An unorthodox way of "realist" thinking
The conflict arising from the violation of Bell's inequalities is often reduced to a binary one: Either we have to give up "realism" or we are forced to give up "locality". Though I asked the same binary question in an older entry, this way of stating the problem ignores important subtleties of possible interpretations of quantum mechanics. In the following I will present you an approach of interpreting quantum theory that relies on the notion participatory realism (you can find a more general entry about realism here). We will study the approach called QBism, developed primarily by Chistopher Fuchs, Rüdiger Schack and David Mermin.
The term Qbism is an abbreviation for Quantum Bayesianism - therefore denoting the bayesian understanding of probability as the fundament of this interpretation. To be more precise: The underlying interpretation of probability is the one of Bruno de Finetti. A view in which probabilities are merely personal degrees of belief and have nothing to do with the representation of physical objects. De Finetti claims radically: PROBABILITY DOES NOT EXIST. In the same manner, QBists state: QUANTUM STATES DO NOT EXIST. [1]
Quantum states are therefore no elements of the observer independent physical reality. Quantum mechanics itself is regarded to be rather an extension of probability theory than a theory about elements of reality. According to the binary categorization above, they give up "realism". Instead they regard quantum mechanics to be a strictly "local" theory, since "no agent can move faster than light". [4]
Solipsism? Instrumentalism? No - It's participatory realism!
Following the simplified binary categorization, QBists seem to give up "realism" (because they deny the quantum state to be an object of the observer inependent physical reality). As a result QBists are often accused to be instrumentalist or even solipsist - since their radically subjective view of quantum mechanics as a "single user theory" might suggest so. But the opposite is the case; QBists regard their interpretation neither as instrumentalist nor as solipsist. Why? Though denying the reality of the quantum state, they do not deny the existence of a world "out there": In Qbist thinking the Born rule is a statement about the world, it is empirical [3]. In addition the subjective character of the theory is not supposed to be a defect, it rather abolishs the strict division between reality and observer - consequently the observer becomes part of reality as well. As Fuchs put it: "That’s not less reality, that’s more." [2]
Randomness and participation in Qbist thinking
In a quantum measurement the "irreducible randomness" or "genuine autonomy"[2] of the world manifests itself. There are no hidden variables or whatsoever that predict with any certainty the measurement outcomes - measurements are rather "moments of creation" [1] in which the agent's participation plays a crucial role. This perspective definitely does not deny realism: "in such a quantum measurement we touch the reality of the world in the most essential of ways" [2].
Then, what are the laws of the world "out there"?
We already encountered the terms "irreducible randomness" and "genuine autonomy" [2] Their meaning can be subsumed in a very strong statement QBists do about the nature of physical reality - they go along with John Wheeler's declaration: "The only law of nature is that there is no law". [2]
The main point I want to convey with this entry is, one needs to be aware that we should not ask oversimplified questions, because doing so dangerously narrows our horizon of possible answers. Bell's theorem does not simply give us the possibility to decide between "realism" and "locality". There are much more possible facettes to explore.
[1] Fuchs: QBism, the Perimeter of Quantum Bayesianism
[2] Fuchs: On participatory Realism
[3] Fuchs, Schack: QBism and the Greeks: why a quantum state does not represent an element of physical reality
[4] Fuchs, Mermin, Schack: An introduction to QBism with an Application to the Locality of Quantum Mechanics