09 Sep REDCap Tip of the Month: New Sorting Functions
The latest version of REDCap (i.e., version 6.0.0) overhauled a number of the features that allow you to aggregate, query, and export the data in your project.
This REDCap version also introduced a number of helpful functions that allow you to sort through unstructured data to create more dynamic reports. For example, you can now search or filter through all the email fields in your records for emails that end with “@gmail.com.”
New Sorting Functions
| Function syntax | Type of Function | Effects | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| contains (haystack, needle) | Does text CONTAIN another text string? | Returns a boolean (true or false) for if "needle" exists inside (is a substring of) the text string "haystack." Is case insensitive. | E.g. contains("Rob Taylor", "TAYLOR") will return as TRUE and contains("Rob Taylor", "paul") returns FALSE. |
| not_contain (haystack, needle) | Does text NOT CONTAIN another text string? | The opposite of contains(). Returns a boolean (true or false) for if "needle" DOES NOT exist inside (is a substring of) the text string "haystack." Is case insensitive. | E.g. not_contain("Rob Taylor", "TAYLOR") will return as FALSE and not_contain("Rob Taylor", "paul") returns TRUE. |
| starts_with (haystack, needle) | Does text START WITH another text string? | Returns a boolean (true or false) if the text string "haystack" begins with the text string "needle." Is case insensitive. | E.g. starts_with("Rob Taylor", "rob") will return as TRUE and starts_with("Rob Taylor", "Tay") returns FALSE. |
| ends_with (haystack, needle) | Does text END WITH another text string? | Returns a boolean (true or false) if the text string "haystack" ends with the text string "needle." Is case insensitive. | E.g. ends_with("Rob Taylor", "Lor") will return as TRUE and ends_with("Rob Taylor", "Tay") returns FALSE. |
You can use these sorting functions to craft sophisticated reports to monitor the progression of your data collection in detail. The sorting functions also works in concert with normal branching logic functionality, meaning you can define even more specific logic in your forms.
See an overview of all functions
Please visit the REDCap home page to learn more about available training, support, and answers to common questions.
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