Final answer:
Utilitarianism, developed by Bentham and later adapted by Mill, asserts that ethical actions should aim for the greatest amount of happiness for the most people. Mill's 'harm principle' further refines this to stress individual freedom, saying actions should only be limited to prevent harm to others. This philosophy has greatly influenced governmental policy and our understanding of ethical conduct in public and private sectors.
Step-by-step explanation:
Utilitarianism is a consequentialist theory that evaluates the morality of an action based on its outcomes. Developed by Jeremy Bentham and later adapted by John Stuart Mill, it posits that actions are right if they tend to promote happiness and wrong if they produce the opposite. The idea is rooted in the 'greatest happiness principle', which suggests that ethically correct actions are those that result in the greatest good for the greatest number of people. This concept has extensive implications, not just for individual morality but also for public policy and governance.
John Stuart Mill's adaptation of utilitarianism focused on maximizing freedom and introduced the 'harm principle', where an individual's actions should be limited only to prevent harm to others. Mill argues that utilitarianism supports policies that maximize 'utility', or general well-being, making it the duty of the government to create the greatest amount of happiness possible. His work has significantly influenced liberal thought, particularly in the 19th century.
In the context of applied ethics, such as in the case of clinical trials, the utilitarian approach encourages decisions that maximize the overall happiness and minimize the suffering, even when private interests are at stake. This perspective is essential in ensuring that actions are taken for the greater good, emphasizing both the increase in happiness and the reduction of unhappiness as crucial social goals.