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Lakes, as integral social‐ecological systems, are hotspots for exploring climatic and anthropogenic impacts, with crucial pathways revealed by continuous sediment records. However, the response of multi‐proxies in large shallow lakes to typical abrupt events and sustained drivers since the Anthropocene remains unclear. Here, we explored the driver‐identification relationships between multi‐proxy peaks and natural and anthropogenic events as well as the attribution of short‐term perturbations and long‐term pressures. To this end, sediment core records, socio‐ecological data, and documented events from official records were integrated into a large shallow lake (Dongting Lake, China). Significant causal cascades and path effects (goodness‐of‐fit: 0.488; total effect: −1.10; p <.001) were observed among catchment environmental proxies, lake biogenic proxies, and mixed‐source proxies. The peak‐event identification rate (PEIR) and event‐peak driving rate were proposed, and values of 28.57%–46.43% and 50%–81.25% were obtained, respectively. The incomplete accuracy of depicting event perturbations using sediment proxies was caused by various information filters both inside and outside the lake. PEIRs for compound events were 1.41 (±0.72) and 1.09 (±0.46) times greater than those for anthropogenic‐dominated and natural‐dominated events, respectively. Furthermore, socio‐economic activity, hydrologic dynamics, land‐use changes, and agriculture exerted significant and persistent pressures, cumulatively contributing 55.3%–80.9% to alterations in sediment proxies. Relatively synergistic or antagonistic trends in temporal contributions of these forces were observed after 2000, which were primarily attributed to the "Grain for Green" project and the Three Gorges Dam. This study represents one of the few investigations to distinguish the driver–response relationship of multiple proxies in large shallow lakes under typical event perturbations and long‐term sustained pressures since the Anthropocene. The findings will help policymakers and managers address ecological perturbations triggered by climate change and human activities over long‐term periods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As an important destination for upstream materials and element accumulation, lake sediments hold a multitude of contextual information about climatic changes and anthropogenic disturbances. However, understanding the lake sedimentation state to link catchment pressures and biogenic regime shifts remains challenging. To address this, research was conducted on the lake sedimentation state, including the dynamics, catchment drivers, effects on biogenic regimes, and responses to typical historical events using nine sediment cores from Dongting Lake, China, a typical global priority ecoregion. Three transitions of lake sedimentation state were distinguished over the century (1937, 1968, and 1993), whereby hydrologic dynamics and land‐use changes in the watershed were the direct drivers with relative contributions of 16.30% and 14.56%, respectively. Lake sedimentation state and organic matter inputs not only preceded sediment biogenic elements at the shift time but also exhibited nonlinear trigger effects on biogenic element contents (R2 = 0.47, p < 0.01), which promoted an increase in sediment biogenic element burial rates. Rate of change analysis indicated that intensive human activities altered the relationship between the sedimentation state and biogenic regime shift, thus revealing the response to anthropogenic events in the catchment. Pathways quantified by the partial least squares path model established the link between watershed attributes and lake biogenic properties via the lake sedimentation state. Our findings revealed a cascading linkage among catchment eco‐surroundings, lake sedimentation states, and biogenic regime shifts. The research further provided insights into driver‐response relationships in lake‐catchment systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]