Question

A paper concluded that there was a correlation between refined sugar consumption (calories per person per day) and annual rate of major depression (cases per 100 people) based on data from six countries. The following data were read from a graph that appeared in the paper.

Country Sugar Consumption Depression Rate
Korea 140 2.4
United States 310 3.1
France 360 4.5
Germany 385 5.1
Canada 400 5.1
New Zealand 470 5.8

Required:
a. Calculate the correlation coefficient for this data set.
b. Interpret the correlation coefficient for this data set.
c. Is it reasonable to conclude that increasing sugar consumption leads to higher rates of depression? Explain.

Answer 1

Following are the responses to these question:

Explanation:

In point a:

In the excel sheet with the information, you've been provided. The below is the output of the
`CORREL(B2:B7, C2:C7)` formula for determining correlation coefficients:

`\to r=0.0762`

It was a good thing that there's a connection between the two. For both depression and sugar intake, there is a weak positive linear relationship.

In point b:

Yes, It's fair to assume which increased sugar intake leads to increased depression rates.

In point c:

Yes, This sample of countries does not appear to be reflective of an entire world. As a result, the inference could be applied to all countries.