| Factor | Question to Ask | |--------|-----------------| | | How strong is the pleasure/pain? | | Duration | How long does it last? | | Certainty | How likely is the outcome? | | Propinquity | How soon will it occur? | | Fecundity | Will it lead to more pleasure? | | Purity | Will it be mixed with pain? | | Extent | How many beings are affected? |

Utilitarianism is —update your decision as consequences unfold.

| Act Utilitarianism | Rule Utilitarianism | |-------------------|---------------------| | Evaluate each act individually | Follow rules that maximize utility generally | | Context-dependent | Creates stable expectations | | Computationally intensive | Practically efficient |

If you feel acute emotional distress from constant calculating:

A common pitfall is the "Moral Saint" problem. If you spend every waking second agonizing over utility, you will burn out and become useless.