If two variables are negatively correlated, a decrease in one variable is associated with an increase in the other and vice versa. A negative correlation means that the variables move in opposite directions. Put another way, it means that as one variable increases so does the other, and conversely, when one variable decreases so does the other. A positive correlation means that the variables move in the same direction. Positive correlations carry positive signs negative correlations carry negative signs. The sign-positive or negative-of the correlation coefficient indicates the direction of the relationship. When higher values in one variable (negative thinking) are associated with higher values in the other variable (depressive symptoms), there is a positive correlation between the variables. The example above about negative thinking and depressive symptoms is an example of two variables that we might expect to have a relationship to each other. If the variables are not related to one another at all, the correlation coefficient is zero. For instance, a correlation coefficient of 0.9 indicates a far stronger relationship than a correlation coefficient of 0.3. The closer the number is to zero, the weaker the relationship, and the less predictable the relationships between the variables becomes. The closer the number is to one (be it negative or positive), the more strongly related the variables are, and the more predictable changes in one variable will be as the other variable changes. The number portion of the correlation coefficient indicates the strength of the relationship. The association between two variables can be summarized statistically using the correlation coefficient (abbreviated as r). A correlation coefficient is a number from negative one to positive one that indicates the strength and direction of the relationship between variables. We can measure correlation by calculating a statistic known as a correlation coefficient. When two variables are correlated, it simply means that as one variable changes, so does the other. Correlation means that there is a relationship between two or more variables (such between the variables of negative thinking and depressive symptoms), but this relationship does not necessarily imply cause and effect. One of the primary methods used to study abnormal behavior is the correlational method. Explain correlational research, including what a correlation coefficient tells us about the relationship between variables.
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