Final answer:
Consequentialism is the ethical belief that the morality of an action is contingent upon its outcomes, with utilitarianism being a common form that measures actions by the greatest good they produce for the most people.
Step-by-step explanation:
The belief that an action is good if it has good consequences, and an action is bad if it has bad consequences, is consequentialism. As per this ethical theory, an action's moral rightness depends on its outcomes or results. For instance, the philosophy of utilitarianism is a type of consequentialism that suggests an action is morally right if it produces the greatest good for the greatest number of people, often measured in terms of happiness or pleasure. Consequentialism asks us to consider the wider impact of our actions, and not just the immediate benefits or harms.
For example, filling your friend's gas tank might be seen as a good act if it brings happiness to your friend, even if there is a cost associated with it. The normative approach to ethics under consequentialism evaluates the benefits and harms of actions to decide their moral worth, and nothing is considered inherently right or wrong, outside of its consequences.