从功利主义视角看新冠肺炎疫情中的公众抉择

Public Choice in the Epidemic of COVID-19 from the Perspective of Utilitarianism

2020年1月以来,新冠肺炎疫情呈现出极少数病例到暴发性增长的态势,如何预防感染、如何控制疫情传播,公众的抉择在此次公共卫生事件中起到非常重要的作用。基于功利主义的视角,公众抉择应从最大多数人的最大幸福原则出发,但基于疫情传播的危害性,可能存在基于少数眼前的利益而有损公众利益的抉择。从公众个体角度而言,如果能够将利己利人共赢、着眼长远利益、增强信息辨别能力作为行为的出发点,那么,疫情中的公众抉择与功利主义基本原则可以相洽。

Since January 2020,the epidemic of the COVID-19 has increased from a very small number of cases to an outbreak.Public choice on how to prevent infection and control the spread of the epidemic has played a very important role in this public health event.From the perspective of utilitarianism,public choice should be based on the principle of the greatest happiness of the greatest number of people.But based on the harmfulness of the spread of the epidemic,there may be choices based on the immediate interests of a small number of people,which will harm the public interest.From the perspective of individual public,if the self-interest and win-win situation,long-term interests,and enhanced information discrimination can be taken as the starting point of behavior,then public choice in the epidemic can be consistent with the basic principles of utilitarianism.