Correlation Definition

In statistics, correlation is the degree to which two variables change together. A positive correlation means that as one variable increases, the other variable increases; a negative correlation means that as one variable increases, the other decreases. The strength of the correlation is measured by its coefficient: a value between -1 and 1, with -1 indicating a perfect negative correlation and 1 indicating a perfect positive correlation.

Correlation is often used to predict future behavior. For example, if two variables are highly correlated, we might expect that an increase in one will be accompanied by an increase in the other. However, it’s important to remember that correlation does not imply causation: just because two variables are correlated does not mean that one causes the other.