Once the assumptions have been met, correlation can be used to explore relationships between variables and draw meaningful conclusions from the results. For example, a researcher may be interested in exploring the relationship between a student's age and their GPA. The researcher could calculate the correlation coefficient, which would indicate the strength of the relationship between the two variables. If the correlation coefficient is greater than zero, this would indicate a positive relationship between the variables; if it is less than zero, it would indicate a negative relationship. This result could then be used to support the hypothesis that older students tend to have higher GPAs