Final answer:
Utilitarian ethics developed by Bentham and Mill is a form of consequentialism, centered around the greatest happiness principle, which evaluates the morality of actions based on the happiness they produce.
Step-by-step explanation:
The utilitarian ethics of Bentham and Mill is a version of consequentialism. This philosophical viewpoint, associated with utilitarianism, posits that the moral correctness of an action is determined by its outcome. The main idea is that an action is considered right if it leads to the greatest happiness for the greatest number. Utilitarianism, therefore, evaluates the morality of actions based on their consequences, specifically the happiness and well-being they produce.
Both Jeremy Bentham and John Stuart Mill emphasized that pleasure and pain are primary motivators for humans, and they equated happiness with utility. Mill's greatest happiness principle is central to utilitarianism, guiding the assessment of an action's moral status by the happiness it generates across all affected individuals. Actions that produce more overall happiness are deemed morally superior.
In contrast, other moral frameworks such as deontological ethics focus on duties and rules, divine command theory on religious precepts, and virtue ethics on the character and virtues of the individual. However, as a consequentialist theory, utilitarianism stands distinct in its focus on the consequences.