Question

Assume that instead of conducting experiments, Latané and Darley had used a correlational method to study the relation between the number of bystanders who witness an emergency and how quickly a victim receives help. Assume that the correlational data were compatible with results from experiments: the more bystanders, the longer it took bystanders to help. What type of correlation is this?A) a nonlinear correlationB) a zero correlationC) a positive correlationD) a spurious correlationE) a negative correlation

Answer 1

C) a positive correlation

Explanation:

More people ⇒ Longer time is a positive correlation between those variables. However, longer time is not the desired outcome.

Rather, shorter time is the desired outcome. The correlation between more people and shorter time is negative. In order to compute that correlation numerically, one would have to define a function that would give a numerical value for "shorter time" that would model the goodness of outcome as time gets shorter.