Stats Association and Causation

Question 1

Three types of association

Answer 1

Spurious - an association that has arisen by chance and is not real
Indirect - the association is due to the presence of another factor (a confounding variable)
Direct - a true association not linked by a third (confounding) variable

Question 2

Bradford Hill Causal Criteria (

Answer 2

Strength - The stronger the association the more likely it is to be truly causal.
Temporality - Does the exposure precede the outcome?
Specificity - Is the suspected cause associated with a specific outcome/ disease?
Coherence - Does the association fit with other biological knowledge?
Consistency - Is the same association found in many studie