Cause-Effect Explanation

One type of expository essay is a cause-effect explanation. On a test, you may be given a writing prompt for this type of writing. Suppose that you were given the writing prompt below:

Over one hundred years ago, people who could not pay their debts could have been forced to go to a debtors’ prison. In the United States, the federal government outlawed this practice in the mid-1800s. Imagine that people could still be sent to debtors’ prisons. How would society be different?

Studying the Prompt

Key WordsTopic: debtors’ prisonDirection: still be sent to a debtors’

prisons; society be different

Begin by carefully reading the prompt to determine the exact nature of your task. Look for key words and phrases that give your topic and the direction that you need to take with this topic.

Spend no more than five minutes studying the prompt.

Planning Your Response

When planning a cause/effect explanation, begin by deciding on your focus. Your focus can be one of the following three options:

Often, your topic will dictate the focus that you should use.

description of a causal chain

focus on effects

focus on causes

Planning Your Response

When focusing on causes, begin your essay by stating the effect. Then, devote the rest of your essay to explaining the causes. This diagram shows an example:

Effect: Many families have recently moved to Evansville.

Cause: The city has built many new

public facilities such as parks and museums.

Cause: New companies have

created numerous job opportunities.

Cause: The school received top honors

from the state.

Planning Your Response

To focus on effects, begin with the cause, and then focus the rest of the essay on the effects. Look at the diagram for an example.

Cause: A factory goes out of business.

Effect: Customer

warranties are no longer honored.

Effect: The factory

stands vacant.

Effect: Employees are forced to find

new jobs.

Planning Your Response

If you plan on describing a causal chain, you must show how a single cause brings about a chain of causes and effects. The final effect in the chain is often the basis for the thesis. Look at this diagram as an example:

Cause:

Existence of

debtors’ prisons

Effect/ Cause:

Fearful consumers

would be less likely to use

credit for purchases.

Effect/ Cause:

Credit and loan

industry would suffer.

Final Effect:

Entire economy

would suffer.

Planning Your Response

After you’ve decided upon your focus, write your thesis statement. This statement should give the focus of your essay. For instance, if you are describing a causal chain, your thesis statement should emphasize the series of causes and effects.

Thesis Statement (Causal chain):

Debtors’ prisons would cause fearful consumers to use less credit, which would harm the credit and loan industries, and the adverse effects on these industries would eventually affect the entire economy.

Planning Your Response

Be sure that you have facts, examples, and other details to support your explanation of the cause-effect relationship.

Spend about ten minutes planning your response.

For instance, to support your assertion that a crisis in the credit industry would affect other parts of the economy, you could state the fact that decreased credit card spending would cause a drop in retail sales.

Responding to the Prompt

Begin writing your draft, focusing on your introduction first. Your introduction should grab the reader’s attention and include your thesis statement.

Responding to the Prompt

Organize your ideas in a way that effectively displays your cause-effect explanation.

If you are focusing on causes or effects, you may want to organize your ideas by order of importance. If you are describing a causal chain, chronological order may be best.

Responding to the Prompt

When writing the body of your essay, include cause-effect key words and phrases to help readers understand the nature of the cause/effect relationship.

Other industries would suffer because of the failing credit industry.

caused byeffects werebecause ofconsequencesreasonsresults

ExampleCause-Effect Key Words and Phrases

Responding to the Prompt

For each cause or effect that you include in the body of your essay, be sure to include the needed support. In your essay’s conclusion, restate your thesis.

Spend about twenty minutes writing your draft.

Improving Your Response

Begin revising your essay by reading back through the prompt to see if you have addressed it properly. Also, reread your essay. Have you shown the cause-effect relationship successfully? Is your essay logically organized?

Read back through your work, proofreading it for errors in grammar, usage, and mechanics. Be sure that your edits are neat and legible.

Save five or ten minutes for improving your response.

Improving Your Response

Before turning in your final copy, read through it one more time to catch lingering errors and polish your work.

Look for ways to improve your language and ease your transitions between ideas.

The End