Writing about Causes and Effects

When writing about causes and effects…

Thursday, February 19, 2009

We lead cause-effect lives. One person shops for a new compact car (effect) because he can't afford the gas-guzzler he now owns (cause). Another person finally fits into her new swimsuit (effect) because she's been careful about her diet (cause). Someone else has to deal with the neighbor's barking dog (cause), which has him considering downsizing to a condo (effect).

The workplace is no different. Almost every part of your business life evolves around causes and effects. It is, essentially, what makes things go. Sales are down; you explore the causes and effects and act accordingly. Corporate may add two trainees to your branch; you consider how this might affect daily operations, and so on.

In the same vein, a good deal of business writing involves the analysis of causes and effects, or stated in another way, the analysis of the logical relationships between events and results. Proposals, sales reports, and incident reports, among other forms of writing, are all grounded in causes and effects. Writing of this type often follows one of these patterns:

Cause-Focused
With this pattern, you focus more attention on the causes of a particular situation than on its effect(s).

The following incident report (partial) focuses on the cause of a recent plant accident and then expands to address the potential causes of additional accidents:

During a routine inspection, Gwen Vos found undercoater Bob Irving struggling to breathe while underneath a truck (effect). While spraying sealant, he accidentally rolled his dolly over his air hose, cutting off his air supply (cause). Vos immediately pulled Irving out, untangled him, and took these immediate steps.…

Presently, undercoaters maneuver under trucks and spray liquid- rubber sealant on the undercarriage while lying on their backs. Maintainer (the company) provides oxygen suits to protect the skin and supply oxygen. This accident shows that our safeguards are inadequate:

• Ten-year-old oxygen-suit meters and air tubes frequently malfunction (potential cause).
• Masks and hoses are beginning to crack (potential cause).
• Lying on a dolly under a truck causes undercoaters to become tangled in cords and hoses (potential cause).
• Spraying from a prone position allows liquid to drip on the sprayers' masks (potential cause).

Effect-Focused
With this pattern, you focus more attention on the effects than on the cause(s) of a situation.

The following technical report (partial) focuses on the effects of water quality on ultraviolet disinfection:

The quality of water treated with UV radiation (cause) can have a significant effect on an untraviolet unit's performance. First, suspended solids can shield bacteria from ultraviolet light and should be removed by pre-filtration (effect). Second, chemicals such as iron, manganese, and sulfides can lead to coating of the lamp/sleeve (effect). This coating, which blocks UV light, can be addressed with a UV monitor plus regular cleaning. Optical clarity below 254 nm interferes with how deeply UV light penetrates (effect).…

Cause and Effects Together
With this pattern, you discuss the causes and effects together. You might use this pattern if there were multiple causes of a situation, each one with a unique effect.

In the following application letter (partial), the applicant discusses various causes and effects in her earlier years that led to her interest in serving others:

I grew up in a small town called Bunde, Minnesota, a cohesive community of people who looked after one another. When a farmer named Leo Folken severly injured his arm in a corn-picking accident (cause), the community finished his harvest and cared for his livestock (effect). When my neighbor Jean O'Malley returned to Bunde after a difficult marriage (cause), the community adopted her and her infant son (effect). On countless other occasions, this community showed similar compassion for those in need (cause), which instilled in me the importance of serving others (effect).…

Remember: These are general patterns to consider rather than rigid forms to follow. More than anything else, they provide you with initial templates for your business writing when causes and effects are involved (which is more often than you think). How you eventually shape your writing, of course, will depend on your thinking about the subject, and the needs and nature of your reader.

—Dave Kemper