Utilitarianism
Etymology
From Latin "utilis," "useful." The theory was developed by Jeremy Bentham in the late 1700s, who proposed measuring pleasure and pain as a single currency of value, and refined by John Stuart Mill, whose 1861 book “Utilitarianism” fixed the name. Mill added that higher, intellectual pleasures count for more than mere sensation.
noun · /yoo-til-ih-TAIR-ee-uh-niz-um/
The ethical theory that the right action is the one that produces the greatest overall well-being for the greatest number of people.
What it names
A precise handle for “do the most good on balance” — the reasoning behind cost-benefit analysis, triage, and most arguments about the public interest.
Example
Public-health officials think like utilitarians when they ration a scarce vaccine to save the most lives overall.
Related idea
Hedonism treats pleasure as the good for an individual; utilitarianism scales that up, demanding you maximize well-being across everyone, not just yourself.