The Islamia University of Bahawalpur

Faculty of Online and Distance Education

Institute of Distance Education

Subject

ETHICS

Lecture 03 Consequentialist and Non-Consequentialist

Consequentialist Theory
Consequentialist theory claims morally good actions are those with good consequences. Consequentialists can have
different views on what makes a consequence good, or how people should think about consequences, so the
consequentialist approach can lead to different philosophical positions. The following table defines several
important forms of consequentialist theory.

Term Definition
The view that the moral worth of an action is determined by how much happiness or suffering
Utilitarianism it brings to the world, and therefore people should always do whatever will bring the most
happiness to the most people.
Hedonism The view that we should judge actions based on how much pleasure or pain they produce.
The view that actions should be judged by the consequences they bring about, such as justice,
Pluralism
love, or knowledge.
Actual The view that actions are right or wrong depending on the consequences they actually bring
consequentialism about.
Subjective The view that a person's actions are right or wrong depending on what they thought the
consequentialism consequences would be.
Motive The view that a person's action should be judged by determining their motivation for doing
consequentialism that action and examining the consequences the motive brings about.
The view that when a person is deciding which action would be best, they should weigh the
Actualism
consequences of actions based on what their actual choices will be in the future.
The view that when a person is deciding which action would be best, they should weigh the
Possibilism consequences of actions based on what the possible actions they would be capable of taking in
the future.
Rule The view that the morality of an action depends on the consequences brought about by the
consequentialism principle that a person acted on when taking the action.
The view that the morality of an action depends on the consequences brought about by the
Act consequentialism
action a person took.

Consequentialist ethics claims that morality is about the consequences our choices bring about. Consequentialist
moral reasoning generally focuses on how these consequences affect everyone, not just the person taking the action.
This means that in order to act morally, people have to act in ways that benefit the most possible people. The claim
of people having a moral duty to help others is called ethical altruism. In contrast, the claim that moral actions are
those that benefit themselves is called ethical egoism.

Suppose someone has more money than they need and is deciding between two options: spending the money on
something that will make them happy, like buying a new car, or spending the money on something that will help
others, like donating to a charity. Consequentialism would likely dictate what this person will donate the money
because the overall benefit of donating to charity is greater than that of buying a new car. In this way,
consequentialism leads to the position of ethical altruism. Ethical egoism, on the other hand, would result in the
person doing whatever makes them happy. If they want to donate the money, they should donate it, but if they want
to get a new car, they will get a new car.

Non-Consequentialist Ethics

While consequentialist accounts focus only on how much good or bad an action produces, non-consequentialist
ethics often take other factors into account beyond consequences. For example, the consequentialist view generally
holds that people should only weigh their own welfare as much as that of any other person. There are some
situations where the consequentialist view would require a person to put their own welfare at risk or in harm's way
in order to help others. A non-consequentialist might disagree and claim that people have a right to preserve their
own basic safety rather than make such a great sacrifice for others. This right is called a prerogative.
Relatedly, consequentialist views may in some situations require one person to harm another in order to help others,
as long as the overall good produced is greater than the overall harm. Non-consequentialists may argue certain acts
are morally wrong no matter what good they produce. For instance, they might say it is always wrong to seriously
harm an innocent person even if that harm leads to some other benefit. A moral rule banning harmful actions is
called a constraint.

Another relevant concept to non-consequentialist theories is moral status. The fact people have moral status means
that treating them morally requires considering their interests. An is how moral status gives people the right to not
be seriously harmed by others. On the consequentialist view, people's interests are considered in terms of the total
goodness or badness an action produces. On the non-consequentialist view, the moral status of a given individual
might override the calculation of consequences. Meaning, an action that leads to many good things might be wrong
because it violates someone's moral status by harming them in immoral ways. Such a case would be an example of
inviolability, which is the idea that a person has a right to not be harmed no matter what other consequences the
harm would bring about.

Since the non-consequentialist view focuses on factors beyond consequences, it holds that actions producing the
same consequences might not be equally good or bad. Imagine a person choosing between two alternatives that will
both lead to the same amount of total happiness and suffering, but one action involves harming people in ways that
violate their rights, while the other does not. For the consequentialist these options are equivalent, but the non-
consequentialist would argue the two cases are different because it would be wrong for the person to harm and
violate others' rights.

Activity:

Differentiate between Consequentialist Ethics and Non-Consequentialist Ethics, this activity must be of
200 words. You can submit in hand written form after cam scanning it.

NOTE: Perform the above activity on two pages and submit on Hussain.shahid3333@gmail.com
within three days, after that supporting notes will be shared with you and your feedback will be
attained during on line class.