Rationality and Society 2016, Vol. 28(4) 439–452 © The Author(s) 2016 Reprints and permissions: sagepub.co.uk/journalsPermissions.nav DOI: 10.1177/1043463116658871 rss.sagepub.com Those left behind: Euthanasia, suicide and other regarding preferences David A Savage University of Newcastle, Australia Abstract This paper examines the rationality of other regarding preferences on end-of-life decisions such as euthanasia and suicide, by extending the discounted future utility model. The discussion shows that individuals with other regarding preferences may act upon choices contrary to their ex-ante preferences, such that they are choosing to remain alive rather than opting for euthanasia or suicide. The policy extension is that individuals with close friends and/or family are less likely to take their own life, but can also prolong their own suffering because of the same attachments. Keywords End of life decisions, euthanasia, other regarding preferences, rationality, suicide Introduction “ as soon as the terrors of life reach the point at which they outweigh the terrors of death, a man will put an end to his life” (Schopenhauer, 2007) Brandt (1975) once argued that not only could suicide be rational, but also that it would be ethically permissible to provide assistance – a concept Corresponding author: David A Savage, University of Newcastle, Newcastle Business School, University Drive, Callaghan, NSW 2308, Australia. Email: david.savage@newcastle.edu.au Article 658871RSS 0 0 10.1177/1043463116658871Rationality and SocietySavage research-article 2016 at University of Newcastle on October 18, 2016 rss.sagepub.com Downloaded from