A psychologist discovers a correlation between parents who smoke cigarettes and juvenile delinquency in their children. We can conclude that
A)parental smoking causes juvenile delinquency.
B)juvenile delinquents drive their parents to take up smoking.
C)both parental smoking and juvenile delinquency are caused by a third factor, such as socioeconomic status.
D)parental smoking and juvenile delinquency are related, but no causal relationship has been established.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Correlation does not imply causation. The discovery of a correlation between parental smoking and juvenile delinquency does not establish that one causes the other, only that there is a relationship between the two variables.

A Psychologist Discovers a Correlation Between Parents Who Smoke Cigarettes