In common usage Causality is also the relationship between a set of factors (causes) and a phenomenon (the effect). Anything that affects an effect is a factor of that effect. A direct factor is a factor that affects an effect directly, that is, without any intervening factors. (Intervening factors are sometimes called "intermediate factors.") The connection between a cause(s) and effect in this way can also be referred to as a causal nexus.

Though the causes and effects are typically related to changes or events, candidates include objects, processes, properties, variables, facts, and states of affairs; characterizing the causal relationship can be the subject of much debate.

The philosophical treatment of causality extends over millennia. In the Western philosophical tradition, discussion stretches back at least to Aristotle, and the topic remains a staple in contemporary philosophy.

Noun

occasion f. (plural occasions)

1. occasion, opportunity
2. cause
3. bargain, good deal

• à l'occasion
• d'occasion
• par occasion
• grandes occasions
• sauter sur l'occasion
• avoir l'occasion de

• Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy: Counterfactual Theories of Causation
  plato.stanford.edu
  Discussion of analysis of causal statements in terms of counterfactual conditionals; by Peter Menzies.
• Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy: The Metaphysics of Causation
  plato.stanford.edu
  Survey of theories of causal relata; by Jonathan Schaffer.
• Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy: Causal Processes
  plato.stanford.edu
  Bertrand Russell, Wesley Salmon, and conserved quantities. By Phil Dowe.