Untitled

• Here are your study notes

Socio-Cultural Evolution

• The study of cultural evolution was greatly influenced by Charles Darwin's theory of biological evolution in the late 19th century
• Early sociologists and anthropologists explored this idea
• Darwin's "The Origin of Species" introduced natural selection, inspiring similar concepts in societies
• Sociocultural evolutionism describes how societies and cultures change over time
• It involves structural reorganization of societal structures and cultural practices
• This process results in societies evolving from simple to complex forms
• Herbert Spencer proposed that societies evolve from less complex to more complex, with social hierarchies developing over time
• Human societies evolve through an increasing division of labor into complex civilizations
• Gerhard Lenski states that societies evolve as they acquire new technology
• Lenski defined 5 types of societies that evolve, which changed with adaptation to new technology

5 Types of Society

• Lenski defined 5 types of societies that change orderly, when they adapt to new technology
• Hunting and gathering societies use tools like bows and stone knives
• Family is the primary institution
• Early humans were nomadic, with men hunting and women gathering
• Horticultural and pastoral societies emerged from new crop-raising technology
• People settled to grow food, and started domesticating animals
• Increased population and food led to arts and crafts
• Agricultural societies used large-scale farming, with plows and animals
• This led to cities and modern society structure
• Increased population and surplus food resulted in the barter system, the oldest form of commerce
• Industrial societies use advanced energy sources over humans/animals to run machines
• Many inventions occurred during industrialization
• Cities and migration increased, traditional families weakened
• Post-industrial societies feature economies based on services and technology, not production
• Post-industrial societies replace machinery with computers
• Sociocultural evolution occurs through the change of societies and their cultures over time
• Driven by new knowledge, technology, and adaptation
• Culture is affected by challenges to beliefs and values
• Cultural values evolve, and traditional practices change with more open ideas

Material Culture

• 'Material culture' includes the physical objects created by a society
• Advances in tech affect how people access information
• This leads to new forms of expression in society
• Smartphones have increased access of information
• The printing press democratized access to information, contributing to the Enlightenment
• Societies adapt to social environments, including practices, beliefs and values
• This includes clothing, housing, and spiritual beliefs
• Sociocultural evolution changes society from hunter-gathering to post-industrial
• Language evolution shapes communication through expressions and vocabulary
• This is apparent in the evolution of Taglish in the Philippines
• Cultural change occurs when a person alters beliefs based on their surroundings

Social Groups and Organizations

• Social group refers to two or more people who identify and interact with one another with shared experiences
• Social groups consist of people who share experiences, loyalties and interests
• These members of social groups think of themselves as a we
• People are part of various family and friendship groups within large organizations
• They affect how we behave and interact with one another
• Understanding the role of a social group is essential to understanding the human relationships
• Social groups have a sense of unity with individuals who interact regularly, share common characteristics or goals
• Social organizations have structures that maintain social order and encourage social interaction
• Social organizations include education, government and business institutions
• Social organizations maintain social order by facilitating cooperation
• Social organizations have rules, roles and a clear structure to function in an orderly way
• Social orgs focus more on stability and order compared to personal relationships and groups

Key Features of Social Groups

• Shared Interests or Goals
  • Members come together to achieve common objectives
• Regular Interactions
  • Continuous engagement among members
• Sense of Belonging
  • Feeling of being part of the group
• Established Social Structure
  • Defines how members relate to each other and function as part of the group

Sociological Perspectives of Three Historians

• Emile Durkheim
  • Social groups contribute to a collective consciousness, which supports cohesion to maintain social order
  • Social group values and shared norms bring individuals together
• Max Weber
  • Social groups are more than just a collection of individuals, they share a goal for common purpose
• George Herbert Mead
  • Social groups are critical in the development of the self that emerges from social interaction
  • Participation helps individuals develop a sense of identity

Types of Social Groups

• Primary Groups
  • Small, intimate groups where members have close, personal relationships
  • Strong emotional bonds and face-to-face interactions (e.g., families or close friends.)
• Secondary Groups
  • These groups have formed for a specific purpose, where the relationships are goal-oriented
• In-Groups-Outgroups
  • Sense of belonging that individuals feel to be a particular group; essential in conflict resolution
  • In groups are large or small while out-groups are observed in competition
• Reference Groups
  • Use groups as a standard for evaluating a behavior and help to shape individual values

Importance of Groups

• Transmitter of Culture
  • Groups spread culture, teaching each other how to behave through learned customs
• Means of Social Control
  • Rules and standards guide behavior with those that individuals have to follow within to gain acceptance
• Socializes the Individual
  • Development starts within family through learned skills for productive society members
• Source of Fundamental Ideas
  • Thoughts, emotions, and behaviors are shaped by interaction, which may later change with experience
• Trains the Individual to Communicate
  • Members share ideas while active participation helps with developing communication skills in groups

Socialization

• The lifelong experience by which people develop their human potential and learn culture
• Individuals becoming members of society requires acquiring knowledge, skills, and behaviors that are necessary for the member of society

Processes of Socialization

• Enculturation
  • The process by which individuals learn their group's culture through experience.
• Acculturation
  • The process of exchange of values and customs from one group to another by individuals that remain distinct within their group
• Assimilation
  • The process of cultural absorption into a cultural body in small groups that allows people to grow and develop their potential

Agents of Socialization

• People who teach the beliefs and behaviors expected in certain roles within a society
• Family
  • Influential agent of socialization that provides social positions (race, religion, etc.).
• School
  • Provide formal education in knowledge that include different backgrounds.
• Mass Media
  • Means for communication to deliver impersonal data that affects attitudes of individual behavior

Other forms of socialization practices

• (officemates/colleagues, clubs, organizations, religious groups, advocacy groups, etc).

Examples of Socialization

• Gender Socialization
  • Primary socialization where children learn the norms and behaviors associated.
• Hidden Curriculum
  • Set where students learn rules and values while in school.
• Morality
  • System about the difference between right and wrong regarding religion and social groups.

• Social Relationships
  • Social interaction through forced and voluntary ways and structures.

• Subculture
  • Groups of people who share beliefs that are different from modern culture based on race, ethnicity, or values.

• Political Socialisation
  • Individuals initiated into the dominant values and ways of social life including those values associated with politics.
• The Purpose of Socialization
  • Learning norms that society holds together.
  • Allows for relationship building that can allow others to form meaningful capital and acquire resources.

Basic Social Institutions

• Defined as the beliefs, relationships, and behaviors that organize people's social lives
• Providing the structure needed for social order
• 5 Major social institutions
  • Family
    • Defined by the members roles that fulfill social duties.
  • Religion
    • Belief's held by the member, specifically the stories of how the world came to be.
  • Education
    • Involves learning skills for society.
  • Government
    • The local structures used to regulate.
  • Economy
    • The social systems that are used alongside resources such as family and relationships to help people function

The Role of Institutions in Philippine Popular Culture

• The major foundations such as family, education, and economy shape identity through a culture that influences the decisions of the citizens.
• Family shaped culture that involves respect and community with family structure that has shaped culture and family lives
• Religious based holidays are commonly practiced, which involve faith-based policies
• A tool to instill education that develops the mindset and nationalism while involving trends with student activism for societal change
• Government regulations enforce how the agency works and regulate the overall societal function
• The media can provide change to how the citizens engage with the world regarding entertainment and the type of decisions they make
• Institutions work together to help develop a unique Filipino culture through a changing society