A researcher examines the relationship between poverty and crime rates for 100 metropolitan areas and finds a zero-order correlation of 0.37. She controls for the percent of families that are headed by single parents and finds a first order partial correlation of 0.33. Which of the following correctly describes this outcome? This is a ______ relationship
A) direct
B) statistically significant
C) spurious
D) interactive

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The relationship is direct because the correlation remains positive and relatively strong even after controlling for the percent of families headed by single parents, indicating that the relationship between poverty and crime rates is not entirely explained by this third variable.

A Researcher Examines the Relationship Between Poverty and Crime Rates