Ethics

Ethics Study Guide

©2018 Achieve Page 22 of 116 Propinquity: How soon will it occur? 4. Certainty: How likely is it to occur? 5. Fecundity: How probable is the action to produce more pleasure? 6. Purity: Will the pleasure be mixed with pain? 7. Extent: How many people will be affected? According to this formula, a right act is the one that produces the most pleasure of all possible acts in a given situation. An act that results in an increase of pleasure is good; acts that produce more pain than pleasure are bad. John Stuart Mill basically agreedwith Bentham. He also proposed that the best thing to do is maximize happiness/utility/pleasure (which also involves minimizing unhappiness/ disutility/ pain). His goal was to find the greatest happiness for the greatest number. The main difference between the two is 3.3 Utilitarianism Utilitarianism is a consequentialist (goal-based) theory of ethics. It is a normative theory designed to tell us what we should do, which is to follow the set of rules that results in the best consequences. It states that the best consequences are those involving the least pain or unhappiness and the most possible pleasure or happiness. 3.4 The Utilitarian Theorists A utilitarian is someone who accepts the principle of utility and whose concern is maximizing the value and utility of the universe. Jeremy Bentham was a psychological hedonist. He believed that the desire for pleasure and aversion of pain were the only motivation for human actions. He defended the principle of utility and did not promote selfishness. The principle of utility states that an action is right if it produces at least as much (or more), or an increase in the happiness, of all affected by it over any alternative action. The principle of utility’s core beliefs are: 1. Pleasure and happiness have intrinsic value. 2. Conversely, pain and suffering have no intrinsic value. 3. All other outcomes only have value based on whether or not they cause happiness or prevent suffering. This type of value is referred to as either instrumental or extrinsic value because it represents usefulness as a means to an end—with that end being intrinsic value. Bentham created the hedonic calculus to calculate the best, or right, course of action. The hedonic calculus measures hedons , which are units of pleasure. To use the hedonic calculus, one should measure or estimate the following seven aspects of the proposed action and its expected consequences: 1. Intensity: How intense is the pleasure/pain? 2. Duration: How long will the pleasure/pain last? 3.