UNDERSTANDING

CULTURE, SOCIETY
AND POLITICS
GUESS MY WORD
JUMBLED LETTERS
 WHAT IS CULTURE, SOCIETY AND
POLITICS?
• Culture - generally defined as the sum of an individual’s way
of life, ranging from the food they eat, clothes they wear, and
house they live.

• Society - is generally defined as an organized group/s of

interdependent people who shares a common territory,
language and culture.

• Politics -refers to the theory, art and practice of government.

People differ from each other, despite from the emergence of the idea of one global society. These
variations of differences includes cultural diversity, social difference, and political identities. This time, we
will analyze some of the social, political and cultural change that is happening in our society today.

SOCIAL CHANGE - denotes to any substantial transformation of behavioral patterns, values

and social norms over time. There are several and wide-ranging causes of social change. The common
causes of social change as acknowledged by social scientists includes;
technology, population, and environment.

1. Technology – technologies are very beneficial to human being and it shaped changes in our lives
today. Gearing towards 21st century, numerous innovations were made.
2. Population – The composition of population is changing at every level of society over time and space.
The births increase and decrease contributes to how society changes.
3. Environment - The natural disasters is considered one that contributes social change. It changes the
physical, social, and economic landscape of humanity.
POLITICAL CHANGE - happens when the rulers in a nation lose power
or the kind of governance in the nation. Governance is the type of framework used to run a nation.
There are two manners by which political change may happen: inside or remotely.

Internal political change this is instigated by people of the country. It can be done through significant
events, such as elections and rulers opt to end his power over, or through irregular events, such as a
coup d’état or a rebellion.

External political change is instigated or imposed by other countries. It is usually accomplished

through military threats or extortions but could occur through embargoes and/or withholding foreign
aid. If it is successfully accomplished by the military, then a new leader will be positioned in charge by
the triumphant attempt to impose foreign power.
CULTURAL CHANGE this idea denotes that some internal and external factors influence the cultural
pattern of societies leading to change. There are three main factors of cultural change:

A. Contact - The exchange of ideas between two societies will evidently change the culture of both
societies. This is done through the process called “cultural diffusion” and “acculturation” Cultural diffusion
is the transfer of cultural practices, beliefs and social activities from one group of people to another while
acculturation is the process of barrowing social patterns of values, and customs from one group to
another.
B. Technology Evolution – The emergence of technological evolution will bring change of culture of one’s
country. Example for the latest inventions created by technology, is our means of communication,
transportation, devices and many more that are very noticeable in our society.
C. Geographical and ecological factor - The type of climate, altitude of the place, and its geographical
location contributes the lifestyle type and culture of the people. Any changes in the physical landscapes
will automatically affect the way of living, habits, and practices that lead to a change of one’s culture.
 WHAT IS POWER?
- Power refers to the ability or potential for an individual to influence others and control
their behavior. Authority refers to the legal and formal right to give commands and make
decisions.
- is manifested in acquisition of statuses and function.
- The ability to make a state or person act or think in a way that is contrary to how they
would have acted or thought otherwise and shape the course of events.
 3 BRANCHES OF
GOVERNMENT
• Executive Branch
• Legislative Branch
•Judiciary Branch
 THE EXECUTIVE BRANCH

•The executive branch makes sure people follow the laws

that the legislative branch makes.

•The leaders of this branch are the President and Vice-

President.

• When making important decisions, the President often

asks for advice from the Cabinet.
 THE LEGISLATIVE BRANCH

•The legislative branch makes laws for the nation.

•The main lawmaking body of this branch is known as Congress.

•Congress is made up of two parts, the House of Representatives and

the Senate.
 THE JUDICIARY BRANCH

•When people are unsure about the meaning of a law, the

judicial branch listens to many opinions and makes a
decision.

•The judicial branch is made up of courts.

•The highest of these courts is the U.S. Supreme Court.

 SOCIOECONOMIC STATUS
- refers to the categories of person who have more or less the same socioeconomic
privileges in a society.
-Privileges due to inherent/inherited wealth, occupational status of the breadwinner in the
household.

3 Types of Social classes:

• Upper Class
• Middle class
• Lower class
 UPPER CLASS
- considered the most productive in terms of resources generation.
-Very successful in their respective fields of interests and endeavors ;
agriculture; industry business & government.
2 types of Upper class:
1. New Rich- start from humble beginning
2. Traditional Upper Class- acquired their wealth through
inheritance/birthright.
 MIDDLE CLASS
- composed of small business and industry operations mostly owners and managers,
office workers.
- Enough to provide a comfortable and descent living.
- OFW contribute greatly to economy.

LOWER CLASS
- skilled and unskilled artisans, service workers; people who maybe unemployed or
underemployed, and those who belong to indigent families. Subsistence life style are
manifested through the ff. conditions:
1. Family could hardly eat three descent meal a day.
2. The breadwinner does not have a permanent job.
3. The daily income of the breadwinner could not feed the entire family.
ETHNICITY
• people who collectively and publicly identify themselves as distinct and unique based on
distinguishable culture features that set them apart from others: Language, shared
ancestry, common origin, and traditions.

RELIGION
• an organized system of ideas about the spiritual sphere or supernatural.

NATIONALITY
• legal relationship that binds a person and a country.

IDENTITY
• is the distinctive characteristic that defines an individual or is shared by those belonging
to a particular group. People may have multiple identities depending on the groups to
which they belong.
 DISCIPLINES IN SOCIAL SCIENCES

- is a social science that study the origins of humanity, past and present human behavior. Through
time, our social existence evolve with distinct features and diverse identity. The human
development and social experience explains the phenomenon of changes in human life. The study
of anthropology seeks to answer about human distinct existence with its sociocultural background.
• is a science that studies the development of social structure, functions of human in the society and how
people interact being a member of the society. It analyzes how human behavior affects social interactions,
processes, and organization.
• The human activities plays a vital role that concerns to the phenomenon of change. Through interaction we
learned new things, social orders, and problems encountered in the society. Societies are always exposed
in all forms of change. In our history, context of changes were recorded through time and space.
• is a systematic study of system of government and state. It emphasizes the utilization of power,
influence, impact, and discretion which is imperative in making a well-ordered society. Political
researchers analyze how individuals accomplish political position in society, how they keep up their
position, and the results of policy implementation within their positive social domain.