Pearson’s Correlation

RStudio

1. Open SPSS

2. Use two continuous variables, recode variables if needed

  • E.g., v6 = parent engagement (1-10 scale); v36 = income (tax brackets)

3. Type in the following syntax

  • z <-y[is.na(y$v6)==0 & is.na(y$v36)==0,]
  • cor(z$v36, z$v6)

4. Interpret findings

  • Correlation coefficient = -.0769
  • There is a weak, negative correlation between parent engagement and household income.

SPSS

1. Open SPSS

2. Analyze>Correlate>Bivariate

3. Place two continuous variables into ‘Variables’ box

  • E.g., v6 & v7
  • v6= parent engagement (1-10 scale); v7 = family enjoyment (1-10 scale)

4. Ensure Pearson, two-tailed, and Flag significant correlations boxes are checked under ‘Correlation Coefficients’

5. Click OK

6. Interpret findings

  • There is a strong, positive correlation between parent engagement and family enjoyment.

7. If wanting to make a line graph…

  • Go to Graphs>Chart Builder
  • Drag line graph up
  • Add variables into x and y axis’s respectively