Prepared by Sivadath Madhu Menon Government Law College Thrissur

1. - Sivadath Madhu Menon
- sivadath.menon@lexerudites.com

2.  Utilitarianism is an effort to provide an answer to the
practical question “ What ought a person to do?” and the
answer is that “a person ought to act so as to produce the
best consequences possible.
 In the notion of consequences the utilitarianism includes all
of the good and bad produced by the act, whether arising
after the act has been performed or during performance.
 Jeremy Bentham (1748-1832) developed the principle of
utility by defining it as a measure of maximizing pleasure
while minimizing pain.
 Utilitarianism offers a relatively straightforward method for
deciding the morally right course of action for any
particular situation we may find

3.  John Stuart Mill reconsidered the principles of utilitarianism
and suggested that pleasure should not merely refer to
sensual pleasure but also to mental pleasure such as
music, literature and friendship.
 In contemporary business, utilitarianism is used frequently
when business leaders make critical decisions about things
like expansion, store closing, hirings and layoffs.
 Utilitarianism could motivate individuals within the
organization to take initiative, become more responsible,
and act in ways that enhance the organization’s reputation
rather than tarnish it.

4. An example of utilitarianism is as follows;
A pharmaceutical company releases a drug that has been
governmentally approved with known side effects but still
no ban is given as the drug is able to help more people
than are bothered by the minor side effects.
Here act utilitarianism often shows “The end justifies
the means”

5. SUMMARY
 Jeremy Bentham developed a quantifiable method for
determining what was beneficial and what was detrimental
He called this method utilitarianism.
 He called this method utilitarianism, because its basic unit,
the “util”, acted like a monetary unit.
 Utilitarianism in business can lead to a bottom line mentality
in which decision are based on achieving greatest good
for the organization.