Understanding Culture, Society and Politics
7 • Max Weber - studied the transformation of
Chapter VII: Political Institutions
Politics
• Activities through which people make, preserve,
and amend the general rules under which they
live
• Involves the dynamics of conflict resolution and
cooperation, as well as the exercise of power
Power
• Ability to do something in order to achieve a
desired outcome
• Has the capability to control people/make them
do something that they would not do
• Involves a relationship – one that exercises
power and another who is subject to it
Authority
• Legitimate power - person who has authority
has the right to exercise power
• Involves the dynamics of conflict resolution and
cooperation, as well as the exercise of power
• Person who exercises power is obeyed by the
people because that person is recognized as the
rightful or legitimate ruler or leader
Trends in the Development of the Political
Structures
1. Increased population density
2. Larger surplus of resources and wealth
3. Greater social inequality
4. Less reliance on kinship relations as basis of
political structures
5. Increased internal and external conflict
6. Increased power and responsibility of leaders
7. Increased burden on the population to support
political leaders
Legitimacy
• Originated from Latin word “legitimare” = “to
declare lawful”
• Broadly defined as “rightfulness”
• A willingness to comply with a system of rule
regardless of how this is achieved
societies and observed that the bases of
legitimacy of rule vary in different types of
societies
Types of Authority
1. Traditional Authority
• Authority is based on a system that is
believed to have “always existed”
• Inherited or occupy a position that has been
passed on
• Legitimacy is based on long-established
customs and traditions that do not need to
be justified
2. Charismatic Authority
• Based on the presumed special and
extraordinary characteristics/qualities
possessed by a certain individual
• Charisma – considered a gift/innate quality
unique to a person
• Historical figures who exemplified
charismatic authority:
i. Fidel Castro and Che Guevara
ii. Mao Tse Tung
iii. John F. Kennedy
iv. Margaret Thatcher
v. Ramon Magsaysay
• Most unstable type of authority
3. Legal-Rational Authority
• Most typical type of authority in modern
societies
• Power and legitimacy are legitimized by a
clearly defined set of written rules and laws
• Leaders can rightfully wield authority by
obtaining their positions according to
established procedures
(election/appointment)
• Has the highest degree of stability
Forms of Government
1. Monarchy
a. All/Most of power is in the hands of one
individual, the monarch
 Understanding Culture, Society and Politics
2. Democracy 8. Aristocracy
a. System wherein power is shared by all a. Power to govern rests on the hands of the
people “government by the people” few called aristocrats

3. Dictatorship 9. Political Liberalization

a. A government controlled by one person a. Emergence of liberal-democratic regimes
that are through formal, competitive
4. Communism
elections in many Western societies
a. Doctrine of the conditions of the liberation of
the proletariat 10. Political Culture
a. Pattern of orientation to political objects
5. Anarchy
such as parties, government, constitution,
a. Absence of a government and absolute
expressed in beliefs, symbols and values
freedom of the individual
b. Patron – a person who gives benefits
during election
Types of Political Organizations and Leadership
c. Client - recipients of benefits during
Structures
election
1. Political Dynasties
a. Believed to have always existed even in
advance democratic states
Chapter VIII:
2. Dynasty
a. A succession from rulers from the same
Social and Political Stratification
line of descent
Social Stratification
3. Political Clientelism
• Division of large social groups into smaller
a. Defined by Susan Stokes as “giving
groups based on categories determined by
material goods in return for electoral
economics
support”
b. The relationship involves two parties: the • Gives rise to inequality in society
patron (politician) and the client (voter) • Common bases:
o Wealth
4. Nation
o Property
a. Consists of a distinct population of people
o Access to material and cultural goods
bound together by a common culture,
o Access to political power
history and tradition who are typically
• Identifiable bases:
concentrated within a specific geographic
o Race
region
o Gender
5. State o Religion
a. A political unit that has sovereignty over an
area of territory and the people within it Social Exclusion
6. Sovereignty • Process by which individuals are cut off from full
a. The legitimate and ultimate authority of involvement in the wider circles of society
the state
Systems of Stratification
7. Bureaucracy 1. Closed and Open Systems
a. Means “rule by officials” a. Two primary systems of stratification
b. Max Weber - it is characterized by b. Close Systems
“rationality, rule-governed behavior and i. Impose rigid boundaries between social
impersonal behavior groups and limit interactions among
 Understanding Culture, Society and Politics
members who belong to different social i. High levels of effort – advancement
groups or occupy different levels in the ii. Insufficient effort – individual loses
social hierarchy social status
c. Only implemented in certain areas, such as
c. Open Systems
business, industry, and certain positions in
i. Based on achievement, allowing more
civil service
flexibility in social roles, increased
mobility, and better interaction among
Theoretical Perspectives on Social Stratification
social groups and classes
1. Functionalism
a. Functionalist perspective examines how the
Closed Systems of Stratification different aspects of society contribute to
1. Caste Systems
ensuring its stability and continued function
a. Closed stratification systems – people are
b. Davis-Moore Hypothesis
unable to change their social standing
i. Introduced by Kingsley David and
b. Promote belief in fate, destiny, and the will of
Wilbert Moore
a higher spiritual power rather than the
ii. Certain tasks in society are more valued
promotion of individual power
than others and the individuals who are
c. Promotes social inequality
able to perform highly valued work are
2. Hindu Caste Tradition rewarded with greater income, prestige
a. People were expected to work in their and power in society
caste’s occupation and can only marry
c. Melvin Tumin
according to their caste
i. Social stratification – being defined by
3. Apartheid the lack of opportunities for the less-
a. (South Africa 1948-1994) a system of racial privileged sectors of society
segregation wherein the rights and activities
2. Conflict Theory
of black South Africans were curtailed and
a. Takes a critical view of social stratification
the rule of white citizens were emphasized
and considers society as benefitting only a
small segment
Open Systems of Stratification b. Conflict Theorists - believe that stratification
1. Class System
perpetuates inequality
a. Based on the ownership of resources and
c. Karl Marx - believed that social stratification
the individual’s occupation or profession
is influenced by economic forces and that
b. Base social status on achievement rather
relationships in society are defined by the
than ascription - more open in terms of
factors of production
mobility
c. Openness in class systems result in: d. Bourgeoisie or Capitalists
i. Exogamous marriages – between i. Upper classes, gained wealth due to the
people who come from different social profits from their businesses
classes ii. Own the factors of production such as
resources, land and businesses
ii. Endogamous marriages – between
people from the same social class e. Proletariat
i. Lower classes, lack power and
2. Meritocracy
influence, and experience great
a. Determined by personal effort and merit
hardships
b. Social standing and advancement are
ii. Workers that provide the manual labor
determined by how a person performs
needed to produce goods
his/her social role
 Understanding Culture, Society and Politics
3. Symbolic Interactionism
a. Examines stratification from a microlevel
perspective and attempts to explain how
people’s social standing affects their
everyday interactions
b. Symbolic Interactionists – are people who
have the same background, interests and
way of life
c. Theory of Conspicuous Consumption –
buying certain products to make a social
statement about status
Social Mobility
• Ability of individuals or groups to change their
positions within a social stratification system
• How individuals progress from a lower to a
higher social class, or how individuals lose their
status and occupy a much lower social position
in society
• Influenced by a major factor: economic status
(accumulation of wealth)
• Two main types:
a. Upward Mobility
▪ Upward movement in social class
▪ Experienced through:
• Education
• Employment
• Marriage
b. Downward Mobility
▪ Lowering of an individual’s social class
▪ Brought about by:
• Economic setbacks
• Unemployment
• Illness
• Dropping out of school
• Types according to different generations:
a. Intragenerational Mobility
▪ Focuses on the experience of people
who belong to the same generation
b. Intergenerational Mobility
▪ Changes in social standing experienced
by individuals belonging to different
generations
c. Structural Mobility
• Large-scale changes in society which
can result in the improvement or decline
of the conditions and status of a large
group of people
Social Divisions
• Reflect an unequal distribution of status, wealth,
and power within society
• Result in individuals and groups occupying
different positions of influence and power
Social Inequality
1. Social Inequality
a. Often seen in distinctions in class, gender,
religion, ethnicity and age
b. Karl Marx - considered class as an essential
characteristic based on the economic
structure of society
c. Max Weber - defined stratification through
the concept of status which he defined as
the esteem or social honor given to certain
individuals or groups
d. Market Position - by Max Weber, refers to
the ability of individuals or groups to engage
in economic activities
e. Warner, Meekers and Eels - suggested that
class is influenced by cultural factors such
as lifestyle and consumption patterns
2. Types of Class
a. Upper Class
i. Usually composed of the rich, well-born,
powerful or a combination of these
b. Middle Class
i. A group of people who fall
socioeconomically between the lower
and upper classes
c. Lower Class or Working Class
i. Those employed in low-paying wage job
with very little economic security “blue-
collar workers”
d. Underclass
i. The segment of society that is not only
affected by poverty but is also subject to
social exclusion
 Understanding Culture, Society and Politics
3. Poverty
a. Absolute Poverty
i. The lack of basic resources life food,
clean water, safe housing and access to
health care needed to maintain a
quality lifestyle
b. Relative Poverty
i. Applies to those who may be able to
obtain basic necessities but are still
unable to maintain an average standard
of living compared to the rest of society
c. Subjective Poverty
i. Defined by how an individual evaluates
his/her actual income against his/her
expectations and perceptions
4. Gender Inequality
a. Gender
i. The culturally-imposed characteristics
that define masculinity and femininity
b. Sex
i. Biological and anatomical differences
that distinguish males from females
c. Gender Role
i. Specific tasks and behaviors expected of
a person by virtue of his/her sex
d. Gender Identity
i. How a person identifies himself/herself
as belonging to a particular gender
e. Patriarchy
i. The socially sanctioned and systematic
domination of males over females
f. Liberal Feminists
i. Explain gender inequality in terms of
social and cultural attitudes
g. Radical Feminists
i. Argue that men are responsible for the
exploitation of women through
patriarchy
h. Black Feminism
i. Identifies factors such as class and
ethnicity as essential for understanding
the oppression experienced by non-
white women
5. Ethnicity and Race Issues
a. Ethnicity
i. The feeling of affinity or loyalty towards
a particular population, cultural group
or territorial area
b. Race
i. A group of people who share a common
ancestry and physical or genetic
differences among humankind that
distinguish one group of people from
another such as skin, hair color,
physique and facial features
c. Racism
i. A set of attitudes, beliefs and practices
used to justify the superior treatment of
one racial or ethnic group and the
inferior treatment of another racial or
ethnic group
d. Displacement and Scapegoating
i. Psychological mechanisms associated
with prejudice and discrimination
e. Prejudice
i. Involves holding “stereotypes” or
preconceived views that are often based
on faulty generalizations about
members of a race or particular ethnic
or other groups
f. Discrimination
i. Actions or behavior of members of a
dominant social group that negatively
impacts other members of society that
do not belong to the dominant group
g. Other Minorities
i. Include persons with disabilities (PWD),
the elderly, certain religious groups and
communities living in isolated areas
6. Global Inequality
a. Global Stratification
i. The unequal distribution of wealth,
power, and prestige on a global basis,
highlighting patterns of social inequality
and resulting in people having vastly
different lifestyles and opportunities
both within and among the nations of
the world
 Understanding Culture, Society and Politics
b. Market-oriented Theories
i. Such a modernization theory claims
that cultural and institutional barriers to
development explain poverty in low-
income countries
c. Dependency Theories
i. Claim that global poverty is the result of
exploitation of poor countries by
wealthy ones, thereby creating a cycle
of dependence
d. World-systems Theory
i. Focuses on the relationship among the
“core”, “peripheral”, and
“semiperipheral” countries in the global
economy
e. State-centered Theories
i. Emphasize the role of governments in
fostering economic development
Chapter IX: Sources of Social and
Cultural Change
Social Change
• Transformations that alter the roles and status
of people as well as the structure and
organization of society and its institutions
(Robert MacIver and Charles Page)
• Karl Polanyi – cites industrial Revolution and
French Revolution as examples of social change
Cultural Change
• Dynamic process of where the living cultures of
the world change and adapt to the external or
internal forces
Technology
• Primary factor that includes social change
(William Ogburn)
• Narrowcasting – dissemination of information to
specific segments of the public via a shared
source, primarily online social platforms (Jessica
Matthews)
• Broadcasting – uses television and the radio to
disseminate information to a broad audience
Globalization
• Economic, cultural, and political processes that
connect state and non-state elements in a
manner that transcends territorial boundaries
Demographic Shifts
• Significant change in a population’s composition,
structure, size, and location can have major
effects on society
• Culture of Migration – traveling abroad for work
has become an opportunity for many Filipinos to
better their lives
Process of Social Change
1. Innovation
a. Process of introducing new ideas, things,
and methods in society
2. Diffusion
a. Spread of certain elements from one group
to another in society
Acculturation
• Process by which individuals or groups learn
aspects of a culture that is not their own
Assimilation
• Process by which an individual or group fully
adopts another culture
Social Contradiction
• Two social groups or classes are so different that
a compromise between them is impossible
• Conflict theorists – society as being in a state of
contradiction between the capitalist and worker
classes
Social Tension
• Caused by social contradictions
 Understanding Culture, Society and Politics
Chapter X: Sources of Political
Change
Political Change
• Occurs when there is an alteration the way
authority is exercised in a particular state
Examples Causing Political Change
• Revolution
a. Rapid and basic transformation of a
society’s state and class structures that are
accompanied and in part carried through by
class-based revolts from below (Theda
Skocpol)
b. Two primary forms:
▪ Political Revolution
• Results in replacement or
transformation of the government,
without altering other aspects of
society and maintaining the
relationship between
socioeconomic classes
▪ Social Revolution
• Results in the large-scale
transformation of social structures,
organizations, and institutions such
as the government, bringing about
great changes in socioeconomic
relations
Factors Causing Political Change
1. Modernization
o Process by which traditional societies
transform into modern societies
o A multifaceted process involving changes in
all areas of human thought and activity
(Samuel Huntington)
2. Globalization
o Such phenomenon whose influence go
beyond territorial borders and gives rise to
widespread changes that affect economies,
societies and states
Various Perspectives on Political Change
1. Karl Marx
a. Political change is a result of changes in the
economy particularly the way goods and
services are produced in society
2. Emile Durkheim
a. Agreed with Marx that political change is a
result of great transformations in society
3. Max Weber
a. Focused on the significant role of culture
and ideas in implementing change
Adapting to Political Change: Active Citizenship
• Populism
o Refers to a range of political ideas and views
that appeal to the masses or ordinary
people and usually highlight a conflict
between the masses and the elite
Chapter XI: New Challenges to
Human Adaptation and Social
Change
Climate Change
• Refers to the rise in average surface
temperatures on earth mostly due to the burning
of fossil fuels
• It is further described as the consequence of
unchecked pollution when carbon emissions
caused by human activity enter the air, these
have dangerous effects on the environment, the
economy and well-being
• Results in drastic changes in weather patterns
throughout the world
Major Causes of Climate Change
1. Burning of fossil fuel (oil and coal)
2. Slash-and-burn/Kaingin
3. Deforestation
4. Human Activity
Effects of Climate Change
1. Extreme weather condition
2. Degraded air quality due to increased GHGs
 Understanding Culture, Society and Politics
3. Unproductive agriculture
4. Deteriorated water resources
5. Submerged coastal areas
6. Weakened human health
Ethnic, Religious, and Ideological Conflicts
• Conflict
o Arise when one person or party intentionally
carries out an action or deed against
another party (Max Weber)
• Greed
o Causes conflict because of economic
deprivation which drives people to engage in
violent conflict
• Grievance
o Desire to gain recognition for one’s religion
or ethnicity
• Ethnic Conflicts
o Conflicts brought about by issues of identity
and ethnicity
• Religious Conflicts
o Brought about by religious differences
• Ideological Conflicts
o Brought about by disparities in certain
beliefs or views
• Johna Galtung
o Believed that resolving conflicts through
violent means results in a negative peace
• Negative Peace
o A term he used to refer to the absence of
direct violence after a war
• Positive Peace
o Peacemaking, peacekeeping and
peacebuilding activities aim to resolve the
structural causes of conflicts
• Peacemaking Activities
o Negotiation of a peace agreement between
conflicting parties, often mediated by third-
party negotiators
• Peacekeeping Activities
o Preservation of peace efforts through the
involvement of civilian monitoring teams and
military peacekeeping forces
• Peacebuilding Activities
o Rebuilding of economic and social
infrastructures that will sustain the peace
efforts
Migration
• Movement of people from one place to another
for the purpose of temporary or permanent
residence
• Emigration or Out-migration
o Movement of people out of their own native
country
• Immigration
o Movement of people into a country that is
not their native land
• Internal Migration
o Movement of people within their own
country and involves transferring from one
city or locality to another
Categorization of Migrants
• Permanent Migrants
o Those who have acquired residency or
citizenship
• Temporary Migrants
o Those who stay abroad for employment and
have a work visa facilitated by their
employer
• Irregular Migrants
o Those who do not possess legal documents
but continue to stay in a foreign country
because they need to work
• Refugees
o Migrants who are forced to move into
another country because they were
displaced by wars, political persecution or
natural disasters
• Kafala
o Practice in which a labor migrant’s stay in a
country is tied to his or her employer or
sponsor
 Understanding Culture, Society and Politics
Chapter XII: Responding to
Social, Political, and Cultural
Change
Inclusive Citizenship and Participatory
Governance
• Citizenship
o Legal status of an individual in a particular
state that allows him or her to enjoy certain
rights and protection
o Bestows certain obligations (e.g., payment of
taxes and observance of laws)
• Citizens
o Beneficiaries of social welfare programs and
other public services, and are guaranteed
protection from internal and external
threats
o Michael Saward argued that citizens are
made and not born, and that the
expectations on the roles and privileges of
citizens are determined by the citizens
themselves
• Bill of Rights
o List of the fundamental and important rights
that every citizen should enjoy
Views on Citizenship
• Inclusive Citizenship
o Believes that marginalized groups and
individuals should be empowered and
included in political processes
• Deliberative Views
o Consider citizens as being involves in
dialogue, information exchange, and
decision-making
• Difference Democratic View
o Practice of one’s citizenship is not limited to
direct involvement in government, or in
public events or engagements such as
government fora
• Cosmopolitan View
o Extends citizenship beyond the state to
regional and international levels
• Participatory Governance
o One of the many public institutional
strategies that contribute to shared visions
in planning, budgeting, monitoring, and
accountability of development policies and
programs (United Nations Committee of
Experts on Public Administration)
Participation and Interaction Through Social
Media
• Information or Network Society
o Revolution that has transformed media and
society
• New Media
o Generic term for the various forms of
electronic communication made possible by
digital or computer technology
• Social Media
o Includes forms of electronic communication
that facilitate social interaction and the
formation of online communities through the
exchange of user generated context
• Social Networking
o Gained a different and new dimension with
the advent of new media
o Allow people to keep in touch with their
friends, share information, plan events, and
engage in various online activities
Social Movements
• A sustained, organized, collective effort that
seeks to bring about change
• Reform Movements
o Successfully introduced changes in the
political structures and processes of their
respective societies
• Revolutionary Movements
o Caused massive and deep changes in
society and politics
• Religious Movements
o Wanted better recognition of their religion,
ethnicity, or economic class from the state
and society
 Understanding Culture, Society and Politics
• Free Riders
o Individuals who reap the benefits of social
change without directly participating in the
collective action that brought about such
change
• Free Rider Phenomenon
o Brought about by an individual’s tendency
to be biased for his or her welfare
New Media and E-Politics
• E-Democracy
o New media is a progressive force, helping to
improve the quality of political life by
contributing to a general transfer of power
from government and political elites, to the
public at large
o Covers a diverse range of activities which
may be initiated by government and other
public bodies (top-down) or by citizens and
activists (bottom-up)
• E-Campaigning
o Particularly effective in reaching younger
people, who are often the most difficult
segment of the population to engage using
conventional strategies
• Electronic Voting (E-Voting)
o Digital innovations that have affected
elections
o Gave rise to a “push button democracy”
• New Politics
o Given rise to a new style of activist politics
and contributed to a considerable shift of
power from governments to citizens
• Resource Mobilization Approach
o Argues that social movements need to have
some kind of organizational structure in
order to be successful.
• Political Process Approach
o Emphasizes the external political
environment in analyzing social movements
o Political Opportunities – provided by the
political system
New Social Movements
• A response to the existence of conflicts, injustices
and unequal power relations between social
movements
• Advocates issues and concerns which, in their
view, have been ignored by mainstream
movements in the desire to establish a broad
coalition among various social organizations
• 3 basic differences according to political
sociologists Anthony Orum and John Dale:
1. Bound by shared identity
2. Employ innovative strategies of collective
action
3. Go beyond influencing the state as they seek
to create new spaces of representation
outside the established political arenas

Perspectives on Social Movements

• Collective Behavior Approach
o Believes that social movements are socially
deviant groups
• Relative Deprivation
o A collective feeling of dissatisfaction
experienced by members of society whose
expectations are not realized