Board Thread:Fun and Games/@comment-27398195-20160610102345/@comment-25876622-20160616002636

While many people would agree that it is preferable to save 5 people instead of 1 person, the difficulty of the choice comes with actually having to kill a person and take responsibility for it, no matter how many lives you saved. In that sense, the question is not only about "what should you do?" but also about "could you do it?"

If asked "could you", different people will answer with varying levels of conviction. Adding emotional value to the sacrificial lamb (friend, family, world hero etc.) serves to make the choice more difficult and test the effect this has on your conviction. I believe aspiring policemen are asked a similar question.