Standpoint Theory

The idea of a standpoint theory is most widely used in feminist theory and most strongly rooted in a broader sense of multicultural theory. Most generally, a standpoint theory is one that gives light to the specific circumstances and insider knowledge available only to members of a certain collective standpoint. This collective need not be a group in the strictest sense of the word but rather a shared location identified by some heterogeneous commonality. In other words, the idea of a collective standpoint does not imply an essential overarching characteristic but rather a sense of belonging to a group bounded by a shared experience.

The idea of a standpoint theory is a group-based ideology. An individual can be a member of several standpoints (black, woman, Jew, or black female Jew) at once, although the ways in which various forms of oppression intersect will have the strongest impact on the standpoint theory of the individual.

Standpoint theorists rally around the idea of social justice and support protesting, organizing, and testifying to one's unique social location as a means of raising awareness of, and giving validity to, all lived social experiences. There is a goal of empowering those who lack power and to diminish the line between traditional theory and other narratives. Standpoint theories are value laden and seek to disrupt the intellectual and social world but only as a means of opening them up to diversity. There is an edge to standpoint theory that is both self-critical as well as critical of other theories and the social world more broadly. Most important, stand-point theories recognize their own limitations by virtue of their unique historical, social, and cultural locations and seek to open the social stage to all members of society.