Logical Reasoning: Cause and Effect

Concept Explanation

Cause-and-effect questions give two statements I and II that describe events or situations. You decide whether one caused the other, both share a common cause, or they are unrelated.

Option meanings

• I → II: Statement I happened first (or is the reason) and led to II.
• II → I: Statement II is the cause and I is its effect.
• Common cause: Both follow from the same underlying event (neither is the direct cause of the other).
• Unrelated: No reasonable causal link.

How to judge

• Check time order and what normally produces what in real situations.
• Do not assume correlation without a plausible mechanism.
• Prefer the simplest direct cause when one event clearly follows from the other.

How to solve fast

1. Ask: “Would II plausibly happen because of I?” then reverse the question.
2. If both look like results of a third factor, pick common cause.
3. If neither direction makes sense, pick unrelated.