What is the primary output of the PROC PRINT procedure in SAS?

The PROC PRINT procedure in SAS is primarily used to produce a printed data listing of data sets. When you run this procedure, it outputs the data in a tabular format, displaying the values of all the variables for each observation in the dataset. This allows users to easily view and verify the data contained within a dataset.

PROC PRINT is particularly useful for quickly inspecting the contents of a dataset, especially during the data exploration and cleaning phases of analysis. While it can include options to customize the printout, such as selecting specific variables or controlling formatting, its fundamental purpose is to provide a straightforward representation of data.

Other options such as sorted datasets, statistical summaries, and generated plots are functions of different procedures in SAS. For example, sorting is typically done using PROC SORT, summarizing data can be accomplished using PROC MEANS or PROC SUMMARY, and generating plots is primarily handled by procedures like PROC SGPLOT or PROC GPLOT. Each of these has distinctly different outputs and purposes compared to what PROC PRINT provides.