An effect in Geography is a change in demand, supply or conditions that follows a change in numbers. A good answer describes that change and never attaches a trait to a group of people.
This lesson belongs to population growth, structure and migration. For more on the habit, see reading a population graph without stereotyping people.
How do you keep an effect on the evidence?
Use four parts in order: the change, the mechanism, the pressure and the condition. The change is a number from the data. The mechanism says what it alters, the pressure names the service or resource affected, and the condition starts with “if” or “where”.
Every part is about numbers and systems. None of them is about what a group is like.
Worked example: an inflow of young workers
Town Mewah’s share of people aged 20 to 34 rises from 22% to 30% after a new industrial area opens.
- Change: the share of young working-age adults rises by 8 percentage points.
- Mechanism: more households look for rented rooms and flats near work.
- Pressure: rents for small units may rise and buses on the main road may fill at peak hours.
- Condition: this happens where the supply of housing and transport does not grow as fast as demand.
Put together: “A rise in young workers may raise demand for rented housing and peak-hour buses, if supply does not grow at the same pace.”
The mistake that costs marks
The common slip is to write what the group is like. Such sentences are also untestable, since no data supports them.
| Blame-style sentence | Evidence-based rewrite |
|---|---|
| Newcomers cause problems in the town. | A rise in new residents may increase demand for housing and school places. |
| Old people are a burden. | A larger share of people aged 65 and over raises demand for clinics and accessible transport. |
| Young people are lazy, so the town is poor. | A high share of people under 15 raises demand for schools, while a smaller working-age share may mean fewer people available for work. |
Check yourself
Rewrite this sentence for an SPM answer: “Foreign workers crowd the city and cause trouble.” Use the four parts. Assume the data shows 40 000 more working-age people in five years.
Answer
One model: “A rise of 40 000 working-age people in five years may increase demand for rented housing and public transport, which can lead to crowded buses and higher rents if supply does not keep pace.”
The change is a number, the mechanism is housing and transport demand, the pressure is named and the condition begins with “if”. No trait or blame is attached to people.
What to study next
Test the method on mixed questions in the growth and migration practice set. Return to comparing age structures fairly if the numbers feel shaky.
If you want a teacher to read your effects paragraphs, see online one-to-one Geography tuition.