Answer: To establish the strength of a linear association, first compute the correlation coefficient between the variables involved. The, examine the absolute value of the coefficient. A strong relationship has an absolute value of close to 1 (or approaching 1) while a weak relationship has an absolute value close to 0 (or approaching zero).
The data points will be clustered more tightly around the trend line if there is a weak linear association and less tightly if there is a strong one.
