How to write a cause-and-effect essay

What do you need to establish?

The beginning of a cause-and-effect essay explores an issue. This beginning contrasts with the effect of another subject, while the argument related to their differences comprise the thesis statement of the essay. What is the inciting incident of this essay? It can be as simple as a statistic:

• Over 4 billion people use social media platforms.
• Cats kill 2.4 billion birds per year.

Or an event:

• In 1915, German submarines sunk the RMS Lusitania.
• At a young age, Bruce Wayne saw his parents die in front of him.

From here, you create an argument that leads to an effect. This is a link that acts as a hook to entice your reader to see what your evidence is, and how you form this argument:

• The proliferation of social media platforms has led to a distrust of democracy.
• Outdoor cats can be considered an invasive species.
• The sinking of the Lusitania can be directly linked to the dissatisfaction with the German people during the Weimar Republic.
• The trauma of this tragedy is what led Bruce Wayne to become Batman.

These example effects are tangentially related to the cause. It is the job of the cause-and-effect essay writer to link the two.

Write like a pro with Microsoft Editor

Improve your spelling and grammar anywhere you write.

Learn more

How does a cause-and-effect essay help with thinking?

An impactful cause-and-effect essay is argumentative. It trains the writer to exercise skills related to persuasive writing and logical thinking, while helping them to focus on the main causes of an issue and eliminate irrelevant details.

Make the argument between the cause and effect

You will need two major parts to link the cause and the effect:

• Evidence: these are statistics, quotations from experts, and facts and figures that reinforce your cause and lead into your effect.
• Support: you can claim the thesis statement you are making with support from the evidence you’ve found, especially if you can make the logical leap.

Separate the different pieces of evidence and support into distinct and specific paragraphs, so you can come at your thesis statement from multiple angles and thereby strengthen it. Remember your core.

Sum everything up in a compelling conclusion

Your last paragraph will sum up your previous paragraphs of individual arguments that you have made, and this is an opportunity to reinforce your critical thinking skills. Sum up your main points concisely when you restate your thesis by linking the cause to the effect here.

It may take a few drafts for you to hone your thesis. When you revise and reread your essay, you need to satisfy the following conditions:

• The proliferation of social media platforms has led to a distrust of democracy.
• Is your point of view clearly understandable?
• Do your logical connect-the-dots make sense to the layman?
• Do your evidence and support paragraphs enhance your thesis?

No matter what your essay’s purpose is—an opinion piece for a publication, a thesis for an academic class, or a pop culture-oriented take—your writing can always benefit from additional tips and advice. Check out Microsoft 365 for more ways to add nuance to your work, such as understanding parallelism, or how to brainstorm ideas for your next writing assignment.