" 33
    "female" "2" "D" 3
    "female" "3" "A" 22
    "female" "3" "B" 29
    "female" "3" "C" 110
    "female" "3" "D" 6
    "female" "4" "A" 12
    "female" "4" "B" 21
    "female" "4" "C" 58
    "female" "4" "D" 10
    "female" "Graduate" "A" 19
    "female" "Graduate" "B" 27
    "female" "Graduate" "C" 128
    "female" "Graduate" "D" 13
    end
    tabplot policy year [w=freq], by(sex, subtitle(% by sex and year, place(w)) note("")) percent(sex year) ///
showval bfcolor(none) subtitle(, fcolor(green*0.1))

Sure, it's a graph too, but you mean you prefer a table to a graph?

Conversely, there are plenty of tables that tabplot can't do, including those with two or more numbers in each cell.

[eric_a_booth]

Stealing Nick's example data, here's two methods using -tab3way- from SSC and reshape:

 clear
    input str6 sex str8 year str1 policy int freq
    "male" "1" "A" 175
    "male" "1" "B" 116
    "male" "1" "C" 131
    "male" "1" "D" 17
    "male" "2" "A" 160
    "male" "2" "B" 126
    "male" "2" "C" 135
    "male" "2" "D" 21
    "male" "3" "A" 132
    "male" "3" "B" 120
    "male" "3" "C" 154
    "male" "3" "D" 29
    "male" "4" "A" 145
    "male" "4" "B" 95
    "male" "4" "C" 185
    "male" "4" "D" 44
    "male" "Graduate" "A" 118
    "male" "Graduate" "B" 176
    "male" "Graduate" "C" 345
    "male" "Graduate" "D" 141
    "female" "1" "A" 13
    "female" "1" "B" 19
    "female" "1" "C" 40
    "female" "1" "D" 5
    "female" "2" "A" 5
    "female" "2" "B" 9
    "female" "2" "C" 33
    "female" "2" "D" 3
    "female" "3" "A" 22
    "female" "3" "B" 29
    "female" "3" "C" 110
    "female" "3" "D" 6
    "female" "4" "A" 12
    "female" "4" "B" 21
    "female" "4" "C" 58
    "female" "4" "D" 10
    "female" "Graduate" "A" 19
    "female" "Graduate" "B" 27
    "female" "Graduate" "C" 128
    "female" "Graduate" "D" 13
    end
    
**tab3way
preserve
expand freq
drop freq
tab3way  year policy sex,  colpct nofreq
restore
    
    

 
**using reshape
reshape wide freq, i(policy sex) j(year)    string
    
    **calculate percents
    egen  j1 = rowtotal(freq*)
    foreach j of varlist freq* {
    g p`j' =  string( (`j'/j1)*100, "%3.2f" ) + "%"
    drop `j' //unless you want to keep the freq
    }
    drop j1
    
**export this table as needed here**

[Fahim Ahmad]

Thank you both,
by using table command I will have the below result.

table policy sex year
                            year and    sex                              
            1                   2                    3                  4                    Graduate --
policy  female male    female male    female male    female male    female male
                                                
A          1        1            1        1         1       1             1        1          1       1
B          1        1            1        1         1       1             1        1          1       1
C          1        1            1        1         1       1             1        1          1       1
D          1        1            1        1         1       1             1        1           1       1

Simply i want the result to be in percentages instead of frequency, any idea?

[eric_a_booth]

I dont see an option in the -table- help file for anything concerning producing percents, so my short answer to this is 'no'.

(Longer answers include (1) the solutions I gave above and (2) using -tabulate- instead of -table- and extracting the elements from the saved / posted matrix results or (3) use something like -logout- from SSC to log the output from -table- command , import it into Stata, and post process it to get the table you want).