When choosing elemental damage, one should be aware that certain elements have advantages over others, but can also be at a disadvantage.The above image depicts the Cycle of Magic: Fire bests Ice, Ice defeats Shock, Shock wins against wind, and Wind punishes Fire. For example, if fighting an ice-based monster, using fire would be advantageous, while attacking with a shock-type source would be dangerous.
If there is no advantage as shown by the chart, there is no effect to the damage. However, know that each type resists itself: shock resists shock, and so on.
Note that these types do not apply to character attributes; only spells or elemental armor.