Setting off from a familiar distinction in the philosophy of properties, this paper introduces a tripartite distinction between sparse causation, abundant causation and mere abundant causation (instances of the latter forming a sub-class of abundant causation). It is argued that the contrast between sparse and mere abundant causation allows us to resolve notorious philosophical issues having to do with negative causation, causation involving institutional properties and physical macro-causation in a way that is unified, intuitive and in line with scientific doctrines and practices.

中文翻译：

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稀疏的因果关系和丰富的因果关系

本文从性质哲学中熟悉的区分出发，介绍了稀疏因果、丰富因果和单纯丰富因果（后者的实例形成了丰富因果的子类）之间的三重区分。有人认为，稀疏因果与单纯丰富因果之间的对比使我们能够以统一、直观且符合科学教义和实践。