Moral Utility Theory provides an integrative framework for understanding the motivational basis of ethical decision making by modeling it as a process of subjective expected utility (SEU) maximization. The SEUs of ethical and unethical behavioral options are proposed to be assessed intuitively during goal pursuit, with unethical conduct emerging when the expected benefits of moral transgressions outweigh the expected costs. A key insight of the model is that any factors that increase the value of a goal—including incentives, framings, and mindsets—can motivate misbehavior by increasing the SEU of unethical conduct. Although Moral Utility Theory emphasizes the automatic and habitual nature of most SEU appraisals, it also describes a mechanism for initiating the deliberative moral reasoning process: the experience of moral uncertainty. Moral uncertainty is proposed to occur when the SEUs of ethical and unethical behaviors are similar in magnitude, thereby activating the behavioral inhibition system and motivating the allocation of attentional resources toward the decision process. This framework bridges the gap between affective and cognitive perspectives on ethical decision making by identifying automatic evaluations as a central driver of moral decisions while also specifying when and how moral reasoning processes are initiated. By combining dual-process models of morality with well-validated principles from the science of motivation, Moral Utility Theory provides theoretical parsimony and formal modeling potential to the study of ethical decision making. The framework also suggests practical strategies—from employee selection and training to goal setting and compensation systems—for encouraging ethical behavior in organizations.

道德效用理论通过将其建模为主观预期效用（SEU）最大化的过程，为理解道德决策的动机基础提供了一个集成框架。建议在追求目标的过程中直观地评估道德和不道德行为选择的SEU，当道德违法行为的预期收益超过预期成本时，就会出现不道德行为。该模型的一个关键见解是，增加目标价值的任何因素（包括动机，框架和思维方式）都可以通过增加不道德行为的SEU来激发不良行为。尽管道德效用理论强调了大多数SEU评估的自动性和习惯性，但它也描述了一种引发审议性道德推理过程的机制：道德不确定性的体验。当道德行为和不道德行为的SEU大小相似时，就会出现道德不确定性，从而激活行为抑制系统，并促使注意力资源分配到决策过程。该框架通过将自动评估确定为道德决策的主要驱动力，同时还指定了何时以及如何启动道德推理过程，弥合了道德决策的情感和认知观点之间的鸿沟。通过将道德的双过程模型与动机科学中经过充分验证的原则相结合，道德效用理论为伦理决策研究提供了理论上的简约性和形式化建模潜力。