Final answer:
Reader response criticism is the literary approach that values the personal interpretation and response of the reader to a text, recognizing multiple perspectives.
Step-by-step explanation:
The literary criticism approach that emphasizes the importance of readers exploring the basis for their responses within themselves and their communities is C) Reader response criticism. This school of criticism focuses on the individual reader's personal reactions to a text, acknowledging that meaning is constructed by the reader's personal interaction with the text.
Moreover, Reader response criticism posits that there is no single, universally correct interpretation of a text, given that each reader's experience and context contribute to their understanding of the literary work.