what are correlations?
These compare two ‘linked’ covariables to see if they change together
what are the two areas in alevel psychology that correlations can come up?
Content analysis
Observations
what is positive correlation?
as one variable increases, so does the other.
what is negative correlation?
as one variable increases, the other decreases
Give an example of a correlation
As weight increases, height decreases.
What are correlation coefficients?
These tell us how strong a relationship is. they also tell us the direction ( either positive or negative)
What value is a perfect positive correlation?
R=1
What value is a perfect negative correlation?
R= -1
What value is no correlation?
R=0
What are the strengths to correlations?
- cheaper than experiments as secondary data is often used + can be replicated easily
-easy to check for mistakes
-allows investigating things that would be unethical to run in an experiment (e.g stress after a natural disaster)
-only method to show a relationship
What are the weaknesses to correlations?
- never show cause and effect as there is not enough control
-often misused by people (e.g politicians) to show cause and effect - no IV to influence a DV
What is a curvilinear correlation?
Two variables increase up until a peak, but then they both decrease.
Give an example of a curvilinear correlation.
Stress and performance
What are the two names for a curvilinear correlation?
The inverted U hypothesis
“Yeskes Podson Law”
Define an intervening variable
This is an unidentified covariable that is a better link than the one that has been chosen
