If two variables have a positive correlation, what does that mean?

• A. As one variable increases, the other increases.
• B. As one variable increases, the other decreases.
• C. There is no relation.
• D. Both variables are constant.

Answer: (A)

Positive correlation means the two variables move in the same direction. When one variable goes up, the other tends to go up as well, so the pattern on a scatterplot would rise from left to right. It’s a description of a tendency, not a guarantee of cause and effect, and there can be a strong or a weak connection. The other ideas describe opposite movement (one up, the other down), no clear pattern, or no variation at all, which are not what positive correlation means.