Principlev1PR-416
For causal relationships, establish direction through…
For causal relationships, establish direction through intervention or counterfactual reasoning rather than correlation alone, because observational data cannot distinguish causation from association.
Why This Is a Principle
This principle derives from Automatic Narrative Generation Precedes Conscious Evaluation (brains generate causal narratives automatically) and Belief Perseverance Against Contradictory Evidence (cognitive systems maintain beliefs despite evidence). It prescribes a specific method (intervention/counterfactuals) for establishing causal direction, grounded in the axioms about unreliable intuitive causation. The principle is actionable and applies across all causal inference contexts.