If phenomena share only one event, event is a cause or effect {method of agreement} {agreement method}. If people know all possible causes, probable cause is the cause that always precedes effect. However, agreement method must test all cases.
If one event is in phenomenon but is not in not-phenomenon, then event is phenomenon cause, or is necessary to cause or effect {method of difference} {difference method}. If people know all possible causes, probable cause is cause whose removal causes not-phenomenon. However, because physical world is complex, one difference is hard to establish.
Agreement and difference methods can combine {joint method of agreement and difference} {agreement and difference method}. However, the joint method does not account for probabilities or strengths. Things can have more than one cause or have not yet known causes.
If first phenomenon varies in one way, and second phenomenon varies in the same or opposite way, first phenomenon is cause or effect, or relates to cause, of second phenomenon {concomitant variation method} {method of concomitant variation}. However, unobserved causes and effects are possible.
Removing or accounting for phenomena parts caused by known antecedent circumstances makes remaining phenomena caused by remaining circumstances {method of residues} {residues method} {subduction, causation}. However, known laws or experiments must confirm residues. Finding causes is hard, because physical world is complex.
Events correlated in space and time have shared causes that happen before events {common cause principle} {principle of the common cause}.
6-Philosophy-Epistemology-Causation
Outline of Knowledge Database Home Page
Description of Outline of Knowledge Database
Date Modified: 2022.0225