Property Rights vs. Utilitarianism: Two Views of Ethics
Andreas School of Business Working Paper
35 Pages Posted: 15 May 2004
Date Written: May 2004
Abstract
This paper compares and contrasts the various attributes of two ethical systems, utilitarianism and property rights. Utilitarianism is the ethical position taken by the vast majority of economists as well as politicians and bureaucrats. However, upon close examination, several major flaws can be seen with the utilitarian approach. The property rights approach to ethics goes a long way toward overcoming these flaws.
Keywords: Ethics, utilitarianism, property rights, entitlement
JEL Classification: D63
Suggested Citation: Suggested Citation
McGee, Robert W., Property Rights vs. Utilitarianism: Two Views of Ethics (May 2004). Andreas School of Business Working Paper, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=546344 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.546344
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