Chapter 11: Correlation Analysis
Complete Step-by-Step Solutions & Mathematical Reasoning
Check Your Progress 11.1
Step 1: State the formula for Karl Pearson's coefficient of correlation.
Step 2: Substitute the given values into the formula.
Step 3: Simplify the numerator and the terms inside the square roots.
Numerator:
Denominator Term 1:
Denominator Term 2:
Step 4: Calculate the final value.
Note: The answer key states 0.89, which would be the case if or similar. With exactly 262, the mathematically precise answer is 0.91.
(The data table for this question is missing from the provided textbook source text. If a generic table is provided, the standard Karl Pearson formula is applied similarly to the other problems.)
Father's Height (X): 67, 66, 65, 68, 69, 71, 70
Son's Height (Y): 66, 68, 67, 69, 72, 69, 72
Step 1: Create a calculation table.
Let . We first find the means:
Let and .
| 67 | 66 | -1 | -3 | 1 | 9 | 3 |
| 66 | 68 | -2 | -1 | 4 | 1 | 2 |
| 65 | 67 | -3 | -2 | 9 | 4 | 6 |
| 68 | 69 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 69 | 72 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 9 | 3 |
| 71 | 69 | 3 | 0 | 9 | 0 | 0 |
| 70 | 72 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 9 | 6 |
| ∑ = 476 | ∑ = 483 | ∑ = 0 | ∑ = 0 | ∑ = 28 | ∑ = 32 | ∑ = 20 |
Step 2: Use the deviation formula.
Age of Husband (X): 30, 33, 31, 23, 27, 28, 28, 36, 35, 29
Age of Wife (Y): 29, 29, 27, 18, 20, 27, 22, 29, 28, 21
Step 1: Find the mean of X and Y.
Step 2: Create a calculation table. Let and .
| 30 | 29 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 16 | 0 |
| 33 | 29 | 3 | 4 | 9 | 16 | 12 |
| 31 | 27 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 4 | 2 |
| 23 | 18 | -7 | -7 | 49 | 49 | 49 |
| 27 | 20 | -3 | -5 | 9 | 25 | 15 |
| 28 | 27 | -2 | 2 | 4 | 4 | -4 |
| 28 | 22 | -2 | -3 | 4 | 9 | 6 |
| 36 | 29 | 6 | 4 | 36 | 16 | 24 |
| 35 | 28 | 5 | 3 | 25 | 9 | 15 |
| 29 | 21 | -1 | -4 | 1 | 16 | 4 |
| ∑ = 300 | ∑ = 250 | ∑ = 0 | ∑ = 0 | ∑ = 138 | ∑ = 164 | ∑ = 123 |
Step 3: Substitute into the correlation formula.
.
It was later discovered at the time of checking that it had wrongly copied two pairs (8, 6), (6, 14) instead of (6, 8) and (8, 12) respectively. Obtain the correct value of coefficient of correlation.
Step 1: Adjust the summations by subtracting incorrect values and adding correct ones.
- Correct :
- Correct :
- Correct :
- Correct :
- Correct :
Step 2: Use the formula for .
Note: A correlation coefficient computationally cannot exceed 1. This suggests that the initial problem data provided in the textbook (specifically the initial Σy² = 436 value) was inherently flawed or a typo. However, proceeding with the exact mathematical substitution based on the data provided yields the derived answer.
Number of Pages (X): 20, 40, 60, 80, 100, 120, 140
Cost in ₹ (Y): 300, 400, 500, 700, 600, 800, 1000
Calculate Karl Pearson's coefficient of correlation and interpret the result.
Step 1: Simplify calculations using Step Deviation Method.
Let Assumed Mean for be and scale . So, .
Let Assumed Mean for be and scale . So, .
| 20 | 300 | -3 | -3 | 9 | 9 | 9 |
| 40 | 400 | -2 | -2 | 4 | 4 | 4 |
| 60 | 500 | -1 | -1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 80 | 700 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 100 | 600 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 120 | 800 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 4 | 4 |
| 140 | 1000 | 3 | 4 | 9 | 16 | 12 |
| ∑ = 0 | ∑ = 1 | ∑ = 28 | ∑ = 35 | ∑ = 30 |
Step 2: Apply the coefficient formula.
Interpretation: Since the correlation coefficient is highly positive and close to 1, there is a very strong positive correlation between the number of pages and the cost of the book. As the pages increase, the cost significantly increases.
Check Your Progress 11.2
Step 1: State the formula for Spearman's rank correlation.
Step 2: Substitute the known values.
Given and .
Step 3: Solve for .
Expanding the left side as consecutive integers:
We look for three consecutive integers whose product is 990.
. Thus, .
Maths: 60, 40, 66, 80, 38, 95, 30, 74, 91, 84
Economics: 56, 46, 52, 85, 50, 92, 58, 70, 88, 65
Step 1: Assign ranks to the data.
We assign ranks from 1 to 10 in descending order (highest score gets rank 1).
| Maths () | Economics () | Rank () | Rank () | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 60 | 56 | 7 | 7 | 0 | 0 |
| 40 | 46 | 8 | 10 | -2 | 4 |
| 66 | 52 | 6 | 8 | -2 | 4 |
| 80 | 85 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 1 |
| 38 | 50 | 9 | 9 | 0 | 0 |
| 95 | 92 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 30 | 58 | 10 | 6 | 4 | 16 |
| 74 | 70 | 5 | 4 | 1 | 1 |
| 91 | 88 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| 84 | 65 | 3 | 5 | -2 | 4 |
| ∑ | 30 | ||||
Step 2: Calculate Spearman's Rank Correlation.
Here .
Judge 1: 9, 1, 10, 4, 3, 8, 5, 2, 7, 6
Judge 2: 9, 3, 7, 5, 1, 6, 2, 4, 10, 8
Judge 3: 6, 3, 8, 7, 2, 4, 1, 5, 9, 10
(i) Which pair of Judges have same liking for singing (i.e., agree the most).
(ii) Which pair of Judges disagree the most.
Step 1: Calculate the squared differences for each pair of judges.
| J1 | J2 | J3 | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 9 | 9 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 9 | 3 | 9 |
| 1 | 3 | 3 | -2 | 4 | 0 | 0 | -2 | 4 |
| 10 | 7 | 8 | 3 | 9 | -1 | 1 | 2 | 4 |
| 4 | 5 | 7 | -1 | 1 | -2 | 4 | -3 | 9 |
| 3 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 4 | -1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 8 | 6 | 4 | 2 | 4 | 2 | 4 | 4 | 16 |
| 5 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 9 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 16 |
| 2 | 4 | 5 | -2 | 4 | -1 | 1 | -3 | 9 |
| 7 | 10 | 9 | -3 | 9 | 1 | 1 | -2 | 4 |
| 6 | 8 | 10 | -2 | 4 | -2 | 4 | -4 | 16 |
| Sum | 48 | Sum | 26 | Sum | 88 | |||
Step 2: Calculate Spearman's rank correlation for each pair.
Using , so the denominator .
Between Judge 1 and Judge 2:
Between Judge 2 and Judge 3:
Between Judge 1 and Judge 3:
(ii) Judges 1 and 3 have the lowest correlation (), so they disagree the most.
X: 19, 25, 15, 6, 20, 13, 9, 4, 13, 6
Y: 57, 40, 16, 9, 65, 48, 24, 16, 33, 16
Step 1: Assign ranks to the values.
Note that there are repeating values, so we assign average ranks to tied items.
- In X: 13 occurs twice (ranks 5 and 6) → Average rank = 5.5. Number 6 occurs twice (ranks 8 and 9) → Average rank = 8.5.
- In Y: 16 occurs three times (ranks 7, 8, 9) → Average rank = 8.
| Rank () | Rank () | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 19 | 57 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 1 |
| 25 | 40 | 1 | 4 | -3 | 9 |
| 15 | 16 | 4 | 8 | -4 | 16 |
| 6 | 9 | 8.5 | 10 | -1.5 | 2.25 |
| 20 | 65 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 13 | 48 | 5.5 | 3 | 2.5 | 6.25 |
| 9 | 24 | 7 | 6 | 1 | 1 |
| 4 | 16 | 10 | 8 | 2 | 4 |
| 13 | 33 | 5.5 | 5 | 0.5 | 0.25 |
| 6 | 16 | 8.5 | 8 | 0.5 | 0.25 |
| ∑ | 41 | ||||
Step 2: Apply the correction factor (CF) for tied ranks.
Ties in X: (for 13), (for 6). Ties in Y: (for 16).
Step 3: Calculate the Spearman's rank correlation.
Money spent on advertisement (X): 60, 75, 80, 84, 56, 70, 88, 100
Sales (Y): 110, 120, 140, 146, 100, 115, 130, 152
Step 1: Assign ranks to the values.
We assign ranks from 1 to 8 in descending order.
| Rank () | Rank () | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 60 | 110 | 7 | 7 | 0 | 0 |
| 75 | 120 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 |
| 80 | 140 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 1 |
| 84 | 146 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 1 |
| 56 | 100 | 8 | 8 | 0 | 0 |
| 70 | 115 | 6 | 6 | 0 | 0 |
| 88 | 130 | 2 | 4 | -2 | 4 |
| 100 | 152 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| ∑ | 6 | ||||
Step 2: Calculate Spearman's Rank Correlation.
Here .
Note: A highly strong positive rank correlation exists between ad spending and sales.
Practice Exercise (MCQs)
-
Which of the following gives the range of values in which the coefficient of correlation (r) always lie:
Answer: (d)
Explanation: Correlation coefficient boundaries strictly lie between -1 and +1 inclusive. -
A scatter diagram is a graphical method of studying:
Answer: (b) correlation
Explanation: A scatter diagram plots two variables to visually depict the nature and degree of correlation between them. -
The value of Spearman's rank coefficient of correlation having and n = 4 is:
Answer: (a) 0.6
Explanation: . -
The correlation between the sale of air conditioners and the temperature in degree Celsius (°C) is:
Answer: (d) positive
Explanation: As temperature increases, the sale of air conditioners concurrently increases. -
The coefficient of correlation is independent of change of:
Answer: (a) origin and scale
Explanation: Adding or multiplying constants to the data values scales both the covariance and the standard deviations equally, preserving the coefficient ratio. -
Which of the scatter diagrams corresponds to the value r = +1?
Answer: (c) A straight line moving upwards from left to right.
Explanation: A perfect positive correlation dictates all data points fall perfectly onto an upward sloping line.
Assertion-Reason Based Questions
-
Assertion: Scatter diagram is a graphical method of studying correlation.
Reason: Scatter diagram provides an exact numerical value of coefficient of correlation.
Answer: (c) (A) is true but (R) is false.
Explanation: While a scatter diagram visually outlines correlation, it only gives a rough estimate, NOT an exact numerical value. -
Assertion: The correlation between the height and weight of children is positive.
Reason: The positive correlation means the two variables are increasing or decreasing together.
Answer: (a) Both (A) and (R) are true and (R) is the correct explanation of (A).
Explanation: Taller children generally weigh more, representing simultaneous growth conforming to the definition of a positive correlation. -
Assertion: If coefficient of correlation between x and y is 0.87 then coefficient of correlation between 2x and y - 2 is also 0.87.
Reason: The coefficient of correlation is independent of change of origin and scale.
Answer: (a) Both (A) and (R) are true and (R) is the correct explanation of (A).
Explanation: The transformation involves a scale change for x (multiplied by 2) and an origin shift for y (subtracting 2). Due to independence from these changes, the correlation holds steady. -
Assertion: The coefficient of correlation take values between 0 and 1 only.
Reason: In case of all the points lies on a line with negative slope.
Answer: (d) (A) is false but (R) is true.
Explanation: Correlation coefficient takes values between -1 and 1. If points lie on a line with negative slope, the correlation is precisely -1.
Subjective Questions
X: 12, 15, 18, 21, 24, 27, 30
Y: 6, 8, 10, 12, 14, 16, 18
Step 1: Check the mathematical relationship.
We can observe a direct linear relationship: . Since the relationship is perfectly linear and the slope is positive, the coefficient of correlation should be exactly 1. We will verify this computationally.
Step 2: Find means and deviations.
| 12 | 6 | -9 | -6 | 81 | 36 | 54 |
| 15 | 8 | -6 | -4 | 36 | 16 | 24 |
| 18 | 10 | -3 | -2 | 9 | 4 | 6 |
| 21 | 12 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 24 | 14 | 3 | 2 | 9 | 4 | 6 |
| 27 | 16 | 6 | 4 | 36 | 16 | 24 |
| 30 | 18 | 9 | 6 | 81 | 36 | 54 |
| ∑ = 0 | ∑ = 0 | ∑ = 252 | ∑ = 112 | ∑ = 168 |
Step 3: Calculate the correlation.
Height of Husband (X): 78, 75, 72, 71, 70, 70, 69, 68, 67, 65
Height of Wife (Y): 74, 71, 70, 68, 67, 65, 64, 63, 66, 62
Step 1: Calculate the mean values.
Step 2: Create a calculation table. We can use assumed mean and .
Let and .
| 78 | 74 | 8 | 7 | 64 | 49 | 56 |
| 75 | 71 | 5 | 4 | 25 | 16 | 20 |
| 72 | 70 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 9 | 6 |
| 71 | 68 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 70 | 67 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 70 | 65 | 0 | -2 | 0 | 4 | 0 |
| 69 | 64 | -1 | -3 | 1 | 9 | 3 |
| 68 | 63 | -2 | -4 | 4 | 16 | 8 |
| 67 | 66 | -3 | -1 | 9 | 1 | 3 |
| 65 | 62 | -5 | -5 | 25 | 25 | 25 |
| ∑ = 5 | ∑ = 0 | ∑ = 133 | ∑ = 130 | ∑ = 122 |
Step 3: Calculate using Assumed Mean formula.
Interpretation: A high degree of positive correlation exists, indicating that taller husbands tend to have taller wives.
X: 77, 68, 95, 70, 60, 80, 81, 50
Y: 130, 135, 150, 115, 110, 140, 143, 100
Step 1: Assign ranks to the values.
We assign ranks from 1 to 8 in descending order.
| Rank () | Rank () | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 77 | 130 | 4 | 5 | -1 | 1 |
| 68 | 135 | 6 | 4 | 2 | 4 |
| 95 | 150 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 70 | 115 | 5 | 6 | -1 | 1 |
| 60 | 110 | 7 | 7 | 0 | 0 |
| 80 | 140 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| 81 | 143 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| 50 | 100 | 8 | 8 | 0 | 0 |
| ∑ | 6 | ||||
Step 2: Calculate Spearman's Rank Correlation.
Weight of Mothers (X): 70, 78, 76, 74, 73, 70, 73, 58
Weight of Daughters (Y): 30, 30, 30, 27, 25, 23, 22, 28
Step 1: Assign ranks to the values.
Handle ties by averaging the ranks that the identical numbers would have occupied.
- In X: 73 appears twice (ranks 4, 5) → Average rank = 4.5. The number 70 appears twice (ranks 6, 7) → Average rank = 6.5.
- In Y: 30 appears three times (ranks 1, 2, 3) → Average rank = 2.
| Rank () | Rank () | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 70 | 30 | 6.5 | 2 | 4.5 | 20.25 |
| 78 | 30 | 1 | 2 | -1 | 1 |
| 76 | 30 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| 74 | 27 | 3 | 5 | -2 | 4 |
| 73 | 25 | 4.5 | 6 | -1.5 | 2.25 |
| 70 | 23 | 6.5 | 7 | -0.5 | 0.25 |
| 73 | 22 | 4.5 | 8 | -3.5 | 12.25 |
| 58 | 28 | 8 | 4 | 4 | 16 |
| ∑ | 56 | ||||
Step 2: Apply the correction factor (CF) for tied ranks.
Ties in X: (for 73), (for 70). Ties in Y: (for 30).
Step 3: Calculate the Spearman's rank correlation.
Case Studies
Ratings Test (X): Australia (128), South Africa (116), England (109), India (104), New Zealand (98), Sri Lanka (88), Pakistan (82), West Indies (69), Bangladesh (63)
Ratings T-20 (Y): Australia (265), South Africa (242), England (258), India (272), New Zealand (251), Sri Lanka (228), Pakistan (236), West Indies (234), Bangladesh (223)
Keeping in mind the given ranking of the countries. Evaluate the following.
(1) Which country has the top ranking in Test matches? Also determine the country having the top ranking in T-20.
(2) Calculate the coefficient of correlation by Spearman's rank method.
(3) Interpret the result.
(1) Top Rankings:
Top rating in Test Matches = 128 (Australia).
Top rating in T-20 Matches = 272 (India).
(2) Calculate Spearman's Rank Correlation:
Assign ranks in descending order for both series.
| Team | Test Rating () | T-20 Rating () | Rank () | Rank () | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Australia | 128 | 265 | 1 | 2 | -1 | 1 |
| South Africa | 116 | 242 | 2 | 5 | -3 | 9 |
| England | 109 | 258 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| India | 104 | 272 | 4 | 1 | 3 | 9 |
| New Zealand | 98 | 251 | 5 | 4 | 1 | 1 |
| Sri Lanka | 88 | 228 | 6 | 8 | -2 | 4 |
| Pakistan | 82 | 236 | 7 | 6 | 1 | 1 |
| West Indies | 69 | 234 | 8 | 7 | 1 | 1 |
| Bangladesh | 63 | 223 | 9 | 9 | 0 | 0 |
| ∑ | 26 | |||||
(3) Interpretation:
A high positive correlation () signifies that countries performing well in Test Cricket also tend to perform well in T-20.
(2)
(3) High degree of positive correlation exists.
Dates (Jan 13 to Jan 23):
AQI (x): 360, 353, 343, 354, 400, 440, 410, 378, 330, 322, 282
PM 2.5 (y): 235, 210, 189, 208, 325, 334, 283, 221, 170, 175, 122
(1) Arrange the data regarding AQI level and the PM 2.5 (µg/m3) in tabular form.
(2) Find the coefficient of correlation by Karl Pearson's method and then by Spearman's rank method. Are the two different? Which is more accurate?
(3) Can comparison between explained and unexplained variation give some idea about how significant is the correlation?
(1) Tabular Form:
| Date | Jan 13 | Jan 14 | Jan 15 | Jan 16 | Jan 17 | Jan 18 | Jan 19 | Jan 20 | Jan 21 | Jan 22 | Jan 23 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AQI () | 360 | 353 | 343 | 354 | 400 | 440 | 410 | 378 | 330 | 322 | 282 |
| PM2.5 () | 235 | 210 | 189 | 208 | 325 | 334 | 283 | 221 | 170 | 175 | 122 |
(2) Coefficient of Correlation Calculation:
For Karl Pearson's Method, we analyze the numerical deviations. It provides a precise scalar metric reflecting the exact linear dependencies between actual continuous data points.
For Spearman's Rank Method, we analyze the ranked order of the observations. This evaluates monotonic relationships without factoring in the magnitude of distances between actual data points.
Yes, the two coefficients are marginally different because Karl Pearson's evaluates linear magnitude, whereas Spearman's evaluates purely monotonic ordinality. Karl Pearson's method is more accurate because it utilizes the exact values rather than losing informational detail through ranking abstraction.
(3) Interpretation of Variance:
Yes, the comparison gives deep insight into significance. The squared correlation coefficient (), known as the Coefficient of Determination, precisely quantifies the explained variation.
If approaches , the explained variation vastly outweighs the unexplained variation, concluding the correlation is very strong and highly significant.
(3) Yes. Since the explained variation is significantly greater than the unexplained variation, the correlation is very strong and highly significant.
