PHI 445 Week 1 Discussion, Utilitarianism, Deontology, and Virtue Ethics Case Study: Starbucks (Two Responses)

PHI 445 Week 1 Discussion, Utilitarianism, Deontology, and Virtue Ethics Case Study: Starbucks (Two Responses) Utilitarianism is the belief that “an action is morally right if the consequences of that action are more favorable than unfavorable to everyone” (Fieser, 2015, section 1.3). This set of ethics considers the most moral action as the one that provides the “greatest happiness for the greatest number” (Macat Education, 2015). This principle determines what is moral by weighing the good and bad outcomes of our actions. The text states that “when determining the morality of any given action, we should list all of the good and bad consequences that would result, determine which side is weightier, and judge the action to be right if the good outweighs the bad” (Feiser, 2015, section 1.3). Another characteristic of utilitarianism is that it is based on consequences, we have to determine if the consequence is worth taking the action. Virtue ethics is the “view that morality is grounded in the virtuous character traits that people acquire” (Feiser, 2015, section 1.3). This theory highlights character over actions which is different from the utilitarianism. This is the belief that good mental habits produce moral behavior. Temperance, which is the middle of overindulgence and rejection of all pleasures-it’s a happy medium where one is able to enjoy many pleasures in reasonable quantities. Aristotle states that finding the perfect middle ground is not an easy task, but it is something that decent people must find (Feiser, 2015). Deontology was developed by Immanuel Kant as “categorical imperative, which is a moral principle that we should treat each person as an end, and never merely as a means to an end” (Feiser, 2015, section 1.3). The main characteristic of deontology is that we should treat everyone “as beings with instrinct value and regard them as highly as we would our own happiness” (Feiser, 2015, section 1.3). Another characteristic of this theory is that it follows the golden rule which states to treat other the way you want to be treated. One ethical problem that Starbucks was confronted with was the crisis by the coffee industry when a lot of farmers were going out of business because of overproduction. Starbucks would try to resolve using utilitarianism, assessing the actions consequences and weighing the good vs. the bad. They developed café practices, which pay farmers a premium fair price for their coffee, teaching them about sustainable practices so the environment, as well as the industry, is protected (Tabberer, 2010). Since Starbucks needs to act in a way that not only is beneficial to them, but as many people as possible. Their practices serves good for the company, the farmers, their families and the environment. References Fieser, J. (2015). Introduction to business ethics [Electronic version]. Retrieved from Macat Education. (2015, October 13). An introduction to John Stuart Mill’s utilitarianism–A Macat politics analysis [Video file]. Retrieved from Tabberer, C. [ProfTab @ OkWU]. (2010, May 5). Starbucks social responsibility video [Video file]. Retrieved from