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US Marriage Rate vs US Forest Area

US Marriage Rate and US Forest Area correlate at r = -0.93 over 32 years (1991–2022), p < 0.0001. With the time trend removed, r = -0.10. Likely spurious (shared time trend).

Verdict: Likely spurious (shared time trend). Both series mostly just trend over time. After removing that trend the correlation collapses to -0.10 — the relationship is probably coincidental, not causal.

Pearson r
-0.93
p-value
< 0.0001
Years compared (n)
32 (1991–2022)
95% confidence interval
-0.97 to -0.87
Correlation with the time trend removed
-0.10

Sources

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Correlation does not imply causation. How the verdict is worked out.