Causal Stories

Story 101

Janet is an employee in a factory. Since she works in the maintenance department, she knows how to grease and oil all of the machines in the factory. It is her responsibility to put oil into the machines. Kate is also an employee at the factory. While she works in the human resources department, she knows how to grease and oil all of the machines in the factory. If Janet does not put oil in the machines, it is not Kate's responsibility to do so. One day, Janet forgets to put oil in an important machine. Kate did not notice that Janet did not put oil in the machine, and Kate also did not put oil in the machine. The machine broke down a few days later.

Question

Did Janet not putting oil in the machine cause it to break down?

Majority Answer: Yes

Answer distribution over 25 people:

P(Yes): 1.00 P(No): 0.00

Is Ambiguous: False

Factor

These are the factors and their attributes present in this story.

Action Omission: Omission

Event Normality: Abnormal

Norm Type: Prescriptive Norm