UNDERSTANDING

CULTURE, SOCIETY AND

POLITICS
WITH MS. NERINETH MAE J. MAKINANO
•Course Title: Understanding
Culture, Society, and Politics
•Course Code: CS_UCSP
 COURSE
DESCRIPTION

This course uses insights from Anthropology, Political

Science, and Sociology to develop students’ awareness of
cultural, social, and political dynamics, and sensitivity to
cultural diversity, an understanding of how culture, human
agency, society, and politics work; and engage them in the
examination of the country’s current human development
goals.
• At the end of the course, students should acquire
ideas about human cultures, human agency, society,
and politics; recognize cultural relativism and social
inclusiveness to overcome prejudices; and develop
social and cultural competence to guide their
interactions with groups, communities, networks,
and institutions.
 1. Understanding Culture,
Society, and Politics

• Defining Culture, Society, and Politics

• Social Political, and Cultural Behavior and
Phenomena
• Social, Political, and Cultural Change
 2. Culture and Society

• Anthropological and Sociological Concepts

• Ethnocentrism and Cultural Relativism
Cultural Forms
 3.Human Bio-Cultural
Social Evolution

• Biological and cultural evolution

• Cultural and Sociopolitical Evolution
• Early Civilization and the Rise of the State
• Democratization
 4. Individuals and
Society

• Enculturation and Socialization

• Understanding Conformity and Deviance
• How Society is Organized?
• Human Rights and Common Good
 5.1. Political and Economic
Institutions and Social and
Cultural Institutions

• Kinship, Marriage, and the Household

• Residency Patterns
• Political and Leadership Structures
 5.1. Political and Economic
Institutions and Social and Cultural
Institutions

• Educational Institutions • Economic Institutions

• Religion and Belief Systems • Social Desirables and Stratification
• Health Institutions • Social Mobility
• Mass Media • Social Inequality
 5.2. Stratification and its Impact to Social
Inequality:Cultural, Social, and Political
Change and Responses to Change

• Definition of Social, Cultural, and Political Change

• Social Contradictions and Tensions
• New Challenges to Human Adaptation and Social Change
• Responding to Social, Political, and Cultural Change
1.What Filipino culture do you
find interesting and valuable?
Explain.
2. How does culture shape
human behavior?
✓ What makes our country
different from the rest of the world
is the culture. In our modern
world, it is important to pay
attention to the interplay of
culture, politics, and society.
• These elements are essential in
understanding human behavior and social
groups against the backdrop of
globalization.
…which strengthens diverse attitudes by weakening the
relevance of ethnicity, locally, or nationhood as sources of
identification and industrialization which resulted in increased
standards and population.
DEFINE CULTURE, SOCIETY, AND POLITICS.
• Defining Culture, Society, and Politics

1. Culture is defined as the custom beliefs,

social forms, and traits that define a specific
racial, religious, or social group.
• It is generally defined as the sum of an
individual's way of life, ranging from the
food he or she eats, the clothes he or she
wears, and the house where he or she lives.
It also includes both the material and
non-material things that he or she
possesses or acquires.

Material Things

Non-material
Things
Types of Culture:
1. Material Culture
includes all visible parts
These manifestations
and tangible objects. are always present in
2. Non-material Culture any given society.
has intangible objects
or the invisible parts.
 MATERIAL THINGS
NON-MATERIAL THINGS
• FOOD
• CLOTHING AND • IDEAS AND KNOWLEDGE
FASHION • BELIEFS AND TRADITIONS
• BUILDING AND • SYMBOLS AND
PROPERTIES LANGUAGE
• ARTS AND TECHNOLOGY • BEHAVIOR
• RELIGION
 Non-material things are the norms and
values as well as the intangible aspects of
his or her existence: music, dance, poetry,
and other forms of expressions that
showcase his or her creativity and artistry.
 Culture also includes fashion trends, manners
and taboos as well as scientific knowledge and
technology that manifest through tangible aspects, such
as architectural and engineering wonders, advancement in
medicine, and breakthroughs in transportation and
communication.
 Aside from culture, you are also encouraged to understand and appreciate
the importance of society and politics.

2. Society generally defined as an organized group

or groups of interdependent people who share a
common territory, language, and culture, and who act
together for collective survival and well-being.
• The term "society" often refers to a large
group of people in an ordered community,
in a country or several similar countries,
or the 'state of being with other people',
e.g. "they lived in medieval society."
KEY POINTS:

• The ways that people depend upon one

another can be seen in different social
features, such as their economics,
communication, and defense systems.
 KEY POINTS:
• They are also bound together by a general sense
of common identity and pride of place. In reality,
there can be no culture without a society and
so far, there are no known human societies
that do not exhibit culture (Haviland, et. al: 312).
 3. Politics refers to the “theory,
art, and practice of government.”
Politics
(from Ancient
Greek πολιτικά (politiká) 'affairs of
the cities') is the set of activities that
are associated with making
decisions in groups, or other forms
of power relations among
individuals, such as the distribution
of resources or status. The branch
of social science that studies politics
and government is referred to
as political science.
• Politics is the study of governing and how
political power is used. It’s also the process
of making decisions, influencing those
decisions, and making them.
• Politics is a way of making decisions about
how power is used in society.
1.Ensures that everyone in society is treated
fairly and equally.
2.Ensures that people can live their lives in
safety and security.
3.Provides for the common good.
4.Politics helps to create a better future.
KEY POINTS:
The political institution is a relatively stable
cluster of statuses, general norms, and role
behavior, which are involved in the acquisition
and exercise of power and decision-making in
society (Turner, 215).
Politics Is About Compromise

Compromise is an important part of politics and the way

our government works. Compromise is important because it
allows us to work together to find solutions that are fair for
everyone, even if we don’t agree with everyone.

And when we work together for the common good, we can

solve problems that would be impossible to solve alone.
KEY POINTS:
The institution that sets up the social
norms and values as to who will possess “the
monopoly of legitimate use of physical
force within a given territory,” how that
power is acquired and maintained, and how
that power is organized and exercised,
comprises the state (Weber: 216).