OCR Further Statistics 2018 December — Question 5

Exam BoardOCR
ModuleFurther Statistics (Further Statistics)
Year2018
SessionDecember
TopicBivariate data
TypeCalculate r from raw bivariate data

5 The birth rate, \(x\) per thousand members of the population, and the life expectancy at birth, \(y\) years, in 14 randomly selected African countries are given in the table.
Country\(x\)\(y\)Country\(x\)\(y\)
Benin4.859.2Mozambique5.454.63
Cameroon4.754.87Nigeria5.752.29
Congo4.961.42Senegal5.165.81
Gambia5.759.83Somalia6.554.88
Liberia4.760.25Sudan4.463.08
Malawi5.160.97Uganda5.857.25
Mauretania4.662.77Zambia5.458.75
\(n = 14 , \sum x = 72.8 , \sum y = 826 , \sum x ^ { 2 } = 392.96 , \sum y ^ { 2 } = 48924.54 , \sum x y = 4279.16\)
  1. Calculate Pearson's product-moment correlation coefficient \(r\) for the data.
  2. State what would be the effect on the value of \(r\) if the birth rate were given per hundred and not per thousand.
  3. Explain what the sign of \(r\) tells you about the relationship between life expectancy and birth rate for these countries.
  4. Test at the \(5 \%\) significance level whether there is correlation between birth rate and life expectancy at birth in African countries.
  5. A researcher wants to estimate the life expectancy at birth in Zimbabwe, where the birth rate is 3.9 per thousand. Explain whether a reliable estimate could be obtained using the regression line of \(y\) on \(x\) for the given data.