Normative ethics

Normative ethics is a branch of ethics, that looks to establish norms of how people ought to behave, and act in certain situations. It also looks at how norms and values are formed in a society. It delves into what is good, and right in a moral sense.

Philosophers such as Aristotle and Saint Thomas Aquinas have looked into the question of what virtue really is; from this a branch called virtue ethics developed.

People like Immanuel Kant, with his categorical imperative, John Rawls with his contractualism, or John Locke with his theory of natural rights are seen as advocating deontological ethics today.

Utilitarianism says that an action is right, if it results in more people happy.

These are common branches of normative ethics.