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Objectivity and subjectivity - Nishwa

Objectivity and subjectivity in social science research
Course

Introduction to sociology

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Students shared 10 documents in this course
Academic year: 2022/2023
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Nishwa Pt
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ASSIGNMENT

OBJECTIVITY AND SUBJECTIVITY IN SOCIAL RESEARCH

INTRODUCTION

The widely accepted view of science is that it is the means of securing truth in knowledge about the world. It is for this reason that many sociologists have taken the view that sociology, along with other social sciences, should follow the scientific method: it should be a science of society. This view has been challenged by those who see society as closer to the arts and humanities than to the sciences: they argue that sociology is a humanistic discipline in which the subjectivity of the individual sociologist is central to the knowledge produced. The most radical variants of this argument see social investigation as totally relativistic. The implications of this go beyond sociology, and the view of science as an objective basis for truth has been challenged. Those working in social studies of science have developed a view 3 often characterized as 8social constructionism9 3 that appears to challenge the objectivity of science and its claims to produce true9 knowledge. Scientific knowledge, they argue, is a product of the constructive practices of scientists and cannot be seen as an unproblematic reflection of a world external to science.

This is the basis from which this Assignment address the question of objectivity and subjectivity in social research. This debate is significant for sociologists and other social scientists but challenge some of the simplistic understandings of and values attached to so-called 8objective scientific9 approaches and politically subjective9 ones. This assignment includes the explanation of: what is objectivity, what is subjectivity, understanding value judgements and research methods of subjectivity and objectivity.

CONTENT

> What is objectivity

>what is subjectivity

>Understanding value judgements

>Research methods: objectivity

>Research methods: Subjectivity

>conclusion

consult- ants and not as reformers; or better, as neutral observers and analysts and not as

philosophers or moralists. The researcher9s personal views and value judgements are to

be kept out of research. In a more general context, objectivity subscribes to a number of

principles and convictions, three of which are the following:

􏼀 Social sciences are value free; their goal is to study what is and not what ought to be.

Research should aim to achieve the highest possible degree of objectivity.

􏼀 Social scientists should be value free; they should rule out value judgements,

subjective views, personal bias and personal convictions.

􏼀 Value judgements should be reserved for policy makers, and not for social scientists.

The logic of objectivity

The purpose of research is to discover objective truths. Objective truths can be verified only when contrasted with objective reality. The task of verification is completed by researchers is important that verification is conducted objectively and focuses on objective reality. The subjective views and personal values of the researcher can only distort the process of verification, and cannot enhance the objectivity of truths, subjectivity distorts the process of discovery of objective truths and must be excluded from research. The logic of objectivity rests here on the notion that research is expected to capture and present reality as it is and not as it is interpreted, imagined or wanted to be by the investigator. If one is interested in why female students get higher grades in science courses, one expects the researcher to set aside personal views and try CTto establish the real reasons. If one disregards objectivity and constructs a research design that is biased by personal beliefs and ideologies, the sampling procedures will be affected as much as the choice of methods of data collection and analysis and, obviously, the findings and conclusions. The results will be flawed and will not correspond to reality. Five such researchers may produce five different sets of answers to the same question. Objectivity serves to restrict the influence of such personal biases and prejudices in the research process and to allow reality to come forward as it is, without manipulation

How is objectivity practiced?

By perceiving reality in objective terms, as an objective reality, which must be reproduced as it is, without distortions of any kind. By respecting value neutrality, i. be free of personal values, bias, and prejudice, and to study 8what is9 and not 8what ought to be9. By conceptualizing the research topic in an objective manner; selection of indicators and definitions should be free of personal bias, experiences and views. By choosing the appropriate methodology in a process free of personal preferences, ideologies or bias. By constructing the design using professional standards, avoiding personal bias, and assuring compliance to ethical standards throughout the study. By choosing the sample by complying with research standards and practices, excluding personal bias and preference.

By choosing relevant methods and by gathering data using professional standards, and by focusing on 8what is9 and not on 8what ought to be9. By guiding arrangements towards facilitating the completion of the study, using fair and professionally acceptable standards and not personal or ideological preferences. By describing relevant methods clearly and by conducting analysis in a manner reflecting professionalism, and avoiding personal biases and preferences. By including clear and detailed justification of conclusions, revealing personal perceptions and interpretations of data and reality for verification. By constructing the report in a manner that outlines clearly data and personal interpretations of the writer. Personal views etc. should be made clear. Further, adherence to objectivity is taken to support the status quo. Hence believing in and trusting what is objective means believing in what people learned to consider objective, and failing to challenge it.

WHAT IS SUBJECTIVITY

Subjectivist approaches place their emphasis on the personal- they value individual experiences and aim to uncover the meaning behind these actions. The macro-structures are not of much relevance. Sociological approaches which follow this line of thought include symbolic interactionism, phenomenology and ethnomethodology (Greiffenhagen & Sharrock, 2008). Symbolic interactionism focuses on the hidden or inherent meanings ascribed to things and is interested in how communication and interaction shapes the social world.

, subjectivity is taken to mean of or relating to a subject and evokes the notions of interpretation, perspective, point of view, ideology, and world view.

Subjectivity is broadly used and has become a word with many subtle shades of meaning. The most value neutral definition would be that it is the thoughts, feelings, beliefs, and desires that comprise a person's self identity. However, in a traditional scientific discourse, subjectivity is

UNDERSTANDING VALUE JUDGMENTS

The conventional view of both physical and social science is based on an assumption of value freedom. While some take this to mean that science should only ever be undertaken 8for its own sake9 and without any regard for its implications for human concerns and values, the core of the position is simply that science is impartial: its evaluation of evidence takes account only of cognitive values and does not 3 or should not 3 be influenced by moral values. On this basis, science is not so much 8value free9 as free from moral values. Science can provide technical or instrumental knowledge and an assessment of the consequences of different policy proposals, but the scientist has no moral authority or superiority within the policy sphere.

This was at the heart of the sociological method set out by Max Weber and was developed by Robert Merton (1942) in his view that scientific activity was governed by values and practices of scientific communalism, universalism, disinterestedness, and organised scepticism. He recognised, like Weber, that scientists may have their own moral values and policy preferences, but he held these to be separable from scientific activity itself. Nevertheless, science and policy making have become ever more entangled as policy makers seek technical solutions to physical and social problems. The idea of value freedom is, therefore, more difficult to sustain: how is the technical authority of science in the policy sphere to be maintained if scientists are to be detached from policy debates and agnostic about moral values?

This view holds that the scientists, concerned exclusively with purely factual and technical considerations, need not be at all concerned with the social consequences of scientific discourses and their application. The implications of this position were highlighted in debates over Robert Oppenheimer's Manhattan Project on the development of the atom bomb during the Cold War. Despite his own left-wing views and saying, on the explosion of the first atomic bomb, 8Now I am become Death, the destroyer of worlds9, Oppenheimer continued to take a technocratic view of the applications of his scientific ideas and never openly challenged American nuclear policy.

In social science, similar moral issues have arisen in relation to the Project Camelot, in which political sociologists studied rebellion and revolutionary processes in Latin America as part of a project financed by the US State Department and with the express intent of suppressing radical social change in US client states such as Chile. Many participants chose to ignore the intended

uses of the research, but Johan Galtung spoke out against it and the project was abandoned (see Horowitz 1967).

social scientists cannot evade issues of moral responsibility. While science may not privilege any particular value judgements, and while value positions cannot be put forward in the name of science, all scientists must reflect on the actual and potential uses of their research. They must make clear in public debate their personal, moral assessments of the dangers (and benefits) consequent upon the application of their research. They must participate in the public sphere, adding their voice to its debates. They must make clear their expertise, and its boundaries and limitations, and they must argue 3 as citizens and not as scientists 3 about the uses to which that expertise is put. One moment in the role of the sociologist, therefore, is to act as a 8public intellectual9, stepping beyond the production of impartial knowledge and standing back from involvement in its policy applications, to engage in political discourse concerning the formulation of public policy.

RESEARCH METHODS:OBJECTIVITY

Researchers who strive for objectivity in their work and field incorporate methods that are objective, unbiased and the closest to scientific truth. As mentioned earlier, the method in which the subject matter is being studied can entirely change the trajectory of the end result. Hence, it is crucial to choose the most appropriate research method and design. Objective research claims to illustrate reality that is 8true9 and 8correct9, it exists independently of those that are being studied, similar to it theoretical counterparts. Therefore, the methods and apparatus used in objective research is modelled after those in the hard sciences. Researchers use experiments, surveys with closed-ended questions and observations in strict controlled environments. These methods allow researchers to collect numerical data which can then be interpreted and analysed in an objective, unbiased manner as it does not require the researchers9 input. Experiments work under a controlled environment which is free of the researchers subjective feelings and interpretations, the situation can be replicated and hence provide reliability and validity to the work.

RESEARCH METHODS: SUBJECTIVITY

Experiments have always been a preferred method to study human behavior in both disciplines. However, as approaches and theories developed researchers now use a range of methods to obtain qualitative data that is rich. Interpretivism integrates human interest into the study and aim to uncover the reasoning behind human behavior and actions. While experiments allow for a

most would still urge sociologists to be objective in their research, even though postmodernists argue that all research is inevitably subjective.

Reflexivity is the act of a researcher constantly reflecting on the extent to which they themselves are impacting on their research and their findings. Some interpretivists and particularly postmodernists note that the researcher is not able to be genuinely objective because they are as much a part of the society being studied as the subjects of the research. As such the researcher needs to consider and acknowledge their own bias and the values that might inform their interpretations and analysis.

While both views raise valid points it must be noted that they have both been criticized to be reductionist in their thinking. It would prove to be useful if researchers found a way to incorporate the important aspects of both subjectivity and objectivity to their approach as they are equally important.

REFERENCES

➢ sarantakos, Sotrios. Social research:Palgrave macmillan ➢ Greiffenhagen, C., & Sharrock, W. (2008). Where do the limits of experience lie? Abandoning the dualism of objectivity and subjectivity. History of the Human Sciences, 21(3), 70 3 93.) ➢ Letherby, Gayle&, scott, johns and subjectivity in social research ➢ Paoletti, G. (2004). Durkheim and the Problem of Objectivity: A Reading of Les formes elementaires de la vie religieuse.

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Objectivity and subjectivity - Nishwa

Course: Introduction to sociology

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University: Kannur University

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ASSIGNMENT
OBJECTIVITY AND SUBJECTIVITY IN SOCIAL RESEARCH
INTRODUCTION
The widely accepted view of science is that it is the means of securing truth in knowledge about
the world. It is for this reason that many sociologists have taken the view that sociology, along
with other social sciences, should follow the scientific method: it should be a science of society.
This view has been challenged by those who see society as closer to the arts and humanities than
to the sciences: they argue that sociology is a humanistic discipline in which the subjectivity of
the individual sociologist is central to the knowledge produced. The most radical variants of this
argument see social investigation as totally relativistic. The implications of this go beyond
sociology, and the view of science as an objective basis for truth has been challenged. Those
working in social studies of science have developed a view 3 often characterized as 8social
constructionism9 3 that appears to challenge the objectivity of science and its claims to produce
true9 knowledge. Scientific knowledge, they argue, is a product of the constructive practices of
scientists and cannot be seen as an unproblematic reflection of a world external to science.

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