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The stochastic system approach to causality with a view toward lifecourse epidemiology

The approach of causality based on physical laws and systems is revisited. The issue of "levels", the relevance to epidemiology and the definition of effects are particularly developed. Moreover it is argued that this approach that we call the stochastic system approach is particularly well fitted to study lifecourse epidemiology. A hierarchy of factors is described that could be modeled using a suitable multivariate stochastic process. To illustrate this approach, a conceptual model for coronary heart disease mixing continuous and discrete state-space processes is proposed.