Senior High School

Disciplines and Ideas

in the Social Science
Quarter 1 - Module 1:
Nature, Function, Concept and Principle of Social Science
Disciplines and Ideas in the Social Sciences – Grade 11
Alternative Delivery Mode
Quarter 1 - Module 1: Nature, Function, Concept and Principles of Social
Science
First Edition, 2020
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 Senior High School

DISCIPLINES ANDIDEAS
IN THE SOCIAL SCIENCES

Quarter 1-Module 1:
NATURE, FUNCTION, CONCEPT AND
PRINCIPLES OF SOCIAL SCIENCE

This instructional material was collaboratively developed and

reviewed by educators from public schools. We encourage teachers and
other education stakeholders to email their feedback, comments, and
recommendations to the Department of Education
atmisamis.oriental@deped.gov.ph
We value your feedback and recommendations.

Department of Education ● Republic of the Philippines

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 TABLE OF CONTENTS

PAGE

What This Module is About…………………………………………………………… 6

What I Need to Know ………………………………………………………………… 6

How to Learn from this Module………………………………………………………. 6

Icons of this Module…………………………………………………………………… 7

Lesson 1 – The nature and function of Social Science disciplines, Natural Science
and Humanities

What IKnow…………………………………………………………… 8
What’s In……………………………………………………………….. 9
What’s New …………………………………………………………… 10
What Is It………………………………………………………………. 10
What’s More…………………………………………………………… 14
What I Have Learned………………………………………………… 15
What I Can Do………………………………………………………… 15
Lesson 2 – The emergence of Social Science Disciplines

What’s In……………………………………………………………….. 17
What’s New …………………………………………………………… 18
What Is It………………………………………………………………. 18
What’s More…………………………………………………………… 20
What I Have Learned………………………………………………… 20
What I Can Do………………………………………………………… 21
Lesson 3 – The Basic Concepts and Principles of the Major Social Science
Theories

What’s In……………………………………………………………….. 23
What’s New …………………………………………………………… 24
What Is It………………………………………………………………. 26

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 What’s More…………………………………………………………… 31
What I Have Learned………………………………………………… 32
What I Can Do………………………………………………………… 33

Assessment: (Post-Test)…………………………………………………………….. 34

Key Answer…………………………………………………………………………… 35

References……………………………………………………………………………. 38

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 What is this Module about

Welcome to the world of Social Science Learners!

This module in the Disciplines and Ideas in the Social Sciences
introduces basic concepts, subjects, and methods of inquiry in the disciplines
that comprise the Social Sciences. It discusses influential thinkers and ideas in
these disciplines and relates these ideas to the Philippine setting and current
global trends.
This module will help you widen your knowledge and recognize the
importance ofsocial science as part of our daily life.

Module Content:
This is where you start to explore the different functions, concepts, principles and
theories of social sciences. This will also allow you to identify the different philosophers
or proponents of these concepts and theories.
These are the competencies covered in the module:
• Differentiate the nature and functions of Social Science disciplines with the
natural sciences and humanities(HUMSS DISS-IIIa-2-3);
• Explain the major events and its contribution that led to the emergence of the
social science disciplines(HUMSS DISS-IIId-4);
• Analyze the basic concepts and principles of the major social science theories
(HUMSS DISS-IIIe-i-1-5); and
• Apply the major social science theories and its importance in examining socio-
cultural, economic and political conditions (HUMSSDISS-IIIe-i-1-5).

What I Need to Know

How to Learn from this Module

To achieve the competencies mentioned above, the students should be participative to
do the following:
• Make time to read the module and understand the concepts and ideas covered
in this module.
• Follow instructions specified in each of the activities included in the lessons of
this module.

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 • Answer all the given assessments (pre or post) and activities in this module.
• Remember to review every time you are done answering all the activities found in
this module.
• Search for answers from the internet for any misconceptions of ideas or further
explanations.
• Feel free to ask your teacher for any queries and concerns in this module.

Icons of this Module

What I Need to This part contains learning objectives that

Know are set for you to learn as you go along the
module.

What I know This is an assessment as to your level of

knowledge to the subject matter at hand,
meant specifically to gauge prior related
knowledge
What’s In This part connects previous lesson with that
of the current one.

What’s New An introduction of the new lesson through

various activities, before it will be presented
to you

What is It These are discussions of the activities as a

way to deepen your discovery and under-
standing of the concept.

What’s More These are follow-up activities that are in-

tended for you to practice further in order to
master the competencies.

What I Have Activities designed to process what you

Learned have learned from the lesson

What I can do These are tasks that are designed to show-

case your skills and knowledge gained, and
applied into real-life concerns and situations.

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 What I Know (Pretest)

This activity will enable you to assess your prior knowledge about the topic that
will be discussed in this lesson.

Directions: Choose the letter of the correct answer, and write the letterof your answer
in the space provided or in your activity notebook.

___1. One of the branches of humanities that focuses on studying the past and
records of events.
A. Geography
B. Sociology
C. History
___2. This social science discipline entails to study groups – how they are formed,
how they change and how the group impacts individual behavior.
A. Sociology
B. Anthropology
C. Psychology
___3. This particular branch of science is concerned with the phenomena and objects
of nature and the physical world.
A. Social Science
B. Life Science
C. Natural Science
___4. Which of the following is NOT a major branch of Earth Science?
A. Demography
B. Geology
C. Astronomy
___5. Which of the following linguistic signal emphasized on the study of meaning?
A. Morphology
B. Semantics
C. Syntax

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 Lesson 1 The nature, function of Social Science,
Natural Science and Humanities

What I need to know:

At the end of the lesson, you are expected to:
• Differentiate the nature and functions of Social Science disciplines with the
natural sciences and humanities(HUMSS DISS-IIIa-2-3)

What’s In

Activity 1: Read the picture!

Direction:Read and understand the comparative meanings of the two important terms
described in the image. What could be the possible meaning when two words or terms
combined given their definitions? Write your understanding of the two terms when
combined by continuing the phrase below.

Social science is ____________________________.

Photo source: slideshare.net

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 What’s New

Activity 2. Unlock those Vocabularies!

Direction: Unscrambled the letters below to unlock important words in this lesson.
Write your answer on the space provided or in your activity notebook.
1. L O S O I G C Y O _________________
2. Y T I H S O R _________________
3. H Y E G P A O G R _________________
4. O C O Y G P Y S H L _________________
5. S S P Y H I C _________________
6. B L Y G O I O _________________
7. R T Y H E C I M S _________________
8. I T L E U T R A E R U _________________
9. T R A S _________________
10. G L N I O E R _________________

What Is What Is It

The Nature and Function of Social Science

Social Science is the branch of science devoted to the study of societies and the
relationships among individuals within those societies. The term was formerly used to
refer to the field of sociology, the original "science of society", established in the 19th
century.
In addition to sociology, it now encompasses a wide array of academic disciplines. The
nine social science disciplines are as follows:
1. Anthropology is the holistic "science of man", a science of the totality of human
existence. The discipline deals with the integration of different aspects of the
social sciences, humanities, and human biology.
2. Economics is a social science that seeks to analyze and describe the
production, distribution, and consumption of wealth.
3. Geography as a discipline can be split broadly into two main sub fields: human
geography and physical geography. The former focuses largely on the built
environment and how space is created, viewed and managed by humans as well
as the influence humans have on the space they occupy.The latter examines the

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 natural environment and how the climate, vegetation and life, soil, oceans, water
and landforms are produced and interact.
4. History is the continuous, systematic narrative and research into past human
events as interpreted through historiographical paradigms or theories.
5. Linguistics investigates the cognitive and social aspects of human language.
The field is divided into areas that focus on aspects of the linguistic signal, such
as syntax (the study of the rules that govern the structure of sentences),
semantics (the study of meaning), morphology (the study of the structure of
words), phonetics (the study of speech sounds) and phonology (the study of the
abstract sound system of a particular language).
6. Political science is an academic and research discipline that deals with the
theory and practice of politics and the description and analysis of political
systems and political behavior.
7. Psychology is an academic and applied field involving the study of behavior and
mental processes. Psychology also refers to the application of such knowledge to
various spheres of human activity, including problems of individuals' daily lives
and the treatment of mental illness.
8. Sociology is the systematic study of society, individuals' relationship to their
societies, the consequences of difference, and other aspects of human social
action.
9. Demography is the study of population, population changes and trends using
resources such as statistics of births, deaths and disease.

The Nature and Function of Natural Science

Natural science deals with the natural world. It is concerned with the phenomena and
objects of nature and the physical world. Natural science involves comprehension,
description, and prediction of natural phenomena using empirical and observational
evidence.
Natural Science have five main branches. These are:
1. Biology.The word ‘biology’ comes from the Greek words ‘bios’ (meaning life) and
‘logos’ (meaning study). So biology (AKA life science) is the study of living things
and what they do. Biology is a highly diverse subject with many different areas of
study. These include morphology (the study of life structures), botany (the study
of plants), zoology (the study of animals), genetics (the study of genes),
microbiology (the study of microorganisms), and many, many more.
2. Astronomy.Astronomy is the study of celestial objects and space in general;
basically, everything beyond Earth’s atmosphere. The word ‘astronomy’ is
composed of two Greek words: ‘astron’ (meaning star) and ‘omos’ (meaning
arranging). Astronomers study celestial bodies that can be seen from Earth (like
the moon, the sun, the stars, and some planets), but also faraway galaxies that
can only be observed using powerful telescopes. Astronomy also involves the

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 study of phenomena such as black holes, and theories about dark matter and
dark energy.
3. Chemistry.Chemistry is the study of substances, or matter (i.e. all the ‘stuff’ that
makes up the physical world). The purpose of chemistry is to understand the
composition, structure, and properties of substances (defined as elements and
compounds), and the changes they undergo when reacting with other
substances. Chemistry also involves the study of how energy is released or
absorbed during those reactions.
4. Earth Science.Earth science (AKA geoscience) is the study of planet Earth and
everything that goes on here. This includes the study of the solid Earth, its
oceans, and its atmosphere, as well as the origin and evolution of the planet.
There are four major branches of Earth science; these are geology, meteorology,
astronomy, and oceanography.
5. Physics.Physics is thought to be one of the oldest academic disciplines on Earth
and involves the study of matter, energy, forces, mass and charge. The word
‘physics’ comes from the Ancient Greek word ‘physis,’ meaning nature.
Ultimately, physics seeks to make sense of the universe and the laws that govern
it. Physics can be broadly divided into two main branches. These are classical
physics (involving theories that predate the 1900s) and modern physics (post-
1900 physics that makes use of quantum mechanics and the theory of relativity).

The Nature and Function of Humanities

Humanities are academic disciplines that study aspects of human society and
culture.Theystudy and analyzes the flaws in humankind and how they can be improved.
These cultural aspects includes speech, knowledge, beliefs, arts, technologies, ideals,
and rules. With a focus on these aspects, it examines and prescribes the type of
behavior considered appropriate to an individual in his or her efforts to achieve the
status of being a cultured human being.
The branches of humanities consist of the following:
1. Languages. This particular branch of humanities consists of learning the way
people communicate in different speaking countries. It brings a sense of culture
to individuals as they are likely to be taught the various history and origins of the
languages they learn.
2. The arts. The arts consist of theater, music, art and film. They are all mediums of
self-expression and these encourage personal interpretation and analysis. Fine
arts courses also come into this category; however, they focus more on the
historical forms of art and their origins.
3. Literature. Literature refers to novels, short stories, plays and so on. Individuals
attempt to decipher the meaning of texts and look into symbolism and themes.
Literature courses delve into social aspects that may influence texts.

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 4. Philosophy and religion. These courses study human behavior and the age-old
questions such as the meaning of life and the existence of God. They analyze
various cultures and their religious beliefs as well as moral codes.
5. History. This is arguably the most facts-based course as individuals delve into
past events such as war and politics and how societies and cultures have been
affected throughout the years.

Let us take a closer look of their differences by examining the table shown below.

Table 1: The difference between natural science and social science

Natural Science Vs Social Science

Natural Science is a branch of science
that deals with the physical world
Includes fields such as biology,
chemistry, physics, earth science and
astronomy
Always use scientific methods
Students can become medical doctors,
nurses, engineers, biologists, chemists, historians, writers, journalists, teachers,
astronomers, etc.
Social science is the study of human
society and social relationships
Includes fields such as economics,
political, science, law, geography and
history
Use scientific methods as well as other
methods
Students can become lawyers, linguists,
accountants, etc.

Table 2: The difference between social science and humanities

Social Science VS Humanities

Social science refers to a realistic course
of study that is concerned with the
different aspects of the life of an
individual within the group or society.
Objective
Scientific approach
Basic elements of the human culture
Positivist
Study of patterned behavior
Tradition, culture and heritage of the
society
Humanities refer to the branch of
learning, which covers fields like arts,
classic, philosophy, history, anthropology,
etc.
Subjective
Analytical approach
Distinctive elements of human culture
Relativist
In-depth understanding of the specific
cases or events
Factual differences between humanity
and pure science

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 What’s More

Activity 3: Check that discipline!

Direction: Read the scenarios/statements below and try to identify whether the main
idea speaks for the disciplines in the social science, natural science or humanities. To
do this, just put a check ( ∕ )on each item or write your answers in your activity notebook.
Scenario/Statements Social Natural Humanities
Science Science
1. Dr. Frank told the patient that her
situational depression stemmed from
the problems she was having with her
husband.
2. Mary lived through an era of liberating
reform for women.
3. A call center agent persuades a client
through phone to purchase a new
product from their country.
4. An audience from the room couldn’t
understand the speaker because of
being bothered by the speaker’s
pronunciation and intonation.
5. The hunting of animals is a barbaric
practice.
6. The death penalty should be abolished
because it does nothing to prevent
murder.
7. Global warming is a serious
phenomenon that affects every facet of
human life.
8. Legislation should be passed to stop
the sale of cigarettes.
9. The transition of Philippine presidents
marks significant changes in our culture
and society.
10. Positive values need to be reinforced
among students. The value of honesty
and integrity hard work, and resilience.

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 What I Have Learned

Activity 4: Supply that matrix!

Direction: Write at least three distinct characteristics (anything that would describe
the idea) of each discipline based on your understanding of the lesson.

SOCIAL SCIENCE NATURAL SCIENCE HUMANITIES

Example:

Deals with studying society Deals with natural world Deals with human society
or groups and phenomena and culture

1.
2.
3.

After answering the matrix above, kindly write a five-sentence paragraph to each of the
questions below.

1. What is the most important discipline in social science?

2. How natural science can be used in our daily lives?
3. What is the connection between natural science and humanities?

What I Can Do

Activity 5: Tell me a story!

Directions:If you will be given an opportunity to study a specific discipline inthe social
sciences: anthropology, economics, geography, history, linguistics, political science,
psychology, sociology and demography. Which among the discipline would you prefer
to study more and why? What makes you interested to gain more knowledge about the
discipline? You are going to do this by creating a short poetry depicting your reasons
or explanations why you are interested to study that specific discipline.

15
Make sure to be creative and include the elements of poetry in your short poem! You
are graded on the following criteria below:

• Content 20
• Creativity 10
• Grammar 10
• Fluency 10
TOTAL 50 POINTS

Post Test

Directions: Choose the letter of the correct answer, and write the letterof your answer
in the space provided or in your activity notebook.

___1. One of the branches of humanities that focuses on studying the past and records
of events.
A. Geography
B. Sociology
C. History
___2. This social science discipline entails to study groups – how they are formed, how
they change and how the group impacts individual behavior.
A. Sociology
B. Anthropology
C. Psychology
___3. This particular branch of science is concerned with the phenomena and objects
of nature and the physical world.
A. Social Science
B. Life Science
C. Natural Science
___4. Which of the following is NOT a major branch of Earth Science?
A. Demography
B. Geology
C. Astronomy
___5. Which of the following linguistic signal emphasized on the study of meaning?
A. Morphology
B. Semantics
C. Syntax

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 Lesson
The emergence of Social Science
2

What I need to know:

• Explain the major events and its contribution that led to the emergence of the
social science disciplines(HUMSS DISS-IIId-4);

What’s In

Activity 1: I remember that discipline!

Direction:Kindly label the graphic organizer below and provide the nine disciplines of
Social Science.

SOCIAL
SCIENCES
DISCIPLINES

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 What’s New
Direction:
Learners, here is a glimpse of the wonderful timeline of Social Science below.

Infographics created by the illustrator of the module, credits to Giselle Gina Marie s. Esquinas

What Is I What Is It

The Emergence of Social Science Disciplines

Social sciences begins in the Age of Enlightenment after 1650, which saw a revolution
within natural philosophy, changing the basic framework by which individuals
understood what was "scientific".
Social sciences came forth from the moral philosophy of the time and were influenced
by the Age of Revolutions, such as the Industrial Revolution and the French
Revolution.
The social sciences developed from the sciences (experimental and applied), or the
systematic knowledge-bases or prescriptive practices, relating to the social
improvement of a group of interacting entities.

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The beginnings of the social sciences in the 18th century are reflected in the grand
encyclopedia of Diderot, with articles from Jean-Jacques Rousseau and other
pioneers. The growth of the social sciences is also reflected in other specialized
encyclopedias.
The modern period saw "social science" first used as a distinct conceptual field.Social
science was influenced by positivism,focusing on knowledge based on actual positive
sense experience and avoiding the negative; metaphysical speculation was
avoided. Auguste Comte used the term "science sociale" to describe the field, taken
from the ideas of Charles Fourier; Comte also referred to the field as social physics.
After this period, five paths of development sprang forth in the social sciences,
influenced by Comte in other fields. One route that was taken was the rise of social
research. Large statistical surveys were undertaken in various parts of the United
States and Europe. Another route undertaken was initiated by Émile Durkheim,
studying "social facts", and Vilfredo Pareto, opening metatheoretical ideas and
individual theories. A third means developed, arising from the methodological dichotomy
present, in which social phenomena were identified with and understood; this was
championed by figures such as Max Weber. The fourth route taken, based in
economics, was developed and furthered economic knowledge as a hard science. The
last path was the correlation of knowledge and social
values;the antipositivism and verstehen sociology of Max Weber firmly demanded
this distinction.
On the late 19th century, the academic social sciences were constituted of five
fields: jurisprudence and amendment of the law, education, health, economy and
trade, and art.
At the start of the 20th century, Enlightenment philosophy was challenged in
various quarters. After the use of classical theories since the end of the scientific
revolution, various fields substituted mathematics studies for experimental studies
and examining equations to build a theoretical structure. The development of social
science subfields became very quantitative in methodology. The interdisciplinary and
cross-disciplinary nature of scientific inquiry into human behavior, social and
environmental factors affecting it, made many of the natural sciences interested in
some aspects of social science methodology.Examples of boundary blurring include
emerging disciplines like social research
of medicine, sociobiology, neuropsychology, bioeconomics and
the history and sociology of science. Increasingly, quantitative
research and qualitative methods are being integrated in the study of human action and
its implications and consequences. In the first half of the 20th century,statistics
became a free-standing discipline of applied mathematics. Statistical methods were
used confidently.

19
In the contemporary period, Karl Popper and Talcott Parsons influenced the
furtherance of the social sciences.Researchers continue to search for a unified
consensus on what methodology might have the power and refinement to connect a
proposed "grand theory" with the various midrange theories that, with considerable
success, continue to provide usable frameworks for massive and growing data banks.
Around the start of the 21st century, the expanding domain of economics in the social
sciences has been described as economic imperialism.

What’s More

Activity 2: I got it!

Direction:List all the persons and theories/disciplines per era or period of time that led
to the emergence of social sciences.
Period/Era Proponents Theories/disciplines
(People/Thinkers/ thatemerged
Philosophers, etc)
Example:

Age of None Natural philosophy

Enlightenment

18th Century
19th Century
20th Century
21st Century

What I Have Learned

Activity 3: Reflection Time!

Direction: Share to us your thoughts about the fruitful history of the social science
disciplines. Give at least five (5) words/phrases that can describe the meaningful
emergence of the social science disciplines by completing the graphic organizers below.

20
 The emergence of
the social sciences
disciplines

What I Can Do

Activity 4: Research time!

The term "social science" may refer either to the specific sciences of society established
by thinkers such as Comte, Durkheim, Marx, and Weber, or more generally to all
disciplines outside of "noble science" and arts.
Directions:Choose one among the four thinkers mentioned above and make a
biography. Don’t forget to include a photo of the thinker you have chosen. Also, be
creative with making their biography.

A biography is a story written about someone's life. An example of biography is a book

about the story of President Obama's life. An account of a person's life written,
composed, or produced by another. A film biography of Adlai Stevenson; an
oral biography.
Source: https://www.yourdictionary.com

You will be graded with the following criteria below.

CRITERIA POINTS
Content 20
Grammar 10
Fluency 10
Creativity 10
TOTAL 50

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 Assessment

Directions: Choose the letter of the correct answer, and write the letterof your answer
in the space provided or in your activity notebook.

___1. In this period, Karl Popper and Talcott Parsons influenced the furtherance of the
social sciences.
D. 19th Century
E. Modern period
F. Contemporary period
___2. The modern period saw social science as a distinct conceptual field and was
influenced by positivism. Which among the thinkers below support such field?
D. Max Weber
E. Jean-Jacques Rousseau
F. Auguste Comte
___3. When did social science begin?
D. Age of Enlightenment
E. Age of Revolution
F. French Revolution
___4. Who initiated the studying of social facts?
D. Charles Fourier
E. Emile Durkheim
F. Vilfredo Pareto
___5. In the first half of the 20th century, which discipline became free-standing
discipline of applied mathematics?
D. Geometry
E. Statistics
F. Algebra

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 Lesson The Basic Concepts and Principles of the
Major Social Science Theories
3

What I need to know:

At the end of the lesson, you are expected to:
• Analyze the basic concepts and principles of the major social science
theories:
a. Structural-Functionalism
b. Symbolic Interactionism
c. Marxism
• Apply the major social science theories and their importance in examining
social-cultural, economic, and political conditions.

What’s In

Activity 1: My, your, our society, let’s discover it!

Directions: With the following stated social problems, identify which disciplines may be
inclined to address the issue. Choose from the box the appropriate answer.
Write your answer after each statement.
anthropology sociology psychology economics demography geography

1. The COVID-19 pandemic has led to a dramatic loss of human life worldwide and
presents an unprecedented challenge to public health, food systems and the world of
work. __________________
2. Measures to legalize divorce in the country have been introduced by lawmakers.
____________________
3. One in every four people is affected with mental health problem in any year.
____________________

4. A high level of underemployment is being experienced by newly graduates despite

having baccalaureate degrees._________________

5. Overpopulation has become a threat for most Asian countries, like China and India.
__________________

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Activity 2: My Idea!
Directions: How does emergence of the various disciplines of the social science
relevant to people’severyday life? Write your idea on the lines provided. Do not exceed
to five sentences.

______________________________________________________________________
_________________

What’s New

Activity 3: The faces of society!

Directions: The following pictures encapsulate ways at looking and understanding
society. Study the pictures and write your analysis on how you think the society
operates. Write your analysis on how you think the society operates. Write your answer
on the lines provided.

1.
Photo source: https://bit.ly/3vZC96G

______________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________

_________________________________.

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 2.
Photo source: https://bit.ly/3h6j79f
______________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________

3.

Photo source: https://binged.it/3qroVye

______________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________

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 What Is It

THE BASIC CONCEPTS AND PRINCIPLES OF THE MAJOR SOCIAL SCIENCE

THEORIES
In this lesson, you will immerse yourself to the major approaches and ideas used
in the scientific study of society. These approaches offer various ways of looking at the
society and present various ways of explaining the things that are happening in it. The
dominant approaches that will be discussed in this chapter will be classified into three,
namely positivist social science, interpretive social science, and critical social
science. Under the positivist social science,structural-functionalismwill be discussed;
under interpretive social science, symbolic interactionism will be tackled; and for
critical social science,Marxism will be highlighted. See Figure 3.1.

Dominant
Approaches in the
Social Science

I. Positivist III. Critical

Social II. Interpretive Social
Science Social Science Science
.

Structural- Symbolic Marxism

functionalism Interactionism

Figure 3.1: Dominant Approaches in the Social Science

I. Positivist Social Science
Positivism refers to the philosophy of science that asserts that the only source of
trustworthy knowledge is the information obtained from rational conducts and reports of
sensory experience. The French sociologist August Comte is considered the “Father of
Positivism” when he asserted in the early century that society, like the physical world,
operates according to absolute laws, and that it is the duty of the sociologist to discover
these laws in order to understand the nature of society. Positivism is related to
structural-functionalism.
Structural-Functionalism
Structural-functionalism is one of the approaches categorized under positivist social
science. Figure 3.1 captures the concept of the said approach. It states that parts of the

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society all contribute to the “functional” operation of the system in general. In structural-
functionalism, social balance and equilibrium are created when all parts of society are
operating well.
Key Concepts in Structural-Functionalism
One important concept in structural-functionalism is that of social structure. In the
early 20th century, the British sociologist A.R. Radcliffe-Brown subscribed to the
sociological tradition that society is systematically structured, and may be likened to a
biological organism. People were merely important in relation to their positions in the
overall structure of social roles in society.
Among important concepts in structural- functionalism are social structure, social
function, social dysfunction, manifest function, and latent function. See Figure 3.2.

Church (Religion)

SOCIAL STRUCTURES Government

(Patterned social
relations) School (Education)

STRUCTURAL-
Media
FUNCTIONALISM

MANIFEST FINCTIONS
SOCIAL FUNCTIONS/
(Intended functions)
DYSFUNCTIONS
(Effects for the LATENT FUNCTIONS
operations of society)
(Unintended functions)

Figure 3.2: Concepts of Structural-Functionalism

Social Functions.They refer to results or effects for the operation of the society
in general. For instance, education has a number of significant purposes in a society,
such as socialization and learning. The family can be treated as having essential
functions for society such as providing sexual reproductive, economic, and educational
needs for its members. Media provides the social function of mirroring the concerns of
the audience. Religion contributes to the well-being of society by teaching
moralitythusproviding social stability and order. Social functions may be intended or
unintended consequences, thus they can be classified into manifest and latent
functions.
Manifest and Latent Functions. According to American sociologist Robert
Merton, manifest functions are those that are intentional or known; referring to functions
which people suppose and anticipate to be fulfilled by the institutions. Meanwhile, latent
functions are the unexpected effects of institutions. For example, the manifest function

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of religion is to provide meaning and purpose for a society by offering the comforting
sense that we come from and will go back to a higher being. It also promotes social
unity by binding people through codes morals and customs. It is also useful in
propagating social control. The latent function of religion would be contributing
entertaining facilities and courtship prospects to its youth members.
Social Dysfunctions. Meanwhile, dysfunctions may also be manifest or latent,
and have a negative effect on society. Manifest dysfunctions are expected disruptions of
social life. For instance, a manifest dysfunction of heavy migration from rural to urban
areas might include overpopulation and unemployment. Latent dysfunction might
include rise in crime rate due to massive unemployment generated by the said
migration.
II. Interpretive Social Science
Interpretive social science is an approach claims that people create and
associate their own subjective meaning as they interact with the world around them.
Hence it is the duty of interpretive researchers to search for the meanings people assign
to certain phenomena in order to understand them. Interpretive paradigm also claims
that our knowledge of reality is only socially constructed, thus there is no objective
reality.
Symbolic interactionism is one of the theoretical approaches under interpretive
social science. It claims that symbols help us understand how we view society and
communicate with each other. It traces its origin to Max Webe’s assertion that
individuals act according to their interpretation of the meaning of their world. However, it
was the American philosopher George Herbert Mead who introduced symbolic
interaction to American sociology in the 1920’s.
Concepts in Symbolic Interaction
One of the concepts important in this approach is that of symbols, which refer to
the means by which people extensively and creatively communicate. Symbols are
culturally derived social objects having shared meanings that are created and
maintained in social interaction. It is through symbols that the history, culture, and forms
of communications of people are expressed and it is also the means by which people
associate meanings with interpretation, action, and interaction.
Society is also another important concept in symbolic interactionism. It
distinguishes between the infrahuman (lower animal) and human life. The difference
between them would be determined in the types of communication used. Infra-human
communication is based on gestures, which takes place right away without any
disruption of the act for interpretation, while humans must interpret gesturesand assign
them meaning, and it can only be possible when there is general agreement in
meaning.

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 The self is another important concept in symbolic interactionism. It refers to the
conscious, contemplative personality of the individual. It is the being or nature of a
person one imagines when he thinks about who he or she is. The development of self is
made possible through roletaking: in order to see yourself, you have to be able to take
the role of another, which in turn allows you to contemplate upon your own self. Mead
classifies three steps in the development of the self: the preparatory stage (meaningless
imitation by the infant); the play stage (actual playing roles); and the game stage
(culminating stage of self-development where the child finds who he or she really is).
The self consists of two parts: the I and the Me. The I refers to the spontaneous and
unorganized inclination of the individual, while the Me is the integrated other within the
individual, or the generalized other which provides a structured set of outlooks and
explanations, insights, and prospects.
Another important concept in symbolic interactionism is the mind, or the mental
aspect of individuals which materializes from human communication. The mind
becomes evident when significant symbols are being used in communication. It
becomes apparent whenever the individual is interacting with himself or herself using
significant symbols. It also serves as the aspects of the individual which disrupts stimuli
responses.
III. Critical Social Science
Critical social science is an analytical method of investigation that attempts to
expose surface illusions to uncover the real structures in the material world in order to
help people understand their situation and then transform the world for the
better(Newman 1997). In other words, it aims to uncover surface reality in order to
expose underlying structures so that people may improve the society to which they
belong. Therefore, the goal of critical social science is not only to discover laws that
explain human behavior and social phenomena but also to help people understand why
social inequalities exist so that they can do something to address these inequalities.
Marxism, one of the theoretical approaches under critical social science, refers
to the political and economic theories of Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels in which the
concept of class struggle plays an important role in abolishing class oppression. It views
social order as being a product of coercion and power being exercised by the more
powerful group (bourgeoisie) to the disadvantage group (proletariat).
Key concepts in Marxism
Marx emphasized that material conditions shape consciousness and history. In
his work The German Idealogy (1845), Marx discussed the four stages of society,
namely; primitive communism or hunting and gathering of society where there was no
concept of ownership and everything was communal but conflict was determined by
material scarcity; slavery, which characterized ancient societies where the source of
conflict was between master and slave; feudalism, where the source of conflict was
between landowners and serf; and capitalist, where the source of conflict was between

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the bourgeoisie and the proletariat. For Marx, the emergence of a classless society
would signal the eventual end of history because it is ideal state where wealth would be
owned collectively by the people. In order to achieve communism, a social revolution
has to take place. It would involve change in the mode of production and the system of
ownership. Only through class struggle would be establishment of a classless society
be possible. However, a dictatorship of the proletariat was needed for a complete
transition from capitalism to communism (Heywood, 2007).
Aside from the basic concepts of bourgeoisie, proletariat, and historical
materialism which were discussed above, some important concepts that would help us
understand Marxism are alienation, surplus value, false consciousness, and praxis.
Alienation. It means separation from one’s true or necessary nature, and the
idea was used by Marxists to describe the process by which labor is reduced to being a
mere commodity under capitalism. From proletariats’ labor, workers are expected to
produce surplus, or the amount of resources that exceeds the portion that is needed,
which can be utilized as a profit.
Surplus value. The value that extracted from the labor of the proletariat by the
mechanism of capitalist exploitation. Through capitalism, the bourgeoisie was able to
exploit by paying them less than the value of their labor in order to produce the profit.
False consciousness. When members of the working class are deceived from
their true class position when they fail to realize their class oppression. This false
consciousness is said to cause workers to disregard the true nature of oppression
because of the belief in the possibility of upward mobility.
Praxis. The process by which a theory is enacted or realized by critically
assessing the world and change society based on the workers’ own class interests,
rather than accepting the idealogy of the capitalist class. When used to guide and
conduct research, praxis encourages the community or group under study to become
empowered and help them challenge their oppression.
Importance of the social science theories
The table below provides a brief description of the major social science theories
and its importance in examining the socio-cultural, economic and political conditions.
Social Science Social-cultural Economic Conditions Political Conditions
Theories Conditions
Structural- There is According to the functionalist The government will do
functionalism existence of a perspective of sociology, each its best on the general to
general aspect of society is keep functioning properly
agreement on interdependent and so as not to have a
the values and contributes to society's negative effect on the
norms of the stability and functioning as a general functioning of
society by whole. society.
majority.

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Symbolic It examines A symbolic interactionist Policies are
Interactionism society by might study what contributes concentrated on the
concentrating on to job satisfaction. Melvin subjective meanings that
the subjective Kohn and his fellow people impose on things,
meanings that researchers (1990) incidents and actions.
people impose determined that workers were
on things, most likely to be happy when
incidents and they believed they controlled
actions. some part of their work, when
they felt they were part of the
decision-making processes
associated with their work,
when they have freedom from
surveillance, and when they
felt integral to the outcome
oftheir work.

What’s More

Activity: I know it!

Directions: Read the concept being described in each item, and analyze which theory is
applied in the situation. Write the letter of the correct answer.
A. Structural-functionalism
B. Symbolic Interactionism
C. Marxism
______1. The high incidence of marijuana smoking among the youth because they
believe that smoking marijuana is cool, that they will be safe from harm, that it
casts positive impression to their friends.
______2. In the Philippine context, gossips or tsismis have functions.
______3. Many people have opted to decline about getting immunized against the
Covid-19, including some at high risk of infection.
_______4. Media mirrors the concerns of audience.
_______5. Rallyists bringing placards on the streets cry for social change.

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 What I Have Learned

Directions: Complete the following concept map based on your understanding of the
lesson.

Dominant approaches
and ideas used in the
scientific study of society

Critical Social Science-

Structural-functionalism-

Concept Concept Concept

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 What I Can Do

Activity: I learn; I apply!

Directions: Choose one social issue from the ones listed below and share your
observation and knowledge using one of the theories and its importance in the
social-cultural, economic and political conditions discussed in this lesson. Write a
reflection about it.
1. Gender diversity
2. Drug War
3. Roles of society in shaping child’s virtues
4. Rebellion
5. Covid-19 case surge

RUBRICS FOR REFLECTION PAPER

CRITERIA DESCRIPTION POINTS POINTS
OBTAINED
Content The student was able to choose and was able 20
to share observation and knowledge using one
of the theories discussed in the lesson.
Analysis Analysis was clear and concise based on the 15
data presented.
Organization The paper was well-written with ideas easily 15
conveyed to readers.
TOTAL 50

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 Assessment

This activity will enable you to assess your prior knowledge from the topic that
will be discussed in this lesson.
Directions: Choose the letter of the correct answer before the number.

___1. Which approach sees society as a complex system where parts work together
to promote solidarity and stability?
A. Marxism
B. Symbolic Interactionism
Assessment
C. Structural Functionism
___2. Which theory examines society by concerning on the subjective meaning that
people impose on things, incidents and actions?
A. Marxism
B. Symbolic Interactionism
C. Structural Functionism
___3. Which social science approach aims to expose the conflict caused by the
existence of different social classes with different interests and encourages
people to challenge the status quo and abolish social inequality?
` A. Marxism
B. Symbolic Interactionism
C. Structural Functionism
___4. Which from the thinkers listed below considered as the “Father of Positivism”?
A. Karl Marx
B. Max Weber
C. August Comte
___5. Which approach claims that parts of society all contribute to the “functional”
operation of the system?
A. Positivist Social Science
B. Interpretive Social Science
C. Critical Social Science

You’re Awesome! Congratulations! You just have

completed Module 1! By this time, it means that you just
grasped the different functions, concepts, principles and
theories in the Social Science!
Your knowledge here will become handy as you move
deeper to the different theories in the Social Sciences. Keep it
up!

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 REFERENCES

Book:

Jose, Mary Dorothy and Jerome Ong (2016). Disciplines and Ideas in the Social
Sciences. Quezon City: Vibal Group Incorporated.

Online sources:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Social_science

https://esrc.ukri.org/about-us/what-is-social-science/social-science-disciplines/

https://biologydictionary.net/natural-science/

https://www.basicknowledge101.com/pdf/km/natural%20scienceOutline.pdf

https://www.vermonthumanities.org/about-vermont-humanities/the-humanities-are/

https://keydifferences.com/difference-between-social-science-and-humanities.html

https://www.pinterest.ph/pin/840976930398046795/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Social_science

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For inquiries or feedback, please write or call:

Department of Education – Division of Misamis Oriental

Don A. Velez St., Cagayan de Oro City

Contact number: 0917 899 2245

Email address: misamis.oriental@deped.gov.ph

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