How can you sort data in descending order in SAS?

To sort data in descending order in SAS, the SORT procedure is utilized with the DESC option. This procedure is specifically designed for sorting datasets, allowing for customization in the order of the results. When you invoke the SORT procedure, you can specify the variable(s) by which you wish to sort your data, and by adding the DESC option after the variable name, SAS understands that you want the sort to be performed in descending order.

The options in the question indicate different methods, but only using the SORT procedure with the DESC option correctly implements sorting in descending order according to SAS syntax. Using the ASC option, for instance, would initiate sorting in ascending order, while the DATA step does not directly support a descending sort without the use of a separate SORT procedure. The ORDER statement is also not a valid method for achieving this within a SORT context in SAS. Thus, the correct approach is to utilize the SORT procedure with the DESC option specifically for this purpose.