CHAPTER 1:

THE EMERGENCE OF THE SOCIAL SCIENCES

Introduction

Few years from now, you may be entering college with a certain career in mind. You
may probably take courses in the sciences, such as biology or physics, to widen your
understanding of the natural world and become a world-renowned scientist in the future.
However, you may also want to take courses that attempt to study human relations while
applying scientific method in order to discover the complexity of the society we live in. Here lies
the importance of the social sciences as a field of study. For all we know, you can be a well-
renowned anthropologist, psychologist, or economist some day. How well do you know human
groups and societies? These are the primary concerns of social scientists as they try to unravel
the mystery of human behavior in a society. Why do people behave in a certain way in society?
How can you understand the society help us solve the problems that exist within? This chapter
will help you understand the nature and the foundations of the social sciences, as well as the
different disciplines that study human relations.

Learning Objectives:

At the end of this module, you will be able to:

1. Define social sciences as the study of society

2. Apply the concept of scientific method when studying various human phenomena
3. Distinguish the difference between the social sciences, and the natural sciences, and the
humanities

Get Started

Instructions: Answer the following items

Exercise 1: Explain in your own word of what Aristotle, the great Greek philosopher who wrote
that man is a "social animal" and "rational animal"
Exercise 2: Photo Analysis: Analyze the following picture and explain your answer to the
following questions; (1.) What is your interpretation when look these photos? (2.) What were
your thoughts regarding the pictures? (3). Do you believe the ideas in the pictures? Explain your
answer?

1 | Discipline and Ideas in the Social Sciences

 Get Focused

LESSON 1: UNDERSTANDING THE DOMAIN OF THE SOCIAL SCIENCES

The great Greek philosopher Aristotle wrote that “man is a social animal.” We are all
born and raised in the society. We belong to a particular group and we share a certain territory.
We interact with one another and build relationship in the hope of pursuing a better life. We
may share a distinct culture, same political dynamics, or similar institutions. As rational animals,
we use reason in order to satisfy our curiosity and discover the how and why of so many things
around us. When questions present themselves, we try to find answers depending on different
modes of inquiry. It is quite obvious that there is a need to study society in order for us to
provide explanations on its workings and to understand a wide array of phenomena that baffles
the human mind. In this way, observable results may help in predicting human behavior and
guide people in formulating the necessary measures that could solve societal problems. This
lesson will help us understand the social sciences, its importance, and its difference from the
field of the natural sciences.

What is Human Knowledge?

Human Knowledge are the information that being stored up in our mind. When we say
knowledge these are the information that stored up in us because of our experiences, studies.
Intelligence is capacity of a person to make decisions and the capacity of a person to interpret
the things that are happening around him.

Three Different Categories of Human Knowledge

1. Social Sciences- the focus studies are Anthropology, Geography, History, Linguistics, Political
Science, Sociology, Psychology, and Demography.
2. Natural Sciences- description, prediction, and understanding of phenomena such as atomic
particles, weather conditions, and earthquake patterns. Natural Sciences are the branches of
science that go into the details of the natural world by using scientific methods.

2 | Discipline and Ideas in the Social Sciences

3. Humanities- study the ways in which experiences are processed and documented. These are
Literature, Visual Arts, Religion, and Theater.
Science and the Social Sciences
 Society- People in general thought of living together in organized communities with
shared laws, traditions, and values
 Science- knowledge about or study of the natural based on facts through experiments
and observation.

Differences of Social Sciences and Science

Objects Humans

Measurements Uncontrollable

Discoveries Understanding

Experimentation Observations

The Scientific Method

Standard set of techniques for building scientific knowledge, such as how to make valid
observations, how to interpret results, and to generalize results
A researcher tests his or her hypothesis by subjecting it to careful scrutiny and debate and
finally comes up with the conclusion that either validates or disproves the hypothesis.

 Topic- The researcher selects a particular subject matter depending on his or her
interest; it could be purely accidental sometimes.

 Problem- The researcher defines the nature of the problem where a theory can be
developed along the way; this is the most important phase of inquiry

 Hypothesis- The researcher formulates a general statement of the problem that could
give him or her an idea on what data to gather or omit.

 Methods of Inquiry- This is the stage of empirical research involving the use of senses
and /or precision instruments; phenomenon must be carefully and accurately described
and recorded.

 Analysis- The researcher may find patterns and relationships that could help in the
analysis of gathered data; this is the stage of classifying and organizing data.

 Conclusion- The researcher formulates a scientific theory after a thorough analysis of

data; a theory can be changed or revised depending on the result of the future research
projects.
3 | Discipline and Ideas in the Social Sciences
 LESSON 2: THE DISCIPLINES OF THE SOCIAL SCIENCES

We see all kinds of people around us. We talk, mingle, and interact with other people. While we
belong in the same community and may share the same norms, we are all entirely different
from the way we think, act, and behave given the differing scenarios we encounter in our daily
lives. The various disciplines of the social sciences attempt to study human society depending
on their focus of study to help us understand our very own intricacies. This lesson will help us
understand the different disciplines within the social sciences.

I. What is Anthropology?

Anthropology is the science or study of man. The word anthropology comes from the Greek
terms Anthropos, meaning man, and logos, meaning science or study. Anthropology lets us
study the cultural and biological evolution of all human groups so we can analyse them and
apply the findings in the current situations of man and prepare ourselves in the possible
changes in humans in the future.
Goals of Anthropology
1. Explain and analyse similarities and differences of different human cultures.
2. Assess the cultural development of our species based on the findings in archaeological
records
Analyse the biological evolution of the human species as revealed in fossil records.
3. Explain the present human biological diversity.

Four Major Fields of Anthropology

Lenkeit (2008), as cited by Saluba et al. (2016), listed the different fields of Anthropology
as follows:

1. Physical/Biological Anthropology. It studies Homo sapiens as biological beings both in the

present and in the past.
 Palaeoanthropology. The root word paleo means ancient. It is the study of human
biological evolution through an examination of the fossils of who we believe are
ancestors.
● Primatology. It is the study of primates who are believed to be the closest animal
relatives of human beings.

4 | Discipline and Ideas in the Social Sciences

 2. Cultural/Social Anthropology. It is the description and comparison of the adaptations
made by human groups to the diverse ecosystems of the earth. We call these adaptations
culture.
● Ethnography. It is the descriptive study of one culture, subculture, or micro culture
based on the framework. Ethnographers spend time (a year or more, continuous or
on and off) in the field (some live with the people they study) to record the way and
how it changes.
● Ethnology. It is the comparative study of cultures. Different cultures are analysed by
explaining their similarities and differences. The subject of comparison may be the
entire culture or a particular aspect of cultures such as gender, law, and education.
3. Archaeology. It is the study of people who lived in the past by examining whatever
remained in the sites where they once occupied. Archaeologists study how these people
adapted to their natural and socio-cultural environments and how culture spread and
changed through time.
● Prehistoric Archaeology. It is the study of the remains of cultures that existed
before the time of written records.
● Historical Archaeology. It is the study of the remains of cultures and subcultures
that have written records but about which little, if anything, was recorded.
● Cultural Resources Management. It is the work to preserve archaeological sites
that are threatened, produce environmental impact reports, and do salvage digs
on sites that will be destroyed by contemporary buildings.
● Applied Archaeology. An area in archaeology that uses methods of archaeology to
study contemporary material culture to solve problems.
4. Linguistics. It is the study of how language is formed and how it works, the history and
development of language, and its relationships to other aspects of culture.
● Descriptive Linguistics. This study focuses on the mechanics of language.
● Historical Linguistics. This study works to reconstruct the history of languages,
including the development and relationship to other languages.

II. What is Political Science?

Political Science is the branch of social science that deals with systems of government,
and the analysis of political activities and behavior. It is above all the study of power, how it is
created, exercised, justified, and challenged. He who has the power has the control.

As a social science, political science focuses on group power, the ‘how’ and ‘why’ of collective
decision-making. Hence it leads us to consider the ethics of power, which in turn involves
conceptions of community, identity, justice, and citizenship. Under the banner of political science,
we gather the study of democracy, war, law, rights, wealth, and authority, as well as the institutions
that shape and secure them.

5 | Discipline and Ideas in the Social Sciences

Aristotle and the Politics

“Man is by nature a political animal” -Aristotle. Father of Political Science.

Aristotle likened politics to an organism rather than a machine, a collection of parts none of
which can exist without the others. Politics as defined by Aristotle himself is a supreme purpose of
life, virtue as he puts it.

Control and Politics Relationship

Many of the key concepts of political science have to do with the relationship of control,
according to Lawson (1997), as cited by Saluba et al (2016)

1. Power. It is the heart of politics. But power is hard to define. Three fallacies were given
by Robert Dahi in the analysis of power:
● “lump-of-power” fallacy – power cannot be shared
● “confounding power with resources” fallacy – associating power with things
such as money
● “confounding power with rewards and deprivations” fallacy – associating
power with the ability to reward or sanction
2. Influence. It includes all cases when one party’s desires affect the behavior of another
party. Power is another form of influence. But influence can take place without the
threat of sanctions or use of force, as well as without the promise of personal reward.
3. Authority. It is right to exercise the power and influence of a given position that comes
from having been placed in that position according to regular known, and widely
accepted procedure, such as elections and appointments by an elected official.
4. Legitimacy. It is the permission of the people for the government to do something on
behalf of the people. Authority is the right of someone to do something on behalf of
the government. But the government gained this right because the citizens give them
legitimacy. But it is possible to have authority without legitimacy such as an insane
king where the people could approve the next person in authority to lead the nation.
5. Linkage. In all relationships of control, there is an element of linkage.
● In terms of international relations, linkage refers to ways of how one nation
may force the desired decision in another. For example, a nation will aid
another country of the latter relaxes their tariffs on the former’s exports.
● In domestic situations, the linkage is how pressure groups, political parties, and
electoral processes connect the general public with leaders to make a policy
decision.

Types of Major Political Ideologies

6 | Discipline and Ideas in the Social Sciences

 By providing the government with legitimacy, ideology justifies the status quo according to
Rodee (1983), as cited by Saluba et al. (2016). But ideology may also be used by activists, rebels,
and reformists to go against the status quo.
1. Anarchism. It comes from the Greek word anarchos, meaning “having no government”. It is
characterized by “each citizen is his legislator”. Legislator and policymaking is the exclusive
right of each individual as he/she knows his/her interests and needs.
2. Communism. In practice, it is a system in which small elite controls the political and economic
life of a nation.
3. Socialism. It is the belief that means of production should be owned and operated by and for
the people generally rather than by and for private individuals.
4. Fascism. It is any centralized, authoritarian government that is not communist whose policies
glorify the state over the individual and are destructive to basic human rights.
5. Capitalism. It is an economic and political system in which a country's trade and industry are
controlled by private owners for profit, rather than by the state.

III. What is Sociology?

Sociology is the systematic study of human social relationships and institutions. It focuses on
how the parts of society fit together and change, as well as make us aware of the consequences of
that social change.

Sociology’s subject matter is diverse, ranging from crime to religion, from the family to the
state, from the divisions of race and social class to the shared beliefs of a common culture, and
from social stability to radical change in whole societies. Unifying the study of these diverse
subjects is sociology’s purpose of understanding how human action and consciousness both shape
and are shaped by surrounding culture and social structures.

The Development of Sociology as a Science

Ancient philosophers such as Plato and Socrates have thought and taught about social
behaviour. However, they did not utilize systematic methods to test their theories on social
behaviour. They were called social philosophers, not sociologists. It was only in the nineteenth
century when European social philosophers used scientific methods and thus, the field of sociology
was born.

Three revolutions have to take place before the sociological imagination could crystalize:
1. The scientific revolution (16th to 17th c.) was part of the Renaissance period and it
encouraged the use of evidence to substantiate the theories.

7 | Discipline and Ideas in the Social Sciences

 2. The democratic revolution (18th c.) encourages the view that human action can change
society.
3. The industrial revolution (19th c.) gave sociologists their subject matter. It was caused by
the social upheavals of nineteenth-century Europe (e.g. the French Revolution) and the
advancement of the natural sciences.

Many social philosophers felt the need to find solutions to the challenges in their societies and
to understand how and why such radical change could occur. So, they utilized the scientific
method as a means to understand and control the social world.

The Purpose of Sociology

Sociology studies these links: how society affects the individual, how the individual affects
society, and how an individual affects another individual in a certain society. And there are at least
three reasons why we need to study these.

1. For intellectual exercise. Sociology can be pursued for our intellectual satisfaction, for the
pleasure of ticking our curiosity, or for producing scientific knowledge.
2. To understand our lives. Sociology encourages us to be more curious about the society we
live in, to actively participate in it while evaluating the popular assumptions as well as our
understanding of the different social aspects such as race and ethnicity, gender, and
sexual orientation.
3. To pursue a specific career. Sociology can be used to pursue a career in the government
(to fight crime, improve education, reduce poverty, and to solve other social issues) or in
the private sector (as a sociology teacher, social researcher, social critic, political analyst,
or any job that needs sociological knowledge).

One of the most useful lessons to learn in studying sociology is turning problems,
whether intellectual, personal, societal, or global, into opportunities to solve other problems
and improve our lives.

IV. What is Economics?

Economics came from the Greek words, oikos meaning “house” and nomos meaning “custom
or law”.
 The term oikonomia literally translates as “management of a household.”

 The science that deals with the production, distribution, and consumption of wealth,
and with the various related problems of labor, finance, taxation, resources, scarcity etc.
 Economics is a discipline that concentrates on how a particular society solves its
problem of scarcity of resources.

8 | Discipline and Ideas in the Social Sciences

Resources

 A source of supply, support or help such as natural resources, human resources, and
capital resources.
1. Natural resources are something from nature that people can use, such as
trees, land, water, animals,
and minerals, etc...
2. Human resources are the people needed to grow or make and sell a product
or service. The people who came to live in Communityville used their human
resources (their labor) along with the natural resources, to build the roads,
railroad, and bui
3. Capital resources include money to start a new business, tools, buildings,
machinery, and any other goods people make to produce goods and provide
services. The items the people in Communityville produced are called capital
resources
Scarcity

 It refers to a basic economic problem—the gap between limited resources and

theoretically limitless wants.

 is a naturally occurring limitation on the resource that cannot be replenished.

 is a naturally occurring limitation on the resource that cannot be replenished.

Shortage

 is a market condition of a particular good at a particular price.

 is a market condition of a particular good at a particular price.

Economics is also a study of the efficient allocation of scare resources in order to satisfy
unlimited human needs and wants.
Economists seek to understand people's activities concerning production, distribution, and
consumption of goods and services.
Economic resources that can be used to produce goods and services are called factors of
production

9 | Discipline and Ideas in the Social Sciences

3 QUESTIONS OF ECONOMICS

 What to produce?
 How to produce?
 Whom to produce for?
Four Factors of Production
1. Land -all natural resources
2. Labor -human effort used in production
3. Capital -man-made factors used in production
4. Entrepreneurship -the skill in-charged combining all economic resources.

MICROECONOMICS MACROECONOMICS

 studies individual income  studies national income

 analyzes demand and supply of labor  analyzes total employment in the
 Deals with households and firm economy
decisions  Deals with aggregate decisions
 studies individual prices  studies overall price level
 analyzes demand and supply of goods  analyzes aggregate demand and
aggregate supply

TYPES OF ECONOMIC SYSTEM

1. TRADITIONAL ECONOMY

 Built upon traditional customs and beliefs

 Centers around agriculture, hunting, fishing

 Barter and trade is often used in place of money

 Often, people in a traditional economy live in families or tribes.


2. MARKET ECONOMY

 based on market determined supply and demand

10 | Discipline and Ideas in the Social Sciences
  prices of goods and services are determined in a free price system

 Private ownership, the government does not own the businesses

3. COMMAND ECONOMY

 The government creates a central economic plan for all sectors and regions of the
country

 The government allocates all resources according to the central plan

 The central plan sets the priorities for the production of all goods and services

 “Opposite” of the Free market economy

4. MIXED ECONOMY

 ownership of goods by both private and government or state-owned entities

 part of the economy is left to the free market, and part of it is run by the government.

 Mixed economies start from the basis of allowing private enterprise to run most
business. Then the governments intervene in certain areas of the economy ,such as
regulation, and spending money on public services.
Economics is important for many areas of society. It can help improve living standards
and make society a better place.

V. What is Geography?
Geography is the study of the features of the earth and location of living things on the
planet. The term is derived from the Greek word geographia, from geo meaning “earth” and
graphe meaning “to describe”. A literal translation would be “to describe the earth”.

Branches of Geography
1. Physical Geography- is geography from the perspective of earth sciences and as a branch of
natural sciences. It includes the study of soil, land forms, water, vegetation, minerals, and
climate.
2. Human Geography- focuses on the human aspect of geography that is marked by a strong
commitment to the concept of culture. This particular branch of geographic study is interested
in determining humankind’s role in changing the environment as well as the different processes
11 | Discipline and Ideas in the Social Sciences
that shaped human society, including migration and settlement patterns. Examples of
categories within the branch of human geography include cultural geography, development
geography, economic geography, social geography, and urban geography.

VI. What is History?

History is a branch of knowledge that attempts to ascertain, record, and explain facts and
events that happened in the past. It originated from the Greek word historia meaning “inquiry”.
It is one of the oldest social sciences tracing its origin in the myths and traditions of early people
that were passed from generations.
Historiography- the writing of history based on the critical examination of sources, the
selection of particulars from the synthesis material, and the synthesis of particulars into
narrative that will stand the test of critical methods.

BRANCH THEME SAMPLE WORK

Social History Experiences of common Crime, Society, and the State

people in the Nineteenth Century
Philippines (Greg Bankoff,
Ateneo de Manila University
Press, 1996)

Cultural History Custom, arts, traditions Balatik: Etnoastronomiya

Kalangitan sa Kabihasnang
Pilipino (Dante L. Ambrosio,
The University of the Press,
1996)

Political History Political ideas, events, Illustrado Politics: Filipino Elite

movements, parties, leaders Responses to American Rule,
1989-1908 (Michael Cullinane,
Ateneo de Manila University
Press, 2003)

Economic History Economic occurrences, way of The Tobacco Monopoly in the

living, distribution of goods Philippines: Bureaucratic
Enterprise and Social Change,
1766-1980 (Ed C. De Jesus,
Ateneo de Manila University

12 | Discipline and Ideas in the Social Sciences

 Press, 1980)

Diplomatic History International relations The United States and the

between states Philippines; A Study of
Neocolonialism (Stephen
Rosskamm Shalom, New Day
Publishers, 1986)

Military History Military affairs, strategies, The Filipino-American war

doctrine, armed conflict 1899-1913 (by Samuel K. Tan.
University of the Philippines
Press, 2002)

History of Religion Religious experiences and Beginnings of the Filipino

ideas Dominicans (Rolando V. De la
Rosa, UST Publishing House,
1990)

History of Women Women’s role in history Working Women of Manila in

the 19th Century (Ma. Luisa
Camagay, University of the
Philippines Press, 1995)

Environmental History Human relation with nature Nature and Orient: The
and environment Environmental History of
South and Southeast Asia

VII. What is Linguistics?

Linguistics is a field of knowledge involving the scientific study of language as a universal and
recognizable aspect of human behavior and capacity. Linguistics study changes that have taken
place on various languages over time as well as their modern variations.
Branches

BRANCHES AREAS OF INTEREST

General Linguistics Concepts and categories of language or

languages: theory of language

Micro Linguistics Structure of language systems

13 | Discipline and Ideas in the Social Sciences
1. Phonetics
2. Phonology
3. Morphology
4. Syntax
5. Semantics

Macro Linguistics External view of language

1. Stylistics
2. Development Linguistics
3. Historical Linguistics
4. Language Geography
5. Psycho linguistics
6. Sociolinguistics
7. Clinical Linguistics

VIII. What is Psychology

Psychology deals with the nature of human behaviors, and both internal and external factors
that affect these behaviors. From the Latin word psychologia combining psych meaning
“spirit” or “soul” and logia for “study of” psychology literally means “study of the soul”.

Psychology concentrates on individuals and the various forces that mold them. From the
physical sciences, it draws out knowledge on the physical structure of humans, including their
nervous system and stages of maturation. From the social sciences, it obtains information
about the social world, such as motivation, emotions, behavior, and attitudes. It is said that
psychology has four important goals, namely, to describe, explain, predict, and change
behavior.
BRANCH INTEREST

Developmental Psychology Looks at development throughout the

lifespan, from childhood to adulthood;
includes all aspects of human growth,

14 | Discipline and Ideas in the Social Sciences

 including physical, emotional, intellectual,
social, perpetual and personality development

Experimental Psychology Utilizes scientific methods to research the

brain and behavior

Personality Psychology Focuses on how biology, psychology, behavior,

and social factors influence health and illness.

IX. What is Demography?

Demography is the science and statistical study of human populations. The term came from
French word demographie derived from Greek demos meaning “people” and French graphie.
By investing the three demographic process of (1) birth, (2) migration, and (3) aging (including
death), demographers attempt to comprehend the mechanisms behind human population.
Demography is usually categorized under the discipline of sociology despite the presence of
several individual demography departments.

15 | Discipline and Ideas in the Social Sciences

 CHAPTER 2:
DOMINANT APPROACHES AND IDEAS IN THE SOCIAL SCIENCES

Introduction

In the previous chapter, we have learned about the emergence and essence of the Social
Sciences, as well as the distinctions between the Social Sciences on the one hand and the
Natural Sciences and Humanities on the other hand. We have also discussed the different
Social Science disciplines which all aimed at the study of society using scientific method but
with different domains, subjects of inquiry, and techniques.

Learning Objectives:

At the end of this module, you will be able to:

a) Determine manifest and latent functions of socio-cultural phenomena as well as social
dysfunctions based on structural-functionalism.
b) Predict the social consequences of decision-making based on scarcity according to
rational choice theory.
c) Examine the constitutive nature of informal and formal institutions and their actors and
how it constrains social behavior.
d) Evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of different approaches under positivist
paradigm.

LESSON 3: POSITIVIST SOCIAL SCIENCE

What is Positivism?

The English word positivism is derived from the French word positivism which means
“imposed on the mind by experience.” Positivism refers to the philosophy of science that
asserts that the only trustworthy knowledge is the information obtained from rational
conducts and reports of sensory experience. The Concept of empirical evidence, or
established data received from the senses, is important in positivism. The French sociologist
August Comte is considered the “Father of Positivism” when he asserted in the early 19 th
century that society, like the physical world, operates according to absolute laws, and that is
the duty of sociologist to discover these laws in order to understand the nature of society.
1 | Discipline and Ideas in the Social Sciences
 Positivism is related to certain social theories such as structural-functionalism, rational choice
theory, and institutionalism.

Positivist research prefers to exact quantitative data and often uses experiments, surveys, and
statistics as research methods. Positivism advocates “objective research” and propagates the
belief that “the truth is out there,” meaning that the science has only one set of reason, and
any academic endeavor seeking to be scientific must conform to it. For positivism, social
science is a structured mode of merging deductive logic with clear-cut empirical explanation
of individual behavior in order to ascertain and verify a set of possible underlying laws that
can be used to foresee general patterns of human actions.

POSITIVISM
asserts that every claim
be scientifically verified

STRUCTURAL- RATIONAL CHOICE INSTITUTIONALISM

FUNCTIONALISM
assumes that society Views society as made
sees society as a is made up of individuals up individuals who
complex system whose who always make logical are influenced by institutions,
parts work decisions that provide which are also humanly
together to promote them with greatest benefit created constrains that
solidarity and stability at the lowest cost shape political, economic,
and social interactions

LESSON 4: INTERPRETATIVE SOCIAL SCIENCE

Interpretative social science is one of the three board paradigms in the Social Sciences
which is sensitive to context (Neuman, 1997). This approach claims that people create and
associate their own subjective meanings as they interact with the world around them. Hence,

2 | Discipline and Ideas in the Social Sciences

 it is the duty of interpretive researchers to search for the meanings people assign to certain
phenomena in order to understand them. Interpretive paradigm also claims that our
knowledge of society is socially constructed, thus there is no objective reality, as opposed to
the claims of positivist social science that there exists objective reality.

In this lesson, we will discuss two theoretical approaches that fall under interpretive social
science-hermeneutic phenomenology and symbolic interactionalism.

INTERPRETIVE SOCIAL SCIENCE

people create and associate their own sunjective meanings as they

interact with the world around them.

HERMENEUTIC PHENOMENOLOGY SYMBOLIC INTERACTIONALISM

Historical phenomena are Symbols help us understand how we view

interpreted differently in proper Society and communicate with
Context through one’s consciousness each other

LESSON 5: CRITICAL SOCIAL SCIENCE

Critical social science is an analytical method of investigation that attempts to expose

surface illusions to uncover the real structures in the material world in order to help people
understand their situation and then transform the world for the better (Neuman 1997). In
other words, it claims to uncover surface reality in order to expose underlying structures so
that people may improve society to which they belong. Therefore the goal of the critical
science is not only to discover laws that explain human behavior and social phenomena but to

3 | Discipline and Ideas in the Social Sciences

 help people understand why social inequalities exists so that they ca do something to address
these inequalities.

Critical social science aims to address to evaluate and alter social relations. Its ultimate aim is
to change the world, so to speak. Like positivism, it accepts the notion that there exists a
social reality but while positivism sees social reality as static, critical science considers it as
constantly evolving due to social, political, and economic factors. Critical social science rejects
the idea of alienation, or giving the creations of your own activity a detached existence. It
advocates the idea that people should not remove themselves from their creations so that
they will recognize them as something they helped bring about, giving them sense of
achievement and sense over their own destiny.

FEMINIST THEORY

Aims to eliminate gender inequality

by analyzing the status of men and
women
In society

MARXISM
CRITICAL SOCIAL
SCIENCE Aims to eliminate class
Critical process of conflict through class struggle
inquiry
That attempts to How PSYCHOANALYSIS
uncover
different
Surface illusions to theoretica Aims to understand human behavior by
reveal
l Making the unconscious conscious
Real structures in the approach
es aim to
transform
society HUMAN-ENVIRONMENT SYSTEMS

Aims to promote sustainability by

Understanding how human and
Environment systems interact

4 | Discipline and Ideas in the Social Sciences

 CHAPTER 3
FILIPINO APPROACHES IN THE SOCIAL SCIENCES

Introduction

In the previous chapter, we have learned about the dominant approaches and ideas in
the social sciences which offer different ways of looking society. The three dominant
approaches (positivist, interpretive, and critical social science) give us various perspective in
analyzing society. Under positivist social science, we have discussed structural-functionalism,
rational choice, and institutionalism; under interpretive social science, we have tackled
hermeneutical phenomenology and symbolic interactionism; under critical science, we have
talked about feminist theory, Marxism, psychoanalysis, and human-environment systems.
In this chapter, we will examine the social ideas by Filipino thinkers in the nineteenth
century starting from the ilustrados such as Pedro Paterno, Jose Rizal, and Isabelo delos
Reyes. We will also analyze the social ideas of the instigators of the revolution such as Andres
Bonifacio and Emilio Jacinto. Lastly, we will take a look at the ideas of Filipino social scientist
which emerged in the second half of the twentieth century such as Zeus A. Salazar’s
Pantayong Pananaw and Virgilio Enriquez’ Sikolohiyang Pilipino, as well as important concepts
culled from the Institute of Philippine Culture’s Study on Philippine Values. These Filipino
approaches in the social sciences offers alternative ways of looking at society using our own
perspective as Filipinos.

Learning Objectives

At the end of the lesson, the students are expected to be able to:
a) Examine the social ideas of Filipino thinkers starting from Isabelo de los Reyes, Jose
Rizal, and other Filipino intellectuals
b) Analyze Filipino society by looking and examining the ideas of Filipino intellectuals and
social thinkers in history.

LESSON 6: THE FILIPINO SOCIAL THINKERS

During the latter part of 19th century, educated Filipinos began to emerge in the society
and many of them called for the implementation of immediate reforms to improve the lot of
their fellow Filipinos. The great thinkers of the so-called Reform Movement, such as Jose Rizal,
Marcelo del Pilar, and Graciano Lopez-Jaena, advocated for the assimilation of the Philippines to
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become part of Spain so that laws in homeland Spain can be applied equally to the colony and
their times and displayed intense love for the country and concern to fellow Filipinos. This lesson
will introduce us to concepts and ideas of Filipino intellects on social issues as they attempt to
indigence the social sciences and apply them to the local settings.

From Indio to Filipino

The phrase “from Indio to Filipino” was borrowed from the classic Philippine history
book entitled History of the Filipino People by the eminent Filipino historian Teodoro Agoncillo.
The term indio was a derogatory term used by the Spaniards to denote the natives living in the
archipelago. Initially, the term Filipino was given to those Spaniards born in the Philippines, or
the insulares, as opposed to those born in Spain called peninsulares. The lowly natives were
oftentimes depicted in Spanish works as indolent and backward. A notable work of this type
includes Tandang Basio Macunat written by Fray Miguel Lucio y Bustamante in 1985. However,
when Jose Rizal chose the name “Los Indios Bravos” (or “Brave Indians” in reference to the
American Indians) for his newly-founded organization in 1889, he suggested to his companions
that they should take pride in calling their race as indios instead of resenting the disparaging
term. Incidentally, the natives were eventually called “Filipinos” only in 1898 when the Spanish
troops in their fight against impending American onslaught who are now beginning to occupy
Manila during those tumultuous time.

Social Ideas of Filipino Thinkers

The rise of Filipino nationalism in the 19 th also brought about the production of local
knowledge necessary in redefining of the Philippines as a nation and in putting into perspective
the more than 300-year rule of Spanish colonialists in the archipelago. Meanwhile the Filipino
educated class, also called the illustrados or the “enlightened ones,” expanded during this
century and created numerous opportunities for their professional and personal growth. With
education and wealth as the most important criteria to become part of this elite group, the
illustrados became the prime movers for the immediate implementation of reforms in the
colony. Several these educated Filipinos engaged themselves writing about early Philippine
culture and in recovering native ideals that have been long forgotten in the past. These people
attempted to indigence the Western models of the social sciences and apply these concepts
within the context of Philippine society of their time.

Jose Rizal

 Jose Rizal was born on June 19, 1861 at Calamba, Laguna. He was a writer, poet, teacher,
ophthalmologist, novelist, and sculptor. A genuine scholar and one of the great Filipino

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 thinkers of all time, Rizal had numerous works that reflected his ideas on society,
education, women, history, culture, language, colonialism, and revolution.
 Filipino thinker and activist, may be considered the first systematic social thinker in
Southeast Asia. While the bulk of his writings were not in the social sciences, it is possible
to extract a sociological theory from his works. This would be a theory that explained the
nature and conditions of Filipino colonial society, and the requirements for
emancipation.
 Noli Me Tangere (1887) and El Filibustirismo (1891) are his two major works.
 He emphasized the importance of intellectual revolution rather than physical revolution
 Used the Emic Perspective in creating a criticism and annotation in his literary works that
gives negative perspective to the Filipinos

Andres Bonifacio

 Andres Bonifacio is one of the most popular revolutionist during the spanish era.
 He was born on November 30, 1863 and died May 10, 1897. He is known to be the
Katipunan, Father of the Philippine revolution and founder of KKK.

 He is also called Supreme leader or Supremo.

LESSON 7: INSTITUTE OF PHILIPPINE CULTURE’S STUDY ON PHILIPPINE VALUES

The Filipino Values is very vast because of cultures of many countries influenced the
nation during colonial time. These are the cultures of Spain, America, and Japan. Philippine
Values can be divided into many themes for example; family, shame, communications, and
many more.

Philippine Values and Themes

 Family

 Shame/hiya

 Relationship and Communication

LESSON 9: SIKOLOHIYANG PILIPINO

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There are two kinds of Sikolohiyang Pilipino
1. Sikolohiya sa Pilipinas - These are the chronological happenings in the timeline of
Philippine history that has something to do with Psychology
2. Sikolohiya ng mga Pilipino -These are the theories being studied that have something to
do on how Filipino people think and act.

Virgilio Enriquez Ph.D.

 Father of Sikolohiyang Pilipino

 According to him, the western theories are not applicable to the Filipino society.
 Filipinos have the term "pakikikapwa" or kapwa
 Kapwa means being together or togetherness of people

Kapwa has two kinds, ibang tao (other people) and hindi ibang tao (one-of-us)

5 domains of Ibang tao 3 domains of hindi ibang tao

 Pakikitungo  Pakikipagpalagayang- loob

 Pakikisalamuha  Pakikisangkot
 Pakikilahok  Pakikipagkaisa
 Pakikibagay
 Pakikisama

References:

Discipline and Ideas in the Social Sciences, Vibal Group, Inc. Jose & Ong 2016,

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