Basic tenets

Core value or Kapwa (togetherness)

• Kapwa, meaning 'togetherness', is the core construct of

Filipino Psychology. Kapwa refers to community; not doing
things alone. Kapwa has two categories, Ibang Tao (other
people) and Hindi Ibang Tao (not other people). Filipinos
value conformity because unlike non-Asian countries, its
culture is predominantly Christian. This runs into conflict with
individualism (kanya-kanya) which was brought about by
Western colonialism.
• Ibang Tao ("outsider") There are five domains in this construct:
– Pakikitungo: civility - In Confucian ethics, right behavior meant right demeanor
towards authorities (Parents, Elders, etc.).
– Pakikisalamuha: act of mixing - This is a social value that is primarily
communitarian and Confucian. It espouses the ability to adapt.
– Pakikilahok: act of joining - This translates to participation of the entire
community to help a person.
– Pakikibagay: conformity - This runs into conflict with individuality which many
Filipinos in fact willingly throw away in favor of conformity with demands of
those who are in charge.
– Pakikisama: being united with the group.
• Hindi Ibang Tao ("one-of-us") There are three
domains in this construct:
– Pakikipagpalagayang-loob: act of mutual
trust
– Pakikisangkot: act of joining others
– Pakikipagkaisa: being one with others
 Pivotal interpersonal value

Pakiramdam: Shared inner perceptions. Filipinos

use damdam, or the inner perception of others'
emotions, as a basic tool to guide his dealings
with other people.
 Linking socio-personal value

• Kagandahang-Loob: Shared humanity. This

refers to being able to help other people in
dire need due to a perception of being
together as a part of one Filipino humanity.
 Accommodative surface values

• Hiya: Loosely translated as 'shyness'Utang na loob: Norm of

reciprocity. Filipinos are expected by their neighbors to return
favors—whether these were asked for or not—when it is
needed or wanted.
• Pakikisama and Pakikipagkapwa: Smooth Interpersonal
Relationship, or SIR, as coined by Lynch (1961 and 1973). This
attitude is primarily guided by conformity with the majority.
 Confrontative surface values

• Bahala Na: Bahala Na translates literally as "leave it up to God (Bathala)" and it is

used as an expression, almost universally, in Filipino culture. Filipinos engage in the
bahala na attitude as a culture-influenced adaptive coping strategy when faced
with challenging situations.
• Lakas ng Loob: This attitude is characterized by being courageous in the midst of
problems and uncertainties.
• Pakikibaka: Literally in English, it means concurrent clashes. It refers to the ability
of the Filipino to undertake revolutions and uprisings against a common enemy.
Societal values

• Karangalan: Loosely translated to dignity, this actually refers to what other people
see in a person and how they use that information to make a stand or judge about
his/her worth.
– Puri: the external aspect of dignity. May refer to how other people judge a
person of his/her worth. This compels a common Filipino to conform to social
norms, regardless how obsolete they are.
– Dangal: the internal aspect of dignity. May refer to how a person judges his
own worth.
• Katarungan: Loosely translated to justice, this actually refers to equity in giving
rewards to a person.
• Kalayaan: Freedom and mobility. Ironically, this may clash with the less important
value of pakikisama or pakikibagay (conformity).
 Approaches and methods

• Approaches, and methods,in Filipino Psychology are different from that of Western
Psychology. In Filipino Psychology, the subjects, or participants, called kalahok, are
considered as equal in status to the researcher.
• The participants are included in the research as a group, and not as individuals -
hence, an umpukan, or natural cluster, is required to serve as the participants, per
se. The researcher is introduced to a natural cluster by a tulay (bridge), who is a
part of the umpukan and is a well-respected man in the community.
Some of the approaches and methods used in Filipino
Psychology are:
• Pakikipagkuwentuhan: In this method, the researcher
engages in a story-telling with an umpukan. The researcher
merely serves as the facilitator, while the kalahok or
participants are the one who are to talk. The term kwento,
from the Spanish word cuento, literally means 'to tell a story'.
• Panunuluyan: In this method, the researcher stays in the
home of his kalahok or participant while he conducts the
research with consent by the host family, whose head serves
as the tulay to an umpukan. The term tuloy, which is the root
word of the term panunuluyan, literally means 'to go in'.
• Pagdadalaw-dalaw: In this method, the researcher
occasionally visits the house of his host as opposed to staying
in the house.
• Pagtatanung-tanong: In this method, the researcher
undergoes a kind of questioning session with his kalahok or
participants. In this method, however, 'lead questions' (those
questions which directly refer to the topic being studied) are
not supposed to be asked, instead the questions to be asked
are supposed to have been derived from the kalahok's
answers themselves. The word tanong literally means
'question'.
• Pakikiramdam: In this approach, the
researcher uses entirely his/her own feelings
or emotions to justify if his participants
or kalahok are ready to be part of his research
or not. The term damdam literally means
'inner perception of emotions'.
Psychopathology

• Filipino psychopathology, or sikopatolohiya in

Filipino, from Spanish psicopatologia, is the study of
abnormal psychology in the Filipino context. Several
mental disorders have been identified that 
culture-bound syndromes, and can therefore be
found only in the Philippines or in other societies
with which Filipinos share cultural connections.
Examples of such are:
• Amok: Malayan mood disorder, more aptly called "Austronesian Mood Disorder",
in which a person suddenly loses control of himself and goes into a killing frenzy,
after which he/she hallucinates and falls into a trance. After he/she wakes up, he
has absolutely no memory of the event.
• Bangungot: A relatively common occurrence in which a person suddenly loses
control of his respiration and digestion, and falls into a coma and ultimately to
death. The person is believed to dream of falling into a deep abyss at the onset of
his death. This syndrome has been repeatedly linked to Thailand's Brugada
syndrome and to the ingestion of rice. However, no such medical ties have been
proven.
Manifestation of universal mental disorders

• Filipino psychopathology also refers to the

different manifestations of mental disorders in
Filipino people. One example of such is the
manifestation of depression and schizophrenia
in Filipinos, which are for the most part, less
violent.
Psycho-medicine and faith healers

• Filipino psychomedicine, or sikomedikal na sikolohiya in

Filipino, is the application of basic psychology to native
healing practices loosely considered as 'medicine'. These
practices are closely tied to the faith healers, as well as to the
native pagan priestesses like the babaylan or katalonan, who
were suppressed by the Spaniards during their colonization of
the Philippines.
Examples of such practices include:
• Hilot: The use of massage to aid a pregnant mother in the delivery of her child.
• Kulam: Hex or bewitchment.
• Lihi: An intense craving for something or someone during pregnancy. Faith healers
or manghihilot testify that if the craving is not satisfied, abnormality of the child
may result.
• Pasma: A concept that explains how init (heat) and lamig (cold) together can result
in illness, especially rheumatism.
• Susto: Soul-flight. Derived from Latin American traditions.
• Pagtatawas: A method of diagnosing illness wherein alum (called tawas) is
ritualistically used by the albularyo or medicine man for diagnosis of a variety of
health conditions. Thetawas is used to 'cross' (sign of the cross) the forehead and
other suspicious or ailing parts of the body as prayers are being whispered
(bulong or oracion). It is then placed on glowing embers, removed when it starts to
crack, then transferred to a small receptacle of water. As it cools, its softened form
spreads on the water surface and assumes a shape that may suggest the cause of
the illness, often one of several indigenous forces: dwarfs, devils or other evil
spirits (na-nuno, na-kulam, na-demonyo). The water in the vehicle is then used to
anoint the ailing part or parts of the body to counteract the evil forces or illness.
The tawas is then discarded and thrown westward, preferably into the setting sun.
• Usog: A concept that explains how a baby who
has been greeted by a stranger acquires a
mysterious illness. Apparently derived from
the Spanish tradition of Mal de Ojo.
• Gabâ or gabaa: The Visayan concept of
negative Karma
The Status of Sikolohiyang
Pilipino Now
• Sikolohiyang Pilipino continues to thrive,
despite the death of Enriquez in the early 90s.
Its proponents continue to advocate for a
psychology that is truly responsive and
reflective to the needs and the unique
situation of the Filipino people.
Maraming
Salamat