Social Sciences Flashcards
Social science
The field of human knowledge that deals with all aspects of the group life
of human beings
disciplines within the Social Sciences
- Anthropology
- Economics
- Geography
- History
- Linguistics
- Political Science
- Psychology
- Sociology and Demography
- Sociology
Anthropology
is the holistic “science of man,” - a science of the totality of human existence.
Physical Anthropology Cultural Anthropology
Economics
is the social science that analyzes the production, distribution, and consumption of
goods and services
Geography
is the science that studies the lands, features, inhabitants, and phenomena of Earth. It
is “the bridge between the human and physical sciences.
Physical Geography:
environment and how space is created, viewed and managed by humans as
well as the influence humans have on the space they occupy.
Human Geography
examines the natural environment and how the climate, vegetation & life, soil,
water, and landforms are produced and interact
History
the study of the past of human in the world.
Political Science
is the study of social arrangement to maintain peace and order within a society.
State, Politics, power, Law, and ideology are components of Political Science
Psychology
is the study of the human soul/ mind/ behavior/ personality and how these are
affected by individual’s environment
Sociology
is the study of human social relationships or social systems or human group behavior.
Sociology is the systematic study of society and human social action.
Social Problem
A social problem is any condition or behavior that has negative consequences for large numbers
of people and that is generally recognized as a condition or behavior that needs to be addressed.
Sociological Perspective
Music, fashion, technology, and values—all are products of culture.
Functionalists
view society as a system in which all parts work—or function—together to create
society as a whole.
Conflict theorists
view social structure as inherently unequal, based on power differentials related
to issues like class, gender, race, and age.
Symbolic interactionism
is a sociological perspective that is most concerned with the face-to-face
interactions between members of society.
Karl Marx
The history of all existing society is the history of class struggles.
Emile Durkheim
“Modern society is held together by a division of labor that makes individuals
dependent upon one another because they specialize in different types of work.
Max Weber
“An action that a person does not think about cannot be a social action”
CONFLICT THEORY
The role of COERCION and POWER in producing social order. This perspective is derived from the
works of Karl Marx, who saw society as fragmented groups that compete for social and economic
resources.
Karl Marx
Inequality exists because those in control of a disproportionate share of society’s resources
actively defend their advantages.
CONSENSUS THEORY
States that social change should occur in institutions that are provided by a political or economic
system
-States that the absence of conflict within society is the state of equilibrium (a state of rest or
balance due to the equal action of opposing forces, an equal balance between any powers,
influences, etc.; equality of effect.)
STRUCTURAL FUNCTIONALISM
states that society is made up of various institutions that work together in cooperation
Define the Problem
This one is probably the most important. If you have carefully defined your terms, you can save
an enormous amount of energy.
Knowledge of the relevant literature is essential because it provides background, suggests
approaches, indicate what has already been covered and what hasn’t, and saves you from redoing
what has already been done. It is a way of using other people’s observation.
Literature Review
Theoretical Framework
Make a statement predicting your results and clarify what each of the terms in the statement
means within the framework of your research.
Collecting the Necessary data
Data are what one collects from careful observation.
Drawing conclusions
Drawing conclusions
Now you can prepare a report, summarizing the steps you have followed and discussed what you
have found. Good findings will relate your conclusions to the existing body of research.
Analyzing the Results
When all data are in classify facts, identify trends, recognize relationships and tabulate the
information so that it can be accurately analyzed and interpreted.
Typical Method in Social Science
The historical method relies heavily on a study of their (subjects) historical background
Theories
Theories are a set of principles or concepts and generalizations so arranged that they explain and
predict possible relationships among phenomena.
Concepts
are used to simplify the way people think and communicate.
Darwin’s Theory of Evolution
is based on 5 key observations and inferences
- Species have great fertility. They make more offspring than they can grow to adulthood.
- Populations remain roughly the same size with modest fluctuations
- Food resources are limited but are relatively constant most of the time.
- In sexually reproducing species, generally, no two individuals are identical. Variations are
rampant. - Much of this variation is heritable
Darwin’s Theory of Evolution
- Variation – There is a variation in every population
- Competition – Organisms compete for limited resources
- Offspring – organisms produce more offspring than can survive
- Genetics - Organisms pass Genetic traits on to their offspring
- Natural Selection – Those organisms with the most beneficial traits are more likely to survive
and reproduce.
AUGUST COMTE (1798-1857)
Suggested the idea that human thought is divided into 3 categories:
i. Theology - whereby the thoughts are influenced by religion and supernatural beliefs.
ii. Metaphysic -thoughts that are influenced by an abstract idea that is gathered from
incident and physical phenomenon.
iii. Positivism - man think by using scientific methods to explore the incidents and the
physical phenomenon around them.
Herbert Spencer (1820-1903)
Assumed of the existence of equal evolutionary process between biological organisms and
people
His idea about the natural social evolution was influenced by Darwin’s idea of “Survival of the
Fittest”
The fittest will survive in the process while the weak will be eliminated naturally according to
the law of nature
Hence, his idea refuses the element of force in the human social system
Popularized Cultural Evolution Theory
Made assumptions that any society can be divided according to 3 levels of survival
Savagery - society which lives as nomads and indulges in hunting and food gathering
Barbarism - society which lives in a particular place and plants for survival
Civilization - society which lives in a particular place and starts to use technology
Lewis Henry Morgan (1818- 1881)
Considered a founder of symbolic interactionism though he never published his work on it
(LaRossa and Reitzes 1993).
George Herbert Mead (1863–1931)
