In dictionaries:
rule utilitarianism
(ethics) A form of utilitarianism that says an action is right as it conforms to a rule that leads to the greatest good.
negative utilitarianism
(ethics) A form of utilitarianism that says we should minimize the total amount of aggregate suffering, or that we should minimize suffering and then, secondarily, maximize the total amount of happiness.
Act utilitarianism
a utilitarian theory of ethics that states that a person's act is morally right if and only if it produces the best possible results in that specific situation.
Preference utilitarianism
(also known as preferentialism) a form of utilitarianism in contemporary philosophy.
Average and total utilitarianism
(also called averagism and totalism) variants of utilitarianism that seek to maximize the average or total amount of utility; following Henry Sidgwick's question, "Is it total or average happiness that we seek to make a maximum?".
utilitarianism philosopher jeremy
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