In a recent episode of the economics podcast Planet Money, the hosts interview Chris Wheelan, author of the new book, Naked Statistics: Stripping the Dread from the Data. In their conversation, they explore the challenge every researcher faces: how do I know what causes what? How can I distinguish between causation and mere coincidence? Drawing meaningful conclusions from your research (and analyzing the conclusions of other researchers) depends on making this distinction.
Listen to the podcast on the Planet Money website.
Discussion Questions:
- Do you know of any examples of mistaken causation?
- Consider the ongoing debate about the dangers of vaccinations. Some are concerned that vaccinations can cause autism; others deny the causal connection, arguing it’s merely a correlation. What do you think? What kind of research would help you sort it out?
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