Causal Stories

Story 14

Janet is an employee in the factory. She works in the maintenance department where she monitors the stability of all machines. 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 in the factory. She works in the human resources department where she monitors the salaries of all employees. 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 Kate's responsibility to do so. On June 1st, Janet forgot to put oil into the machine. Kate also did not put oil in the machine. The machine broke down a few days later.

Question

Did the machine break down because Kate did not put oil in the machine?

Majority Answer: Yes

Answer distribution over 25 people:

P(Yes): 0.96 P(No): 0.04

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