Correlation vs. Causation Correlation simply indicates that two variables tend to occur together. For instance, some studies may find that coffee drinkers have lower rates of certain diseases. However, this may not mean that coffee consumption directly leads to better health; other lifestyle factors (such as diet, exercise, or genetics) could explain this relationship. Causation, on the other hand, suggests that changes in one variable directly produce changes in another. For example, if research indicates that drinking coffee reduces the risk of a specific disease, it is crucial to establish whether coffee is the direct cause of that reduced risk. summarize