Correlation and Causation

Front

What is correlation?

Back

Correlation is a statistical measure that describes the extent to which two variables change together.

Front

What is causation?

Back

Causation indicates that one event is the result of the occurrence of another event.

Front

What does it mean if two variables have a positive correlation?

Back

A positive correlation means that as one variable increases, the other variable also increases.

Front

What does it mean if two variables have a negative correlation?

Back

A negative correlation means that as one variable increases, the other variable decreases.

Front

Can correlation imply causation?

Back

No, correlation does not imply causation; it only indicates a relationship between two variables.

Front

What is an example of correlation without causation?

Back

An example is the correlation between ice cream sales and drowning incidents; both increase in summer, but one does not cause the other.

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What is an example of correlation with causation?

Back

An example is the relationship between studying and exam scores; more studying typically leads to higher scores.

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What is a spurious correlation?

Back

A spurious correlation is a relationship between two variables that is caused by a third variable.

Front

What is the difference between correlation and causation?

Back

Correlation indicates a relationship between variables, while causation indicates that one variable directly affects another.

Front

What is a scatter plot?

Back

A scatter plot is a graph that shows the relationship between two quantitative variables.