POLYTECHNIC COLLEGE OF DAVAO DEL SUR, INC.

Mac Arthur Highway, Kiagot, Digos City

High School Department
WEEK 3

Disciplines and Ideas in Social Sciences XI

Lesson 3: DOMINANT APPROACHES AND IDEAS PART 2

Quarter 2 Module 3

Information about Disciplines and Ideas in Social Sciences XI Learner’s Material:

OBJECTIVES
a. predict the social consequences
of decision making based on
scarcity.
b. examine the constitutive nature
of informal and formal
institutions and their actors and
how it constrains social behavior.
c. determine the relationship
between gender ideology and
gender inequality.

1.Rational choice theory

2. Institutionalism
CONTENT TOPIC
3.Feminist Theory
 I. Rational Choice Theory

Rational Choice – is a product of scarcity and demand the people to make the
right and rational choice to maximize the use of its resources. The basic premise
of rational choice is that social behavior and attitude is the result of individual
actions and choices, where each individual bases his decision on rational
considerations.

The Development and Origin

 Rational Choice Theory is primarily a part of economic theory as well as that

of social theory. According to Catherine Herfeld, the ‘rational’ approach to
things started around the dawn of the Cold War. With the dawn of this new
intellectual age, thinkers, economists, philosophers and other prominent
members of society have shifted to the ‘rational’ way. According to Blume and
Easley, rational choice had been around ever since the rise of capitalism
through the rise of Adam Smith.

 Therefore, it would be inaccurate to point out that rational theory began only
recently, since the basic premise of the theory has already been in existence
since before.

 The rational choice theory, also known as choice theory or rational action
theory, is a theory for understanding and often modelling social and economic
as well as individual behavior. It is the main paradigm in the currently-
dominant microeconomics school of thought. It is also central to modern
political science, as well as other disciplines such as sociology and
philosophy.

The Theory
 Rational choice theory is the view that people behave as they do
because they believe that performing their chosen actions has more
benefits than costs.

 That is, people make rational choices based on their goals, and those choices
govern their behavior. Some sociologists use rational choice theory to explain
 social change. According to them, social change occurs because individuals
have made rational choices.

 The basic premise of rational choice is that social behavior and attitude is the
result of individual actions and choices, where each individual bases his
decision on rational considerations. If one thinks about it, rational choice
seems to have been around for quite some time, since the primary inclination
of a human being is to choose what is most rational. However, rational choice
as a theory applied in both sociology and economics has been applied only
recently.

 Rationality could take various forms, but applied to sociology, it becomes the
identity of society. It comes in close relation with the premise that society is
the sum of all individuals. This includes individuals’ dispositions and choices.

II. Institutionalism
Institutionalism – an approach that views institutions as humanly devised
constraints that structure political, economic, and social interactions.

The Development and Origin

 Institutionalism as a theory is very broad, since it covers a number of sub-

topics that deal with different aspects of society. Their one similarity is that all
of these sub-topics deal with the function and relevance of institutions. As a
theory, it comes from the establishment of organizations throughout history
that led to the creation of what we call an institution.

 Examples of institutions are family, schools, hospitals, correctional facilities

and many other sectors of society. All of these sectors originate from the
gradual establishment of a structured body that governs over a certain point in
society.

Key Thinker: Michel Foucault

 One of the major thinkers when it comes to the study of institutional theory is
the French philosopher and sociologist Michel Foucault. His works include
Discipline and Punish, The Birth of the Clinic, History of Sexuality and other
 works that deal with the function and administration of various institutions over
society.

 For example, the work Discipline and Punish deals with the institution of the
correctional facility where he mentions that institutions are ‘instruments of
power’ and that established institutions determine largely the entire character
of society. For Foucault, the purpose of institutions would be to create docile
and obedient bodies or citizens, thereby making society a subject of the
power of institutional forces.

The Theory
There are three important kinds of institutionalism:
(1) Old Institutionalism
(2) New Institutionalism
(3) Historical Institutionalism According to William Richard Scott

 Institutions are social structures that have attained a high degree of

resilience. [They] are composed of cultural-cognitive, normative, and
regulative elements that, together with associated activities and resources,
provide stability and meaning to social life. Institutions are transmitted by
various types of carriers, including symbolic systems, relational systems,
routines, and artifacts. Institutions operate at different levels of jurisdiction,
from the world system to localized interpersonal relationships. Institutions by
definition connote stability but are subject to change processes, both
incremental and discontinuous. (Scott, 1995)

 Differentiating between old and new institutionalism can be known

through their individual focus. Old institutionalism focuses on the effects of
institutions, as well as general rules, schemes, and factors, on the scale
of the global or local economy. (Scott, 2008) This refers to the adaptation of
businesses to the whims of the local institutions such as the political body,
schools, etc. When talking about new institutionalism, this focuses on the
sociological view on institutions, the way these institutions co-operate
with each other and how they affect society as a whole. (DiMaggio and
Powell, 1983) This is what we call the ‘social powers’ that influence the flow
and daily living of society.

 Take for example the institution of the political body. Lawmakers and
enforcers have significant contributions to the functioning of society for,
without this institution, society would fall short on the need for peace and
order. On the other hand, without the institution of the school, the members of
a society would be inadequately educated, and would lead to negative effects
 when it comes to the over-all well-being of society. Thus new institutionalism
seeks to understand further how these institutions could shape the value of
life a society has.

 On the other hand, when one speaks of historical institutionalism, it traces the
progress of both socio-economic behavior in society through the growth and
history of an institution. According to Charles Tilly, historical institutionalism is
a method apt for measuring “big structures, large processes, and making
huge comparisons.” (Tilly, 1984) The value of historical institutionalism is that
it shows how an institution can reflect the changes within society, and how
one need not to extensively pursue a conclusion based on multiple
observations on society, but rather can be focused on one body that
sufficiently accounts for a proper description of society’s progress. That is why
historical institutionalism can be regarded as a combination of both old and
new institutionalisms.

• Historical Institutionalism – it traces the progress of both socio- economic

behaviors in society through the growth and history of an institution.

• New Institutionalism – focuses on the sociological view on institutions, the

way these institutions co-operate with each other and how they affect society as a
whole. (DiMaggio and Powell, 1983)

• Old Institutionalism – focuses on the effects of institutions, as well as

general rules, schemes, and factors, on the scale of the global or local economy.
(Scott, 2008)

III. FEMINIST THEORY

 Feminism or feminist theory- is a range of political movements,
ideologies, and social movements that share a common goal which is to
define and advance political, economic, personal, and social rights for
women. This includes seeking to establish equal opportunities for women
in education and employment.

 Feminist sociology focuses on analyzing the grounds of the limitations faced

by women when they claim the right to equality with men.

 Inequality between the genders is a phenomenon that goes back at least

4,000 years (Lerner 1986). Although the forms and ways in which it has been
practiced differ between cultures and change significantly through history, its
persistence has led to the formulation of the concept of patriarchy.

 Patriarchy refers to a set of institutional structures (like property rights, access

to positions of power, relationship to sources of income) that are based on the
belief that men and women are dichotomous and unequal categories. Key to
patriarchy is what might be called the dominant gender ideology toward
sexual differences: the assumption that physiological sex differences between
males and females are related to differences in their character, behavior, and
ability (i.e., their gender). These differences are used to justify a gendered
division of social roles and inequality in access to rewards, positions of power,
and privilege.

 Feminism is a distinct type of critical sociology. There are considerable

differences between types of feminism, however; for example, the differences
often attributed to the first wave of feminism in the 19th and early 20th
centuries, the second wave of feminism from the 1950s to the 1970s, and the
third wave of feminism from the 1980s onward.

 Feminist theory encompasses a range of ideas, reflecting the diversity of

women worldwide.

 Feminism counters traditional philosophy with new ways of addressing

issues affecting humanity, calling for the replacement of the presiding
patriarchal order with a system that emphasizes equal rights, justice, and
fairness.

 Liberal feminists cite women's oppression as rooted in social, political, and

legal constraints.

 Radical libertarian feminists hold that the patriarchal system that oppresses
women must be completely eliminated and that women should be free to
exercise total sexual and reproductive freedom.
  Radical cultural feminists urge women to extricate themselves from the
institution of compulsory heterosexuality.

 Marxist–socialist feminists claim it is impossible for anyone, especially

women, to achieve true freedom in a class-based society.

 Multicultural feminists explain how the idea of ‘sameness’ could

counterintuitively be used as an instrument of oppression rather than
liberation. Postmodern feminists challenge Western dualistic thinking.

 Global feminists stress the universal interests of women worldwide.

 Ecofeminists focus on the connection among humans to the nonhuman

world.

 Feminist theory has impacted virtually all structures, systems, and disciplines,
challenging traditional ontological and epistemological assumptions about
human nature as well as ‘maleness’ and ‘femaleness.’

References:
 https://www.slideshare.net/ModSalik/feminist-theory-79079921?qid=61bd4d37-c532-4a04-
9a19-a7032426b043&v=&b=&from_search=1
 https://www.slideshare.net/SatyamRai14/rational-choice-theory-75942712
 https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/social-sciences/feminist-theory

Prepared by: MICHELLE M. DUMAGAN, LPT

Subject Teacher

Checked by: ROSA A. ZOZOBRADO, MAED, MAECON

High School Principal
POLYTECHNIC COLLEGE OF DAVAO DEL SUR, INC.
Mac Arthur Highway, Kiagot, Digos City
High School Department
Discipline and Ideas in the Social Sciences XI
Week 3

NAME:____________________________________________________________

GENERAL INSTRUCTION:
 This paper contains exercises about the module given. Read carefully each
instruction before answering. Avoid erasures or alteration of answer. Return this to
the teacher on ______________________________. Thank you.

I. ESSAY

Instructions: Read carefully and answer the following questions below.

Limit your words from 20-50 only.

CRITERIA:
Content-3
Relevance-1
Organization-1
5 points

1. What is the importance of rational choice theory?

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2. What are the advantages of rational decision making?

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3. Why is it important to study institutionalism?

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4. What is the difference between old and new institutionalism based on your
understanding?

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5. What is the most important social institution? Why?

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6. How does feminism contribute to society?

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7. What it means to be a woman in today's society?

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8. What is the role of institutions in constraining human behavior?

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