Analysing time responses
Time questions enable respondents to give a specific time either in 12 or 24 hour clock and Time variables can be analysed in a number of ways as follows:
- Times can be categorised as falling into particular periods in the day, such as ‘rush hour’; ‘mid-morning peak’ or ‘lunchtime’.
- The difference between two times (for example between a time of arrival and a time of departure) can be calculated and the totals grouped into appropriate ranges, such as ’15 minutes waiting time’; ’30 minutes waiting time’ and ‘1 hour waiting time’.
Time formats
A wide range of ways of entering time data is supported.
- When time data is entered, use a consistent time format. If you use the twelve hour clock remember to add the am or pm suffix otherwise all times will be read as am.
- Any calculations of time between two periods that fall either side of midnight (e.g. 11.58 pm to 3.30 am) produces a positive number in calculations such as ‘Duration of time’ from time of departure minus time of arrival.
Time Format examples | Time Format varieties |
23:59:59 | 24 hour clock with hours, minutes and seconds. Hours, minutes and seconds separated by a colon. |
23:59 | 24 hour clock with hours and minutes. Hours and minutes separated by a colon. |
2300 hours or 23 hours | 24 hour clock with or without 00 minutes and with ‘hours’ suffix. |
2300 hrs or 23 hrs | 24 hour clock with or without 00 minutes and with ‘hrs’ suffix. |
11:59:59 or 11:59:59 am or 11:59:59 pm | 12 hour clock with hours, minutes and seconds and ‘am’ or ‘pm’ indicator. Hours, minutes and seconds separated by colon. With no am suffix morning is assumed. |
11:59 or 11:59 pm | 12 hour clock with hours and minutes and ‘am’ or ‘pm’ indicator. Hours and minutes separated by colon. With no am suffix morning is assumed. |
11 am or 11 pm | 12 hour clock with hour only and ‘am’ or ‘pm’ indicator. With no am suffix morning is assumed. |
11 o’clock am or 11 o’clock pm | 12 hour clock with hour only, ‘o’clock’ label and ‘am’ or ‘pm’ indicator. With no am suffix morning is assumed. |
Time functions
When defining times, there are a number of functions that can be used to perform calculations and tests on the times.
Function | Interpretation |
{time}<, <=, =, ==, <>, >=, > {time} | Shows whether or not a time response fits into the category specified. |
{time}-{quantity} | Gives a time, calculated from an existing time variable and a quantity variable. |
{time} + {quantity} | Gives a time, calculated from an existing time variable and a quantity variable. |
hour | Gives the hour in which the time occurs. Use 24 hour clock only when specifying code values. |
minute | Gives the minute’s part of the time only. |
second | Gives the second’s part of the time only. |