Nobody knows what causes identical (monozygotic) twins. All pregnant women have approximately the same chance of having identical twins – about 1 in 350-400. Identical twins do not run in families.
However, there are some factors that make having non-identical twins more likely:
non-identical twins are more common in some ethnic groups, with the highest rate among Nigerians and the lowest among Japanese
older mothers are more likely to have non-identical twins because they are more likely to release more than one egg during ovulation
non-identical twins run on the mother's side of the family, probably because of an inherited tendency to release more than one egg