FILIPINO BELIEF SYSTEM, VALUES AND IDEOLOGY
consciousness of ways to interact with our external world to
1. NATURALISM (Aristotle)
o nature is the only real thing, knowledge this is
received by man’s senses
o believing in the value of beauty as the inherently
simple and natural
o human beings grow and in the process undergo
cyclical stages of development
2. IDEALISM (Plato)
o reality is in the mind and outside of its knowledge
will render a thing non-existent
o guided by the principles which lift them up closer to
a “model”
o man is capable of rising above mediocrity to attain
excellence and self-realization
o beauty, truth and goodness
3. PRAGMATISM (John Dewey)
o value of theory and practice and the functionality of
resources and resultant products
o not contented with the acquisition of knowledge; it
should be filtered in experimentations and testing
before their applicability is decided upon
o utility and relevance
BELIEF SYSTEM
Formation of Belief System
1. Intuition
2. Observation
3. Comparison
4. Reference Group
5. Perception of own behavior
6. Social Institutions
THEORIES ON THE ORIGIN ON THE SOURCES OF VALUES
1. “Inner Man” or Mentalistic Theory (William James)
o all our obligations, all what we call good and
what we call bad, do not exist as good or bad per se
o These are OUR constructions and are each of us but
a product of individual’s wants, needs and desires
o The value is purely a product of each heart and
mind
o To a valuing person nothing can be good or bad
except so far as some consciousness feels it to be
good or thinks it to be right
2. “Outer Man” or Behavioral Theory (B.F. Skinner)
o values come from your personal experience
o values are created by a never-ending series of a
combination of behavioral reinforcements and
extinctions
3. “Id; Ego, and Superego” Theory of Values and
Preferences (Sigmund Freud)
o we evolutionary-based instinctual drives
Id– prefer certain things; we develop over time a
get what we want
Ego – we have a set of culturally and parentally induced
should or should not
Superego- spend a good amount of time in a tension-
producing conflict with what we value and what we prefer
4. Labelling Theory / Cultural Relativism Theory of
Values
o things, ideas, events, behavior are neither good nor
bad per se
o It depends upon the agreement of the society
CLASSIFICATION OF VALUES
1. Economic Values
o objects with material values
o money, car, house
2. Behavioral Values
o internalized guides to
behavior
1. Instrumental (means) or the mode of behavior
(e.g) studying hard
2. Terminal (outcome/end) results of the behavior (e.g)
knowledge and skills ; good grades
3. Social Values
o values arising from interpersonal relations
1. Prescriptive (thou shall) values (e.g) Thou shall love
thy neighbor
2. Proscriptive (thou shall not) values (e.g) Thou shall
not kill
4. Non-Social or Self-Concern Values
o taking a bath everyday
o having balanced diet
5. Moral and Spiritual Values
o ethical values
o godly values
THEORIES ON THE ORIGIN OF PHILIPPINE VALUES
BIOLOGICAL AND CULTURAL ORIGIN OF FILIPINO VALUE
ORIENTATIONS
The Filipino is a hodgepodge or mixture of:
o Different racial strains, the indigenous or primitive
strains (Negrito, Aeta, Ati, Ita, Pygmy or Baluga)
o Mixing and blending with the Oriental or Eastern
strains (Indonesians, Malays, Chinese, Japanese,
Arabs , Thais )
o and Occidental or Western Strains (Spanish,
Americans, Portuguese, English)
o but with Malay strain predominating
FOUR BASIC FILIPINO VALUES Fr. Jaime Bulatao
1. Emotional Closeness and Security in a Family
 o It is in this value where the family including the
extended family give support to members of the
family
o In return, Filipino children are loving to their parents
o It tends to make the Filipinos a nation of dependent
people
2. Approval from authority and of society
o This value brings about the Filipino image as
amiable, personable, and the like
o Filipinos have the desire to please and be accepted
by the authority
3. Economic and social betterment
o Filipino value of uplifting one’s state in life
o This can be considered a positive value, but negates
itself if one goes to the extent of “selling” oneself
and sacrificing other values
4. Patience, endurance, and suffering
o This value shows the “matiisin” attitude among the
Filipinos
o Enables us to bounce back easily when tragedy
strikes
FILIPINO ORIENTAL AND OCCIDENTAL VALUE ORIENTATIONS
DICHOTOMY
1. NON-RATIONALISM vs. RATIONALISM
Non-Rationalism
o involves the belief in the supremacy of nature and
forces outside of oneself (Belief in ghost, spirits,
supernatural beings)
o Involves an uncritical acceptance, reverence and
protection of traditions and rituals, unquestioning
obedience to authority and loyalty to one’s group
NON-RATIONALISM vs. RATIONALISM
o A non-rational person is traditional, fatalistic,
dogmatic, superstitious and unscientific
- Bahala Na ; reliance on amulets, anting-anting,
gayuma ; use of words – “itinatalga ng Diyos”,
gulong ng palad, itinadhana ng kapalaran
Rationalism
o involves a belief that by systematic planning,
studying and training, one can actually control and
manipulate his or her destiny
o One is thus responsible for his or her own success or
failure.
o A rational person is scientific-oriented, liberal and
skeptical
o high value upon individualism, self-expression, self-
reliance, self-determination, critical mindedness,
open-mindedness, productivity and creativity
o all knowledge and truth is found only in reason ; no
supernatural revelation
- kasipagan, pagkamakatwiran, mapanuri
2. PERSONALISM vs. IMPERSONALISM
Personalism
o refers to the tendency to give due importance to
intrapersonal and interpersonal relations in working
arrangements
o kinship, whether by blood or ritual ; friendship and
intimacy in getting things done
o The Filipino way of doing things is centered too
much on personalities (Fr. Bulatao)
o Filipinos have inability to dissociate personalities
from functions and positions, thus there’s extreme
difficulty to be really objective in making judgments
o lies behind many charges of nepotism, favoritism,
and graft and corruption in government
- kaibigan ; kamag-anak ; kumadre/kumpare ; use of
intermediary or go-between, utang na loob, hiya,
amor-propio, areglo palakasan system
Impersonalism
o tendency to eliminate the influence of friendship or
kinship in working relations
o behavior is depersonalized, standardized or
institutionalized
o working relationship is based on merits and
qualifications
- Walang personalan ; hustisya para sa lahat
3. PARTICULARISM vs. UNIVERSALISM
Particularism
o tendency of a person to center his or her concern
on his or her sub-groups made up of relatives,
friends, colleagues, associates, religious affiliates or
members of his or her ethnic/regional group in the
larger society to which he/she belongs
- Tayo-tayo system, kamag-anak system, fraternity
and sorority ties; kapatiran
Universalism
o tendency to focus one’s attention and concern on
the promotion of the national and common will
o emphasis is on general welfare of the whole society
o eliminates familial, kinship, friendship, political,
religious or ethnic relations in getting things done
- kagalingang-pambansa ; katarungang panlipunan;
pambansang kamalayan ; pambansang paglilingkod
; pambansang pagkakakilanlan
4. NATIONALISM vs. INTERNATIONALISM
Nationalism
o the advocacy of making one’s own nation distinct
and separate from others in intellectual, social,
cultural, economic, political and moral matters
o feeling of oneness among the nationals who seek to
establish the identity and the good of the nation in
these matters
- Bayan ko, Mahal ko ; Mabuhay ang Pilipino
Internationalism
o the belief in having friendly relations between and
among nations for their mutual and common benefit
 o advocacy of making nations of the world as one o “James Bond” Cult
global community, removing all geographical, o Use of English became a pivotal importance at all
cultural, social and cultural barriers towards the levels of education
community of nations and making all peoples as
citizens of the world
o may sound a utopia, but seems the western idea of
globalization and the American hegemony plan is
geared towards that direction

GENERAL FILIPINO VALUES

1. Bahala na
2. Utang na Loob
3. Amor Propio
4. Fatalism
5. Smooth Interpersonal Relationship (SIR)
6. Use of Euphemisms
7. Pakikisama
General Filipino Values
8. Hiya
9. Paggalang
10. Pakikialam
11. Tungkulin ng panganay sa pamilya
12. Segurista
13. Pagkatitulado
14. Lack of Sportsmanship
General Filipino Values
15. Particularism
16. Filipino Time
17. Mañana Habit
18. Ningas Cogon tendency
19. Pakipot
20. Delicadeza
21. Palabra de Honor
General Filipino Values
22. Colonial Mentality
23. Compadre System
24. Lakad System
25. Lagay System
26. Kamag-anak System
27. Walang bigayan, walang lamangan policy
28. Pagkamatiisin
General Filipino Values
29. Crab Mentality
30. Baka Sakali Attitude
31. Status Consciousness
32. Fiesta Syndrome

Patterns of Cultural Conflict in Philippine Life by Justus

M. van der Kroef
o Small group loyalties
o Strong Family Ties
“Wherever we go we look for family ties. If we can find none,
we create them” – Inocencio Ferrer
o Bahala na