It sounds more like act utilitarianism to me. Rule utilitarianism is when you notice that lying usually has bad consequences, and therefore decide to lie even when lying has good consequences. Coming up with heuristics like “don’t lie, unless you have a really good reason” or even “don’t lie, even if you think you have a really good reason” is still something you do with the sole intent of improving the consequences. It is therefore act utilitarianism.
Ehh, I think that’s pretty much what rule util means, though I’m not that familiar with the nuances of the definition so take my opinion with a grain of salt. Rule util posits that we follow those rules with the intent of promoting the good; that’s why it’s called rule utilitarianism.
I’m pretty sure the first time I read this, it specifically stated that using rules of thumb is not the same as rule utilitarianism. As it is, it’s less clear, but I’m pretty sure it’s still saying that they are two different ideals, rather than just different strategies.
It sounds more like act utilitarianism to me. Rule utilitarianism is when you notice that lying usually has bad consequences, and therefore decide to lie even when lying has good consequences. Coming up with heuristics like “don’t lie, unless you have a really good reason” or even “don’t lie, even if you think you have a really good reason” is still something you do with the sole intent of improving the consequences. It is therefore act utilitarianism.
Ehh, I think that’s pretty much what rule util means, though I’m not that familiar with the nuances of the definition so take my opinion with a grain of salt. Rule util posits that we follow those rules with the intent of promoting the good; that’s why it’s called rule utilitarianism.
Wikipedia link.
I’m pretty sure the first time I read this, it specifically stated that using rules of thumb is not the same as rule utilitarianism. As it is, it’s less clear, but I’m pretty sure it’s still saying that they are two different ideals, rather than just different strategies.