UCSP Reviewer (First Quarter)

1.1 Introduction of UCSP - Book

1.2 The Facets of Sociology

 Sociology is the systematic study of society. It studies human society as an interconnected whole.
It is also a social science that focuses on society, human social behavior, patterns of social
relationships, social interaction, and aspects of culture associated with everyday life. The scope of
sociology is more in the direction of an analysis of social problems and not in normative suggestion
of solutions for these social problems.

Two Main Schools of Thought Regarding the Scope of Sociology:

1) The Specialist or Formalistic School

- Sociology studies the various forms of social relationships.
- Scope of Sociology is very narrow and limited. Sociology deals with specific form of human
relationship.
- Sociology need not study all the events connected with social science.
- Simmel believes that it is a specific social science and it should deal with social
relationships from different angles.

2) The Synthetic School

- Sociology is a general and systematic social science.
- Scope of Sociology is very vast.
- Sociology needs help from other social sciences. It is a synthesis of social science.
- Sociology is closely related with other social sciences.

 Society was derived from a Latin word, Socius, meaning companion or fellowship. Society is
defined as a group of people living as a community or an organized group of people for a
common purpose. Society refers not to a group of people but to the complex pattern of interaction
or relationships that arise among them.

 Socialization is the process through which people are taught to be proficient members of a society.
It describes the ways that people come to understand societal norms and expectations, to accept
society’s beliefs, and to be aware of societal values.

 Social responsibility is the duty of business to do no harm to society. The pyramid of corporate
social responsibility. (Legal, Economic, Ethical, Philanthropic)

Sociological Perspective of Society:

1) The Functionalist Perspective: They view society as a set of interrelated parts that work together to
produce a stable environment. (Comte, Spencer, Durkheim)

2) Conflict Perspective: They focus on the forces within society that promote competition and change.
(Karl Marx)

 Social phenomena are considered as including all behavior which influences or is influenced by
organisms sufficiently alive to respond to one another. This includes influences from past
generations.

 Cultural phenomenon, also known as the bandwagon effect, occurs when certain individuals
behave a certain way merely because other individuals do as well. A cultural phenomenon also
occurs when something or someone gains widespread popularity.
  Historical Sociology is an interdisciplinary field of research that combines sociological and historical
perspectives/ methods to understand the past, how societies have developed over time, and the
impact this has on the present.

1.3 Anthropology

 Anthropology is derived from two Greek words: antropos means “man” and logos means “study”.
Anthropology studies the whole of the human being condition; past, present and future.
Anthropology is art and science.

History of Anthropology
1) Evolutionary Theory
The theory of evolution by natural selection, first formulated in Darwin’s book “On the Origin of
Species” in 1859, is the process by which organisms change over time as a result of changes in
heritable physical or behavioral traits. Changes that allow an organism to better adapt to its
environment will help it survive and have more offspring.
Charles Robert Darwin, FRS FRGS FLS FZS was an English naturalist and geologist, best known
for his contributions to the science of evolution.
2) Edward Burnett Tylor
He is an English anthropologist, the founder of cultural anthropology. Tylor is representative of
cultural evolutionism. In his works Primitive Culture and Anthropology, he defined the context of the
scientific study of anthropology, based on the evolutionary theories of Charles Lyell. He believed
that there was a functional basis for the development of society and religion, which he determined
was universal.
3) Margaret Mead
Proposed that culture and gender roles play just as strong a role as biology in influencing
adolescent behavior. Much of her research was completed via participation/observation in Samoa
and New Guinea.

Four Main Subdivision in the Study of Anthropology

1) Biological anthropology, also known as physical anthropology, is a scientific discipline concerned
with the biological and behavioral aspects of human beings, their related non-human primates and
their extinct hominin ancestors. Physical anthropologists focus on the evolution of human anatomy
and physiology, rather than culture.

2) Archeology is the study of the ancient and ancient and recent human past through material
remains. It is a subfield of anthropology, the study of all human culture. Archeology offers a unique
perspective on human history and culture

3) Cultural Anthropology - Culture anthropology is a branch of anthropology focused on the study of

cultural variation among humans and is in contrast to social anthropology which perceives cultural
variation as a subset of the anthropological constant. Cultural anthropologists study such topics as
how people make their living, how people interact with each other, what beliefs people hold, and
what institution organize people in the society.

Two Dimensions of Cultural Anthropology

1) Linguistic Anthropology
- It seeks to understand human language, written and non-written, spoken and non-verbal.
The study of how languages change over time is termed historical linguistics.
 - Explores how language shapes communication, forms social identify and group
membership, organizes large-scale cultural beliefs and ideologies, and develops a
common cultural representation of natural and social worlds.

1.4 Political Science

 Political Science is a systematic study of government and politics. It deals extensively with the
theory and practice of politics which is commonly thought as the determining factor in the
distribution of power and resources.

 Politics from Polis - city/state sovereign

 Science from Scire - to know, study

 State - a community of persons more or less numerous permanently occupying a definite portion of
territory, having a government of its own to which the great body of inhabitant renders obedience,
and enjoying freedom from external control.

4 Elements of the State:

1) People - mass population living within the state.

2) Territory - fixed portion of the surface of the earth inhabited by the people of the state.

3) Government – agency through which the will of the state is formulated, expressed and
implemented.

4) Sovereignty - the supreme power of the state to command and enforce obedience.

 Power is the ability to have other do something whether they like or not. Politics is "who gets what,
when, and how" and that political science is the study of "shaping and sharing of power" by Harold
Lasswell.

2 Kinds of Power:

1) Political Science - assumes asymmetrical power relations of the members of society but
problematizes the unjust and unfair effects of such relations in matters related to governance.

2) Power Relations - are forms of interaction mediated by the use and development of authority and
political influence.

 Authority - is the legitimate use of power. (Weber) It is the right to exercise the power and influence
of a particular position that comes with that position.

 Legitimacy - is the mass feeling that the governmental authority is rightful and should be obeyed.

Weber's 3 Types of Legitimate Authority:

1) Charismatic Authority - Political order is maintained by the force of a leader's personality.

2) Traditional Authority - Political order is maintained by the constant reference to customs, traditions
and conventions.

3) Rational Legal Authority - Political order is maintained by regard of legality in the eyes of the
population.
3 Types of Political Science:

1) International Relations is the scientific study of interactions between sovereign states.

2) Comparative Politics is a field in Political Science that is characterized either by the use of the
comparative method to explore politics other within and between countries.

3) Political Theory is the Philosophical study of the government addressing questions about the
nature, scope, and legitimacy of public agents, institutions and the relationships between them.

 Social Agreement is an actual or hypothetical agreement among individuals forming an organized

society or between the community and the rule that defines and limits the rights and duties of each.

 Social Contract - people live together in society in accordance with an agreement that establishes
moral and political rules of behavior.

 Social is the web of complex social relationships.

 Social Change - indicate the changes that take place inhuman interactions and interrelations.

 Sociological Imagination – a conciousness of becoming aware of the structure of society (Mills

1959).

 Social Activism consists of the efforts to promote, inhibit, or (re)direct social, political, economic, or
environmental issues with the desire to make improvements in society and correct social injustice.