Question

shopping time and spending
money spent (dollars)
time shopping (minutes)
is causation likely or unlikely between the independent and dependent variables?
causation is likely, since time shopping is correlated with the customer’s money spent to increase
causation is unlikely, since there could be a third variable causing the increase in the customer’s money spent
causation is likely, since there could be a third variable causing the increase in the customer’s money spent
causation is unlikely, since time shopping is correlated with the customer’s money spent to increase

Explanation:

Correlation does not imply causation. Just because time shopping and money spent are correlated does not mean one causes the other. There could be a third - variable (e.g., customer's initial intention to spend a certain amount, which also affects the time spent shopping) that influences both variables.

Answer:

Causation is unlikely, since there could be a third variable causing the increase in the customer's money spent.