Posted: July 4th, 2022

Compare deontology and utilitarianism ethical theory research

Compare deontology and utilitarianism ethical theory research.
When moral dilemmas emerge, medical practitioners apply ethics in decision making. Utilitarianism and deontology are ethical theories. Also known as the consequentialist approach, utilitarianism involves making decisions based on the outcomes. Immanuel Kant founded deontology. It is following duties and obligations.
Ethics has four foundational principles; autonomy, beneficence, nonmaleficence, and justice. Beneficence entails doing what is right for the person. Autonomy is respecting the ability of an individual to make their own decisions. Justice is fairness in decision making, and nonmaleficence is taking the action that causes the least harm. Doctors should act in the best interest of the patient.
Utilitarianism focuses on outcomes. It acts in the best interest of the majority and may infringe on the rights of the minority. There two types of utilitarianism; act utilitarianism and rule utilitarianism. Act utilitarianism is about benefiting the majority; it does not consider personal feelings and the law.
Rule utilitarianism considers the law. It seeks to benefit the majority in just ways. Rule utilitarianism considers justice and beneficence, but act utilitarianism does not. One major disadvantage of utilitarianism is that it only uses a small group for the benefit of the rest, leading to a disregard for autonomy. In resource-strained conditions, health practitioners can apply the utilitarianism approach. They can set targets to resuscitate infants born prematurely.
Kantian deontology bases its decisions on adherence to duties and not the outcomes. The doctor-patient relationship is an example of a deontological approach; any breach leads to medical negligence. Deontology does not allow any deeds that will cause harm. The action taken does not necessarily seek to benefit society; it is for the benefit of the individual. It gives no room for the logical basis of making a decision.
Both utilitarianism and deontological approach are significant in medical ethics. A balance between the two would bring harmony and justice in medical practice. Utilitarianism is related to the need for cognition. Deontology has aspects of empathy, perspective-taking, and religiosity.
Although both utilitarian and deontological approaches are different, they seek to achieve a moral judgment. The two perspectives aim at guiding medical practitioners to take appropriate actions and get better results when they face ethical dilemmas. A medical practitioner may encounter them when attending to infants, individuals with mental retardation, and those in a permanent vegetative state. Such situations can lead to a breach of respect for autonomy and informed consent. These dilemmas are common in medical practice.
References
Conway, Paul, and Bertram Gawronski. “Deontological and utilitarian inclinations in moral decision making: a process dissociation approach.” Journal of personality and social psychology 104.2 (2013): 216.
Gawronski, Bertram, and Jennifer S. Beer. “What makes moral dilemma judgments “utilitarian” or “deontological”?.” Social Neuroscience 12.6 (2017): 626-632.

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