Spurious correlation occurs when?

• A. There is no correlation
• B. A direct causal link
• C. Two unrelated things are correlated
• D. The data is normally distributed

Answer: (C)

Spurious correlation occurs when two unrelated things are correlated. It looks like there’s a connection, but there isn’t a direct cause-and-effect link between them; their association often comes from coincidence or from a hidden third factor influencing both variables. This is a reminder that correlation does not imply causation. For example, ice cream sales and sunburn incidents may rise together in summer, but one doesn’t cause the other—they share a common driver (hot weather). The other scenarios don’t describe spurious correlation: there isn’t a correlation, there is a direct causal link, and whether data are normally distributed doesn’t create a spurious relationship.