UNDERSTANDING

THE DOMAIN OF THE

SOCIAL SCIENCES
 Social Science in general
◦ A category of academic disciplines,
concerned with society and
the relationships among individuals within a
society.
Branches of human knowledge
◦ Natural Sciences
◦ Social Sciences
◦ Humanities – Study of Human culture and
constructs. (Music, Art and Literature)
◦ Applied professions – Application of
scientific knowledge to practical problems.
 Social Sciences and the Natural
Sciences
◦ Social Scientists are able to study human
relations in a society

◦ The natural sciences attempts to

understand nature’s phenomena by using
measurable data obtained through
scientific method
 Social Sciences and the Natural
Sciences
◦ The natural sciences is sometimes referred
to as the “Hard Sciences” as opposed to
the Social Sciences being the “Soft
Sciences”
Disciplines of the Social Sciences
◦ Anthropology ◦ Linguistics
◦ Economics ◦ Political Science
◦ Geography ◦ Sociology
◦ History ◦ Psychology
ANTHROPOLOGY
Definition and
Scope
◦ Derived from the
Greek words
“Anthropos”
meaning human
and “logos”
meaning word or
the study of
Definition and
Scope
◦ The field of study
is a combination
of the Social and
natural sciences.
Definition and
Scope
◦ it is the field that
seeks to understand
humankind, from
the beginnings
millions of years ago
up to the present
day.
 Branches of
study
◦ Physical
◦ Cultural
◦ Archeology
◦ Linguistic
Anthropolgy
Physical
Anthropology
◦ Centers primarily
on human
biological origins
and the variations
in human species.
Subdisciplines

Paleoanthropology
(Human evolution)
Genetics – Gene
structure, patterns of
inheritance of traits
Subdisciplines

Primatology –
Study of non-
human primates
Osteology –
Skeletal remains
Subdisciplines

Paleopathology
Traces of disease
and injury in
human remains
Subdisciplines

Forensic
Anthropology
(Analysis and
identification of
human remains)
Cultural
Anthropology
◦ Involves the study
and comparative
analysis of societies
or groups of people
including all aspects
of human behavior.
 Ethnography as an important
research instrument
◦ Means to study and record the different
ways of life of human societies.

◦ Provides descriptive accounts which form

the basis for comparative studies of many
cultures.
Disciplines under
cultural
anthropology
◦ Urban – Issues of
inner cities like
poverty,
immigration and
social stratification
Disciplines under
cultural
anthropology
◦ Medical –
Relationship
between culture
and health
Disciplines under
cultural
anthropology
◦ Economic –
Distribution of
goods and
resources within
and between
cultures.
Disciplines under
cultural
anthropology
◦ Economic –
Distribution of
goods and
resources within
and between
cultures.
Archeology
 Archeology
◦ Study of earlier cultures and ways of life by
way of retrieving and examining material
remains of previous human societies.

◦ Experts study a particular site and employs

meticulous excavation techniques.
 Linguistic anthropology
◦ Study of human speech and language as
well as the various changes that have
taken place over time.
Economics

◦ A discipline that
concentrates on how a
particular society solves
its problem of scarcity
of resources.
Economics

◦ Term originated from

Greek words “oikos”
meaning house and
”nomos” meaning
custom or law.
Key concerns

◦ Production and
distribution of goods
and services
◦ Supply and demand
Key concerns

◦ Imports and exports

◦ Cost and price of
commodities
◦ Labor and
employment
 Goals in Economics

Economic Price-level Economic

growth stability freedom

Equitable
Work Economic
distribution
efficiency Efficiency
of income

Full Economic Balance of

employment security trade
 Branches of Economics
◦ Microeconomics – Focuses on the
behavior of individual agents (Households,
industries and firms)

◦ Macroeconomics – Analyses how the

economy functions as a whole.
Application: Government agencies
related to economic management
 APPLICATION:
PHILIPPINE COMPETITIVE
ADVANTAGE
GEOGRAPHY
 Definition
◦ From the Greek word “geographia” geo
meaning earth and graphe to describe.

◦ The study of places and the relationships

between people and their environments.
Geographers explore both the physical
properties of Earth's surface and the human
societies spread across it.
 5 themes of Geography
◦ The Five Themes were developed by the
National Council for Geographic Education
to provide an organizing framework for the
presentation of geographic materials.
 5 themes of Geography
◦ Location (Absolute, Relative)
◦ Place (Physical and Human
Characteristics)
◦ Relationships
◦ Region
◦Movement
BRANCHES OF
GEOGRAPHY
 Physical Geography
◦ Geography from the perspective of
earth sciences.

◦ Includes the study of soil, landforms,

water, vegetation, minerals and
climate
 Human Geography
◦ Human aspect of geography with a strong
commitment to the concept of culture.

◦ Determines humankind’s role in changing

the environment and vice versa.
LINGUISTICS
 Definition and branches
◦ Scientific study of language as a
universal and recognizable aspect of
human behavior and capacity
 Definition and branches
1. Morphology - study of the internal
structure of words.

2. Syntax - is the study of how words are

ordered in human language. What rules
are necessary to describe a particular
language, and how can these rules differ
across languages?
 Definition and branches
3. Phonology - study of the patterns of
sounds in a language and across
languages.
POLITICAL SCIENCE
 Definition and branches
◦ Political science focuses on the theory
and practice of government and
politics at the local, state, national,
and international levels.
 Definition and branches
◦ Political theory - foundations of
political community and institutions. It
focuses on human nature and the
moral purposes of political association.
According to Plato in the Republic
◦ Existence of a Kallipolis (Beautiful City)

◦ This "good city" is depicted as being

governed by philosopher-kings;
disinterested persons who rule not for their
personal enjoyment but for the good of
the city-state.
 Comparative Politics
◦ Comparative study of other countries,
citizens, different political units either in
whole or in part, and analyzes the
similarities and differences between
those political units.
 International Relations
◦ Concerned with developing an
understanding of why states and non-
state international actors, like the
United Nations and multinational
corporations, interact as they do.
SOCIOLOGY
 Overview
◦ Systematic study of pattern of human
interaction.

◦ The interest in discovering repetitive

and general patterns with how we
interact with one another.
 Psychology
◦ Deals with the nature of human
behavior.

◦ Four goals in Psychology, describe,

explain, predict and change behaviors