Lesson 1

Defining the Social Sciences and the Applied Social Sciences

BRIEF INTRODUCTION

DISCUSSIONS

Social sciences are vast fields of scientific study which investigate human societies and the different
forces within them. These diverse fields examine how people interact and develop their culture.
Social sciences are comprised of several disciplines, including history, political science, sociology,
psychology, economics, geography, demography, anthropology and linguistics. Through a body of
empirical knowledge, the social sciences offer a complex collection of lenses that allow us to
understand and clarify the various aspects of human society. Varieties of lens that the social sciences
study refer to the various areas of the social sciences that research human society. That field of
social science uses a diverse collection of lenses made up of a body of ideas, theories, structures and
methodologies that allow us to understand and research the multi-faceted forces that make up and
influence human society.

BRANCHES OF THE SOCIAL SCIENCES

Economics studies the allocation of scarce resources and the production and exchange of goods
and services within society. The two primary divisions of the economics are microeconomics, which
focuses on the actions of individual consumers and producers, and macro-economics, which
explores the actions and output of the aggregate economy.

Anthropology is a scientific study of human beings and their cultures in the past and present.
Anthropology 's systematic approach to human research, the importance of fieldwork and
participant observation, and its focus on cross-cultural comparison, make it special in the social
sciences.

History is a systematic study of past human events in order to understand the meaning, dynamics
and relationship of the causes and effects of events in the development of societies. This is derived
from the Greek word past, which means "investigation" or "investigation." In a social science, history
focuses on the interpretation and analysis of historical events, as they have historically occurred with
the use of primary and secondary sources. Primary sources refer to eyewitness reports or historical
accounts of the incident. They often use secondary sources or facts that are not eye-witness
accounts and are based on primary sources.

Political Science focuses on human actions in relation to political processes, states, rules and
international affairs. This explores the relationship between citizens and politics at all levels, from
the citizen to the national and international levels.

Psychology - is researching how the human mind functions in consonance with the body to
generate thoughts that contribute to individual actions. Psychology analyzes how individuals and
communities view the world through various feelings, thoughts and states of consciousness.
Sociology is a systematic study of people’s behavior in groups. It is derived from the Latin word
socio which means “people together” and Greek word logos which means “the study of.” As a
discipline of the social science, it attempts to understand why and how people interact with each
other and how the function as a society or social subgroups. Applied sociology focus on the use and
proper application of sociological theories, methods and skills to examine data.

Geography is a study of the relationship between people and their environment. Geography was
derived from Greek words: geography means "world" and “graphos” means "charting or drawing."
Geography examines both the physical features of the Earth's surface and its interaction with human
societies. This also explores how human society communicates with the natural world and the effect
of environments and places on people.

Demography is a statistical study of human populations over time, according to the Max Planck
Center for Demographic Science (2016). This explores trends in population growth through the
study of birth, human activity, and morbidity, aging and mortality statistics. Population studies or
social demography are an important sub-field of sociology. Social demographers analyze
demographic data to identify, describe and forecast social phenomena. This also studies the
composition of social class and population distribution.

Discipline and Ideas in Applied Social Sciences by Dela Cruz et al. (2016) p.6-11

DEFINING THE APPLIED SOCIAL SCIENCES The applied social sciences were developed as a
response to the highly segmented and compartmentalized division of social science disciplines that
dominated western research training in the late 1990s and until the end of the twentieth century.
Scholars from the social sciences argued that there is a need for more collaboration in the various
fields of the social sciences. This suggests that the various areas of social sciences need to work
together effectively to resolve problems. This multidisciplinary approach to the study of various
social problems has become the focus and the beginning of applied social sciences. Similar to social
sciences, which concentrate on theoretical studies of society, applied social sciences concentrate on
the use and application of the various ideas, theoretical models and hypotheses of social science
disciplines to better explain society and the various challenges and issues it faces. The applied social
sciences were used to provide possible approaches to the complex problems of society (Gouldner,
1989). Counseling Counseling is one of the areas of social sciences applied to it. As an application
of the social sciences, counseling provides guidance, assistance and support to individuals who are
distracted by a range of problems in their lives. Professional guidance is provided to the individual
through counseling, and this is done through the application of psychological methods such as the
collection of case history data, personal interviews and skills tests. Counseling may be provided by
psychologists, life coaches, job psychologists and personal development counselors.

Social Work Social research is another technical practice in the social sciences related to it. Having
been trained in social sciences to interact and understand social realities, an applied social sciences
practitioner has a good theoretical and conceptual foundation for social work practice. Through
social work, professionals are supporting people, families, associations and neighborhoods to
strengthen their individual and mutual well-being.

Communication Studies Applied social sciences provide appropriate instruction for employment in
the communications field. One example of a career in the advertising industry is in the field of mass
media. For example, in the news and current affairs department of major television and radio
networks, practitioners stress the importance of balance, objective, truthful and creative reporting
of news and other important events as they have happened. Practitioners in applied social sciences
have ample experience in this field as they are equipped with communication theories and principles
that allow them to understand and educate the public about the social, political, cultural, and
economic realities. Communication professionals have the skills to write, create and deliver news
accurately and creatively to the public.