The Spearman rank-order correlation coefficient is a measure of the direction and strength of the linear relationship between two ______ variables.
A) nominal
B) ordinal
C) interval
D) ratio

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The Spearman rank-order correlation coefficient is designed to measure the relationship between two ordinal variables. Nominal variables refer to categories that have no inherent order, such as gender or race. Interval variables are measured on a numeric scale with a set unit of measurement, but there is no true zero point, such as temperature in Celsius. Ratio variables are also measured on a numeric scale with a set unit of measurement, but have a true zero point, such as height or weight. Therefore, the Spearman rank-order correlation coefficient is most appropriate for analyzing relationships between variables that are at least ordinal.

The Spearman Rank-Order Correlation Coefficient Is a Measure of the Direction