Cause and Effect Paragraph

Sometimes, assigned topics on the written portion of the TOEFL ask you to explain
the reasons or causes of something. Other topics will ask you to discuss the results or
effects of some cause. Here is an example of a writing topic asking for causes of a
particular phenomenon (Note: this is not an actual TOEFL topic, but it is similar to
one that may appear on a specific adminstration of the TOEFL):
In recent decades, cities have grown so large that now
about 50% of the Earth's population lives in urban areas.
Explain the causes of this phenomenon.
Be sure to give specific details and reasons in your
explanation.

Cause/effect paragraphs generally follow basic paragraph format. That is, they begin
with a topic sentence and this sentence is followed by specific supporting details.
For example, if the topic sentence introduces an effect, the supporting sentences all
describe causes. Here is an example:

In recent decades, cities have grown so large that now about

50% of the Earth's population lives in urban areas. There are
several reasons for this occurrence. First, the increasing
industrialization of the nineteenth century resulted in the
creation of many factory jobs, which tended to be located in
cities. These jobs, with their promise of a better material life,
attracted many people from rural areas. Second, there were
many schools established to educate the children of the new
factory laborers. The promise of a better education persuaded
many families to leave farming communities and move to the
cities. Finally, as the cities grew, people established places of
leisure, entertainment, and culture, such as sports stadiums,
theaters, and museums. For many people, these facilities made
city life appear more interesting than life on the farm, and
therefore drew them away from rural communities.
Notice how each supporting sentence is a cause that explains the effect mentioned in

the topic sentence. In the chart below are the main ideas of the above paragraph, to
help you understand the relationships better:

EFFECT
(Topic Sentence)
Cities have grown very large.
[There are several reasons
for this.]

CAUSES
(Supporting Sentences)
Factory jobs attracted people.

Better schools attracted families to

(Cities have grown very large.) move
to the city.
Places of leisure, entertainment, and
culture
(Cities have grown very large.)
made city life appear more
interesting.

Notice also how the topic sentence is followed by the "focusing" or "prediction"
sentence, There are several reasons for this. Such sentences help the reader anticipate
the organization of the paragraph or essay.
Cause and Effect Conjunctions
Here are some common conjunctions that can be used to express cause and effect:
since
because
consequently

as a result
therefore
for this reason

because of + noun phrase

due to + noun phrase
so

There are two things you must be careful of when using these conjunctions. First, you
must order the cause and the effect corerctly. For example, in the sentence

Sally closed the window because the weather outside was cold.

the CAUSE is the fact that the room was cold, and the EFFECT is Sally's closing the
window. The conjunction because is placed in the correct position here, which is right
before the cause. Similarly, in the sentence

Because the weather outside was cold, Sally closed the window.
the conjunction because is correctly placed before the part of the sentence that
expresses the cause, even though the subordinate clause because the room was cold is
now at the beginning of the sentence. (Note that the first letter of the conjunction is
now capitalized.) However, in this sentence:

??The weather outside was cold because Sally closed the window.
even though it is grammatical, it does not make sense because a person's opening or
closing a window does not influence the weather.
Second, you should be careful when using commas. Conjunctions such as therefore,
consequently, as a result, and for this reason are usually followed by a comma, as in
these examples:

The weather was cold; therefore, Sally closed the window.

The weather was cold. Therefore, Sally put on her coat.
The weather was cold. Consequently, Sally put on her scarf.
A blizzard hit the town. As a result, the schools were closed.

The adverbial clause conjunctions since and because are exceptions. These are

attached directly at the beginning of CAUSE-sentence without a comma, as in the

example above, Because the weather outside was cold, Sally closed the window. The
comma here is placed at the end of the subordinate clause.
The coordinating conjunction so is also different from the ones above. This
conjunction has a comma before it, as in this sentence:

The weather was warm, so Jim turned on the air conditioner.

However, in formal academic writing, so may not be used at the beginning of a
sentence (although you will often see it in informal writing):

The weather was warm. So Jim turned on the air conditioner.

(too informal -- avoid this usage)