ABSTRACT
This chapter discusses the historical development of Action, Intervention, Manipulation (AIM) theories, and puts forward a particular theory of this type, which will be called "an action-related theory of causality". The first to develop a detailed version of an AIM theory of causality in the 20th century were R. G. Collingwood, in a 1938 paper, and subsequent book, and Dingler in his 1938 book. The chapter discusses briefly one famous paper on causality, even though this does not present, or even mention, an action, intervention, manipulation approach. The paper in question is Bertrand Russell's 1913 'On the Notion of Cause', which was his presidential address to the Aristotelian Society in November 1912. Collingwood stresses that causality is closely related to human action, and he mentions two types of action. One kind of action is designed to produce B (productive action). The other kind of action is designed to eliminate B, or to prevent B from occurring (avoidance action).
