LESSON 1

DEFINING THE SOCIAL

SCIENCES
AND THE APPLIED SOCIAL
SOCIAL SCIENCES
Are vast fields of scientific study which investigate human societies and the different forces
within them. These diverse fields examine how people interact and develop their culture. Social
sciences are comprised of several disciplines, including history, political science, sociology,
psychology, economics,
geography, demography, anthropology and linguistics. Through a body of empirical knowledge,
the social sciences offer a complex collection of lenses that allow us to understand and clarify
the various aspects of human society. Varieties of lens that the social sciences study refer to the
various areas of the social sciences that research human society. That field of social science
uses a diverse collection of
lenses made up of a body of ideas, theories, structures and methodologies that allow us to
understand and research the multi-faceted forces that make up and influence human society.
•
 BRANCHES OF THE SOCIAL SCIENCES

Economics
studies the allocation of scarce resources and the production and exchange of goods and
services within society. The two primary divisions of the economics are microeconomics,
which focuses on the actions of individual consumers and producers, and macro-
economics, which explores the actions and output of the aggregate economy.
•Anthropology
•Anthropology is a scientific study of human beings and their cultures in the past and present.
Anthropology 's systematic approach to human research, theimportance of fieldwork and
participant observation, and its focus on cross-cultural comparison, make it special in the social
sciences.
•History

•History is a systematic study of past human events in order to understand

•the meaning, dynamics and relationship of the causes and effects of events in the development of
societies. This is derived from the Greek word past, which means "investigation" or "investigation."
In a social science, history focuses on the interpretation and analysis of historical events, as they
have historically occurred with the use of primary and secondary sources. Primary sources refer to
eye witness reports or historical accounts of the incident. They often use secondary sources or facts
that are not eye-witness accounts and are based on primary sources.
 POLITICAL SCIENCE

Focuses on human actions in relation to political processes, states, rules and international affairs. This
explores the relationship between citizens and politics at all levels, from the citizen to the national and
international
Psychology

Psychology is researching how the human mind functions in consonance with the body to generate
thoughts that contribute to individual actions. Psychology analyzes how individuals and communities
view the world through various feelings, thoughts and states of consciousness.

Sociology

It is a systematic study of people’s behavior in groups. It is derived from the Latin word socio which means
“people together” and Greek word logos which means “the study of.” As a discipline of the social science, it
attempts to understand why and how people interact with each other and how the function as a society or
social sub groups.
GEOGRAPHY

It is a study of the relationship between people and their environment. Geography was derived from
Greek words: geography means "world“ and “graphos” means "charting or drawing." Geography
examines both the physical features of the Earth's surface and its interaction with human societies.
This also explores how human society communicates with the natural world and the effect of
environments and places on people.
Demography

It is a statistical study of human populations over time, according to the Max Planck Center for
Demographic Science (2016). This explores trends in population growth through the study of birth,
human activity, and morbidity, aging and mortality statistics.
• APPLIED SOCIAL SCIENCES
• The applied social sciences were developed as a response to the highly segmented and
compartmentalized division of social science disciplines that dominated western research training in the
late 1990s and until the end of the twentieth century. Scholars from the social sciences argued that
there is a need for more collaboration in the various fields of the social sciences. This suggests that the
various areas of social sciences need to work together effectively to resolve problems. This
multidisciplinary approach to the study of various social problems has become the focus and the
beginning of applied social sciences. hich concentrate on theoretical studies of society, applied social
sciences concentrate on the use and application of the various ideas, theoretical models and hypotheses
of social science disciplines to better explain society and the various challenges and issues it faces.
• Counseling
• Counseling is one of the areas of social sciences applied to it. As an application of the social sciences,
counseling provides guidance, assistance and support to individuals who are distracted by a range of
problems in their lives.
• Social Work
• Social research is another technical practice in the social sciences related to it. Having been trained in
social sciences to interact and understand social realities, an applied social sciences practitioner has a
good theoretical and conceptual foundation for social work practice.
• Communication Studies
• Applied social sciences provide appropriate instruction for employment in the communications field.
One example of a career in the advertising industry is in the field of mass media. For example, in the
news and current affairs department of major television and radio networks, practitioners stress the
importance of balance, objective, truthful and creative reporting of news and other important events
as they have happened.