Concept
Rule utilitarianism
Overview
Rule utilitarianism is a form of utilitarianism that says an action is right as it conforms to a rule that leads to the greatest good, or that "the rightness or wrongness of a particular action is a function of the correctness of the rule of which it is an instance". Philosophers Richard Brandt and Brad Hooker are major proponents of such an approach.
For rule utilitarians, the correctness of a rule is determined by the amount of good it brings about when followed. In contrast, act utilitarians judge an act in terms of the consequences of that act alone (such as stopping at a red light), rather than judging whether it faithfully adhered to the rule of which it was an instance (such as, "always stop at red lights"). Rule utilitarians argue that following rules that tend to lead to the greatest good will have better consequences overall than allowing exceptions to be made in individual instances, even if better consequences can be demonstrated in those instances.
Overview adapted from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0; see the article history for authors).
Possible passages
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However, practical rules of this kind are not called laws (like physical laws), but only precepts; because the will does not stand merely under the natural concept, but also under the concept of freedom, in relation to which its principles are called laws. These with their consequences alone constitute the second or practical part of Philosophy.
Immanuel Kant, Kant's Critique of Judgement
States what Rule utilitarianism is; the author is tied to Rule utilitarianism in the knowledge graph.
All the inclinations together (which can be reduced to a tolerable system, in which case their satisfaction is called happiness) constitute self-regard (solipsismus).
Immanuel Kant, The Critique of Practical Reason
States what Rule utilitarianism is; the author is tied to Rule utilitarianism in the knowledge graph.
what are the motives to obey it? or more specifically, what is the source of its obligation? whence does it derive its binding force? It is a necessary part of moral philosophy to provide the answer to this question; which, though frequently assuming the shape of an objection to the utilitarian morality, as if it had some special applicability to that above others, really arises in regard to all standards. It…
John Stuart Mill, Utilitarianism
States what Rule utilitarianism is; the author is tied to Rule utilitarianism in the knowledge graph.
Philosophers who discussed Rule utilitarianism
Related ideas
- Macmillan Publishers
- Counterexample
- Immanuel Kant
- John Stuart Mill
- Categorical imperative
- Deontology
- Utilitarianism
- Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy
- Moral absolutism
- Thought experiment
- Rights
- Kantian ethics
- Utilitarianism (book)
- Brad Hooker
- Act utilitarianism
Place in the tradition
Part of Applied ethics.