Chapter 1 Understanding of Culture, Society and Politics

Cultural Background – on the other hand, essenally consists of the ethnic, religious, racial,
gender, linguisc or other socioeconomic factors and values that shape an individual’s
upbringing. The cultural background can be shaped at the family, societal or organizaonal
level. Sociologically, people with di!erent cultural backgrounds need to interact with each
other. Such interacons lead to strong relaonships that would help build diverse
communies
and enable them to achieve predetermined goals. For example, in the Philippine society, it is
necessary to work e!ecvely with people from di!erent regions or with those who speak a
di!erent language to promote economic development and other primary socio-cultural
undertakings.
Cultural Background – on the other hand, essenally consists of the ethnic, religious, racial,
gender, linguisc or other socioeconomic factors and values that shape an individual’s
upbringing. The cultural background can be shaped at the family, societal or organizaonal
level. Sociologically, people with di!erent cultural backgrounds need to interact with each
other. Such interacons lead to strong relaonships that would help build diverse
communies
and enable them to achieve predetermined goals. For example, in the Philippine society, it is
necessary to work e!ecvely with people from di!erent regions or with those who speak a
di!erent language to promote economic development and other primary socio-cultural
undertakings.
An individual’s upbringing is affected by his/her religion, culture, race, gender,
language, norms, ethnicity, and other socioeconomic factors and values, including social and
technological changes. Concrete understanding of one’s culture starts with recognition of
values, customs and traditions passed down to us by our ancestors or those acquired from
personal experiences while having an interaction in a given society.

The disciplines under which identity, culture, society, and politics 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. The events that have defined your lives up to the
presents are a product of the processes and interactions within our society. Food Taboos,
standby phenomenon, political dynasty, and elections are some examples of social, political,
and cultural behavior and phenomena.

Anthropology is the systematic study of humanity, with the goal of understanding

our evolutionary origins, our distinctiveness as a species, and the great diversity in our forms
of social existence across the world and through time. It is derived from two Greek words
anthropos and logos, which intensively studies human and the respective cultures where
they were born and actively belong to. It is considered the father or even grandfather of all
social and behavioral sciences like sociology, economics and psychology, to name a few.

Sociology, Psychology, Education, and Business are disciplines related to

Anthropology. Anthropology and Sociology share an interest in social relations, organization,
and behavior. Psychological Anthropology focuses the studies about different cultural and
mental process of men. In classrooms, anthropologists have observed interactions among
teachers, students, parents, and visitors. Businesses hire anthropologists because of the
importance of observation in natural settings and the focus on cultural diversity.

There are four major fields of anthropology: biological anthropology, cultural

anthropology, linguistic anthropology, and archaeology. Each focuses on a different set of
research interests and generally uses different research techniques. The methods range
from those commonly used by the social sciences and humanities to those of biology and
geology. Biological anthropology and archaeology are generally the closest to the biological
and physical sciences in methods and approach to learning about the human experience.
Biological (or physical) anthropology studies Homo sapiens as biological beings both in the
present and in the past. It is concerned the origin, evolution, and diversity of people.
Cultural (or socio-cultural) anthropology is the description and comparison of the
adaptations made by human groups to the diverse ecosystems of the earth. It deals with the
study of the differences and similarities of various cultures and how they correlate to each
other. Archeology is one of the major areas in cultural anthropology. It refers to the
scientific study of humans, their history and culture, through examination of the artifacts,
remains or left behind. Linguistic anthropology is the study of the human communication
process. Archaeology is the systematic study of the remains of previous cultures as a means
of reconstructing the lifeways of people who lived in the past.

Applied, Development, Urban, and Medical Anthropology are some of the

interdisciplinary fields of Anthropology. Most anthropologists carry out research and teach
about what they have learned. They are employed by universities, colleges, and museums.
However, a third of all anthropologists use this knowledge and methodology of problem
solving for practical purposes in corporations, government agencies, non-governmental
organizations, medical institutions, and other non-academic settings. They are applied
anthropologists. Development anthropology refers to the application of anthropological
perspectives to the multidisciplinary branch of development studies. Urban anthropology
investigates cities and the sociocultural experiences and practices of urban dwellers in
relation to the larger socioeconomic and cultural contexts. Medical anthropologists learn
about cultural differences in explaining what causes illness and what people from different
cultures believe is acceptable as treatment.

Political science is the art of politics and governance ( according to Aristotle it is the
study of state including its form of government, political system, political behavior and
political ideology. According to Lawson, many of the key concepts of political science have
to do with relations of control. Some of these key concepts include power, influence,
authority, legitimacy, and linkage.

Political ideologies are sets of ethical ideas about how a country should be run.
Anarchism, communism, and socialism are some of the types of major political ideologies.
Anarchism is a radical political movement that is highly skeptical towards authority and
rejects all forms of unjust hierarchy. It calls for the abolition of the state which it holds to be
undesirable, unnecessary, and harmful. Anarchism advocates for the replacement of the
state with stateless societies or other forms of free associations. Communism is a
philosophical, social, political, economic ideology and movement whose ultimate goal is the
establishment of a communist society, namely a socioeconomic order structured upon the
ideas of common ownership of the means of production and the absence of social classes,
money and the state. Socialism is a political, social and economic philosophy encompassing
a range of economic and social systems characterized by social ownership of the means of
production and workers' self-management of enterprises.

Sociology is the systematic or scientific study of human society and social behavior,
from large-scale institutions and mass culture to small groups and individual interactions.
The term sociology was first used by Frenchman Auguste Compte in the 1830s when he
proposed a synthetic science uniting all knowledge about human activity. In the academic
world, sociology is considered one of the social sciences. While sociology assumes that
human actions are patterned, individuals still have room for choices. Becoming aware of
the social processes that influence the way humans think, feel, and behave plus having the
will to act can help individuals to shape the social forces they face. Studying sociology is
practical and useful. As social beings, we gain understanding of how the social world
operates and of our place in it. Once we understand it, we can apply what we learn to try to
fix society's ills. It's not always easy to understand people, but sociology gives us an
opportunity to try. Not only does it allow us to consider why things are the way they are in
society and not to accept the status quo, but it also helps us examine the stages that have
led up to the way our society functions and enables us to challenge certain "given"
elements. Sociology is gradually developing in the Philippines. There are colleges and
universities that offer both undergraduate and graduate courses in Sociology.