ITPEC FE Subject A April 2025 Question 58
The figure below shows part of a cause and effect diagram (also known as a fishbone diagram). Which of the following is the relationship between A and B?
Explanation
B is a cause of A — in a fishbone diagram each branch points toward the effect it contributes to.
A cause and effect (fishbone, Ishikawa) diagram puts the effect or problem at the head. Large bones for the main factors join the backbone, and smaller bones for more detailed causes join the larger ones. The arrows run from cause to effect, so a bone that joins the arrow leading to A is one of the causes of A.
Answer (b)
Why not others:
- •(a) — attributes of an item are not shown by bones; every bone means “contributes to”
- •(c) — breaking an objective into means is done in a tree diagram (systematic diagram), not in a fishbone
- •(d) — purpose points the other way: a means-to-purpose chain would have A serving B, while here B feeds into A
Key rule: A fishbone diagram arranges causes, from main to detailed, around one effect; arrows always run from cause toward effect.
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