UNDERSTANDING CULTURE, SOCIETY, & POLITICS artifacts and fossils such as animal bones and

1st Quarter Reviewer human remains.

Physical Anthropology - Concerned with all humans,

at all times, in all humanity's dimensions—a study of
LESSON 1 : Cultural Variation, Social Difference and
the totality of human existence.
Political Identity

Sociology - Refers to the body of knowledge

Cultural Variation - refers to the rich diversity in
concerned with the systematic study of different
social practices that different cultures exhibit around
facets of our society, several social phenomena, and
the world.
the effects of these occurrences on people’s lives.

Social difference - Is a situation where people felt

Political Science - Is the study of the nature, causes,
discriminated and there are also individuals on the
and consequences of collective decisions and
basis of social characteristics and qualities. Social
actions taken by groups of people embedded in
difference can create discrimination among
cultures and institutions that structure power and
individuals.
authority.

Political Identity - is always associated with group

LESSON 4, 5 and 6 : Aspects and Characteristics of
affiliation and describes the ways in which being a
Culture
member of a certain group might express specific
political opinions and attitude.
Culture - Is that complex whole which includes
knowledge, belief, art, morals, law, custom, and any
The Philippines is a democratic country, led by a
other capabilities and habits acquired by man as a
directly elected president who serves as both the
member of society.
head of state and the head of government.

Complex - Whole means made up of complicated or

LESSON 2 : Significance of Studying Culture, Society,
interrelated parts
and Politics!

Every society has a culture of its own that differs from

Studying culture helps us to understand our past, our
other societies. The culture of every society is unique
place in the world, and our future, thereby allowing us
by itself. Cultures are not uniform. Cultural elements
to make better decisions in the present. It helps us to
like customs, traditions, morals, values, and beliefs
understand ourselves because we all come from a
are not constant. Culture varies from society to
common source.
society.

Studying society is significant because it provides a

Socialization/Enculturation - It refers to the lifelong
system of stratification, and means of social
process of social interaction, the process by which
participation. It encourages you to think sociologically
people learn the requirement of their surrounding
(stimulate sociological imagination). An example is
culture and obtain the values and behaviors
when everybody thinks joining the call for protest is
appropriate on necessary in that culture.
correct even though you haven't seen or known why
such a thing happened. Studying society will also
Language - The way a certain group of people
provide you with the skills to craft critical questions
communicate and speak with each other. Written,
about taken-for-granted communities.
oral and nonverbal.

Politics helps you know your rights, clarify what you

Religion - What people believe and how they explain
believe, a living, breathing subject and helps you to
life's meanings. Death, birth, rituals, church, belief in
understand our nation's parties.
God or a higher power.

LESSON 3 : Rationale for Studying Anthropology,

Daily Life - It is how people dress, eat, and go about
Political Science, and Sociology.
living and doing things every day.

Anthropology - Is the study of humans and their

History - What people think are important to pass
society in the past and present.
along to future generations. It is what happened in
the past that has affected the present and shaped
Subdisciplines :
the way a certain place life.

Archaeology - Provides us with the opportunity to

learn about past cultures through the study of
Arts - The way people express themselves in ways LESSON 8: Forms of Tangible and Intangible Heritage
such as paintings, sculptures, architecture, dance,
music, theater, and literature. Tangible Heritage - Is a physical artifact or object
significant to the archaeology, architecture, science,
Values - It is set of ideas people share about what is or technology of a specific culture. This means that
good, bad, desirable and undesirable. this type of heritage is perceptible, touchable or
concrete.
Norms - Are behavioral rules or standards for social
interaction. Example: traditional clothing, utensils, vehicles,
documents, public works and architecture built and
Folkways - These are norms for everyday behavior constructed by cultural group (e.g. buildings,
that people follow for the sake of tradition or historical places, monuments, temples, graves, roads,
convenience. bridges)

Taboo - Is a very strong negative norm; it is a Intangible Heritage - is not a physical or concrete
prohibition of certain behavior that is so strict that item. It exists intellectually in the culture and includes:
violating it results in extreme disgust and even Songs, Myths, Voices, Values, Traditions, Oral history.
expulsion from the group or society.
Cultural Heritage - The representation of the ways of
Example: Wearing an inappropriate dress to a place living developed by society or group and passed on
of worship is considered unacceptable in almost all from generation to generation.
cultures.
LESSON 9: Ethnocentrism and Cultural Relativism
Culture is shared. Because we share culture with
other members of our group, we are able to act in Ethnocentrism - Is the tendency to use one’s own
socially appropriate ways as well as predict how cultural standards and values to judge the behavior
others will act. and beliefs of people with different cultures.

Culture is dynamic. This simply means that cultures People who are ethnocentric believe their cultural
interact and change. beliefs are morally correct and others are morally
questionable.
Culture is Flexible. Culture is capable of being flexible
to be able to face any challenges that life would The opposite of ethnocentrism is cultural relativism,
bring. the view that the behavior in one culture should not
be judged by the standards of another. For cultural
Culture is Adaptive. People use technology, ideas relativist, the values, knowledge, and behavior of
and activities in order to survive and expand the people must be understood within their own cultural
human culture and society, this only depicts that context.
culture is adaptive.
LESSON 10 : The Human Origins and the Capacity for
LESSON 7 : Theoretical Perspectives of Culture and Cultures
Society
Homo Sapiens - Skilled hunters
Symbolic Interaction Approach - According to Homo Habilis - Skills in hunting and slaughtering
Macionis 2012, this approach sees society as “the
product of the daily interactions of individuals. In this LESSON 12 : Processes of Cultural and Socio-Political
process, people attach meaning to everything. Evolution

Conflict Theory first purported by Karl Marx, is a Age of Metals : Copper, Bronze, and Iron
theory that society is in a state of perpetual conflict Mesopotamia - Early civilization began to form
because of competition for limited resources. Conflict around the time of the Neolithic Revolution-12000 BCE.
theory holds that social order is maintained by Egypt - Egyptian civilization was developed along the
domination and power (rather than consensus and Nile River in large part because the river’s annual
conformity). According to conflict theory, those with flooding ensured reliable, rich soil for growing crops.
wealth and power try to hold on to it by any means
possible, chiefly by suppressing the poor and 3 Types of Political System :
powerless.
Authoritarianism - In Authoritarian government, the
people have no power or representation.
Monarchy - Government controlled by a king or 2. Innovation - It involves the acceptance of
queen determined by a predisposed line of the goals of a culture but the rejection of the
sovereignty. traditional and/or legitimate means of
attaining those goals. Innovators are
Democracy - A form of government in which the individuals who accept the goal, reject the
citizens create and vote for laws directly, or indirectly means to get the society’s goal. People use
via representative. different ways to achieve those goals.

LESSON 13: Socialization and Enculturation 3. Ritualism - It involved the rejection of

cultural goals or do not believe in the goals
The Looking-Glass Self Theory (Charles Horton of the society. However, people still accept
Cooley) stating that a person’s self develops out of the means by doing the same things as
society’s interpersonal interactions and the conformists. People insist to attain the goal,
recognitions of others. Individuals shape themselves but they are aware how to achieve it the
based on what other individuals see and affirm other right way.
people ‘s opinions on themselves.
4. Retreatism - It involves the rejection of both
Norms and Values – Norms are culturally determined the cultural goals and the traditional means
rules that guide people regarding what is right, wrong, of achieving those goals. Retreatants reject
proper, or improper. cultural norms without replacing those goals
and objectives, instead creating a norm they
2 Types of Status believe in.

Achieved Status - Is one that a person has earned or 5. Rebellion - It involved the rejection of
chosen based on his/her abilities and hard work. This cultural norms and trying to change the
is usually signified by a certain profession, such as a goals and means to achieve their beliefs.
professional athlete.
LESSON 16: Social Groups
Ascribed Status - Is not earned, and it is not
something that people have control over. For Primary Group - Involves interaction among
instance, it can be ascribed to a person's race or sex. members who have an emotional investment or
Also, it is not usually a choice in most matters. attachment in one another and in a situation.

LESSON 14: Conformity and Deviance Examples:

Family. An organized group, usually related to blood
Conformity - Is a type of social influence which or some binding or similarity factor, in which
involve change in belief or behavior in order to fit in individual roles and relationships change over time.
(McLeod 2016). Friends. Having similar interests and enjoy spending
time together.
Deviance - Describes actions or behaviors that
violate informal social norms or formally-enacted Love relationship. It is a profound expression of
rules. It is often divided into two types of activities. respect, trust, honesty, integrity, intimacy, chemistry
and cooperation.
Formal Deviance - Includes criminal violation of
formal-enacted laws. Example include robbery, theft, Secondary Group - A large group of people share
rape and assault. common goals which often aim to complete tasks at
hand. In this type of group, people are surrounded
Informal Deviance - Refers to violations of informal with relationships which are not personal.
social norms, which are norms that have not been
codified into law. Example of informal deviance Examples:
include bullying, talking loudly inside the classroom Classroom. A classroom consists of students and a
session. teacher where the teacher oversees the creation of
structures and environments that help the student
Merton’s outline 5 modes of adaptation learn.

1. Conformity - It involves the acceptance of Place of Employment. In a work atmosphere,

the cultural goals and means of attaining employees and managers come together in the
those goals. People who believe in normative same location for the purpose of completing a task.
means for attaining goals justifiably. The
follow the rules of society.
In-Group and Out-Group death of a previous spouse, or marital separation,
annulment, or divorce.
In-group - Is a group where people feel that they
belong to the social group. In the field of sociology Single Parent Family - A family unit which is headed
and social psychology, in-group is defined as a social by one parent (either father or mother only) raising a
group to which a person psychologically identifies child or children.
himself as a member of a particular group. In
contrary, an out-group is a social group that is not Monogamy - It a form of marriage in which one man
recognized by any individual. marries one woman.

In-group Favoritism - It is the feeling of people to Polygamy - The practice or custom of having more
favor one group over others. than one wife or husband at the same time.

Out-group Derogation - A phenomenon in which an Marriage - The legally or formally organized union of
out-group is perceived as threatening to the a man and a woman as partners in a relationship.
members of an in-group.
Divorce - Divorce occurs after the couple decides not
Social Influence - People have been shown to be to live together and that may no longer want to be
differentially influenced by in-Group members. That married to each other. They agree to sign legal
is, under conditions wherein group categorization is papers that make them each single again and allow
psychologically salient, people will shift their beliefs in them to marry someone else if they wish.
line with in-group social norms.

Group Polarization - This refers to the tendency of

groups to make decisions that are extreme than the
initial inclination of its members.

Intergroup Aggression - People in in-group who try

to harm another individual because they feel that
they are part of the out-group.

Reference Group and Network Groups

Reference Group - Is a group to which one can

compare himself or herself to others. This group
serves as a standard to which it measures one’s
behaviors and attitudes.

Network Groups - These are sets of informal and

formal social ties that link people to each other.

LESSON 17 : Examining Cultural, Social, and Political

Institutions

Types of Family by Size or Structure

Nuclear Family - A family unit that consists of a

single couple or monogamous family, that is – the
husband, wife, and their child or children.

Extended Family - It is a family composed of parents

and children as well asother kin. It is also known as
consanguine family. Filipino families living together
and support each other because this has been their
way of life since they were born.

Reconstituted Family - A family unit that consists of

one or both parents who have a child or children from
a previous relationship or past marriage, but they
have combined to form a new family often after a