UNDERSTANDING CULTURE SOCIETY AND POLITICS

Quarter 1- LESSON 1
The Nature and Goals of Anthropology, Sociology and Political Science

OVERVIEW

For the Learners

Welcome to the journey of Understanding Culture, Society and Politics! Prepare

yourself to discover how far you have gone in developing your essential life skills in
Understanding Culture, Society and Politics particularly in The Nature and Goals of
Anthropology, Sociology and Political Science and the Perspectives of Anthropology,
Sociology and Political Science. As a Senior High School learner, you have to deal with a
variety of learning skills in your daily life.
This module will help you face the rigors of the curriculum aligned with the K to 12
features. The primary goal of this module is not only to further enhance your skills, but
more importantly to ensure that you are able to use these skills to develop your capacity to
think critically and logically.

These are the competencies included in this module:

1. The Nature and Goals of Anthropology, Sociology and Political Science
(UCSP11/12SPUIb -5)
2. The Perspective of Anthropology, Sociology and Political Science
(UCSP11/12 DCS-Ic-6)

LESSON 1: The Nature and Goals of Anthropology, Sociology and Political Science
(UCSP11/12SPUIb -5)

WHAT I NEED TO KNOW

At the end of the lesson, you are expected to:

1. identify the nature of Anthropology, Sociology and Political Science;
2. know the goals of Anthropology, Sociology and Political Science.

DEFINITION OF TERMS:

ANTHROPOLOGY - is a social science discipline that focuses on the study on the origin (root, source)
of everything about humans; human behavior– from their biological and evolutionary (development)
past, to ways of life and traditions that they uphold.

SOCIOLOGY – is a social discipline that focuses on the study of society.

POLITICAL SCIENCE – is a social science discipline that focuses on the study of state and its
institutions, political power relations, as well as systems of government from domestic, international
and comparative perspective.

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POLITICS – it is the theory or principle of organizing or governance over a people, community, or
state.

HISTORY – is a social science discipline that focuses on the study of the past whereby people seek to
understand the past and its meaning in order to make sense of the world.

GEOGRAPHY – is a social science discipline that explores the relation between Earth, its human
inhabitants and the changes and interplay that occurred over time that affects greatly the human
behavior.

CULTURE – is the totality of the lifeways of a group pf people encompassing: traditions, norms,
mores, customs, practices, beliefs (religious and beliefs system), language, laws that guide the
behavior of people within their society.

Here are things to learn about the nature and goals of Anthropology, Sociology and Political
Science.

 The nature of culture refers to a theoretical foundation of contemporary anthropology.

 It has been observed that the terms "nature" and "culture" that can not necessarily be
translated into non-western languages.

Anthropology relates to sociology, it always describes human, human behaviour and human
societies around the world. It is a comparative science that examines all societies. The
term anthropology means scientific study of man or human beings.

Sociology is the study of human social relationships and institutions. 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. The purpose of sociology is to understand how human action and consciousness
both shape and are shaped by surrounding cultural and social structures.

Political Science is a social science that deals with humans and their interactions. It essentially deals
with the large-scale actions of humans, and group mentality.

The study of Man and its various aspects is known as Anthropology. It may be a subject of
science and arts. It is a branch of sociology. It describes human, human behaviour and human
societies and it examines all societies around the world. It also describes the ancestors through time
and space in relation to its environmental, social relations, and
culture.

Cultural anthropology studies, human societies and elements of cultural life. An example of
cultural anthropology is the Linguistic anthropology which focuses on language in a certain society.

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The goal of studying anthropology is to understand the origin human evolution and the diverse
forms of its existence throughout time.

Sociology is a social science; it belongs to the family of social sciences. As a social science,
focuses its aspects on man, his social manners, social activities and social life. The goal of sociology is
to help you understand how human action and consciousness both shape and are shaped by the
surrounding cultural and social structures.

Political science is a social science, it is a discipline that deals with several aspects such as the
study of state and government. It deals with the nature and formation of the state and attempts to
understand its forms and functions. The goal of Political Science is to constantly deepen the
knowledge, discover progress and protect the quality of life within a group, community, country, and
the world. Thus, it is the study of power relationships and competing interests among states around
the world.(Hudelson, Patricia M. “Culture and quality: an anthropological perspective” International
Journal for Quality in Health Care, Volume 16, Issue 5, October 2004, Pages)

LESSON 2: Perspectives of Anthropology, Sociology and Political Science (UCSPC11DCS-Ic6)

Anthropological perspectives are culture, cultural relativism, fieldwork, human diversity,

holism, bio-cultural focus. The four main perspectives of Anthropology are the following:

1. Cross-cultural or comparative emphasis – study different culture, compare different

cultures.

2. evolutionary/historical emphasis – study the evolution or historical emphasis of human

societies and cultures through the lens of their development and change over time. Migration
patterns, impact of historical events,

3. ecological emphasis – it has something to do with the relationship between humans and
their environments.

4. holistic emphasis (Dudgeon).

An example for this is the analysis and solutions of the different aspects of the society such
as the environment issues of pollution, the issues on health and medicine and other issues related to
the human activities.

Sociological perspective introduces the discipline of sociology, including something about its
history, questions, theory, and scientific methods, and what distinguishes it from other social science
disciplines. Central features include social interaction and relationships, social contexts, social
structure, social change, the significance of diversity and human variation, and the critical,
questioning character of sociology. It also explores what sociologists do.

Sociology includes three major theoretical perspectives:

1. the functionalist perspective;

2. the conflict perspective; and
3. the symbolic interaction perspective.

Theoretical perspective is used to analyse and explain objects of social study, and facilitate
organizing sociological knowledge.

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 In FUNCTIONALIST PERSPECTIVE, societies are thought to function like organisms, with
various social institutions working together like organs to maintain and reproduce societies.

The CONFLICT PERSPECTIVE sees social life as a competition, and focuses on the competition
for the distribution of resources, power, social stratification (social hierarchy),and inequality and
how these factors lead to tension and conflict between groups in society.

The SYMBOLIC INTERACTION PERSPECTIVE focuses on how individuals create and interpret
symbols to communicate and make sense of their social world. It emphasizes the importance of
symbols, which can be words, gestures, or objects in shaping human interaction and society.

Political science perspective studies the tendencies and actions of people which cannot be
easily quantified or examined. Political science is more focused than most social sciences. It sticks to
the political arena and to the realm of politics, either dealing with situations with two competing
sides or the lateral decisions that affect the group as a whole. An example is the study of democracy
as a form of government and why is democracy considered as the best form of government.

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