KNOWLEDGEBASE - ARTICLE #989

I used Prism's correlation analysis. How do I plot the corresponding line.

Correlation quantifies the degree to which X and Y are related. It does not fit a line.

If you want to fit a line that best predicts Y from X, then choose the linear regression analysis. Note that if you interchange X and Y, you'll still get the same correlation coefficient. But you won't get the same regression line. That line is the one that best predicts Y from X, so it matters a lot how you define X and Y. Regression assumes that you know X perfectly (or at least very accurately) and all the scatter or uncertainty is in the Y direction. It is only appropriate to choose linear regression when you are sure you have defined X and Y appropriately.

Review the difference between correlation and linear regression. 



Keywords: graph, plot, Pearson, Spearman

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