Identifying Causal Relationships

[snuggs]

PT 23, Section 3, 9-10
The stimulus concludes "Therefore, if people would walk whenever it is feasible for them to do so, then pollution will be greatly reduced."
My question is whether this is a causal or conditional statement. Can a statement be causal when referring to something that has not yet happened?

[Nikki Siclunov]

Technically, it's a conditional statement due to the presence of the sufficient condition indicator "if." That said, there is also an implicit causation at stake: walking instead of driving will lead to a decrease in pollution. It is not that uncommon for a statement to contain both conditional and causal elements.

And yes, a statement can be causal even if it's in the future tense. What matters is not whether the action has occurred, is occurring, or will occur; rather, it is whether the action results from (or leads to) some other action, event, or circumstance.

Hope this helps... let me know if it does!

[snuggs]

Yes it does, thanks!

[nelsonnotts]

That is a great explanation you have given here about the causal and conditional statements. It is quite interesting.