Lesson 3.1.4.5.1

3.1.4.5.1 Correlational relationships and scatter diagrams Quiz: AQA Psychology, Unit 4

20 questions

Written by Revision Ninja · Last reviewed 11 October 2026

In partnership with Revision Ninja

Lesson 3.1.4.5.1, Correlational relationships and scatter diagrams: 20 multiple choice questions for the AQA GCSE Psychology (8182), Unit 4: Research methods, written with Revision Ninja.

Host it live on the board and students join with a game code on their own devices, or revise alone with Free Play. The answers are revealed in the game.

Host this setFree Play

The 20 questions

  1. In a correlation, what does a positive correlation mean?

    • As one variable increases, the other variable also tends to increase
    • One variable has been manipulated by the researcher to cause the other
    • The two variables have no relationship with each other at all
    • As one variable increases, the other variable tends to decrease

  2. What does a negative correlation look like on a scatter diagram?

    • Points scattered randomly with no clear pattern
    • Points that slope upwards from left to right
    • Points that slope downwards from left to right
    • Points forming a perfectly horizontal straight line

  3. What does a correlation close to zero indicate?

    • A strong positive relationship between the two variables
    • Little or no linear relationship between the two variables
    • That one variable causes changes in the other variable
    • A strong negative relationship between the two variables

  4. Which is the main limitation of correlational research?

    • A correlation cannot show that one variable causes the other
    • A correlation can only be measured in a laboratory experiment
    • A correlation always requires random allocation to two groups
    • A correlation produces only qualitative data about participants

  5. What is a scatter diagram used for in psychology?

    • Showing how often each category occurs in a sample
    • Comparing the means of two independent groups
    • Showing the possible relationship between two co-variables
    • Displaying the difference between two experimental conditions

  6. A scatter diagram shows points tightly clustered along an upward slope. Which statement is most accurate?

    • The independent variable has been shown to cause the change
    • There is a strong positive correlation between the variables
    • The two variables are unrelated to each other
    • There is a strong negative correlation between the variables

  7. Which is a strength of correlational research?

    • It always shows that one variable directly causes the other
    • It removes all extraneous variables from the analysis
    • It guarantees the results will generalise to all populations
    • It can study variables that could not ethically be manipulated

  8. What are the two variables in a correlation called?

    • Dependent groups
    • Control conditions
    • Experimental manipulations
    • Co-variables

  9. A researcher finds a positive correlation between hours of revision and exam scores. Which conclusion is correct?

    • Exam scores cause students to revise more hours
    • Revision has been proven to cause higher scores in all students
    • The two are unrelated because the correlation is not perfect
    • More revision is associated with higher scores

  10. On a scatter diagram, what does each dot represent?

    • One participant's scores on both variables
    • The mean of each experimental condition
    • The number of participants in one group
    • The average score of the whole sample on one variable

  11. A study finds a negative correlation between hours of TV watched and sleep duration. What does this mean?

    • As TV hours increase, sleep duration tends to decrease
    • TV watching has no effect on sleep duration
    • As TV hours increase, sleep duration tends to increase
    • Sleep duration causes TV watching to rise

  12. A researcher plots height and shoe size for 30 people and sees a loose upward pattern. Which best describes this?

    • No correlation between the variables
    • A strong negative correlation
    • A weak positive correlation
    • A perfect positive correlation

  13. Why might a psychologist use a correlation rather than an experiment to study smoking and lung health?

    • Experiments cannot measure health outcomes at all
    • Correlations can prove smoking causes lung disease
    • Correlations are always cheaper and quicker than experiments
    • Smoking cannot ethically be randomly assigned to participants

  14. A scatter diagram shows points spread widely with no clear direction. What does this suggest?

    • There is a perfect negative correlation between the variables
    • The independent variable has a strong effect on the outcome
    • The sample size must have been too large to analyse
    • There is no clear correlation between the two variables

  15. Which pair of variables is most likely to show a positive correlation?

    • Number of cups of coffee and total sleep hours
    • Shoe size and the number of library books borrowed
    • Hours of sleep and tiredness the next day
    • Hours of sleep and alertness the next day

  16. Which statement is the best evaluation of a correlation between social media use and low mood?

    • It shows an association
    • It shows that low mood always leads to heavier social media use
    • It proves there is no link between the two variables in any population
    • It proves social media use directly causes low mood in all users

  17. A third variable that affects both measured variables is called what?

    • A dependent variable
    • A demand characteristic
    • A confounding variable
    • An independent variable

  18. A researcher reports a strong positive correlation between ice cream sales and drowning rates. Which explanation best fits?

    • The two variables must be unrelated because the link seems odd
    • Ice cream causes people to swim more often and drown
    • A third variable, such as hot weather, may affect both variables
    • Drowning causes shops to sell more ice cream

  19. Which feature of a scatter diagram would most suggest a non-linear relationship?

    • Points spread evenly with no visible pattern at all
    • Points forming a tight cluster in one corner
    • Points forming a straight band sloping upward
    • Points forming a curve rather than a straight band

  20. Why must a researcher be careful when interpreting a scatter diagram with a single outlier point?

    • Outliers mean the sample was randomly allocated to conditions
    • Outliers are removed automatically by all scatter diagrams
    • One extreme point can distort the apparent pattern of the whole data set
    • An outlier always proves the independent variable has no effect

All AQA Psychology quizzes