2.

CORRELATIONAL
RESEARCH
BY :
YVES JILL M. YUKEE
MT-II DFLOMNHS SHS
CORRELATIONAL DESIGN

-Explores the interrelationship between

variables of interest without any active
intervention or manipulation of the
independent variable by the researcher.
 CORRELATIONAL DESIGN

-it is a systematic investigation of the nature of

relationships, or association between and among variables
without necessarily investigating into causal reasons
underlying them.
-it is also concerned with the extent of relationships that
exists between or among variables.
 CORRELATIONAL DESIGN

Example:
If pre-board examination results can be used to
predict performance in the Licensure Examination
for Teachers(LET), then the higher the pre-board,
the higher most likely be the score in the LET.
 CORRELATIONAL DESIGN

When you have correlational research method, your

results will tell if two variables are related.
Variables can either be positively or negatively related.
- Positive correlation : have variables that vary in the
same direction.
 CORRELATIONAL DESIGN

Examples:
1. years of education and salary.
The more number of years of education a
person has, the higher the salary.
Conversely, the fewer number of years of
education a person has, the lower the salary.
2. the more you study for a test, the higher your
grade in the test.
 CORRELATIONAL DESIGN

- Negative correlation : have variables that vary in

opposite direction.
Example:
1. Marital satisfaction and likelihood of annulment.
As marital satisfaction increases, the likelihood of
annulment decrease. Conversely, as marital satisfaction
decreases, the likelihood of annulment increases.
Three types of
CORRELATIONAL DESIGN

1. Bivariate Correlational studies

2. Prediction studies
3. Multiple Regression Prediction
studies
1. Bivariate Correlational Studies

 Obtain scores from two variables for each

subject, then use them to calculate a
correlation coefficient.
 Theterm bivariate implies that two
variables are correlated (variables are
selected because they are believed to
be related).
1. Bivariate Correlational Studies

Example:
Children of wealthier(variable #1), better
educated(variable #2) parents earn higher
salaries as adults.
2. Prediction studies

 Use
correlation co-efficient to show how
one variable (the predictor variable)
predicts another (the criterion variable).
 Example:
Which high school applicants should be
admitted to college?
 3. Multiple Regression Prediction Studies
 This
study is used when there are other good
predictors.
Example:
Suppose the general average is not the sole
predictor, what might be other good predictors?
Which of these variables can contribute to the over-all
prediction in an equation that adds together the
predictive power of each identified variable.
 Why choose Correlation Design?

1. Researchers do not believe that the statistical

relationship is a causal one
Example: the researcher might want to check whether
participants’ scores in a brief test are strongly
correlated with their scores on the longer one.
Neither test score is thought to cause the other, so
there is no independent variable to manipulate.
 Why choose Correlation Design?

2. The statistical relationship of interest is thought to be

causal, but the researcher can not manipulate the
independent variable because it is impossible,
impractical, or unethical.
Example: the number of “daily hassles” that
experience affects the number of physical and
psychological symptoms they have.
How data are collected?

 1.naturalistic observation – researchers

observe people’s behavior in which it
normally occurs)
 2.archival data – data were already
collected for other purpose
 Decide whether each of the following
studies described is most likely
experimental or correlational. Explain.
1. an educational researcher compares the
academic performance of students from the “rich”
side of town with that of the students from the “poor”
side of the town.
2. a cognitive psychologist compares the ability of
people to recall words that they were instructed to
“read” with their ability to recall words that they
were instructed to “imagine”.
 Decide whether each of the following
studies described is most likely
experimental or correlational. Explain.

3. a manager studies the correlation between new

employees’ college grade point averages and their
first-year performance reports.
4. An automotive engineer installs different stick shifts
in a new car prototype, each time asking several
people to rate how comfortable the stick shift feels.
 Decide whether each of the following
studies described is most likely
experimental or correlational. Explain.

5. A food scientist studies the relationship between

the temperature inside people’s refrigerators and the
amount of bacteria on their food.