UNIT I

STUDYING, SOCIETY, AND POLITICS

 Lesson 1 –Introduction to Culture, Society, and Politics
Lesson 2- Understanding Culture and Society
COURSE DESCRIPTION
This course uses insights from Anthropology, Political Science, and Sociology to develop
students’ awareness of cultural, social and political dynamics, and sensitivity
to cultural diversity; provide them with an understanding of how culture, human agency, society
and politics work; and engage them in the examination of the
country’s current human development goals. At the end of the course, students should acquire
ideas about human cultures, human agency, society and politics;
recognize cultural relativism and social inclusiveness to overcome prejudices; and develop
social and cultural competence to guide their interactions with groups,
communities, networks, and institutions.

Understanding, Culture, Society, & Politics

(Pre- Test)
Choose the letter of the correct answer. Write your answer on the space provided before the
number.

SCORE:

____1. It is a hereditary/endogamous social group in which a person’s rank and

his/her rights and obligations are ascribed or on the basis of his/her birth into

a particular group.

A.Caste

B. Class

C. Estate

D. Slavery

____2. It is the system by which a state or community is controlled as to put order.

A. Political

B. Constituents

C. Government

D. System
____3. It is the holistic “science of man”, a science of the totality of human existence.

A. Anthropology

B. Sociology

C. Archaeology

D. Etymology

____4. It is the study of relationship among people.

A. anthropology

B. Sociology

C. Archaeology

D. Etymology

____5. It deals with the systems of government and the analysis of political activity and

political behavior,

A. Public Policy

B. Political Theory

C. International Relation

D. Political Science

____6. It is the concepts or ideas people have about what is true in the environment

around them like what is life, how to value it, and how one’s beliefs on the relate

with his or her interaction with others and the world.

A. Beliefs

B. Values

C. Language

D. Norms

____7. It describe what is appropriate or inappropriate in a given society or what ought

to be.

A. Beliefs

B. Values

C. Language

D .Norms

_____8. It is a shared set of spoken and written symbols

 A. Beliefs

B. Values

C. Language
D. Norms

_____9. It is a specific rules/ standards to guide an appropriate behavior.

A. Beliefs

B. Values

C. Language

D. Norms

____10. It is also known as customs, these are norms for every behavior that people

follow for the sake of tradition or convenience.

A. Mores

B. Folkways

C. Taboos

D. Law

____11. A person or practitioner who studies Anthropology

A. Sociologist

B. Psychologist

C. Anthropologist

D. Archaeologist

____12. It is an organized political community living under a single system of

government.

A. State

B. Society

C. Government

D. Culture

_____13. It is a group of people involved in persistent relationship, or a large social

grouping sharing the same geographical or social territory subject to the same

political authority and dominant cultural expectations.

A. State
 B. Society

C. Government

D. Culture

____14. Is defined as any systematic means and practices used to maintain norms,

rules, and laws; regulate conflict; and discourage deviant behavior.

A. Social control

B. Society

C.. Socialization

D. Sociology

_____15. It is an area of political science that evaluates the interplay between

economics, politics, and law and implications to the various institutions within

society.

A. Political Economy

B. Political Science

C. Philosophy

D. Politics

_____16.It is the study of cultural variation across different societies

and examines the need to understand each culture in its own context.

A. Cultural anthropology

B. Sociology

C. Political Economy

D. Politics

____17. It is an area of political science that compares domestic politics and governance

system across different sovereign states.

A. Comparative politics C. Political Economy

B Sociology D. cultural anthropology

____18. It is shared ideas, norms, and principles that provide members of society

standards permitting to what is right or wrong.

A. Egocentrism

B. Values
 C. Religion

D. Socialism

____19. It is a group to which an individual compares himself or herself and strongly

influences an individual’s behavior and social attitudes

A. Egocentrism

B. Values

C. Religion

D. reference group

______20. it is the methods of interaction that enable social content to be given to the

person undergoing socialization

A. Egocentrism

B. Process

C. Religion

D. reference group

Course objectives:

1. To develop students awareness of cultural, social and political dynamics, and

sensitivity to cultural diversity.

2. Provide them with an understanding of how culture, human agency, society, and

politics work; and

3. engage them in the examination of the human development goals of the country as

well as the world.

LESSON 1. Identity, Culture, and Society

Learning goals:
At the end of the lesson, the students will be able to:

1. Define the concept of identify and relate it to society and culture

2. Define the social sciences and describe its various fields of study;

3. Understand how each social sciences contributes to understanding society, culture, and
politics:

4. Describe how social backgrounds shape views about society and the
 world;

5. Analyze social, political, and cultural change, and give example of each

6. Relate their observations on social differences, social change, and

identities, and discuss their interrelatedness; and

7. Demonstrates an interest and willingness to explore the origins and

dynamics of culture, society, and politics.

Essential Question for Consideration

 How do social, cultural, and political change influence the information of individual and
group identities?
 How can knowledge and understanding of identities help us interact effectively
with others?

Pre- Lesson Activities

Get a clippings from newspaper on the current social problems of the country or in the local
community, for example, overpopulation, HIV/ AIDS, COVID-19 Teenage smoking, climate
change, deforestation, mining, human right violations, etc. In your opinion. How can the social
sciences contribute in solving these specific problems? Why do you think it is necessary to employ
the knowledge of the social sciences to solve these problems?

DISCUSSION
Identity – is the distinctive characteristics that the defines an individual or is shared by
those belonging to a particular group. People may have multiple identities depending on
the groups to which they belong.
Identiy can also change over the course of a person’s lifetime. It is continuously shaped
and reshaped through the passage of time as well as the overall context of one’s life cycle,
including his or her activities within the society and interaction with other people.
 Identities are important because they shape both individual and group behavior as well as
people’s views about other people and society. Learning about one’s self, culture, and
society entails knowledge about various identities and how these shape people’s views
and behavior.

Festivals and gatherings are ways of expressing collective and individual identities.

The term “society “refers to a group of people living in a community. According to MacIver
and Page, “it is a web of social relationship, which is always changing.”

Social, Cultural, and Political Changes

The concept of identity is related to social, cultural, and political change. People’s individual and
collective identities have oftentimes transformed social order and paved the way for lasting
change. For instance, when Filipinos first held elections when in the 1900s, only Filipino males
and could vote and participate in politics. However, when Filipino women became more could
vote educated either in the Philippines or abroad, they were enlighten about rights, particularly
suffrage or the rights to vote. Consequently, the campaign for women’s suffrage gained ground
in the 1930s. The framers of the 1935 Constitution allowed women to vote by virtue of a law that
was passed by the National Assembly. The law mandated a plebiscite on the question of Filipino
women’s suffrage. Which required at least 300,000 votes to grant women the right to vote. The
results of the plebiscite, held in 1937, yield mote and 400,000 votes in favor of suffrage. The
outcome forever changed the way women are regarded in society. Before attaining the right to
vote, women were merely perceived movement is said to be persecutor of current rights that
Filipino women enjoy. It is also a good example of how political and social changes transformed
Filipino women’s identities.
 Rapidly-advancing technology also known has profound implications for sociocultural and political
change. Because people know more about what is happening elsewhere in the world, trends in
clothing, hairstyle, fashion style, fashion style and food choices, among others have also been
transformed. Now, people across world are becoming more similar in tastes than they were fifty
years ago.

A Filipino Family

Anthropology, Sociology, and Political

Science

The disciplines under which identity, culture, society, and politics are studied are collectively
called the social sciences. The social sciences are comprised of a wide array of academic
disciplines that study the overall functions of society as well as the interactions among its
individual members and institutions. Some of the most some of the most prominent academic
disciplines in the social sciences are Anthropology, Sociology, and political science. Within these
fields, there are contending views and specific ideas regarding study the study of culture, politics,
and society.

Anthropology- the systematic study of the biological, cultural, and social aspects of man.

It is derived from two Greek words, anthropos, which means “ man, “and logos,
which means “ study” or “ inquiry.” It is a significant branch of knowledge because it integrates
elements from the biological sciences and humanities to fully comprehend the complex human
species, including their past practices and social patterns, across diverse cultures.

Social Anthropology- the study of the development of social pattern’s, practices, and cultural
variation across different societies.

Cultural anthropology- the study of cultural variation across different societies and examines the
need to understand each culture in its own context.

Linguistic anthropology- studies Language and discourse and how they reflect and shape different
aspects of human society and culture.

Biological anthropology and Physical anthropology - studies the origins of human as well as the
interplay between social factors and the processes of human evolution, adaptation and variation
over time.
Archeology- the study of prehistoric societies through the recovery and analysis of ancient
artifacts.

Sociology is defined by Anthony Giddens as “the study of human social life, groups and society.”
It is an academic discipline that attempts to provide a deeper assessment of individual and group
behavior, as well as social phenomena, by examining the interplay between economic, political,
and social factors. The discipline has been largely shaped by the works of August Comte, Herbert
Spencer, Karl Marks, Emile Durkheim, and Max Weber. By incorporating other methods and
knowledge from other academic disciplines, sociologists examine and present new insights and
perspectives on the different elements and aspects of society such stratification, crime and other
organizations and institutions. It is also seeks to explain the bases of social order and social
change. Improves in social policy and welfare rely on research performed by sociologist.

Political Science is the systematic study of politics, which Andrew Heywood describes as the
“activity through which people make, preserve, and amend the general rules under which they
live.” Political science focuses on the fundamental values of equality, freedom, and justice and its
processes are linked to the dynamics of conflict, resolution, and cooperation. The works of Greek
philosophers such as Plato and Aristotle as well as later European thinkers of Greek philosophers
such as Plato and a Aristotle as well as later European thinkers such as Niccolo Machiavelli, Jean
Jacques Rousseau, Baron de Montesquieu, Thomas Hobbes, John Locke, and Karl Marx are
influential in the field of political science.

Political science is further divided into various areas of interest. Some political scientists
specialized in public administration, political economy and comparative politics.

Public administration- the study of government functions and how decisions and policies made.

Political Economy- an area of political science that evaluates the interplay between economics,
politics, and law and implications to the various institutions within society.

Comparative politics- an area of political science that compares domestic politics and governance
system across different sovereign states.

Several political scientist engage in international or global politics whereby relations among states
and transnational actors are examined.

The discussion on social, cultural political changes highlight the importance of learning about our
society and its processes. In many ways, the disciplines mentioned above help people understand
their social roles and how they can participate in the changes they wish to make in their respective
societies.

Though each of the social sciences focuses on a particular subject and adheres to specific
perspectives, their views often overlap and complement one another.
In this sense, continuous discourse and exchange of knowledge among the three disciplines are
instrumental in deepening the discussion of culture, society, and politics toward a better
understanding of the world around us.

ACTIVITY 1

Answer the following questions in not more than five sentences.

1. What are the two main characteristics of Identity? Explain each.

________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________.

2. How are identities important in relation to yourself, other people, and society?

__________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________.

3. How do social, cultural, and political change influence the information of individual?

and group identities?

___________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________.

4. How can knowledge and understanding of identities help us interact effectively with

others?

______________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________
 ______________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________.

ACTIVITY 2

Complete the graphic organizer by writing the required information in the spaces
provided.

DISCIPLINE DESCRIPTION SIGNIFICANCE PROMINENCE

ACTIVITY 3

Cut out a news report or article that describes a current problem or issue in Philippine society.
Illustrate how the issue relates to the discussion in this lesson.