CAUSES

• Law of Cause & Effect: (Socrates)

• The Law of Cause & Effect states that

absolutely everything happens for a reason.
All actions have consequences and produce
specific results, as do all inactions.
Newton's Third Law of Motion:

• For every action there is an equal and

opposite reaction.
• Scholars unanimous:

– One cannot solve a problem without first finding

its cause.

• Efforts to define a problem rests in conceptions of

cause.
• Causes are objective and can, in principle, be proved by
scientific analysis.
• Causal reasoning looks for causes not only to
understand how the world works but to assign
responsibility for problems.

• Natural Causal Framework

• Social Causal Framework
 Types of Complex Causal Stories
• Social Systems
– Social systems necessary to solve modern problems are
inherently complex.
• Institutional systems
– Social problems caused by a web of large organizations with
built-in incentive structure and pattern of behavior. (USAID
case)
• Historical cause
– Early policy decisions establish institutions and procedures
that make it harder for subsequent policy makers to make
changes.