Suppose the correlation r between two variables x and y is 0

Suppose the correlation, r, between two variables x and y is -0.44. What percentage of the variability in y cannot be explained by x?

19%

44%

81%

88%

12%

Solution

R squared= r^2= (-0.44)^2 = 0.1936

So the percentage of the variability in y cannot be explained by x is

1-0.1936 = 0.8064 (i.e. 80.64%)

Answer: C 81%