MALANDAG NATIONAL HIGH SCHOOL
LEARNING ACTIVITY SHEET 1 - QUARTER 1
Discipline and Ideas in the Applied Social Sciences
Name: _____________________________________________ Score: ____________________
Grade & Section: ____________________________________ Date: _____________________
DEFINING THE SOCIAL SCIENCES AND THE APPLIED SOCIAL SCIENCES
Learning Activity Title
LEARNING COMPETENCY:
1. Clarify the relationships and differences between social science and applied sciences.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION FOR LEARNERS:
Social sciences are investigating human society and the different forces that operate within it.
The different disciplines of the Social Sciences look at human societies and divest perspectives and
focus on an area of expertise for analysis. Economics, Political Science, Sociology, Geography,
Anthropology, Psychology, Demography and History are all branches of the Social Sciences. Such
areas provide social scientists with specific expertise, tools and skills that can help them better
understand social phenomena. The Applied Social Sciences, on the other hand, focuses on the
practical application of the various theories, frameworks, concepts, and methodologies learned from
the Social Sciences in real-life settings. The Module addresses the key distinctions between social
sciences and applied social sciences. This also explores the concepts and fields of social sciences
and applied social sciences.
Social sciences are vast fields of scientific study which investigate human societies and the different
forces within them. These diverse fields examine how people interact and develop their culture.
Social sciences are comprised of several disciplines, including history, political science, sociology,
psychology, economics, geography, demography, anthropology and linguistics. Through a body of
empirical knowledge, the social sciences offer a complex collection of lenses that allow us to
understand and clarify the various aspects of human society. Varieties of lens that the social sciences
study refer to the various areas of the social sciences that research human society. That field of
social science uses a diverse collection of lenses made up of a body of ideas, theories, structures
and methodologies that allow us to understand and research the multi-faceted forces that make up
and influence human society.
Branches of the Social Sciences
Economics
Economics studies the allocation of scarce resources and the production and exchange of goods and
services within society. The two primary divisions of the economics are microeconomics, which
focuses on the actions of individual consumers and producers, and macro-economics, which explores
the actions and output of the aggregate economy.
Anthropology
Anthropology is a scientific study of human beings and their cultures in the past and present.
Anthropology 's systematic approach to human research, the importance of fieldwork and participant
observation, and its focus on cross-cultural comparison, make it special in the social sciences.
History
History is a systematic study of past human events in order to understand the meaning, dynamics
and relationship of the causes and effects of events in the development of societies. This is derived
from the Greek word past, which means "investigation" or "investigation." In a social science, history
focuses on the interpretation and analysis of historical events, as they have historically occurred with
the use of primary and secondary sources. Primary sources refer to eyewitness reports or historical
accounts of the incident. They often use secondary sources or facts that are not eye-witness
accounts and are based on primary sources.
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Political Science
Political science focuses on human actions in relation to political processes, states, rules and
international affairs. This explores the relationship between citizens and politics at all levels, from the
citizen to the national and international levels.
Psychology
Psychology is researching how the human mind functions in consonance with the body to generate
thoughts that contribute to individual actions. Psychology analyzes how individuals and communities
view the world through various feelings, thoughts and states of consciousness.
Sociology
Sociology is a systematic study of people’s behavior in groups. It is derived from the Latin word socio
which means ―people together‖ and Greek word logos which means ―the study of.‖ As a discipline
of the social science, it attempts to understand why and how people interact with each other and how
the function as a society or social subgroups. Applied sociology focus on the use and proper
application of sociological theories, methods and skills to examine data.
Geography
Geography is a study of the relationship between people and their environment. Geography was
derived from Greek words: geography means "world" and ―graphos‖ means "charting or drawing."
Geography examines both the physical features of the Earth's surface and its interaction with human
societies. This also explores how human society communicates with the natural world and the effect
of environments and places on people.
Demography
Demography is a statistical study of human populations over time, according to the Max Planck
Center for Demographic Science (2016). This explores trends in population growth through the study
of birth, human activity, and morbidity, aging and mortality statistics. Population studies or social
demography are an important sub-field of sociology. Social demographers analyze demographic data
to identify, describe and forecast social phenomena. This also studies the composition of social class
and population distribution.
Defining the Applied Social Sciences
The applied social sciences were developed as a response to the highly segmented and
compartmentalized division of social science disciplines that dominated western research training in
the late 1990s and until the end of the twentieth century. Scholars from the social sciences argued
that there is a need for more collaboration in the various fields of the social sciences. This suggests
that the various areas of social sciences need to work together effectively to resolve problems. This
multidisciplinary approach to the study of various social problems has become the focus and the
beginning of applied social sciences. Similar to social sciences, which concentrate on theoretical
studies of society, applied social sciences concentrate on the use and application of the various
ideas, theoretical models and hypotheses of social science disciplines to better explain society and
the various challenges and issues it faces. The applied social sciences were used to provide possible
approaches to the complex problems of society (Gouldner, 1989).
Counseling
Counseling is one of the areas of social sciences applied to it. As an application of the social
sciences, counseling provides guidance, assistance and support to individuals who are distracted by
a range of problems in their lives. Professional guidance is provided to the individual through
counseling, and this is done through the application of psychological methods such as the collection
of case history data, personal interviews and skills tests. Counseling may be provided by
psychologists, life coaches, job psychologists and personal development counselors.
Social Work
Social research is another technical practice in the social sciences related to it. Having been trained
in social sciences to interact and understand social realities, an applied social sciences practitioner
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has a good theoretical and conceptual foundation for social work practice. Through social work,
professionals are supporting people, families, associations and neighborhoods to strengthen their
individual and mutual well-being.
Communication
Studies Applied social sciences provide appropriate instruction for employment in the
communications field. One example of a career in the advertising industry is in the field of mass
media. For example, in the news and current affairs department of major television and radio
networks, practitioners stress the importance of balance, objective, truthful and creative reporting of
news and other important events as they have happened. Practitioners in applied social sciences
have ample experience in this field as they are equipped with communication theories and principles
that allow them to understand and educate the public about the social, political, cultural, and
economic realities. Communication professionals have the skills to write, create and deliver news
accurately and creatively to the public.
 The three distinct divisions of science include: natural science dealing with natural phenomena,
social science dealing with society and the complex relationship between individuals within society,
and applied social sciences, which are the practical application of social science expertise.
 Major fields of social science include anthropology, economics, history, psychology, political
science, geography, sociology and linguistics.
 Applied social science was a discipline founded on the reaction to the compartmentalization of
knowledge in the social sciences, the increasing feeling that most theories and ideas appear to
generalize knowledge and are only presented from a macro viewpoint, and as a way for theories to
connect and contribute to real life problems.
EXERCISES / ACTIVITIES: Graphic Organizer Completion.
Directions: Using the bubble map below, classify whether the following the disciplines are
Pure Social Sciences or Applied Social Sciences. Disciplines to be categorized:
Economics
Counseling
Geography
Psychology
Sociology
Demography
Political Science
History
Social Work
Anthropology
Political Science
Communication
ASSESSMENT:
A. Written work
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Directions: Multiple Choice. Choose the letter of the best answer. Write the chosen letter on a
separate sheet of paper on the space provided before each number.
_________1. Studies the optimum allocation of scarce resources and how individuals interact
within the social structure to address questions regarding the production and exchange of goods
and services.
a. Political Science b. Social Work c. Geography d. Economics
_________2. Which of the following is NOT a field of the social sciences?
a. Counseling
b. Political Science c. Demography
d. Sociology
_________3. Studies changes in population growth through the analysis of statistics on birth,
human movement, morbidity, agedness, and mortality.
a. Geography
b. Demography
c. Economics
d. Statistics
_________4. Field of study that is focused on the use and application of the different concepts,
theoretical models, and theories of the social science disciplines to help understand society and
the different problems and issues it faces.
a. Social Sciences
b. Applied Social Sciences
c. Natural Sciences d. Behavioral Sciences
_________5. Which of the following is a main discipline/professional track of the applied social
science?
a. Political Science c. Demography Studies b. Guidance Counseling d. Sociological Research
A. Performance Task
Directions: Conduct a Survey about the chosen degree (Critical Thinking, Creativity)
Conduct a survey among 10 Senior High School students and ask them about their chosen
degrees and the reason for choosing them. The answers will then be categorized either as a
Social Science or Applied Social Science. Submit the findings to your teacher through an
illustrated family tree. Write your answers on a long bond paper.
REFERENCES:
Discipline and Ideas in the Applied Social Sciences Module 1
Department of Education – Bureau of Learning Resources (DepEd-BLR)
DepEd-National Capital Region, Division of City Schools-Manila
Answer key:
Exercises:
Exercises:
Economics, Psychology, Political
Science, History, Geography,
Anthropology, Sociology,
Sociology, Demography.
History Geography Anthropology
Sociology Demography
Prepared by:
VERLYN G. TANGENTE, MT- I
LAS Writer
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