Disciplines and Ideas

in the Social Sciences

Grade 11 WEEK 1-2

MELC: Differentiate the nature and functions

of Social Science disciplines with the natural
sciences and humanities
NATURE AND FUNCTIONS
OF SOCIAL SCIENCES
DISCIPLINES
LESSON 1
NATURE AND FUNCTIONS OF SOCIAL
SCIENCES DISCIPLINES

“Man is a social animal”. We are all born

and raised in a society (Aristotle), we rarely
recognize the patterns of our everyday life:
People may share the same thoughts,
sentiments and activities, or show gestures of
feelings and emotions, these are all
indications of human interaction, or maybe
people have distinctive ways of doing things.
Have you ever ask yourself, why do certain
things the way they do? Or
Why people behave the way they do in a
certain society?
Why do we interact with other people?
Why is it important to understand the
society?
How can understanding social science
disciplines help us to contribute solutions
to problems that exists in our society?
What makes an existing society functional
are the people who belongs to it.
We belong to certain group, but we share the
same territory, we interact despite of our
individualities.
Here lies the importance of studying SOCIAL
SCIENCE:
 as the study of society and the
functions of the social science disciplines
as they try to untangle the puzzlement of
human behavior in the society, likewise, it
Social Sciences
-Are body of knowledge or
disciplines that deals with
the sociocultural aspects
of human behavior in the
society.
- It attempts to explain
and describe human
behavior in a society, and
subjects that relate to the
foundation and growth of
human society.
- It involves the studying
the society and many ways
people behave and affect
the world we live in.
 FUNCTIONS OF THE SOCIAL SCIENCE DISCIPLINES
1. ANTHROPOLOGY  It attempts to study both the biological and
cultural aspect of human beings.
 It seeks answer to where, when, and why
humans appeared on earth in the hope of
reconstructing human societies
2. ECONOMICS  It concentrates on how a particular society
utilize a limited resources
 It answers the questions what, how, and for
whom are goods to be produced
3. GEOGRAPHY  Its focus is to study the features of the earth
and the location of the living things on the
planet.
 It also examines how and where groups of
people live.
 FUNCTIONS OF THE SOCIAL SCIENCE DISCIPLINES

4. HISTORY  It attempts to ascertain, record, and explain

facts and events.
5. LINGUISTICS  It concentrates on studying how languages
have taken place on various languages over
time
6. POLITICAL  Its primary concern is to study the systems
SCIENCE and processes of the government.
8. PSYCHOLOGY  It covers the nature, internal and external
factors that affects human behavior
9. DEMOGRAPHY  It statistically study the human populations.
 It appreciates how the population dynamics of
birth and aging affect the society.
 COMPARING AND CONTRASTING
SOCIAL SCIENCES DISCIPLINES TO
NATURAL SCIENCES AND
HUMANITIES
LESSON 2
 COMPARING AND CONTRASTING SOCIAL
SCIENCES DISCIPLINES TO NATURAL
SCIENCES AND HUMANITIES
Science is defined as body of knowledge concerned
with the observation and classification of facts.

Social Sciences, Natural Sciences, and

Humanities are the three out of four categories of
human knowledge, each discipline has its own
history, and methods.
 Table 1 presents the important characteristics of
SCIENCE.
CHARACTERISTICS EXPLANATION
a. Empirical A phenomenon should be observable using the
different senses
b. Propositional Things are explained in the form of statements or
generalizations
c. Logical Employs the rules of logic in order to validate
inferences
d. Public Ideas are communicated from one
scientists to another
e. Problem-solving Presents rational explanations about
unexplained observations
f. Continues Knowledge is built upon by previous
and future research on the subject
The differences between the
three categories of human
knowledge
Social Sciences,
Natural Sciences, and
Humanities
Social Sciences tend to describe and
explain the relationships of people within a
society.
This supports social sciences as a field of
study as it examines the how people behave
and the effects of their actions in the society.
Social Sciences attempt to explain and describe
human behavior in a society that relate to the
foundation and growth of human society. It is often
referred as “soft sciences”.
Natural Sciences- Are body of knowledge that
tends to study the natural world, are
sometimes called hard sciences, such as
biology, earth science, physical sciences.
Humanities- It investigates human contracts,
and tends to humanize human through arts,
music and literature
T Topic The researcher selects a particular subject matter
H depending on his or her interest; it could be purely
E
accidental sometimes.
S Problem The researcher defines the nature of the
C problem where a theory can be developed along the
I
way; this is most important phase of inquiry
E
N Hypothesis The researcher formulates a general statement of the
T problem that could give him or her an idea on what
I to gather or omit.
F
I Methods Of This is the stage the stage of empirical research
C Inquiry/Data involving the use of senses and/or precision
Gathering instruments; phenomenon must be carefully and
M
E accurately described and recorded.
T ANALYSIS The researcher formulates a scientific theory after a
H thorough analysis of data; a theory can be changed or
O
D
revised depending on the result of.
Both social sciences and natural science use
scientific method in dealing with its own fields, social
sciences apply scientific method in its attempt to
explain human behavior, while natural sciences use it
in gathering data to understand natural phenomena.
NATURAL SCIENCES SOCIAL SCIENCES
Experiments to validate its Hypothesis Unpredictable results
Quantifiable data Qualitative side

This two sciences may vary in validating and gathering its

data for a certain phenomenon, but we may also find some
overlapping ideas on the two disciplines, such as the
objective of psychology in treating mental health problems,
this could be a part of biology as a natural science in its
At present, we need both the natural
sciences and social sciences in addressing
effectively our societal issues and concerns
be it about the climate, human behavior or
tracing the human origin.

The field of social science helps us in

understanding the complexities of human
behavior as people continue to deal with
societal concerns.
Basic Concepts and Principles in
Social Sciences
LESSON 3
The Filipino culture is shared and nurtured by
the Filipinos themselves and this is what makes
the Philippines a fun place to live in.
We are very resilient as well.
We interact, we talk, we share amidst the
complexities of our society.
We may practice the same culture, norms, but we
still differ in enduring different life situations.
Perhaps, studying this social science disciplines
may help us in understanding the society and how
to respond with social phenomena.
Just like other undertakings, social science
conducts research in order to discover solutions to
societal needs.
This research involves people and their
experiences.
The disciplines in social sciences utilize various
methods in gathering data regarding a certain
subject, such as anthropology. Experts in this
field uses ethnography, field-note taking, and
participant observation.
Sociologists make use of case studies, surveys, or
naturalistic observation.

The Different Concepts of The
Social Science Disciplines