Correlation: The General Idea

Correlation Name Institution Date Discuss the general idea that just because two things are correlated, it does not mean that one causes the other. Provide an examples. What are some possibilities for the association between the two variables? Correlation does not prove causality or cause-effect relationship, indicates that just because there is a relationship between two variables does not mean that the independent variable is the cause of the outcome (Emerson, 2015). Similarly, in statistics correlation between two variables refer to a good or bad linear relationship between them, and causality refers to the fact that one variable affects of another. However, causality always implies correlation, but the correlation does not necessarily imply causality. People can wrongly assume that correlation is the same as causality when they predict the conclusion, when there are intermediate variables left out in the analysis, and spurious relationship between variables. Correlation may also exist by mere chance, and this is, by coincidence. For instance, if comparing the demand for organic food and smoking, it is found that there is increased demand for these foods and increased smoking rates, then two increase variables at the same time then there is a correlation, but there is no logical cause that links them together. As such, it is necessary to know difference between correlation and causality, and interpret the data. The correlation coefficients are used to evaluate the strength of the relationship between the variables and vary from -1 to 1. Negative correlation indicates that the variables move in different directions, when one variable increases, the other decreases and vice versa. One way to establish a cause relationship is through an experimental type study. In this type of studies, two groups of equivalent variables are selected if they may influence outcomes. Then, a different experimental situation is assigned to each g...