Social Science

as the Study Of
Society
Differentiate the nature and
functions of Social Science disciplines
with the Natural Sciences and
Humanities
 When we study our own society, we also
examine ourselves and the community where we
belong. Social Sciences do help in providing us the
necessary perspective and methodological tools in
order for us to understand the realities around us.
In our everyday life, routine, or regimen, seldom
do we think about the “patterns” of our usual
behavior: Why we do certain things the way we do,
why we associate with a particular group of
people, why we follow a specific belief, why we are
not allowed to do certain acts, why we remember
certain acts and forget others. All these affect our
everyday decisions.
 The term Social Science is a body of
knowledge characterized by an objective to
understand what society is and what does it
do to people living inside it. This is a group of
rather independent disciplines, with its own
respective philosophies, intellectual histories
and research methodologies, but are
fundamentally bound together because they
deal after all with the same entity that is
called “society”. Hence, the word “social”
situates the whole discipline in people and
their social contexts.
Social Science Discipline
Social Sciences are a group of academic
disciplines dedicated to examining society. This
branch of science studies how people interact
with each other, behave, develop as culture and
influence the world.The Social Sciences
includes:
a. Anthropology g.
Sociology
b. Economics h.
Psychology
c. Geography i.
Demography
Identify as to what discipline of
Social Science:

a. Economics
b. Political Science
c. Geography
d. History
e. Psychology
f. Linguistics
g. Sociology
h. Anthropology
i. Demography
1. The science of humanity
2. The study of efficient allocation of scarce
resources in order to satisfy the unlimited
needs and wants
3. The study of places and the relationships
between people and their environments.
4. The study of the past as it is described in
written documents.
5. The scientific study of language, and
involves an analysis of language form,
language meaning, and language in context
6. Deals with systems of government, and the
analysis of political activities, political thoughts
and political behavior
7. The study of human social relationships and
institutions
8. The study of behavior and mind, embracing all
aspects of conscious and unconscious
experience as well as thought.
9. The study of statistics such as births, deaths,
income or the incidence of disease, which
illustrate the changing structure of human
populations
 Anthropology
“anthropos’ (human), “logos” (study of)

 “The science of humanity”, which studies human

beings in aspects ranging from the biology and
origins – a science of the totality of human
existence.
 The goal of anthropology is to provide a holistic
account of humans and human nature.
 Economics
“economy” (household management)

 Economics is the study of

efficient allocation of scarce
resources in order to satisfy the
unlimited needs and wants.
 Geography
“geo” (Earth), “graphein” (description)
 Geography is the study of places and the
relationships between people and their
environments. Geographers explore both the
physical properties of Earth’s surface and the
human societies spread across it. They also
examine how human culture interacts with the
natural environment, and the way that locations
and places can have an impact on people. It seeks
to understand where things are found, why they are
there, and how develop and change over time.
 History
“histoire: (recorded and documented events)

 History is the study of the past

as it is described in written
documents. Events occurring
before written record are
considered prehistory.
 Linguistics
“lingua” (tongue, language)
 Linguistics is the scientific study of
language, and involves an analysis of
language form, language meaning, and
language in context. Linguists
traditionally analyse human language
by observing an interplay between
sound and meaning.
 Political Science
“politika” “polis” (affairs of the cities)
 Political Science is a social science
which deals with systems of government,
and the analysis of political activities,
political thoughts and political behavior.
It deals extensively with the theory and
practice of politics which is commonly
thought of as determining of the
distribution of power and resources.
 Sociology
“socius” (people together, associate),
“logos” (study of)
 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. Unifying
the study of these diverse subjects of study is
sociology’s purpose of understanding how human
action and consciousness both shape and are shaped
by surrounding cultural and social structures.
 Psychology
“psyche” (mind), “logos” (study of)
 Psychology is the study of behavior and

mind, embracing all aspects of conscious

and unconscious experience as well as
thought. It is an academic discipline and
a social science which seeks to
understand individuals and groups by
establishing general principles and
researching specific cases.
 Demography
“demos” (people), “graphein” (description)
 Demography is the study of
statistics such as births, deaths,
income or the incidence of disease,
which illustrate the changing
structure of human populations. It is
the statistical study of populations,
especially human beings.