I can't top the "housework" example, but here is another one I ran across recently -- "positive mood guards against getting colds" at http://www.sciencenews.org/articles/20061216/fob2.asp Just a reminder, you can find a long list of these correlation causation confusions at the following page http://jonathan.mueller.faculty.noctrl.edu/100/correlation_or_causation.htm
Not all of the headlines are in error, but many of them are. They can be used for all kinds of demonstrations, activities or assignments. In fact, I have a couple possible assignments listed there. If you develop any other such assignment/activity ideas please pass them along and I will add them to the site. Thanks, Jon =============== Jon Mueller Professor of Psychology North Central College 30 N. Brainard St. Naperville, IL 60540 voice: (630)-637-5329 fax: (630)-637-5121 [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://jonathan.mueller.faculty.noctrl.edu >>> <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> 1/2/2007 8:41 PM >>> On 2 Jan 2007 at 10:05, Ken Steele nominated for correlation-causation confusion: > http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/us/AP-Diet-Girls-Magazines.html?_r=1&ore > f=slogin > > "Teenage girls who frequently read magazine articles about dieting were > more likely five years later to practice extreme weight-loss measures > such as vomiting than girls who never read such articles..." > I'll see your "Teenage girls who read" and raise it with "Housework cuts breast cancer risk" [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/6214655.stm ] According to the BBC (and which therefore cannot be wrong): "The research on more than 200,000 women from nine European countries found doing household chores was far more cancer protective than playing sport." "Dusting, mopping and vacuuming was also better than having a physical job." Leaving aside the metaphysical question of what, exactly constitutes a "physical job" if not housework, all I can say is "Girls, if you get breast cancer, it's your own fault". I can't wait to tell my wife. Stephen ----------------------------------------------------------------- Stephen L. Black, Ph.D. Department of Psychology Bishop's University e-mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED] 2600 College St. Sherbrooke QC J1M 0C8 Canada Dept web page at http://www.ubishops.ca/ccc/div/soc/psy TIPS discussion list for psychology teachers at http://faculty.frostburg.edu/psyc/southerly/tips/index.htm ----------------------------------------------------------------------- --- To make changes to your subscription go to: http://acsun.frostburg.edu/cgi-bin/lyris.pl?enter=tips&text_mode=0&lang=english --- To make changes to your subscription go to: http://acsun.frostburg.edu/cgi-bin/lyris.pl?enter=tips&text_mode=0&lang=english
