What Is The Purpose Of A Cause And Effect Essay?

Cause and effect essays inform the readers of the causes (why things happen) and the effects (the results) of an event or phenomenon. This type of paper is often used in academic writing to organize and discuss ideas.

The purpose of this type of essays is to analyze how different events and facts are related in terms of their origins and results. Quite often, the causes and effects of a certain phenomenon are clear, but sometimes it is not easy to determine the relationship between them. In addition, more than one factor may be responsible for a particular consequence. Since this is quite complicated matter, discussions about reasons and results often lead to arguments and debates. The purpose of your paper is to answer “why”, and “how” a particular phenomenon occurs, and what follows it.

When writing an essay, use the complex nature of the phenomenon to your advantage. It is not always possible to determine what the exact cause of an event is. Likewise, you cannot always name an exact result of an occurrence. Therefore, when developing your thesis, you may claim one out of a few possible causes and settle on the primary effect.

The structure of the essay results from its purpose. First of all, the topic is introduced. This leads to the development of the thesis. In the thesis statement, claim what, in your opinion, the main causes and the main effects are. Writing this type of academic paper requires you to fully make use of evidence, e.g. statistics, testimonies, scholarly studies, etc. Here are some simple rules to follow when writing a cause and effect essay:

Pick a phenomenon that is interesting to investigate in terms of its causes and effects. Present your topic in an engaging way. The thesis statement should present the cause and the effect.
Present your main arguments in the body of your paper using a range of support evidence. Keep in mind the purpose of your writing. Take advantage of statistics and facts, provide various examples, or support your claims with anecdotes.
Do not resort to guessing and empty speculations, which can happen if you have hard time finding links between the things introduced.
Use the phrases of causation in your writing (e.g. “as a result”, “consequently”, “thus”, “because”, “due to”, “therefore”, “since”, etc.). This will help the reader to follow your ideas.
End your paper with a conclusion. In the conclusion reinforce your thesis statement and summarize your ideas.