Demonstrating that a correlation exists does not prove thatchanges in one variable are the cause of changes in the other,partly because other factors which are undetected may beinfluencing both known variables. Thus, knowing that a correlationexists may lead to two or more different interpretations of thecorrelation. For each of the studies described below, decidewhether the correlation is positive or negative and give twoexplanations for the finding.
1 A government study reveals that the more a mother smokes, themore likely her children are to exhibit behavioral problems.
2 The more psychology courses students take during their collegeyears, the higher their scores on a measure of interpersonalsensitivity.
3 A survey of adolescents being treated for eating disordersnoted that those who watched the most TV during the week tended toreceive the lowest ratings on a measure of general health.
