Speaker
Description
Objectivity as the counterpart of subjectivity is described as one of the most important criteria for achieving sound scientific results. Nevertheless, in psychological science, objectivity has been criticized because psychological processes are not one hundred percent observable or unambiguously interpretable by third parties. Strictly speaking, objectivity can only be assumed if one speaks of true, observer-independent knowledge. The concept of truth has been abandoned in science for known reasons. In fact, we need a serious alternative to objectivity that is compatible with current methodological developments. Simon Susen describes the opposition of "perspective versus truth" as an essential criterion of the so-called "postmodern turn" in the social sciences. The present contribution takes up this idea and shows, on the basis of recent epistemological developments, that perspective could replace not only truth, but to a certain extent also objectivity in the use and interpretation of empirical data. Introducing the upcoming presentations, we hypothesize how the systematic adoption of different perspectives contributes to the advancement of the methodology.
