For none-exhaustive Coding Systems.
If you did not use mutually exclusive Codes, your data file probably holds sequences that were not coded. This might cause trouble during some analysis routines - especially during an inter-rater reliability routine.
If your data contains gaps (not coded time sequences), INTERACT can easily fill them for you. Gaps can only be filled per Class, either for a single Class, or all classes at once.
| TIP: | If your Class holds only 2 Codes and gaps, adding a Code to fill any gaps most likely improves your reliability check when calculating Kappa. |
Make a Class Exhaustive
Fill in the blanks for a specific Class by automatically creating new Events for all not coded sections within that Class:
▪Right-click the Class that should be completed
▪Select Fill code gaps in this Class from the context menu.
(or click Transform - Events - Optimize 
> Add missing Codes (make exhaustive) and select the Class).
▪Change the Code description for the new gap-filling Events to your needs and confirm with OK.
Within seconds, INTERACT creates all missing Events and enters a Code as specified for all of them.
If you did not change the default NULL code, but want to use an other expression after all:
▪Use the Edit – Find & Replace - Replace 
to rename the NULL-Code to something else if you prefer.
Make all Data Exhaustive
Similar to the command Fill coding gaps in this Class INTERACT offers a command that performs that job for all Classes at once:
▪Click Transform - Events - Optimize ▪Make sure the * is selected instead of a Class name in the upcoming dialog ▪Click OK to confirm your settings. ▪In the next dialog, change the Code description for the new gap-filling Events to your needs: |
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Note: This term is used for all new events in all classes.
▪Click OK to confirm your settings.
Within seconds, INTERACT creates all missing Events for all Classes and enters a Code NULL for all of them.
▪Use the command Edit – Find & Replace - Replace to rename any of the NULL Codes per Class.
Identify Pauses
If you need Events that cover the 'pauses' or 'gaps' between the occurrences of a specific behavior, although maybe other behaviors were coded in-between, use the Contingency analysis to create new Events between the occurrences of this Code:
▪Select Analysis - Time sequence - Contingency ▪Select the Code for which you want to insert the new 'Pause' Events. ▪Make sure the Contingency Interval is set wide enough to identify all pauses - about the length of the DataSet should do the trick:
▪Select the analysis method Event Offset time to create Events that start right after the first Code ends. ▪Select or enter a Class and name the Code for those new Events. ▪Click Find contingencies to confirm.
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An overview of the contingencies found is shown (save it for further usages - this particular listing cannot be recalled from the data) is a separate dialog. The Contingency dialog remains open, allowing you to run additional routines.
▪Close the dialog to take a look at the results.
IMPORTANT: Gaps before the first occurrence and after the last occurrence of the selected Code are NOT filled with the new Events!
The duration before the first occurrence is available in on the Latency tab of the Full statistics. Time time after the last occurrence is not documented.
Gap Statistics
Additionally, INTERACT offers also plain descriptive Gap-statistics, even without creating Codes for these gaps.
▪Read Gap Statistics for further details.