Which of the following statements identifies a difference between correlation and causation?
A) Correlation occurs when one thing directly affects another, whereas causation implies a mutual relationship between two things.
B) Correlation implies a mutual relationship between two things, whereas causation occurs when one thing directly affects another.
C) A causal relationship exists between two variables when they are correlated, but correlation does not necessarily exist if there's a causal relationship between two variables.
D) Causation cannot arise when correlation is present, and correlation cannot arise when causation is present.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Correlation implies a relationship between two variables, whereas causation implies that one variable directly affects the other. Thus, correlation does not necessarily indicate causation, and it is possible for two variables to be correlated without there being a causal relationship between them. Option B correctly identifies this difference between the two terms. The other options either incorrectly conflate correlation and causation or make incorrect statements about the relationship between the two terms.

Which of the Following Statements Identifies a Difference Between Correlation