THE STRENGTHS AND WEAKNESSES

OF THE FILIPINO CHARACTER: A

S O C I O - C U LT U R A L I S S U E

P I L A R I C A C . J I S O N , M E d
 WHY DO WE NEED TO KNOW OUR
STRENGTHS AND WEAKNESSES?

• Schools are there for society. This relevance is

proven by their ability to address socio-cultural
problems.
• Building the Filipino people involves everyone. Our
leaders cannot do it for us. We must look at
ourselves, both objectively and understandingly, as
we try to remove our weaknesses and develop our
strengths.
• To be better, understanding ourselves is the first
step. Once we have learned to appreciate and value
our being Filipinos, building our nation, achieving
goals of peace and social justice will come next.
STRENGTHS OF THE FILIPINO
CHARACTER
 P A K I K I P A G K A P WA - T A O
(REGARD FOR OTHERS)

• Pakikiramay (generosity in times of need)

• Bayanihan (mutual assistance)
• Hospitality
• Pakikiramdam (Filipinos Sensitivity)
• Pagtitiwala (trust)
• Gratitude or utang-na-loob

Filipinos are very sensitive to the quality of interpersonal relationships

and are very dependent on them: if our relationships are satisfactory,
we are happy and secure. 

This results in camaraderie and a feeling of closeness one to another.

It helps promote unity as well a sense of social justice.
FA M I LY O R I E N TAT I O N
• Genuine and deep love for the family
• Family is the source of personal identity, emotional and material support
• Persons main commitment and responsibility
• Honor and respect given to parents and elders; great sacrifices ones endure for the
welfare of the family
JOY AND HUMOR
Joy and humor Laughing at ourselves, and our trouble is an important coping mechanism. Often
playful, sometimes cynical, sometimes disrespectful, we laugh at those we love and at those we
hate, and make jokes about our fortune, good and bad.
 F L E X I B I L I T Y,
A D A P TA B I L I T Y A N D
C R E AT I V I T Y
• We are creative, resourceful, adept at learning, and able to
improvise and make use of whatever is at hand in order to
create and produce.

• We can adjust to certain circumstances and the

surrounding environment, both physical and social; adjusts
to whatever happens even in unplanned events.

• Creative, resourceful and quick learners.

HARD WORK AND INDUSTRY
 FA I T H A N D R E L I G I O S I T Y
• Filipinos have a deep faith in God. Innate religiosity enables us to
comprehend and genuinely accept reality in the context of Gods will
and plan. Thus, tragedy and bad fortune are accepted, and some
optimism characterizes even the poorest lives.
ABILITY TO SURVIVE

• Filipinos have an ability to survive which is manifested in

our capacity for endurance despite difficult times, and in
our ability to get by on so little.
• Filipinos make do with what is available in the
environment. This survival instinct is related to the
Filipinos who bravely carry on through the harshest
economic and social circumstances.
WEAKNESSES IN THE FILIPINO
CHARACTER
 EXTREME PERSONALISM
• Filipinos view the world in terms of personal relationships and the extent to which one is able
personally to relate to things and people determines our recognition of their existence and the
value.

• This personalism is manifested in the tendency to give personal interpretations to actions, i.e., to
"take things personally.“ Personalism is also manifested in the need to establish personal
relationships before any business or work relationship can be successful.
 E X T R E M E FA M I LY
CENTEREDNESS
• While concern for the family is one of the Filipinos greatest strengths, in the extreme it becomes a
serious flaw. Excessive concern for the family creates an in-group to which the Filipino is fiercely
loyal, to the detriment of concern for the larger community or the common good.
 LACK OF DISCIPLINE

• Casual and relaxed attitude towards time and space which manifests itself in lack of
precision and compulsiveness, in poor time management and in procrastination. impatient,
unable to delay gratification or reward resulting in the use of shortcuts, skirting the rules
(palusot syndrome) and foolhardiness.
Ningas cogon - starting out projects with full vigor and interest which abruptly die down, leaving
things unfinished Our lack of discipline often results in inefficient and wasteful work systems, the
violation of rules leading to more serious transgressions, and a casual work ethic leading to
carelessness and lack of follow- through.
 PA S S I V I T Y A N D L A C K O F
I N I T I AT I V E
• Generally passive and lacking in initiative -strong reliance on others - high tolerance for
inefficiency, poor service, and even violations of one's basic rights. Too patient and long-
suffering (matiisin).

• Filipinos tend to be complacent and there is rarely a sense of urgency about any problem.
 C O L O N I A L M E N TA L I T Y

Filipinos have a colonial mentality which is made up of two dimensions: -first is a

lack of patriotism; second is an actual preference for things foreign.
K A N YA - K A N YA S Y N D R O M E
 L A C K O F S E L F - A N A LY S I S A N D S E L F -
REFLECTION

•  In the face of serious problems both

personal and social, there is lack of
analysis or reflection.
• Joking about the most serious matters
prevents us from looking deeply into the
problem. There is no felt need to validate
our hypotheses or explanations of
things.
 E M P H A S I S O N P O R M A R AT H E R
T H A N S U B S TA N C E

• This lack of analysis and

emphasis on form is
reinforced by an educational
system that is more from than
substance.
 VA L U E S E D U C A T I O N I N S C H O O L S
• The solution is to intensify Values Education in
the curriculum.

• The educational institute of the country plays a

big contribution in promoting values education for
students to construct a good character. By
promoting values education in schools, we can
create a better country for the future generations
through lessening the negative attributes by
teaching values.

Grades 1-10
Senior High School
THINK-PAIR-SHARE

The teacher in a class has observed that when

students submit a report, the more ornate and
artistic the folder is, the less substantial the report.

Which weakness in the Filipino character is

pointed to? If you were a teacher, how do we
counteract such situation?