Cause and Effect Cheat Sheet
31 Oct 2026
Quick answer
A quick revision cheat sheet on cause and effect reasoning for SSC, Banking, Railway and state exams. It covers how to tell a cause from an effect, the standard relationship options, the role of time order, independent events and a common cause, and the common traps, with a worked example to revise quickly.
Cause and Effect Cheat Sheet
Quick Revision
In a cause and effect question you are given two events and must decide how they are related — which one brought the other about, or whether they are linked some other way.
1. The Relationship Options
Statement I is the cause, II is its effect
Statement II is the cause, I is its effect
Both are independent causes
Both are effects of independent causes
Both are effects of a common cause2. The Key Test
A cause always comes BEFORE its effect in time,
and removing the cause would remove the effect.Check the time order first; an event cannot be the effect of something that happened later.
3. A Common Cause
Sometimes neither event causes the other — instead a third, unstated event causes both. Heavy rain (unstated) can cause both a flood and a traffic jam, making those two effects of a common cause.
4. Worked Example
- I. The government cut fuel prices.
- II. Fuel prices had risen sharply for months.
Event II came first and led to the government's action, so II is the cause and I is the effect.
5. Exam Quick Tips
- Fix the time order before anything else.
- Two related events may both flow from a common cause — do not force one to cause the other.
- "Independent causes" fits when each event could occur without the other.
Keep revising with the rest of the Reasoning section:
How this was made: Drafted with AI assistance; spot-checked by the editor on 31 October 2026.