An urban planner examines police-report data for many cities and towns and discovers that cities with professional football teams tend to have higher numbers of reported small crimes, such as burglary. Which statement best explains the effect of confounding in this relationship?
Answer
A
Cities with football teams tend to be large, which means they have more reported small crimes.
B
The football teams are a direct cause of increased small crimes.
C
In cities without football teams, the small crimes often go unreported.
D
Cities without football teams most likely have lower rates of reported small crimes.
Explanation
A confounding variable is a factor associated with both the suspected cause and the outcome. City size is a likely confounder: larger cities are more likely to have professional football teams and also tend to have more reported crimes because they have more people. So the relationship does not show that football teams cause more crime; choice C best explains it.
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