Disciplines and Ideas in Social Sciences LESSON 1 OBJECTIVES 2 3 Differentiate the nature and functions of Social Science disciplines with the natural sciences and humanities interpret personal and social experiences relevant approaches in the Social Sciences through differentiated instructions analyze and reflect the basic concepts and principles of the major social science theories through daily life activities KEY CONCEPTS AND APPROACHES IN THE SOCIAL SCIENCES LOSOIGCYO YTIHSOR HYEGPAOGR OCOYGPYSHL SSPYHIC BLYGOIO ANY DISCIPLINE OR BRANCH OF SCIENCE THAT DEALS WITH HUMAN BEHAVIOR IN ITS SOCIAL AND CULTURAL ASPECTS SOCIAL SCIENCE The Nature and Function of Social Science • Social Science is the branch of science devoted to the study of societies and the relationships among individuals within those societies. The term was formerly used to refer to the field of sociology, the original "science of society", established in the 19th century. The Nature and Function of Social Science • Social Science (Oba, 1999, p. 13) is “the spectrum of disciplines that deal with people and social institutions, behavior and interactions The Nature and Function of Social Science Social Science seek to understand the nature of people and society • what does it mean to be human? The Nature and Function of Social Science What defines a person? Is it history? Is is ancestry? The Nature and Function of Social Science How has he worked, struggles, thrived? Does he live in the mountain/ in the dessert? near the sea? in the arctic? The Nature and Function of Social Science Ancestry is important but location is paramount. The Nature and Function of Social Science What is this person like? Is it a man or a woman? What’s her race? What does he or she do? The Nature and Function of Social Science Profession relies greatly on geography NINE SOCIAL SCIENCE DISCIPLINES • Anthropology is the holistic "science of man", a science of the totality of human existence. The discipline deals with the integration of different aspects of the social sciences, humanities, and human biology. • Derived from the Greek words “Anthropos” meaning “human” and “logos” meaning “word” or “study of” NINE SOCIAL SCIENCE DISCIPLINES • Anthropology is the study of the origin and development of human societies and cultures. Culture is the learned behavior of people, including their languages, belief systems, social structures, institutions, and material goods. NINE SOCIAL SCIENCE DISCIPLINES • Anthropology is the study of: --> the origins --> behavior --> physical and social development of humans NINE SOCIAL SCIENCE DISCIPLINES • Anthropology is “the study of man” • Anthropologists study humans and their societies in the past and present. They are interested in studying why people have similar or different culture practices. NINE SOCIAL SCIENCE DISCIPLINES • Anthroplogists also research all aspects of folk religions, rituals and ceremonies beliefs, taboos and superstitions as part of their practics. • Economics -comes from the Greek words “oikos” which means “family, household, estate,” and “nomos” which means “custom, the law”, hence, it means “household management” or “management of the state” • Economics is a social science that seeks to analyze and describe the production, distribution, and consumption of wealth. • The one who studies household management is called an Economist. • Economics is geared toward the managing of the limited resources but still being able to satisfy the custmers’ unlimited wants • Economics is the study of the choices people make to satify their wants and needs with a limited supply of resources • “People needs and wants are unlimited” • For example, you want to buy all the products, but you only have enough money to buy one. “You have unlimited wants, but limited quantity of money” • ECONOMY --> PRODUCTION --> DISTRIBUTION --> CONSUMPTION WANT --> Something people desire to have -It is fulfilled by buying goods and services WANT --> Can be a GOOD or SERVICE GOOD --> a physical product we can hold and touch. SERVICE --> an action provided to us. • Geography deals with studying the lands and features of the earth. Geography is the study of the physical features of the Earth and how they affect humans who call the planet home. GEO - Greek Word “GEO” means EARTH or land. Graphy -Greek Word “Graphein” means to write about something • Geography as a discipline can be split broadly into two main sub fields: human geography and physical geography. - Human Geography: focuses largely on the built environment and how space is created, viewed and managed by humans as well as the influence humans have on the space they occupy - Physical Geography: examines the natural environment and how the climate, vegetation and life, soil, oceans, water and landforms are produced and interact. Physical Geography: -examines the physical aspects of the earth.(rivers, lakes, hills, valeeys, mountains,etc) Human Geography: -Societies, Groups of People, Relationships between and among groups of people Human Geography: -Essentially, it has to do with people who live in this planet. (culture, economy, history, political science) • History is the continuous, systematic narrative and research into past human events as interpreted through historiographical paradigms or theories • History derived from the “word "historia" meaning "to inquire or research" • History is study of the past and its records about events. • History is the bridge that connects the past with the present and future" (Polidario 2019). • Linguistics is the scientific study of languages and focuses on the three aspect of language: language form, language meaning, and language in context” (Polidario 2019). • Linguistics involves the analysis of language form, language meaning, and language in context. • Linguistics investigates the cognitive and social aspects of human language. • Linguists are the term used to call people who know and speak any language. • Political Science comes from the Greek words “polis” which means “cities-state” and “sciere” which means “study of”. Therefore, it is the study of state affairs. • Political science is a social science which deals with the governance and the analysis of political activities, political notion, and political behavior • Political science deals extensively with the theory and practice of politics commonly thought of as determining of the distribution of power and resources (Polidario 2019) • Political science also studies power in internatioal relations and the theory of great powers and superpowers. • The one who studies state affairs is called a Political Scientist. • Psychology comes from the Greek word “psyche” which means “mind” and logos, which means “study” • It is an academic and applied field involving the study of beahvior and mental processes. • The one who studies human behavior and mental processes are called a Psychologist. • Sociology comes from the Greek word “soci” which is from the Latin word “socius”, which means “companion or society in general” and “logos” which means “study”. • Sociology is the systematic study of society, individuals' relationship to their societies, the consequences of difference, and other aspects of human social action. • The one who studoes the society is called a Sociologist. • Demography is the study of population, population changes and trends using resources such as statistics of births, deaths and disease. • Demography is the study of human population and dynamics, which include components such as population size (actual headcount of people in a given place of location), population composition (age, sex, religion), population growth, population distribution (Polidario 2019). The Nature and Function of Natural Science • Natural science deals with the natural world. It is concerned with the phenomena and objects of nature and the physical world. Natural science involves comprehension, description, and prediction of natural phenomena using empirical and observational evidence. • Biology. The word ‘biology’ comes from the Greek words ‘bios’ (meaning life) and ‘logos’ (meaning study). So biology (AKA life science) is the study of living things and what they do. • Astronomy. Astronomy is the study of celestial objects and space in general; basically, everything beyond Earth’s atmosphere. The word ‘astronomy’ is composed of two Greek words: ‘astron’ (meaning star) and ‘omos’ (meaning arranging). • Chemistry. Chemistry is the study of substances, or matter (i.e. all the ‘stuff’ that makes up the physical world). • Earth Science.Earth science (AKA geoscience) is the study of planet Earth and everything that goes on here. This includes the study of the solid Earth, its oceans, and its atmosphere, as well as the origin and evolution of the planet. There are four major branches of Earth science; these are geology, meteorology, astronomy, and oceanography. • Physics.Physics is thought to be one of the oldest academic disciplines on Earth and involves the study of matter, energy, forces, mass and charge.
