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The Logic of Social Science

The Logic of Social Science. Correlation vs. Causation. One of the most important rules of social sciences is the axiom, “Correlation does not mean Causation”. Correlation: A mutual relationship of any two or more things.

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The Logic of Social Science

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  1. The Logic of Social Science Correlation vs. Causation

  2. One of the most important rules of social sciences is the axiom, “Correlation does not mean Causation”.

  3. Correlation: A mutual relationship of any two or more things. Statistics: an interdependence between random variables or between sets of numbers. Example: There is a correlation between climate and vegetation

  4. Causation: Whatever produces and effect. The relation of cause and effect. Example: The flood caused much damage.

  5. If my dog howls at the moon, particularly when it is “blue”, then what can be assumed? Causation: The moon causes my dog to howl (Correct) My dog’s howling turns the moon blue (Incorrect) Correlation: There is a correlation between the blue moon and my dog’s increased howling patterns.

  6. Determining causation is the biggest problem for a social scientists. Clearly, it is easy to make mistakes and misinterpret data. Data is also sometimes tampered with or used selectively by some people to support false conclusions.

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