Political scientists are interested in knowing what factors affect voter turnout in elections. One such factor is the unemployment rate. Data collected in presidential election years since 1964 show a very weak negative correlation between voter turnout and the unemployment rate, with a correlation coefficient of about r = -0.1 (Figure 21). Based on this correlation, should we use the unemployment rate to predict voter turnout in the next presidential election?

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8 00 7 6 5 Unemployment (%) + m 2 - 50 55 Figure 21 60 Voter turnout (%) 65 70