About Cause and Effect

"Cause and effect" is a phrase taught in English classes. It describes a way of reading and a way of looking at the world. Scientists and researchers study the concept of cause and effect and use it in their work. Learn what exactly it is and how to identify it for yourself.

Defenition

Cause and effect is a way of describing what happens and why. The cause is the reason that the effect took place. The effect is the event that took place as a result of the cause. Without the cause, the effect could not have happened. Consider this scenario: Mary knocks over a soda can. Soda spills on the floor. Mary knocking over the soda can is the cause, and the soda spilling on the floor is the effect.

Significance

Understanding cause and effect allows us to read and write more clearly. It also helps us to make sense of the world. Cause and effect is the basic idea on which all scientific experiments are based. Something happens and we want to know why, so we search for the cause. We also want to predict the effect if something were to happen in the future.

Learning

The easiest way to recognize and identify cause and effect is to look at a sentence and discern what happened and why. If you read the sentence, "Mary kicked the ball and it rolled across the floor," you can state the effect--the ball rolled across the floor--and identify the cause--Mary kicked the ball.

Linking

In writing, cause and effect are often linked together into one sentence using connecting phrases, such as "therefore," "because" and "as a result." Look for these words to identify a cause and effect sentence or use them to join your own sentences. "Mary kicked the ball, therefore it rolled across the floor."

Identification

Not all sentences include a cause and effect. "The lamp is red" is a descriptive sentence. We do not know why the lamp is red. If the sentence read, "Bill spilled some red paint and now the lamp is red," we would know how the lamp got its color. If the sentence does not answer the questions "What happened?" and "Why did this happen?" it does not describe a cause and effect.

Resources

• Cause and Effect Practice