Final answer:
Rule Utilitarianism is a form of utilitarianism that determines the morality of an action by considering the consequences of everyone following a particular rule, aiming to maximize overall happiness.
Step-by-step explanation:
The consequentialist perspective you are referring to is known as Rule Utilitarianism. It is a form of utilitarianism, a theory in normative ethics that suggests that the best action is the one that maximizes utility, usually defined as that which produces the greatest well-being of the greatest number of people. Rule Utilitarianism specifically posits that the morality of an action is determined by the goodness of the consequences of a particular rule that everyone would follow in similar situations. This is in contrast to Act Utilitarianism, which looks at the consequences of individual acts rather than following a general rule.
Founders of utilitarianism, like Jeremy Bentham and John Stuart Mill, argued that the rightness of an action depends on its outcomes—actions are morally right if they work to promote happiness and are wrong if they produce the opposite. Rule Utilitarianism expands upon this by requiring that we predict the consequences of everyone following a particular rule, rather than just considering the consequences of a single isolated act. This approach can greatly impact policy-making and ethical considerations in various fields, including government, economics, and medicine, where decisions can affect the happiness and well-being of many individuals.