Logic 101 Practice Test: Inductive Logic - Causality and Mill’s Methods — Flashcards

Causality is the relationship between a cause and its effect. It describes how one event, process, state, or object contributes to the production of another. The cause is partly responsible for the effect, and the effect is partly dependent on the cause. 

For example, if event A happens and then event B happens, then A is the cause of B, and B is the effect of A. 

Mill's methods are five methods of induction that analyze the differences and similarities between two or more groups of data to establish a causal relationship. The political philosopher John Stuart Mill described these methods in his 1843 book A System of Logic. 

Mill's methods are also known as the comparative method, and are used to determine the causes of political phenomena. The comparative method, also known as the joint method of agreement and difference, is often used in research, data collection, and analysis during case studies. 
Mill's methods include: method of agreement, method of concomitant variation, and method of difference. 
Mill's methods are methods of inductive reasoning, which attempts to present possible explanations and arguments. In contrast, deductive reasoning always attempts to present conclusions that are definitely true.