A negative correlation means that two variables are inversely related. This means that as one variable increases the other decreases. When a negative correlation is plotted, it forms a downward slanting line.
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positive correlation-negative correlation and no correlation
In a negative correlation as one factor is decreased, the other factor is increased.
The correlation can be anything between +1 (strong positive correlation), passing through zero (no correlation), to -1 (strong negative correlation).
The product-moment correlation coefficient or PMCC should have a value between -1 and 1. A positive value shows a positive linear correlation, and a negative value shows a negative linear correlation. At zero, there is no linear correlation, and the correlation becomes stronger as the value moves further from 0.
Those are both perfectly valid terms, which you would use according to context. You might say, for example, that obesity has a negative correlation to longevity. And in an aqueous solution there is an inverse correlation between hydrogen ions and hydroxide ions.