I never found psychological hedonism (or motivational hedonism) very plausible, but I think it’s worth pointing out that the standard version — according to which everyone is ultimately motivated only by their own pleasure and pain — is a form of psychological egoism and seems incompatible with sincerely being a hedonistic utilitarian or caring about others and their interests for their own sake.
Because its defenders generally assume that agents are motivated only by the prospect of their own pleasures and pains, psychological hedonism is a form of psychological egoism.
More concretely, a psychological hedonist who cares about others, but only based on how it makes them feel, would prefer to never find out that they’ve caused harm or are doing less good than they could, if it wouldn’t make them (eventually) feel better overall. They don’t actually want to do good, they just want to feel like they’re doing good. Ignorance is bliss.
They could be more inclined to get in or stay in an experience machine, knowing they’d feel better even if it meant never actually helping anyone else.
That being said, they might feel bad about it if they know they’re in or would be in an experience machine. So, they might refuse the experience machine by following their immediate feelings and ignoring the fact that they’d feel better overall in the long run. This kind of person seems practically indistinguishable from someone who sincerely cares about others through and based on their feelings.
I never found psychological hedonism (or motivational hedonism) very plausible, but I think it’s worth pointing out that the standard version — according to which everyone is ultimately motivated only by their own pleasure and pain — is a form of psychological egoism and seems incompatible with sincerely being a hedonistic utilitarian or caring about others and their interests for their own sake.
From https://www.britannica.com/topic/psychological-hedonism :
More concretely, a psychological hedonist who cares about others, but only based on how it makes them feel, would prefer to never find out that they’ve caused harm or are doing less good than they could, if it wouldn’t make them (eventually) feel better overall. They don’t actually want to do good, they just want to feel like they’re doing good. Ignorance is bliss.
They could be more inclined to get in or stay in an experience machine, knowing they’d feel better even if it meant never actually helping anyone else.
That being said, they might feel bad about it if they know they’re in or would be in an experience machine. So, they might refuse the experience machine by following their immediate feelings and ignoring the fact that they’d feel better overall in the long run. This kind of person seems practically indistinguishable from someone who sincerely cares about others through and based on their feelings.