Which statement best reflects feminist theory's stance on objectivity?

• A. There is no objective observation of humans
• B. Objective observation is guaranteed in science
• C. Observations are always pure and unbiased
• D. Objectivity is irrelevant to research

Answer: (A)

Feminist theory emphasizes that who you are as a researcher—their gender, social position, and values—shapes what they notice, how they interpret data, and which questions they consider worth asking. Because human lives and social contexts color every observation, complete, neutral objectivity in studying humans is not achievable. The idea is not that science is meaningless, but that objectivity is always filtered through social location, making pure, value-free observation elusive. To study this critically, researchers use reflexivity and transparency about their positions and biases, aiming for rigorous methods while acknowledging their influence on findings.

The other statements assume that objectivity can be fully guaranteed, that observations can be completely pure and unbiased, or that objectivity doesn’t matter in research. These ideas clash with the feminist critique that knowledge is situated and that awareness of one's standpoint is essential to credible, responsible inquiry.