CRED Practical Document Writing and Management

Tables

• Why use a table? • Makes the desired comparisons convenient for the reader • Cuts down on amount of text required to compare data • Table conventions

• Column headings describe the data in the table field not the subheadings • If cells are to be totalled in a table then they should be arranged vertically • Do not leave blank spaces – use a symbol (─, ND, or NA) for missing data • Tables are visual • If all data entries in a row are identical (e.g. all p < 0.05), consider replacing the row or column with a footnote • Use appropriate units to make comparisons between data with many zeroes easier