Linear Correlation Coefficient

To determine the strength of a linear relationship between two variables, statisticians use a statistic
called the linear correlation coefficient, which is denoted by the variable r and is defined as follows.

▼ Linear Correlation Coefficient For the n ordered pairs (x1, y1) , (x2, y2) , (x3, y3) , ... , (xn, yn) , the
linear correlation coefficient r is given by

n ∑ xy−∑ x ∑ y
r= 2 2
√ n ∑ x −(∑ x) . √ n ∑ y −(∑ y )
2 2

If the linear correlation coefficient r is positive, the relationship between the variables has a positive
correlation. In this case, if one variable increases, the other variable also tends to increase. If r is
negative, the linear relationship between the variables has a negative correlation. In this case, if one
variable increases, the other variable tends to decrease. Figure 13.19 shows some scatter diagrams
along with the type of linear correlation that exists between the x and y variables. The closer |r| is to 1,
the stronger the linear relationship between the variables.

Example 1:

Find the linear correlation coefficient for stride length versus speed of an adult man. Use the data in
Table 13.11a. Round your result to the nearest hundredth.

Solution:

The ordered pairs are (2.5, 3.4) ,( 3.0, 4.9) , (3.3, 5.5) , (3.5, 6.6) , (3.8, 7.0) , (4.0, 7.7) , (4.2, 8.3) , (4.5,
8.7). The number of ordered pairs is n= 8. In Table 13.12 we found:
∑ x = 28.8, ∑ y =52.1 ∑ x 2=106.72 ∑ x y=195.86
The only additional value that is needed is
∑ y2=3.42 +4.92 +5.52 +6.62 +7.02 +7.72 +8.32 +8.72 =362.25
Substituting the above values into the equation for the linear correlation coefficient gives us

n ∑ xy−∑ x ∑ y
r= 2 2
√ n ∑ x −(∑ x) . √ n ∑ y −(∑ y )
2 2

8 ( 195.86 )−(28.8)( 52.1)

= √ 8 ( 106.72 )−(28.8) . √ 8 ( 362.25 )−(52.1)
2 2

≈ 0.993715
To the nearest hundredth, the linear correlation coefficient is 0.99.

Try This:

Find the linear correlation coefficient for stride length versus speed of a camel as given in Table 13.11c.
Round your result to the nearest hundredth.

The linear correlation coefficient indicates the strength of a linear relationship between two variables;
however, it does not indicate the presence of a cause-and-effect relationship. For instance, the data in
Table 13.13 show the hours per week that a student spent playing pool and the student’s weekly algebra
test scores for those same weeks.

Table 13.13 Algebra Test Scores vs. Hours Spent Playing Pool

Hours per week spent playing pool 4 5 7 8 10

Weekly algebra test score 52 60 72 79 83

The linear correlation coefficient for the ordered pairs in the table is r 0.98. Thus there is a strong
positive linear relationship between the student’s algebra test scores and the time the student spent
playing pool. This does not mean that the higher algebra test scores were caused by the increased time
spent playing pool. The fact that the student’s test scores increased with the increase in the time spent
playing pool could be due to many other factors or it could just be a coincidence. In your work with
applications that involve the linear correlation coefficient r, it is important to remember the following
properties of r.
▼ Properties of the Linear Correlation Coefficient

1. The linear correlation coefficient r is always a real number between 1 and -1, inclusive. In the case in
which

■ all of the ordered pairs lie on a line with positive slope, r is 1.

■ all of the ordered pairs lie on a line with negative slope, r is -1.

2. For any set of ordered pairs, the linear correlation coefficient r and the slope of the least-squares line
both have the same sign.

3. Interchanging the variables in the ordered pairs does not change the value of r. Thus the value of r for
the ordered pairs (x1, y1) , (x2, y2) , ... , (xn, yn) is the same as the value of r for the ordered pairs (y1,
x1) , (y2, x2) , ... , (yn, xn) .

4. The value of r does not depend on the units used. You can change the units of a variable from, for
example, feet to inches and the value of r will remain the same.