Maleea W.

asked • 01/17/15

If there is correlation, is there causation?

Explain how.

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Mark M. answered • 01/17/15

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Simply put, no.
 
Correlation means that two events are related statistically. Snow happens when it is cold. 
 
Causation means that one event causes another. Cold weather does not cause snow.
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David W.

Mark's "no" is simple, but extremely important.  Many, many people get this wrong in their thinking (and, thus, it is easy to lie with statistics).
 
I remember the studies that showed that students who are breakfast got better grades in school.  O.K., that may mean that smarter kids eat breakfast, not that eating breakfast makes a specific kid smarter.  So, if you start making every kid eat a good breakfast then students who eat breakfast will get lower grades in school than before, right?
 
Now, think about this:  If there is a cause-and-effect relationship, will there be a statistical correlation?
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07/31/15

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