Question

A study has found, among 100 students at a school, that enrollment in drama classes is correlated with high rates of participation in social-
service projects. What can we conclude from this correlation for this population?
O Both of the above
O Neither of the above.
O Drama classes cause increased volunteerism
Volunteering causes interest in drama,

Answer 1

Answer: B) Neither of the above

Explanation:

Correlation does not lead to causation, no matter how strong the correlation may be. You'll need to do an experiment to see if one variable causes the other. There may be other factors that aren't being considered here. We consider these confounding variables.

An example of correlation doesn't lead to causation could be this: In the summertime, ice cream sales increase and the amount of sunburns increase. Both ice cream sales and sunburns are strongly positively correlated. Does eating ice cream cause a sunburn? The answer is "no" because clearly the sun is responsible for that. So the sun would be the confounding variable here. Specifically, the amount of sunlight exposure would be key here.