CORRELATION

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 Dictionary entry overview: What does correlation mean? 

• CORRELATION (noun)
  The noun CORRELATION has 3 senses:

1. a reciprocal relation between two or more things

2. a statistic representing how closely two variables co-vary; it can vary from -1 (perfect negative correlation) through 0 (no correlation) to +1 (perfect positive correlation)

3. a statistical relation between two or more variables such that systematic changes in the value of one variable are accompanied by systematic changes in the other

  Familiarity information: CORRELATION used as a noun is uncommon.

 Dictionary entry details 

• CORRELATION (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

A reciprocal relation between two or more things

Classified under:

Nouns denoting relations between people or things or ideas

Synonyms:

correlation; correlativity

Hypernyms ("correlation" is a kind of...):

reciprocality; reciprocity (a relation of mutual dependence or action or influence)

Derivation:

correlate (bring into a mutual, complementary, or reciprocal relation)

correlate (to bear a reciprocal or mutual relation)

correlational (relating to or employing correlation)

Sense 2

Meaning:

A statistic representing how closely two variables co-vary; it can vary from -1 (perfect negative correlation) through 0 (no correlation) to +1 (perfect positive correlation)

Classified under:

Nouns denoting cognitive processes and contents

Synonyms:

coefficient of correlation; correlation; correlation coefficient

Context example:

what is the correlation between those two variables?

Hypernyms ("correlation" is a kind of...):

parametric statistic (any statistic computed by procedures that assume the data were drawn from a particular distribution)

Domain category:

statistics (a branch of applied mathematics concerned with the collection and interpretation of quantitative data and the use of probability theory to estimate population parameters)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "correlation"):

Pearson product-moment correlation coefficient; product-moment correlation coefficient (the most commonly used method of computing a correlation coefficient between variables that are linearly related)

multiple correlation coefficient (an estimate of the combined influence of two or more variables on the observed (dependent) variable)

biserial correlation; biserial correlation coefficient (a correlation coefficient in which one variable is many-valued and the other is dichotomous)

chance-half correlation; split-half correlation (a correlation coefficient calculated between scores on two halves of a test; taken as an indication of the reliability of the test)

tetrachoric correlation; tetrachoric correlation coefficient (a correlation coefficient computed for two normally distributed variables that are both expressed as a dichotomy)

Derivation:

correlate (bring into a mutual, complementary, or reciprocal relation)

correlate (to bear a reciprocal or mutual relation)

correlational (relating to or employing correlation)

Sense 3

Meaning:

A statistical relation between two or more variables such that systematic changes in the value of one variable are accompanied by systematic changes in the other

Classified under:

Nouns denoting cognitive processes and contents

Synonyms:

correlation; correlational statistics

Hypernyms ("correlation" is a kind of...):

statistics (a branch of applied mathematics concerned with the collection and interpretation of quantitative data and the use of probability theory to estimate population parameters)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "correlation"):

curvilinear correlation; nonlinear correlation; skew correlation (any correlation in which the rates of change of the variables is not constant)

partial correlation (a correlation between two variables when the effects of one or more related variables are removed)

direct correlation; positive correlation (a correlation in which large values of one variable are associated with large values of the other and small with small; the correlation coefficient is between 0 and +1)

indirect correlation; negative correlation (a correlation in which large values of one variable are associated with small values of the other; the correlation coefficient is between 0 and -1)

spurious correlation (a correlation between two variables (e.g., between the number of electric motors in the home and grades at school) that does not result from any direct relation between them (buying electric motors will not raise grades) but from their relation to other variables)

Holonyms ("correlation" is a part of...):

correlational analysis (the use of statistical correlation to evaluate the strength of the relations between variables)

Derivation:

correlate (bring into a mutual, complementary, or reciprocal relation)

correlate (to bear a reciprocal or mutual relation)

correlational (relating to or employing correlation)

 Context examples 

What, in a way, most profoundly impressed Martin, was the correlation of knowledge—of all knowledge.

(Martin Eden, by Jack London)

Specifically, correlations are preserved between neurons located within individual regions and between some subpopulations of neurons located in different cerebral areas.

(Brain Is Still 'Connected' during Non-REM Sleep, The Titi Tudorancea Bulletin)

An indication or description of the correlation between a finding or event of interest and a treatment outside the specifications of a study.

(Non-Study Treatment Relationship, NCI Thesaurus)

An indication or description of a correlation between death and another event.

(Death Relationship, NCI Thesaurus)

Despite that, no previous study has yet found a correlation between the increase in pesticide use and colon cancer mortality.

(Pesticides blamed for rise in colon cancer deaths, SciDev.Net)

However, these correlations alone were insufficient to answer the question, “What produces what?”

(101 Geysers on Icy Saturn Moon, NASA)

The collection and/or analysis of data with the objective of identifying patterns or correlations that may lead to hypothesis formation.

(Discovery Science, NCI Thesaurus)

Relative time scale based on stratigraphic position and correlation, and many different types of chronologic evidence.

(Geologic time scale, NOAA Paleoclimate Glossary)

The parameters of the multivariate normal distribution include the mean and variance of each individual variable and the correlations between variables.

(Multivariate Normal Distribution, NCI Thesaurus)

They found a correlation between lower MT tyrosine levels and decreased heart function.

(Microtubules’ role in heart cell contraction revealed, NIH)