This Article Full Text (PDF) References Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Services Email this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Alert me to new issues of the journal Add to Saved Citations Download to citation manager Request Permissions Request Reprints Add to My Marked Citations Citing Articles Citing Articles via Google Scholar Citing Articles via Scopus Google Scholar Articles by Karhausen, L. R. Search for Related Content PubMed Articles by Karhausen, L. R. Social Bookmarking                         What's this?

The Logic of Causation in Epidemiology

27 Quai Bourbon, Paris 75004, France: Correspondence address: L.R. Karhausen 27 Quai Bourbon Paris 75004 France

The paper attempts to model causality with logical conditionals by way of conditional probability. This provides a broad conceptualisation of causality according to which we merely observe tendencies toward sufficiency or tendencies toward necessity. Cohort studies evaluate the first tendencies, and case-control studies the latter. This conceptual approach also clarifies the logic of what unifies the two methods. Ways to measure causal tendencies are proposed. Some of the consequences of this conceptual analysis are discussed and among them, the growing role of chance instead of determinism in science and, although rarely acknowledged yet, in epidemiology.

Key Words: philosophy • causal inference • logic • epidemiologic methods

Scandinavian Journal of Public Health, Vol. 24, No. 1, 8-13 (1996)
DOI: 10.1177/140349489602400103


CiteULike    Complore    Connotea    Del.icio.us    Digg    Reddit    Technorati    Twitter    What's this?