Which statement is correct regarding the use of input values with the INPUT statement?

The correct response is that the input values must match the order specified in the DATALINES statement. This is critical because the INPUT statement in SAS expects the data to be organized similarly to the variable declarations. When using the DATALINES statement, the order in which the data values are provided must correspond to the order of the variable names listed in the INPUT statement. If there is a mismatch in this order, the resulting dataset will contain incorrect or misaligned data, leading to potential analysis errors.

For instance, if you declare variables in a specific sequence in the INPUT statement, the subsequent values in the DATALINES must be provided in the same sequence for accurate data representation. This adherence ensures that the first value maps to the first variable, the second value maps to the second variable, and so forth.

Other statements regarding input values in the INPUT statement do not hold true. The default behavior in SAS does not automatically assign all values as character; they are treated based on the specifications provided in the INPUT statement. Additionally, input values cannot be of any random order if accurate data representation is regarded. Lastly, every value must correspond to defined variables in the INPUT statement; failing to do so would lead to data being read incorrectly or result in missing values for