The nature, goals and

perspectives of anthropology,
sociology and political science
QUARTER 1
MODULE 1
Anthropology
Relates to sociology, it always describes human, human
behaviour and human societies around the world. It is a
comparative science that examines all societies. The term
anthropology means scientific study of man or human beings.

Cultural anthropology studies, human societies and elements

of cultural life. An example of cultural anthropology is the
Linguistic anthropology which focuses on language in a
certain society. The goal of studying anthropology is to
understand the origin human evolution and the diverse
forms of its existence throughout time.

The study of Man and its various aspects is known as

Anthropology. It may be a subject of science and arts. It is a
branch of sociology. It describes human, human behaviour
and human societies and it examines all societies around the
world. It also describes the ancestors through time and space
in relation to its environmental, social relations, and culture.
CULTURAL ANTHROPOLOGY
Cultural anthropology, a major division
of anthropology that deals with the
study of culture in all of its aspects and
that uses the methods, concepts, and
data of archaeology, ethnography and
ethnology, folklore, and linguistics in its
descriptions and analyses of the diverse
peoples of the world.
Archaeology
Folklore
 Sociology
is the study of human social relationships and institutions.
Sociology’s subject matter is diverse, ranging from crime to
religion, from the family to the state, from the divisions of race
and social class to the shared beliefs of a common culture, and
from social stability to radical change in whole societies.

The purpose of sociology is to understand how human action

and consciousness both shape and are shaped by
surrounding cultural and social structures.

Sociology is a social science; it belongs to the family of social

sciences. As a social science, focuses its aspects on man, his
social manners, social activities and social life. The goal of
sociology is to help you understand how human action and
consciousness both shape and are shaped by the surrounding
cultural and social structures
Political Science
is a social science that deals with humans and their
interactions. It is a branch of sociology; it essentially deals
with the large-scale actions of humans, and group mentality
it is a discipline that deals with several aspects such as the
study of state and government. It deals with the nature and
formation of the state and attempts to understand its forms
and functions.

The goal of Political Science is to constantly deepen the

knowledge, discover progress and protect the quality of
life within a group, community, country, and the
world. Thus, it is the study of power relationships and
competing interests among states around the world.
 Anthropological
perspectives
are culture, cultural relativism, fieldwork, human
diversity, holism, bio-cultural focus. The four main
perspectives of Anthropology are the cross-cultural or
comparative emphasis, its evolutionary/historical
emphasis, its ecological emphasis, and its holistic
emphasis . An example for this is the analysis and
solutions of the different aspects of the society such as
the environment issues of pollution, the issues on
health and medicine and other issues related to the
human activities.
 Sociological
perspective
Introduces the discipline of sociology, including
something about its history, questions, theory,
and scientific methods, and what distinguishes it
from other social science disciplines. Central
features include social interaction and
relationships, social contexts, social structure,
social change, the significance of diversity and
human variation, and the critical, questioning
character of sociology. It also explores what
sociologists do.
 Sociological
perspective
Sociology includes three major
theoretical perspectives:
1. the functionalist perspective;
2. the conflict perspective; and
3. the symbolic interaction
perspective.
Theoretical
perspective
is used to analyse and explain objects of social study,
and facilitat organizing sociological knowledge. In
functionalist perspective, societies are thought to
function like organisms, with various social
institutions working together like organs to maintain
and reproduce societies. The conflict perspective sees
social life as a competition, and focuses on the
distribution of resources, power, and inequality.
 Political science
perspective
studies the tendencies and actions of people which
cannot be easily quantified or examined. Political
science is more focused than most social sciences. It
sticks to the political arena and to the realm of
politics, either dealing with situations with two
competing sides or the lateral decisions that affect the
group as a whole. An example is the study of
democracy as a form of government and why is
democracy considered as the best form of
government.
 ACTIVITY 1
Complete the diagram by
writing the importance of
knowing the perspective of
anthropology, sociology
and political science.
The Concept of Society
QUARTER 1
MODULE 2
Meaning and Nature
of Society
It is a group of people living together in a definite
territory, having a sense of belongingness,
mutually interdependent of each other, and
follow a certain way of life. Society is derived
from the Latin term “societas”, from socius, which
means companion or associate. Thus, it refers to
all people, collectively regarded as constituting a
community of related, interdependent
individuals living in a definite place, following a
certain mode of life (Ariola, 2012).
 TWO TYPES
OF DEFINITIONS
OF SOCIETY
 FUNCTIONAL
From the functional point of view, society is
defined as a complex of groups in reciprocal
relationships, interacting upon one another,
enabling human organisms to carry on their
life-activities and helping each person to
fulfill his wishes and accomplish his
interests in association with his fellows.
 INSTRUCTURAL
From the structural point of view, society
is the total social heritage of folkways,
mores and institutions, of habits,
sentiments and ideals. The important
aspect of society is the system of
relationships, the pattern of the norms of
interaction by which the members of the
society maintain themselves.
The following are reasons
people live together as a
society (Ariola, 2012):
a. For survival – No man is an island.
No man can live alone. From birth to
death, man always depends upon his
parents and from others. The care,
support, and protection given by them
are important factors for survival.
b. Feeling of gregariousness – This is the desire of
people to be with other people, especially of their own
culture. People flock together for emotional warmth
and belongingness. the need for approval, sympathy
and understanding to which the individual belongs is
a psychosocial need. Among Filipinos, the feeling of
gregariousness is found in all levels of society,
especially among the lower socio- economic classes.
The more the person is needy, the more he
craves sympathy and understanding from someone
else.
c. Specialization – Teachers,
businessmen, students, physicians,
nurses, lawyers, pharmacists, and
other professionals organize
themselves into societies or
associations to promote and
protect their own professions.
ACTIVITY 1
Characteristics of Society
Society comprises of a group of people who share a
common culture, live in a particular area and feel
themselves to constitute a unified and distinct entity.
Society or human society is a group of people related to
each other through persistent relations such as kinship,
marriage, social status, roles and social networks. By
extension, society denotes the people of a region or
country, sometimes even the world, taken as a whole.
1. It is a social system. A social system
consists of individuals interacting
with rach other. A system consists of
sub-parts whereby a change in one
part affects the other parts. Thus, a
change in one group of individuals
will affect the stability of the other
parts of the system.
2. It is relatively large. The people
must be socially integrated to be
considered relatively large than if the
people are individually scattered.
Thus, the people in a family, clan,
tribe, neighborhood, community are
socially integrated to be relatively
large in scope.
3. It socializes its members and from
those from without. Since most of
society’s members are born to it, they
are taught the basic norms and
expectations. Those who come from
other societies, before being accepted as
functioning members, are socialized
and taught the basic norms and
expectations of the society.
4. It endures, produces and sustains its
members for generations. For society to
survive, it must have the ability to
produce, endure and sustain its new
members for at least several generations.
For instance, if a society cannot assist its
members during their extreme conditions
of hunger and poverty, that society will
not survive long.
5. It holds its members through a
common culture. The individuals in
a society are held together because
that society has symbols, norms,
values, patterns of interaction,
vision and mission that are
commonly shared by the members
of such society.
6. It has clearly-defined
geographical territory. The
members in a society must live
in a certain specific habitat or
place and have a common
belongingness and sense of
purpose.
GROUP ACTIVITY
Instruction:
Give the word "society" your own definition.
Present it to the class by relating it to the
current events occurring in the society to
which you belong.
GROUP ACTIVITY
S-
O-
C-
I-
E-
T-
Y-
GROUP ACTIVITY
Rubrics:
Relativeness to the topic – 5 points
Creativeness -- 5 points
TOTAL 10 POINTS
Major Functions of Society
A society is important because they have the
following functions:
1. It provides a system of socialization.
Knowledge and skills, dominant patterns of
behavior, moral and social values, and aspects
of personality are transmitted to each members,
especially to the young. the family, the peer
group, the school, the church and other
government and non- government
organizations play a role in the individual’s
development.
A society is important because they
have the following functions:
2. It provides the basic needs of its
members. Food, clothing, shelter,
medicine, education, transportations
and communication facilities, among
others must be provided by society to
satisfy the basic needs of its
members.
A society is important because they have the
following functions:
3. It regulates and controls people’s behavior.
Conformity to the prevailing norms of
conduct ensures social control. The police,
armed forces, law enforcement agencies and
even the church and other government and
non-government organizations exist as means
of social control. Peace and order are created
through a system of norms and formal
organizations.
A society is important because they have the following
functions:
4. It provides the means of social participation. Through
social participation, the individuals in a society learn to
interact with each other, present and discuss their
concerns and solve their own problems or renew their
commitment and values. the people are give the
opportunities to contribute to their knowledge and skills
for the betterment of their family, neighborhood and
community. religious organizations, civic organizations,
people’s organizations (PO) and non-government
organizations (NGOs) do their part in community
development.
A society is important because they have
the following functions:
5. It provides mutual support to the
members. Mutual support is provided to
the members of society in the form of relief
in any form and solution to problems met
by them. This form of assistance may come
from the family, neighbors, clans,
government and non-government agencies,
civic and religious organization.
Types of Societies
Societies exist in particular places
and times, and they change over
time. Societies are organized in
particular patterns, patterns that
are shaped by a range
of factors, including the way people
procure food, the availability of
resources, contact with other
societies, and cultural beliefs.
 For example, people can change
from herding to farming only if
they have the knowledge, skills, and
desire to do so and only in
environments that will support
agriculture.
As societies develop, changes take
place in the social structures and
relationships between people that
characterize each type of society.
 For example, in industrialized
societies, relationships between
people typically must become
more formal because people must
interact with strangers and not just
relatives.
 It is important to note that not all
societies go through all stages. Some
are jolted into the future by
political events or changes in the
global system, and some resist
pressures to become modernized
and continue to live in simpler
social systems.
 Sociologists and anthropologists (experts who study early and tribal
cultures) identified different types and classification of societies. Below
are the different types of societies as mentioned by Ariola (2012) in his
book Sociology and Anthropology with Family Planning.
DISSOLUTION OF SOCIETY
(1) when the people kill each other
through civil revolution;

(2) when an outside force exterminates

the members of the society;

(3) when the members become

apathetic among themselves or have no
more sense of belongingness
(4) when a small society is absorbed by a
stronger and larger society by means of
conquest or territorial absorption;

(5) when an existing society is submerged in

water killing all the people and other living
things in it; or (60 when the people living in
such a society voluntarily attach themselves
to another existing society