Final answer:
A long-standing and indirect cause of an event involves significant historical factors such as societal norms, past actions, or trends that have influenced current situations, even if they have ceased or been reversed. Historians consider the importance of these elements to understand events fully. These factors often relate to broader socio-economic systems and cultural values.
Step-by-step explanation:
In understanding the long-standing and indirect cause of an event, it is crucial to consider the significant role past actions, societal norms, or prolonged trends play in shaping outcomes. This can be over intervals as lengthy as over ten years or spanning three generations, where the consequences of past decisions or conditions have contributed to the current state of affairs. For historical events, factors such as socio-political climates, economic systems, and cultural beliefs often act as deep-rooted catalysts that influence and sometimes dictate the trajectory of subsequent developments.
Historians assess the importance of these factors, and though some may no longer be active (ceasing to exist or having been reversed), their ramifications can still be observed. Insight into the reasons behind an individual's current circumstances, like reading a history textbook, reflects a combination of immediate and embedded reasons, such as personal aspirations for success and societal expectations for education. Similarly, in examining legal or clinical case studies, the underlying causes of symptoms or actions must be considered to form a comprehensive understanding.