Lukas_Gloor comments on Humans are utility monsters - Less Wrong

67 Post author: PhilGoetz 16 August 2013 09:05PM

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Comment author: AlexMennen 17 August 2013 07:17:52PM 6 points [-]

You are correct that utilitarianism is a type of consequentialism, and that you can be a consequentialist without being a utilitarian. Consequentialism says that you should choose actions based on their consequences, which pretty much forces you into the VNM axioms, so consequentialism is roughly what you described as utilitarianism. As I said, it would make sense if that is what utilitarianism meant, but despite my opinions, utilitarianism does not mean that. Utilitarianism says that you should choose the action that results in the consequence that is best for all people in aggregate.

Comment author: Lukas_Gloor 19 August 2013 01:36:58AM 0 points [-]

Utilitarianism says that you should choose the action that results in the consequence that is best for all people in aggregate.

Not just people but all the beings that serve as "vessels" for whatever it is that matters (to you). According to most common forms of utilitarianism, "utility" consists of happiness and/or (the absence of) suffering or preference satisfaction/frustration.