In critical thinking, which term means the result of causes?

In critical thinking, which term means the result of causes?

• A. Effect
• B. Cause
• C. Hypothesis
• D. Correlation

Answer: (A)

In thinking about how events are connected, the focus is on what happens as a consequence of other factors. The term that names that outcome is the effect—the result produced by the causes. For instance, if heavy rain is the reason a river swells, the swelling is the effect. The cause is the rain, the effect is the consequence. This helps distinguish from other ideas: a cause is the reason something happens, not the result. A hypothesis is a testable statement you might try to verify. Correlation describes a relationship where two things vary together, but it doesn’t by itself show which one causes the other.

In thinking about how events are connected, the focus is on what happens as a consequence of other factors. The term that names that outcome is the effect—the result produced by the causes. For instance, if heavy rain is the reason a river swells, the swelling is the effect. The cause is the rain, the effect is the consequence.

This helps distinguish from other ideas: a cause is the reason something happens, not the result. A hypothesis is a testable statement you might try to verify. Correlation describes a relationship where two things vary together, but it doesn’t by itself show which one causes the other.