What is a Scatter Plot?
Unlike normal line graphs (which usually show change over time), Scatter Plots show the relationship between two completely different things.
Imagine we ask 100 people two questions:
- Positive Correlation (Going UP): "How tall are you?" vs. "What represents your shoe size?" (Taller people usually have bigger feet).
- Negative Correlation (Going DOWN): "How fast do you drive?" vs. "Time to arrive?" (Faster driving means less time).
- No Correlation (Random): "How much tea do you drink?" vs. "How smart are you?" (Probably no link at all!).
Relationships & Correlation Reference
| Type | Meaning | Visual Description |
|---|---|---|
| Positive Correlation | As X increases, Y increases. | Dots go up from left to right. |
| Negative Correlation | As X increases, Y decreases. | Dots go down from left to right. |
| No Correlation | No relationship between X and Y. | Dots are scattered randomly. |
| Strong vs. Weak | How close the points are to a line. | Strong: Dots form a tight line. Weak: Dots are spread out broadly. |
| Outlier / Anomaly | A data point that doesn't fit the pattern. | One dot stands far away from the others. |
