Utilitarianism
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| - | :This article discusses utilitarian ethical theory. For a discussion of [[John Stuart Mill]]'s essay ''Utilitarianism'' (1861), see [[Utilitarianism (book)]]. | ||
| - | '''Utilitarianism''' is the [[ethics|ethical]] doctrine that the [[morality|moral]] worth of an action is solely determined by its contribution to overall [[utility]]. It is thus a form of [[consequentialism]], meaning that the moral worth of an [[action (philosophy)|action]] is determined by its outcome—the ends justify the means. Utility — the good to be maximized — has been defined by various thinkers as [[happiness]] or [[pleasure]] (versus [[suffering|suffering or pain]]), though [[preference utilitarianism|preference utilitarians]] like [[Peter Singer]] define it as the satisfaction of preferences. In simpler terms, it's for the greatest good for the greatest number of people. And interestingly, perhaps like most thoughtful ethical theories, utilitarianism primarily evaluates proposed actions and courses of action, rather than directly evaluating whether a person is [[virtue|virtuous]] or has good character. | + | '''Utilitarianism''' is a family of [[consequentialism|consequentialist]] ethical theories that promotes actions that maximize happiness and well-being for the affected individuals. Although different varieties of utilitarianism admit different characterizations, the basic idea behind all of them is to in some sense maximize [[utility]], which is often defined in terms of [[well-being]] or related concepts. For instance, [[Jeremy Bentham]], the founder of utilitarianism, described utility as "that property in any object, whereby it tends to produce benefit, advantage, pleasure, good, or happiness...[or] to prevent the happening of mischief, pain, evil, or unhappiness to the party whose interest is considered." Utilitarianism is a version of consequentialism, which states that the consequences of any action are the only standard of right and wrong. Unlike other forms of consequentialism, such as [[Ethical egoism|egoism]] and [[Altruism (ethics)|altruism]], utilitarianism considers the interests of all humans [[Equal consideration of interests|equally]]. |
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| + | Proponents of utilitarianism have disagreed on a number of points, such as whether actions should be chosen based on their likely results ([[act utilitarianism]]) or whether [[Agency (philosophy)|agents]] should conform to rules that maximize utility ([[rule utilitarianism]]). There is also disagreement as to whether total ([[Average and total utilitarianism|total utilitarianism]]), average ([[Average and total utilitarianism#Average utilitarianism|average utilitarianism]]) or minimum utility should be maximized. | ||
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| + | Though the seeds of the theory can be found in the hedonists [[Aristippus]] and [[Epicurus]], who viewed happiness as the only good, the tradition of utilitarianism properly began with Bentham, and has included [[John Stuart Mill]], [[Henry Sidgwick]], [[R. M. Hare]], [[David Braybrooke]], and [[Peter Singer]]. It has been applied to social welfare economics, the crisis of global poverty, the [[ethics of eating meat|ethics of raising animals for food]] and the importance of avoiding [[Global catastrophic risk|existential risks]] to humanity. | ||
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| == See also == | == See also == | ||
| - | * [[Prioritarianism]] | ||
| - | * [[Appeal to consequences]] | ||
| * [[Altruism (ethical doctrine)]] | * [[Altruism (ethical doctrine)]] | ||
| - | * [[Classical liberalism]] | + | * [[Applied ethics]] |
| - | * [[Eudaimonism]] | + | * [[Mouvement Anti-Utilitariste dans les Sciences Sociales|Anti-Utilitarianism]] |
| - | * [[Greedy reductionism]] | + | * [[Appeal to consequences]] |
| - | * [[Gross National Happiness]] | + | * [[Bounded rationality]] |
| - | * [[Hedonism]] | + | |
| - | * [[List of utilitarians]] | + | |
| - | * [[Social Choice and Individual Values]] | + | |
| - | * [[Rule according to higher law]] | + | |
| - | * [[Utilitarian bioethics]] | + | |
| - | * [[Utility monster]] | + | |
| * [[Charity International]] | * [[Charity International]] | ||
| - | * [[Utility theory]] | + | * [[Classical liberalism]] |
| + | * [[Cost–benefit analysis]] | ||
| + | * [[Decision analysis]] | ||
| * [[Decision theory]] | * [[Decision theory]] | ||
| - | * [[Decision Analysis]] | + | * [[Effective altruism]] |
| + | * [[Gross national happiness]] | ||
| + | * [[List of utilitarians]] | ||
| + | * [[Pleasure principle (psychology)]] | ||
| + | * [[Prioritarianism]] | ||
| * [[Probabilistic reasoning]] | * [[Probabilistic reasoning]] | ||
| + | * [[Relative utilitarianism]] | ||
| + | * [[State consequentialism]] | ||
| * [[Uncertainty]] | * [[Uncertainty]] | ||
| - | * [[Bounded Rationality]] | + | * [[Utility monster]] |
| - | * [[Relative Utilitarianism]] | + | * [[Utilitarian bioethics]] |
| + | * [[Utilitarian cake-cutting]] | ||
| {{GFDL}} | {{GFDL}} | ||
Revision as of 17:20, 28 January 2020
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Utilitarianism is a family of consequentialist ethical theories that promotes actions that maximize happiness and well-being for the affected individuals. Although different varieties of utilitarianism admit different characterizations, the basic idea behind all of them is to in some sense maximize utility, which is often defined in terms of well-being or related concepts. For instance, Jeremy Bentham, the founder of utilitarianism, described utility as "that property in any object, whereby it tends to produce benefit, advantage, pleasure, good, or happiness...[or] to prevent the happening of mischief, pain, evil, or unhappiness to the party whose interest is considered." Utilitarianism is a version of consequentialism, which states that the consequences of any action are the only standard of right and wrong. Unlike other forms of consequentialism, such as egoism and altruism, utilitarianism considers the interests of all humans equally.
Proponents of utilitarianism have disagreed on a number of points, such as whether actions should be chosen based on their likely results (act utilitarianism) or whether agents should conform to rules that maximize utility (rule utilitarianism). There is also disagreement as to whether total (total utilitarianism), average (average utilitarianism) or minimum utility should be maximized.
Though the seeds of the theory can be found in the hedonists Aristippus and Epicurus, who viewed happiness as the only good, the tradition of utilitarianism properly began with Bentham, and has included John Stuart Mill, Henry Sidgwick, R. M. Hare, David Braybrooke, and Peter Singer. It has been applied to social welfare economics, the crisis of global poverty, the ethics of raising animals for food and the importance of avoiding existential risks to humanity.
See also
- Altruism (ethical doctrine)
- Applied ethics
- Anti-Utilitarianism
- Appeal to consequences
- Bounded rationality
- Charity International
- Classical liberalism
- Cost–benefit analysis
- Decision analysis
- Decision theory
- Effective altruism
- Gross national happiness
- List of utilitarians
- Pleasure principle (psychology)
- Prioritarianism
- Probabilistic reasoning
- Relative utilitarianism
- State consequentialism
- Uncertainty
- Utility monster
- Utilitarian bioethics
- Utilitarian cake-cutting
