Analysis of parameter change propagation is essential to ensure the consistency of the product’s integrated content as well as to capture the contextual impacts of a change proposal in variant product design. In this regard, a correlation-based approach is presented in this paper. The propagation of parameter change from one component to another in a product as well as from one key structure to another inside a component are studied. Firstly, a data fl ow model for change propagation as well as the basic units in parameter change propagation is proposed to illustrate the hierarchy and logical correlations between parameters. Then, change propagation network from the perspective of assembly is constructed by introducing “and” operation into the process. Change propagation coefficient is used to describe the change cost, based on which the optimal propagation path between components is selected. Thirdly, matrices are used to describe the correlation between parameters in different components. By introducing inner product into those matrices, change propagation path between parameters in different components can be obtained. Fourthly, the changed components are taken as the studied objects. Parametric correlation graph as well as quantitative expressing method is used to illustrate the parameter linkage inside the components. A searching method for parameter change propagation path inside components based on component modeling process is developed. Finally, the effectiveness of this method is verified by an example of an injection molding machine. The result confirms that our method can provide accurate estimation for the transfer process of the initial parametric change from macro-parameter changes in product to micro-parameter changes in components.