Does an increase in voltage cause a corresponding decrease in current?

• A. No.
• B. Yes.
• C. Sometimes.
• D. Not related.

Answer: (B)

In circuits described by Ohm’s law with constant resistance, current and voltage are directly related: I = V / R. That means if you raise the voltage while the resistance stays the same, the current increases in proportion to the voltage change. So a higher voltage does not cause a smaller current; it causes a larger current. The statement would only be true in a situation where the resistance grows in such a way that it offsets the voltage increase, which isn’t the standard behavior described by Ohm’s law. If the device isn’t a simple resistor and its resistance changes with voltage, current can behave differently, but with fixed resistance the trend is clearly upward.