Check if string is in a pandas dataframe

Question

I would like to see if a particular string exists in a particular column within my dataframe.

I\'m getting the error

ValueError: The truth v

Answer 1

If there is any chance that you will need to search for empty strings,

    a['Names'].str.contains('') 

will NOT work, as it will always return True.

Instead, use

    if '' in a["Names"].values

to accurately reflect whether or not a string is in a Series, including the edge case of searching for an empty string.