Understanding Culture,
Society and Politics:
Starting Points
STARTING POINTS:
The learners are expected to:
- Acknowledge human cultural variation;
- Social differences, social change, context of state and
governance;
- Understand the attitude towards different social, political and
cultural phenomenon through observation/reflection; and
- Highlights the value of the disciplines of anthropology,
sociology and political science as three important branches of
social sciences.
CHAPTER 1: UNDERSTANDING CULTURE,
SOCIETY AND POLITICS: SOME KEY
OBSERVATIONS
Lesson 1: Lesson 1: What Is Anthropology?
Lesson 2: Lesson 2: What Is Sociology?
Lesson 3: What Is Political Science?
ANTHROPOLOGY is the scientific study of humanity or
those aspects that make us human and the imprints of
human achievement and progress.
SOCIOLOGY is the systematic study of the human
social life. (Charon)
POLITICAL SCIENCE is a science of politics and
politics as a governmental determination of who gets
what, when and how. (Laswell)
FIRST
INTERSECTI Social sciences: deals with
the function and structure of
ON
The three are
classified as
branches of the
Social Sciences
human society, as well as
the interpersonal
relationships of individuals
as members of society.
THIRD
INTERSECTI
ON
Objectivity in
science
According to Charon, science is
not merely observation, it is careful
observation.
Max Weber, describe science as
“value-free”
investigation.
An
attempt
to
carefully
and
systematically observe the world
“as it is” rather than as we would
like it to be.
THIRD
INTERSECTI
ON
Objectivity in
science
He means that the scientist’s only
commitment must be to scientific
investigation itself; the conclusions
remain constantly open to further
investigation.
All social scientist agreed rules on
posing a question, setting up
hypothesis, testing the hypothesis,
arriving at a conclusion and relating
that conclusion to the original
question posed.
Concept Notes:
• ANTHROPOLOGY
o It is the discipline that tries to make sense on cultural beliefs and practices that many groups of people adhere to
and plays a large influence in their lives.
o It is the study of culture from past to present.
The basis of the study of Anthropology is the culture of a race or a group of people.
∙
CULTURE
o is seen in the beliefs, customs and traditions that are reflected on how people of a group behave
and interact with others and their way of life.
o It is different from one country to another. Even within the country itself lies many wonderful
and varied cultures.
∙
CULTURAL DIVERSITY
o means a range of different societies or people of different origins, religions, and traditions all living
and interacting together.
o It is culturally dictated when some of the factors are skin color, language, and ethnicity.
o It is the result of the influences brought about by values, beliefs, customs, and traditions that a
particular group of people adheres to
Example: The tradition of “pagmamano”
or kissing the hand of the elderly is a
popular cultural practice in our country.
It shows respect and reflects good
behavior of the younger generations.
Concept Notes:
SOCIOLOGY
• Sociology is the branch of Social Science that deals with the study of how man interacts
with others in each set of rules and how these interactions are influenced by individual
culture.
• We also learn in Sociology that individuals are expected to learn and adapt to the widely
accepted norms to gain entry and acceptance to any form of society to which they belong.
• Values are what we believe as morally correct based on the culture and experiences
which guide us in our decisions and how we interact with others in society
• Beliefs are things accepted as true or real and take the form of firmly held opinion or
conviction regardless of the lack of verifiable evidence
• Sociality is the qualities that are expected from us by the society where we belong.
• Our sociality is determined by many factors that we call “categories.” Our roles in society
are largely based on the “labels” that we possess. Some of them are as follows:
male/female, rich/poor, tall/short, and even the color of our skin.
• Society is the unseen force that determines the stature and the expectations given to
every member.
Examples:
VALUES: Tina was taught never to cheat during exams and so she studies in
preparation for her tests. In one of her exams, she was not able to study because she still had a
lot of projects to finish. During the test, she found it difficult to think of the correct answers and
she then noticed that her classmates were copying from one another as one of them had a
“kodigo.” Then they told her if she wanted to, she could also copy. Tina was tempted to join but
decided not to because she knew it was wrong. In the end, their teacher discovered what her
classmates had done, so they failed the entire semester as a consequence.
BELIEFS: After attending a wake, Joel and his family did not come home straight. They
stopped by a fast-food restaurant to have some snacks before going home because they believed
that the spirit of the dead would follow them to their house that could cause misfortune to their
family.
This belief is what we call “pagpag.”
Concept Notes:
In the field of politics, there are many and varied fields that specialize in different aspects so that
the government can function efficiently.
• POLITICAL SCIENCE
• It is the systematic study of government and politics.
• It makes generalizations and analyses about political systems and political behavior and uses these
results to predict future behavior or outcome that is vital in determining the success or failure of a
government.
• It is the aspect of everybody’s life that determines how society and culture is shaped because the
government takes care of everyone who is under its governance.
The kind of government that a society has dictates what kind of life the citizens enjoy in one particular
country regardless of groups and culture.
Examples: There are fields in Political Science that deals with studying the nature of the
political system of other countries to be able to maintain good ties with their respective
governments.