Interpretivism is subjective

The argument

Subjectivism focuses on complexity and multiple interpretations and attempts to create meanings, so in that respect, its importance in the Interpretivist philosphy is undisputed. Interepretivists consider that their own beliefs and interpretations play an important role in the research process. They also consider the beliefs and assumptions of other people in their research important, because it is their firm belief that every person's point of view matters, since each person experiences different “realities”. The interpretivist approach could be useful to researchers in the fields of sociology, psychology, business and similar disciplines, because they often study individuals or groups of people that find themselves in unique and complex situations.

Premises

Counter-arguments

Positivist critics reply that the very subjectivity the argument praises is interpretivism's chief liability. Building the researcher's own beliefs into the method makes findings hard to replicate, generalise or test, and folds investigator bias into the result rather than controlling for it — the opposite of what many take rigorous inquiry to require. That a philosophy foregrounds "every point of view matters" is, on this view, a reason to doubt its objectivity, not a mark of being "best." They add that "best" is discipline-relative. Interpretivism may suit the study of meaning-laden human situations while being ill-suited to questions that demand measurement and prediction, so its usefulness in some fields does not make it superior overall.

Rejecting the premises

[Rejecting P1] Building the researcher's own beliefs into the method is exactly what critics fault interpretivism for, since it makes results hard to separate from investigator bias. [Rejecting P3] Suitability in sociology or psychology shows interpretivism fits certain subjects, not that it ranks among the "best" philosophies overall — a judgement that depends on the research question.