Lesson 2.02e

2.02e Correlation does not imply causation Quiz: OCR Maths, Unit 12

20 questions

Written by Revision Ninja · Last reviewed 11 October 2026

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Lesson 2.02e, Correlation does not imply causation: 20 multiple choice questions for the OCR Maths (H240), Unit 12: Data Presentation and Interpretation, written with Revision Ninja.

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The 20 questions

  1. What does a strong positive correlation between two variables directly demonstrate?

    • A linear relationship
    • A causal link
    • Direct causation
    • Equal values

  2. What term describes an unobserved variable that influences both correlated variables in a dataset?

    • Dependent variable
    • Explanatory variable
    • Residual variable
    • Confounding variable

  3. Ice cream sales and drownings both rise in summer. What type of variable is temperature?

    • Extraneous outcome
    • Response variable
    • Dependent variable
    • Confounding variable

  4. If a strong direct causal link exists, what will typically be observed in bivariate linear data?

    • Independence
    • No relationship
    • Zero gradient
    • Correlation

  5. What is the term for a strong correlation between two variables that are logically completely unrelated?

    • Non-linear correlation
    • Causal correlation
    • Spurious correlation
    • Negative correlation

  6. A scatter diagram shows data points closely following a line sloping downwards. What is the correlation?

    • Weak negative
    • Zero correlation
    • Strong positive
    • Strong negative

  7. On a standard bivariate scatter diagram, which variable is plotted on the horizontal x-axis?

    • Explanatory variable
    • Response variable
    • Dependent variable
    • Residual variable

  8. On a standard bivariate scatter diagram, which variable is plotted on the vertical y-axis?

    • Confounding variable
    • Explanatory variable
    • Response variable
    • Independent variable

  9. A study finds zero linear correlation between two variables. What does this indicate about their linear relationship?

    • No relationship exists
    • No linear relationship
    • Strong non-linear link
    • Perfect inverse relation

  10. Shoe size and reading ability in children have a high positive correlation. Why is this?

    • Direct causation
    • Age is confounding
    • Big feet help
    • Reading grows feet

  11. Which type of scientific investigation is required to definitively prove a causal link between two variables?

    • Observational study
    • Bivariate correlation
    • Controlled experiment
    • Sample survey

  12. Umbrella sales and rainfall are strongly correlated. Does buying an umbrella cause rain?

    • No, random chance
    • No, rain causes sales
    • Yes, direct causation
    • Yes, feedback loop

  13. What is the primary logical fallacy of assuming that correlation automatically implies causation?

    • Miscalculating the mean
    • Ignoring third variables
    • Removing outlier data
    • Changing axis scale

  14. A scatter plot shows points widely spread around a general upward trend. What is the correlation?

    • Strong positive
    • Weak negative
    • Zero correlation
    • Weak positive

  15. Why might two strongly dependent variables produce a linear correlation coefficient near zero?

    • The relationship curves
    • Variables are independent
    • Data has no variance
    • Sample size is zero

  16. A firm increases ad spend and sales rise. Why can they not immediately claim causation?

    • Other factors changed
    • Sales never correlate
    • Sample size is small
    • Variance is too low

  17. In bivariate data analysis, what is another common term for the independent variable?

    • Extraneous variable
    • Explanatory variable
    • Predicted variable
    • Response variable

  18. In bivariate data analysis, what is another common name for the dependent variable?

    • Response variable
    • Cause variable
    • Explanatory variable
    • Confounding variable

  19. What does a straight line of points on a scatter diagram confirm about causation?

    • Zero causal possibility
    • Nothing about causation
    • Direct linear causation
    • Reverse causation only

  20. When two variables change together due to a shared third cause, what is their correlation called?

    • Direct
    • Inverse
    • Spurious
    • Causative

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