Utilitarianism

1. Utilitarianism

2. In this lecture… • Evaluating actions • The principle of utility • Strengths • Criticisms • Rule utilitarianism

3. Evaluating actions • A theory can be defined as a framework of principles and related concepts that can be applied to analyze situations, explain phenomena or deal with problems. • In the study of ethics, we often make use of moral theories to evaluate actions, decisions and practices.

4. Evaluating actions • When we make moral judgments or decisions, we evaluate actions to determine whether they are right or wrong. • Moral theories provide justifications for our moral beliefs and judgments by giving explanations as to why certain actions are right or wrong.

5. Evaluating actions • Broadly speaking, there are 2 main theoretical approaches to ethics: • Deontological theories evaluate actions in terms of duty or moral rules. • Consequentialist theories evaluate actions in terms of consequences.

6. Evaluating actions • Deontology, or ‘duty-based ethics’, is the view that we have a duty to do what is right (and avoid doing what is wrong) by following some moral rules or principles.

7. Evaluating actions • Suppose the principle ‘You should be nice to those people who are nice to you’ is generally accepted by everyone. • From a deontological point of view, an action that accords with the principle is intrinsically right (or right in itself).

8. Evaluating actions • Deontology demands that we do what is intrinsically right and refrain from doing what is intrinsically wrong. It is our duty to conform to generally accepted moral principles. • The best known deontological ethical theory is the one put forward by German philosopher Immanuel Kant.

9. Evaluating actions • Consequentialism, on the other hand, asserts that actions should be evaluated in terms of their consequences. • From a c0nsequentialist point of view, actions are not right or wrong in themselves. An action is right if it brings good consequences, and wrong if it brings bad consequences.

10. Evaluating actions • For example, an act of lying is not intrinsically wrong; it is wrong only if it leads to bad consequences. • The best known consequentialist ethical theory is utilitarianism, the moral philosophy propounded by English philosophers Jeremy Bentham and John Stuart Mill.

11. The principle of utility • Suppose you are a lawyer. You have a client who is an old lady who owns a big house. She tells you that she wants her dog to inherit the house after she dies. You promise her you will see to it that her dog will be the only future owner of the house. However, you also notice that there are not enough schools for children in the district.

12. The principle of utility • What would you do when the old lady dies – keep your promise and honor her wish, or break the promise and convert the house into a school for poor children?

13. The principle of utility • Some may argue that inasmuch as a lawyer is a professional, you ought to keep your promise and honor the wish of your client. • Others, however, may think that converting the house into a school is the right thing to do because it can help a lot of poor children.

14. The principle of utility • If you believe that the right action is the one that brings about the best consequence (e.g. one that benefits a lot of people), you are thinking in utilitarian terms. • Utilitarianism, as a form of consequentialism, evaluates actions in terms of their consequences.

15. The principle of utility The classical formulation of utilitarianism can be found in the writings of Jeremy Bentham, who equated morality with the maximization ofhappiness or utility.

16. The principle of utility • As a social reformer, Bentham believed that morality, as well as law and social policy, should all have the same goal; namely, to promote general happiness and well-being. • The purpose of morality, as he saw it, was to make the world a better place for everyone.

17. The principle of utility • Bentham and his followers saw their ethical theory as providing the basis for legal and social reforms. • They wanted to reduce suffering and promote happiness. They wanted to make law serve human needs and interests. They wanted social policy to work for the good of all citizens.

18. The principle of utility • For Bentham, happiness is the only thing that has intrinsic value, i.e. the only thing that is good in itself. • Other things such as money or freedom may be good too, but only to the extent that they produce happiness; what these things have is instrumental value, not intrinsic value.

19. The principle of utility Money has no intrinsic value; it is not good or valuable in itself. It is just a means to an end. The end is happiness. Sometimes you can use money to buy happiness; sometimes you cannot. Money has (instrumental) value only when it buys you happiness.

20. The principle of utility • From a utilitarian point of view, actions are not right or wrong in themselves. • An action is right if it brings more happiness (pleasure) than unhappiness (pain or suffering), and wrong if it causes more unhappinessthan happiness.

21. The principle of utility In other words, whether an action is right or wrong depends entirely on its consequences. An action is right if the good consequences follow from it outweigh the bad consequences. The best action is the one that is likely to result in the greatest amount of overall happiness.

22. The principle of utility • Bentham’s ‘classical utilitarianism’ can be summarized in 3 propositions: • First, actions are to be judged right or wrong solely in virtue of their consequences. Nothing else matters. Right actions are, simply, those that have the best consequences.

23. The principle of utility • Second, in assessing consequences, the only thing that matters is the amount of happiness or unhappiness that is caused. Everything else is irrelevant. Thus, right actions are those that produce the greatest balance of happiness over unhappiness.

24. The principle of utility • Third, in calculating the happiness or unhappiness caused by an action, no one’s happiness is to be countedas more important than anyone else’s. Each person’s welfare or well-being is equally important.In short, everyone counts, and everyone counts equally.

25. The principle of utility • To put it all together, the most fundamental principle of utilitarianism is ‘the Principle of Utility’ (also known as ‘the Greatest Happiness Principle’): We ought to perform the action that produces the greatest amount of happiness for the greatest number of people.

26. The principle of utility • The ‘utility’ of an action is the net amount of pleasure (over pain) that it causes when everyone affected by it is taken into consideration. • Utility, in other words, is the total amount of happiness (pleasure) minus the total amount of unhappiness (pain or suffering).

27. The principle of utility • When calculating the utility of actions, we have to make sure that the pleasure and pain of everyone affected must be factored into the equation. • The best action is the one that maximizes utility.

28. The principle of utility • There are two major assumptions here: • Utility (the net amount of pleasure resulting from an action) can be measured and calculated objectively. • The consequences of actions are more or less predictable.

29. The principle of utility • From a utilitarian perspective, there is no need to consider the motives or intentions for which people do what they do. • When we evaluate actions, the only thing that matters is the (actual or expected) consequences of these actions.

30. The principle of utility • To sum up, according to the Principle of Utility, we should calculate and compare the expected consequences of the various alternative actions and then choose the one that maximizes happiness or utility for everyone concerned.

31. Strengths • An attractive feature of utilitarianism is that it has given morality a clear purpose: to promote general well-being or maximize overall happiness. • The right action is the one that brings the greatest amount of happiness to the greatest number of people.

32. Strengths • In addition, utilitarianism offers a logical and reasonable solution to moral decision making. • In our daily lives we use utilitarian reasoning all the time: We give money to charity when seeing that it would do more good for needy people than it would for ourselves.

33. Strengths • Utilitarianism provides a universal standard of morality according to which everyone’s interests and well-being must be taken into consideration and given equal weight. • As such, utilitarianism embodies the ideal of equal concern for all persons.

34. Strengths • For example, from a utilitarian point of view, policymakers are expected to make decisions based on calculation of the effects of policies on society as a whole. They should not choose policies that favor themselves or their families and friends.

35. Strengths • Utilitarianism also encourages us to extend our ethical concern to animals. • Because animals, like humans, can experience pleasure and pain, utilitarian reasoning requires that we take animal welfare into consideration when making moral decisions.

36. Criticisms • One criticism of utilitarianism is that measuring and calculating utility is by no means an easy task. • Is it possible or meaningful to compare, in quantitative terms, the pleasure we get from eating an ice-cream and the pleasure we get from helping a friend?

37. Criticisms • Different people may have different ideas of ‘happiness’ or ‘pleasure.’ • John Stuart Mill, for example,suggested that we have to distinguish between lower,bodily pleasures (e.g. eating, drinking, and sexual activity) and higher pleasures (i.e. intellectual, creative and spiritualpursuits).

38. Criticisms • Mill thought that the higher pleasures are superior to, and thus more valuable than, the lower ones. • In his view, it is not the quantity (amount) but the quality (type) of pleasure thatmatters.

39. Criticisms • Another objection to utilitarian reasoning is that it is usually extremely difficult, if not impossible, to predict the precise results or consequences of actions.

40. Criticisms • Consider the following example: • A child asked Alice for money to get home. Alice bought a train ticket for the child. Unfortunately, the train was involved in an accident and the child was injured. Was it morally wrong for Alice to buy the ticket for the child?

41. Criticisms • It is usually very difficult to predict the long-term consequences of actions. • Even if we agree with utilitarianism on principle, the best we can do is to perform the action that is most likely to have the best overall results.

42. Criticisms • Utilitarianism has also been criticized for only considering the results of actions, without taking into account the motives of people’s actions. • In the previous example, Alice’s action is not wrong if intention, rather than consequence, is seen as the most relevant factor in evaluating her action.

43. Criticisms • Some people argue that utilitarianism is too demanding because we are often required to promote the interestsand well-being of others at the expense of our own.

44. Criticisms • The implicationof the Principle of Utility is that in order to maximize overall utility and promote general welfare, continual self-sacrificeis often necessary, for example, by givingup one’s time and money to help the needy.

45. Criticisms • According to utilitarian reasoning, you should sell your iPhone (or you should not have bought it in the first place) and donate the money to the Save the Children Fund. Why? Because the starving children in Africa need the money to buy food more than you need your iPhone.

46. Criticisms • Most of us are aware that spending $1,000 on food for some unknown person in Africa would create more happiness than spending it on entertainment for ourselves. But most of us would not make the utilitarian choice because we think that our own happiness is more important.

47. Criticisms • Another problem with utilitarianismis the implication thata person’s rights could be sacrificed if it would maximize happiness for others. • A good example is the invasion of the privacy of a celebrity (e.g. by placing a hidden camera in her bathroom) for the entertainment of the public.

48. Criticisms • Suppose a friend of yours installed a hidden video camera in your bathroom without you noticing it. He enjoys watching you take showers but you are not aware of it. From the utilitarian point of view, it seems there is nothing wrong with your friend’s actions.

49. Criticisms • Now, if your friend goes further by sharing the nude videos taken of you over the internet. Do you think his actions can be morally justified in terms of the Principle of Utility?

50. Criticisms • A common objection to utilitarian reasoning is that it can be used to justifyany action that is likely to bring happiness to many people. • Cheating, stealing, lying, and even killing may all seem to be justified, depending on whether they maximize utility in some particular situation.