In a negative correlation, how do the variables move?

In a negative correlation, how do the variables move?

• A. As X increases, Y tends to decrease.
• B. As X increases, Y tends to increase.
• C. There is no relationship.
• D. The two variables are independent.

Answer: (A)

Negative correlation means an inverse relationship: as one variable goes up, the other tends to go down. This shows up as a downward trend in the data, where higher values of X are associated with lower values of Y, and the correlation coefficient is less than zero. It doesn’t imply there’s no relationship or that the variables are independent—that would be a zero correlation. It also doesn’t have to be a perfect one-to-one inverse; the strength can vary, but the key idea is the inverse movement between the variables.

Negative correlation means an inverse relationship: as one variable goes up, the other tends to go down. This shows up as a downward trend in the data, where higher values of X are associated with lower values of Y, and the correlation coefficient is less than zero. It doesn’t imply there’s no relationship or that the variables are independent—that would be a zero correlation. It also doesn’t have to be a perfect one-to-one inverse; the strength can vary, but the key idea is the inverse movement between the variables.