Week 1

Social Science —Study of identity, culture, society, and politics. Comprises of Anthropology, Sociology,
and Political Science.

Anthropology—Study of culture including its components, characteristics, functions, values, and

practices. Culture comprises of beliefs, practices, values, attitudes, norms, artifacts, symbols, and shared
knowledge.

Sociology—Study of society including its origin, evolution, characteristics, dimensions, and basic social
functions. Society is defined as a group of people living together in a definite territory, mutually
interdependent, and following a certain way of life.

Political Science—Study of politics or government, including the foundations of the state, principles of
government, forms of government, structures, relationships to other institutions, and decision-making
processes involving power relations.

Week 2

1. Society—A group of people living together in a definite territory, having a sense of belongingness,
mutually interdependent on each other, and following a certain way of life.

2. Culture—A dynamic medium through which societies create a collective way of life reflected in
beliefs, values, music, literature, art, dance, science, religion, ritual technology, among others.

3. Anthropological perspectives:

*Evolutionist-Intellectual Perspective—Explains the role of death, belief in the soul, and spirits in
shaping society and culture.

*French Sociology School Perspective (Emile Durkheim)—Suggests that society can sustain and
reproduce itself independently.

*British Functionalist School Perspective— Identifies anxiety caused by rationally uncontrollable

happenings as the basic motivation for the emergence of religious faith.

4. Sociological perspectives:

*Symbolic Interactionism Perspective— People attach meanings to symbols and act according to their
subjective interpretation of these symbols.

*Functionalist Perspective—Believes that each aspect of society is interdependent and contributes to

society's functioning as a whole.

*Conflict Perspective (Karl Marx)— Highlights competition for scarce resources and the control
exerted by elites over the poor and weak.
5. Characteristics of culture:

*Learned— Acquired through family, school, church, and other social institutions.

*Shared—Not limited to individual practices; involves collective behavior.

*Encompasses— everything a person has, does, and thinks*.

6. Aspects of society:

*Affects biology—Shapes perceptions of beauty and body.

*Adaptive—A tool for human survival.

*Maladaptive—Can cause problems when it fails to adapt to changing environments.

*Dynamic— Changes over time in response to societal changes.

Week 3

1. Culture's Influence— Culture influences values, beliefs, traditions, identity, belongingness, personal
growth, and social interactions.

2. Cultural Relativism:

- Perspective suggesting that all cultures are equally valid and no one system is deemed better than
another.

- Rejects the idea of a standard of good or evil, emphasizing that judgments about right and wrong are
products of society.

- Promotes understanding of how different cultures respond to their own beliefs and emphasizes
interpreting culture in the context of locality.

- Originated from William Graham Sumner's book "Folkways."

3. Importance of Cultural Relativism:

- Helps students and researchers understand the necessity of interpreting culture within its locality.

- Fosters better cultural understanding and respect for diversity.

- Encourages viewing no single cultural system as superior.

4. Variation in Human Conditions:

 - Promotes diversity and plurality in cultural traditions.

- Can lead to discrimination and ostracism due to differences in cultural practices.

5. Ethnocentrism:

- Perspective promoting one's own culture as superior to others.

- Contrast to cultural relativism, as it does not respect the uniqueness of other cultures.

6. Positive Attitude of Cultural Relativism:

- Shows understanding and respect for different cultures.

- Rejects the notion of cultural superiority.

Week 4

According to Nandkumar (2014), “The symbol, it would appear then, is a natural starting point of a
journey of discovery and realization: the starting point, the face set towards the goal, the ardour of the
journey, all are somehow implied in the symbol.”

1. Symbol—Anything that people interpret to mean something other than its literal definition.

2. Role of Symbols— They help people understand the world, provide clues to understanding
experiences, and convey recognizable meanings shared by societies.

3. Types of Symbols—Gestures, signs, objects, signals, and words.

4. Cultural Heritage:

- Legacy of physical artifacts and intangible attributes inherited from past generations.

- Maintained in the present and bestowed for the benefit of future generations.

5. Physical Artifacts or Tangible Heritage:

- Material objects such as artifacts, buildings, landscapes, tools, furniture, bridges, and any physical
substance used by people.

- Worthy of preservation for the future.

6. Non-material or Intangible Heritage:

- Abstractions including knowledge, beliefs, values, rules for behavior, traditional skills and
technologies, religious ceremonies, performing arts, and storytelling.
4 types of symbols:

Cultural symbols – manifestations that signify the ideology of a culture that has meaning within that
culture (i.e. religious symbols, museums)

Social symbols – relating to human societies and its modes of organization (i.e. social classes, social
problems, social issues, etc.)

Political symbols – used to represent a political standpoint seen in various media and forms, such as
banners, flag, motto, etc.)

Economic symbols – used in the production, distribution and consumption of goods and services like
currency, market, labor, and other economic activities.

3 types of practices:

Cultural practices: These are the things a group of people typically do because of their shared beliefs
and traditions, like traditional medicine or religious rituals.

Social practices: These are the everyday things people do in a society, like going to work, cooking meals,
or taking a shower.

Political practices: These are the common actions taken within a government or country, such as how
power is managed, how rules are made, and how leaders are chosen.

6 types of societies:

- Food Gathering Societies: Early societies lived by hunting, gathering, and basic tools.

- Horticultural Societies: People began planting seeds for food.

- Pastoral Societies: Nomadic communities herded animals for food and materials.

- Agricultural Societies: Plows and hoes were used for farming.

- Industrial Societies: Machines revolutionized food production in the 18th and 19th centuries.

- Post-Industrial Societies: Modern societies rely on computer technology, leading to new issues like
pollution and health problems.
Week 5

Culture is essential for human adaptation, with each society having its own. Individuals learn culture
through enculturation or socialization, preparing them for society's membership. Socialization involves
learning societal elements like values, norms, and social structure.

Socialization— The process of preparing individuals for membership in society by learning its norms and
values.

Values—Culturally defined standards used to determine what is desirable, good, and beautiful, guiding
social living.

Norms— Rules and expectations that guide the behavior of society's members.

Key parts:

Social Context—Includes culture, language, social structures (e.g., class, ethnicity, gender hierarchies),
historical events, power dynamics, and influential individuals/institutions.

Content and Process—Content refers to what is passed from member to novice, while process refers to
interactions conveying how new members should speak, behave, think, and feel. This includes duration,
individuals involved, methods used, and types of experiences.

Results or Consequences—Outcomes of socialization, including how individuals think and behave after
undergoing the process. It encompasses changes in behavior, attitudes, beliefs, and identity.

Enculturation— Process where individuals learn their group's culture through experience, observation,
and instruction.

Family's Role in Socialization—Family is a significant agent of socialization during childhood, teaching

societal norms, values, and beliefs.

Values—Family's strong personal beliefs about what is important, good, bad, right, and wrong.

Good Citizenship—Good citizens contribute to society's improvement by fostering community, pride,

and responsibility in their living environment.