Professor Falls wants to determine if there is a relationship between frequent hearing of a startle stimulus and hearing loss. He ran a regression and obtained an r value of .60. Which of the following best summarizes what this result means?
A) 60% of hearing loss is accounted for by frequency of hearing startle stimuli.
B) 36% of the variability in hearing loss can be accounted for by variability in the hearing of startle stimuli.
C) 36% of startle stimuli cause hearing loss.
D) 60% of hearing loss is caused by startle stimuli.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The correlation coefficient (r) value of .60 indicates a moderate positive correlation between frequent hearing of a startle stimulus and hearing loss. However, it does not indicate a causal relationship. The correct interpretation is that 36% of the variability in hearing loss can be accounted for by variability in the hearing of startle stimuli. Therefore, choice B is the best summary.

Professor Falls Wants to Determine If There Is a Relationship