How do historians explain the causes and effects of industrialization and the new imperialism?
Topic 6.8 Causation in the Imperial Age: applying the historical reasoning skill of causation to the consequences of industrialization, including imperialism, the global economy, and migration.
A focused answer to AP World History Topic 6.8, the causation reasoning skill applied to Unit 6: explaining how industrialization caused the new imperialism, the global division of labor, and mass migration, and how to structure a causation essay weighing causes and effects.
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What this topic is asking
Topic 6.8 is a reasoning-skill topic. The College Board introduces no new content; it asks you to apply the historical reasoning skill of causation to the consequences of industrialization in Unit 6. You should be able to explain how industrialization caused the new imperialism, the global division of labor, and mass migration, weighing the relative importance of causes and tracing chains of effects.
What causation means on the AP exam
The exam tests three reasoning skills: causation, comparison, and continuity and change. Topic 6.8 anchors causation for the industrial age, much as Topic 2.1 (the Silk Roads) and Topic 4.3 (the Columbian Exchange) drew on causation earlier in the course.
Industrialization as the engine of causation
The heart of Unit 6 is one big causal claim.
Weighing causes: economics, technology, ideology, nationalism
Good causation distinguishes and ranks causes.
The new imperialism had several causes that a strong essay weighs against one another:
- Economic causes. The need for raw materials, markets, and investment outlets - arguably the deepest motive.
- Technological causes. Industrial weapons and transport that turned the power gap into conquest.
- Ideological causes. Social Darwinism, scientific racism, and the civilizing mission, which justified empire.
- Nationalist causes. Great-power competition that made colonies a marker of prestige.
The analysis point rewards explaining which of these was primary (often the economic and technological consequences of industrialization) and showing how they reinforced one another rather than acting alone.
Tracing chains of effect
Causation also means following consequences.
A strong answer traces chains of cause and effect: industrialization caused raw-material demand, which caused the conquest of colonies, which caused export economies, which caused mass migration of labor, which caused diasporas and nativist backlash. Showing these linked chains, rather than a list of separate facts, is what distinguishes top-band causation writing.
Try this
Q1. Name the single process that AP treats as the primary cause of imperialism, the global division of labor, and mass migration in Unit 6. [Recall]
- Cue. Industrialization.
Q2. Explain how industrialization caused the new imperialism, distinguishing motive from means. [Short explanation]
- Cue. Industrialization created the motive - demand for raw materials and markets - and the means - weapons, steamships, and quinine - so industrial powers both wanted colonies and had the technology to conquer them, which together drove the new imperialism.
Exam-style practice questions
Practice questions written in the style of College Board exam questions on this dot point, with worked answer explainers. The year tag is the paper they imitate, not the source.
AP 2020 (style)6 marksEvaluate the extent to which industrialization caused the new imperialism of the period c. 1750 to c. 1900.Show worked answer →
A Long Essay Question (LEQ), scored on the 6-point causation rubric.
Thesis (1): "Industrialization was the primary cause of the new imperialism, since it created the demand for raw materials and markets and the technology to conquer, though nationalist competition and racial ideology were also necessary causes."
Contextualization (1): situate the new imperialism in the industrial transformation of Europe, the United States, and Japan.
Evidence (2): industrial demand for cotton, rubber, and markets; weapons, steamships, and quinine; the Scramble for Africa; nationalist rivalry and Social Darwinism.
Analysis (2): explain HOW industrialization supplied both motive and means for empire, then add complexity by weighing economic causes against ideological and nationalist ones.
AP 2023 (style)3 marksBriefly describe ONE effect of industrialization on the world beyond Europe. Briefly explain ONE cause of the new imperialism. Briefly explain ONE reason industrialization drove mass migration.Show worked answer →
A Short Answer Question (SAQ) testing causation, 3 points.
A. Effect: industrialization drew much of the world into supplying raw materials, creating export economies dependent on the industrial cores.
B. Cause of imperialism: industrial economies needed raw materials and markets, which motivated the conquest of colonies to supply them.
C. Migration: industrialization and export economies created a global demand for labor, while steamships and railways made it possible for millions to move to where the work was.
The skill is causation: identify causes and effects and link them clearly.
Related dot points
- Topic 6.1 Rationales for Imperialism from 1750 to 1900: the ideologies, including nationalism, Social Darwinism, racism, and civilizing and religious missions, used to justify imperial expansion.
A focused answer to AP World History Topic 6.1, explaining the rationales used to justify imperialism: nationalism and great-power competition, Social Darwinism and scientific racism, the civilizing mission, and religious and economic motives.
- Topic 6.2 State Expansion from 1750 to 1900: the methods and patterns of imperial expansion, including the Scramble for Africa, the British Raj, and settler colonialism, enabled by industrial technology.
A focused answer to AP World History Topic 6.2, explaining how industrial states expanded their empires: the Scramble for Africa and the Berlin Conference, the British Raj in India, settler colonialism, and the role of industrial technology and weapons.
- Topic 6.4 Global Economic Development from 1750 to 1900: the new global economy of industrialization, including the rise of export economies, the demand for raw materials, and a new international division of labor.
A focused answer to AP World History Topic 6.4, explaining the new global economy of the industrial age: rising demand for raw materials like cotton, rubber, and palm oil, the rise of export economies, the international division of labor, and the shift from coerced to wage and indentured labor.
- Topic 6.6 Causes of Migration in an Interconnected World: the push and pull factors, both coerced and voluntary, that drove the great migrations of the industrial age, including industrial demand, transport, and labor systems.
A focused answer to AP World History Topic 6.6, explaining the causes of industrial-age migration: push factors like famine and poverty, pull factors like jobs and land, the role of steamships and railways, and the labor systems behind voluntary, indentured, and coerced migration.
- Topic 5.10 Continuity and Change in the Industrial Age: applying the historical reasoning skill of continuity and change to the economic, social, and political transformations of 1750 to 1900.
A focused answer to AP World History Topic 5.10, the continuity and change reasoning skill applied to Unit 5: what industrialization and revolution changed and what persisted in economy, society, politics, and gender, and how to structure a continuity and change essay.
Sources & how we know this
- AP World History: Modern Course and Exam Description — College Board (2020)