Understanding Culture, Society, and Politics Reviewer PDF

**UNDERSTANDING CULTURE, SOCIETY,** **AND POLITICS REVIEWER** **HUMAN VARIATION** **NATIONALITY** -The legal sense of belonging to a specific political nation state **ETHNICITY** \- Cultural characteristics that define a person as being a member of a specific group and can include language acc...

**UNDERSTANDING CULTURE, SOCIETY,** **AND POLITICS REVIEWER** **HUMAN VARIATION** **NATIONALITY** -The legal sense of belonging to a specific political nation state **ETHNICITY** \- Cultural characteristics that define a person as being a member of a specific group and can include language accent, accent, religion etc. **GENDER** \- refers to the socially constructed roles, behaviors, activities, and attributes that a given society considers appropriate for men and women. **SOCIOECONOMIC CLASS** \- refers to an individual\'s position in a society which is determined by wealth, occupation, and social class and is a measure of an individual or groups standing in a community **POLITICAL IDENTITY** \- refers to the set of attitudes and practices that an individual adheres to in relation to the political systems and actors within his or her society. **RELIGION** \- the belief in and worship of a superhuman power or powers, especially a god or gods **EXCEPTIONALITY / NON-EXCEPTIONALITY** \- leans on the non-average capacity of an individual. \- could be understood in a spectrum of capabilities, where in, you have genuses in one extreme and you have disabled and challenged in the othr extreme. **Cultural Variation** \- the variation in human conditions promotes sity and plurality in cultural traditions. This d lead to discrimination and ostracism. **Ethnocentrism** \- is a perspective that promotes an individual\'s culture as the most efficientand superior; hence, the individual who exhibits ethnocentrism feels that his or her culture is the most appropriate as compared with other cultures. **CULTURAL RELATIVISM** \- promotes the perspective that culture must be understood in the context of their locality. **Culture** \- is everything that a person learns as a member of society ** Culture is everything** \- It is what a person has, does, and thinks as part of society. This implies all of a person\'s belief system, set of behaviors, and material possessions. 1. **Material culture** - includes all the tangible and visible parts of culture, which include clothes, food, and even buildings. 2. **Nonmaterial culture** - includes all the intangible parts of culture, which consist of values, ideas, and knowledge. 3. **Values -** are concepts that are culturally determined; it separates what is acceptable from that which is taboo. 4. **Beliefs -** are culturally approved truths that deal with the specific parts of human life **Culture is learned** \- Culture is a set of beliefs, attitudes, and practices that an individual learns through his or her family, school, church, and other social institutions. ✓ **Enculturation** \- the process of learning your own culture ✓ **Acculturation** \- you learn the values and accepted behaviors your society in due to constant interaction between societies, culture can be modified to accommodate desirable traits from other cultures ✓ **Deculturation** \- where the reason for the culture has been lost and even the cultural trait itself is in the process of being forgotten. **Culture is shared** \- culture is shared intergenerationally. Hence, to share a culture, it must be taught to members of contemporary society who will, in turn, teach the younger generation. **Culture affects biology** \- they alter their bodies to fit into the physiological norms that are dictated by culture **Culture is adaptive** \- culture is a tool for survival that humans use in response to the pressures of their environment Both the material and the nonmaterial parts of culture are influenced by the goal of humans to address their needs as dictated by their environment and their biology **Culture is maladaptive** \- culture can also cause problems for the people who subscribe to it. These problems arise when the environment has changed and culture has remained the same. **Culture changes** \- the final characteristic of culture is that it is never static \- this dynamism of culture is due to the changing needs of humans as they interpret and survive in their environment **[DIFFERENT THEORIES ON CULTURE]** 1\. **Cultural evolutionism** \- All cultures undergo the same development stages in the same order. The main classifications include savagery, barbarism, and civilization. 2\. **Diffusionism** \- All societies change as a result of cultural borrowing from one another. 3\. **Historicism** Each culture is unique and must be studied in its own context. 4\. **Psychological anthropology** \- Personality is largely seen to be the result of learning culture. 5\. **Functionalism** \- Society is thought to be like a biological organism with all of the parts interconnected. Existing institutional structures of any society are thought to perform indispensable functions, without which the society could not continue. 6\. **Neo-evolutionism** \- Culture is said to be shaped by environmental and technological conditions. Cultures evolve when people are able to increase the amount of energy under their control. 7\. **Materialism** \- Culture is the product of the \"material conditions\" in which a given community of people finds itself. **Anthropology and the Study of Culture** \- Humans studying humans. \- anthropology promotes a holistic study of humans. - derived from two Greek words antropos (human) and logos (study) the study of people-their origins, their development, and contemporary variations,wherever and whenever they have been found on the face of the earth. **Five subdisciplines of anthropology** \> **Archaeology** \- examines the remains of ancient and historical human populations to promote an understanding of how humans have adapted to their environment and developed. \> **Cultural anthropology** \- promotes the study of a society\'s culture through their belief systems, practices, and possessions. Linguistic anthropology \- examines the language of a group of people and its relation to their culture. \> **Physical anthropology** \- looks into the biological development of humans and their contemporary variation. \> **Applied anthropology** \- attempts to solve contemporary problems through the application of theories and approaches of the discipline. **Sociology** \- is the scientific study of society, including patterns of social relationships, social interaction, and culture \- the term sociology was coined by **Auguste Compte** in **1830** **-** a scientific inquiry that covers human social activities **Sociological Imagination** \- **1959, C. Wright Mills** \- to refer to the ability of sociologist to understand society systematically. \- involves the process of detaching oneself from the common understanding of society and creates an alternative approach that would situate a behavior or an event within a great social framework **Society** \- product of human interactions as humans subscribe to the rules of their culture **[Perspectives on Society]** 1\. **August Comte\'s perspective** \- as a social organism possessing a harmony of structure and function 2\. **Emile Durkheim\'s perspective** \- as a reality in its own right; collective consciousness is of key importance to society 3\. **Talcott Parsons\' perspective** \- a total complex of human relationships in terms of means-end relationship 4\. **George Herbert Mead\'s perspective** \- an exchange of gestures that involves the use of symbols 5\. **Morris Ginsberg\'s perspective** \- a collection of individuals united by certain relations or mode of behavior 6\. **George Douglas Cole\'s perspective** - the complex of organized associations and institutions with a community 7\. **Robert Maclver and Charles Page\'s** **perspective** \- a system of usages and procedures of authority and mutual aid **Social Interaction** -the framework of society \- compilation of ways and means by which humans interact with each other within the confines of a society **Social organization** \- interrelationship of parts of society ✓ **Status** \- positions created within a society that prescribe accepted behaviors ✓ **Role** \- set of accepted behaviors that define an individual\'s responses and inclinations ✓ **Group** \- a basic unit of an organization involving at least two individuals in constant interaction ✓ **Institutions** \- established when roles, statuses, and groups are perpetuated within the context of a society \- Institutions are the building blocks of a society ** Social structure and agency** \- the foundation of every society from which emanates the possible roles, statuses, institutions, and organizations \- social structure is the determining factor by which every other part of a society gains its context **[Subdisciplines of sociology]** 1\. **Social organization** studies that involve social structures such as institutions, social groups, social stratification, social mobility, and ethnic groups 2\. **Social psychology** \- The study of the impact of group life to a person\'s nature and personality **3. Social change and disorganization** \- the branch of sociology that inquires on the shift in social and cultural interactions and the interruption of its process through delinquency, deviance, and conflicts. **4. Human ecology** \- pursues studies that relate human behavior to existing social institutions **5. Population or demography** \- inquires on the interrelationship between population characteristics and dynamics with that of a political, economic, and social system. 6\. **Applied sociology** \- uses sociological research and methods to solve contemporary problems. It often uses an interdisciplinary approach to better address social problems. **Positivist perspective** \- perceives society as a **quantifiable subject from which objective conclusions** can be made \- **Auguste Compte** introduced the positivist perspective altruistic - Strong ties egoistic - weak ties anomic- no rules fatalistic - many rules **Anti-positivist perspective** \- focuses on understanding the subjective meanings and experiences of individuals **Political Science as a Discipline** **Political Science** \- comes from two Greek words: \"polis\" and \"scire\". \"Polis\" refers to the city-state in ancient Greece. The political activities within a polis are later termed as politikus (Latin). \- \"Scire\" means \"to know.\" \- Combining the two meanings, political science aims to know the activities within the state. Such activities include the following: human interaction and conflict, human and state relations, and power distribution. \"the study of governments, public policies and political processes, systems, and political behavior\" -American Political Science Association (2013). **[Subdisciplines of Political Science]** 1\. **Political Theory** \- examines the contemporary application of political concepts such as human rights, equality, peace, and justice. \- it seeks to address the variance of its implementation in societies with the aim of understanding the nature of these concepts and the elements that affect it 2\. **Comparative Politics** \- a branch of political science that aims to provide context to the differences in government and political systems \- it examines the parallelism and divergence of political systems to provide analyses on the factors that make governments efficient and the factors that make them fail \- this field provides a scientific comparison of governments and political institutions that could help aid policy formulation that is locally relevant. **3. International Relations** \- the study of state-to-state relations and the wider margin of the impacts of globalization and climate change such as terrorism, and piracy, democratization of non-Western territories fall into the category of international relations this field also covers the interaction between states and non-state global actors such as international organizations and human groups 4\. **Political Behavior** \- this field covers the attitudes, knowledge, and actions of an individual in response to political variables such as policies created by the government, behavior of politicians, and general political environment works on the political action repertoire of individuals are categorized under this field as it examines their psychology toward the system 5\. **Public Policy** \- inquires on the types of governmental policies and the underlying inotivations for their enactment and implementation \- it operates with other subdisciplines to create a comprehensive analysis 6\. **Public Administration** \- examines the various administrative schemes implemented by government officials it analyzes the strategies applied by administrative units in implementing the existing policies and the feedback mechanism that they use to gain the opinion of the public **David Easton\'s Political System Model (1957**) - a conceptual model that may be used in analyzing the political dynamics within a society **Five Primary Variables** **Environment** \- consists of the historical, social, and economic conditions of the society that affects the types of policies accepted and declined by the electorate **Input** \- refers to the forms of political events or products that are needed by society from its government \> *Demands* \- refer to the perceived needs of the population that could better their lives \> *Support* \- refers to mechanisms within the system that would allow for such demands to be facilitated. **Political System** \- acts like a black box through which every form of demand is sifted and decided upon \- it could be either democratic or socialist, parliamentary or presidential, and unitary or federal \- based on the nature of the political system, the demands are either acted upon or neglected. **Output** \- the decision of the government toward an input - this includes policies, rules, laws, regulations, and projects **Feedback** \- important for the system to gauge the efficiency of its response to a public need also provides the government a basis for improving its response to public demands. **POLITICS** \- the central concept in the discipline, as much as society is to sociology and culture is to anthropology **Definitions of Politics** **Alfred Boyer** \- politics is the interaction between the civil society and the government in the activity of governance **Max Weber** \- politics is the exercise of power within a state. **David Easton** \- politics is the authoritative allocation of scarce values. **Weber** introduced **two essential concepts** in political science: **power and state.** **Power** \- [Robert Dahl]: \"the ability of person A to make person B do what person B would not otherwise do\" \- implies the capacity to direct and influence the decision of others. Hence, Weber\'s definition corresponds to the interplay of power relations within a political system. **State** \- state is a political concept, which makes it intangible unlike its elements \- a political entity that consists of four elements: territory, government, people, and sovereignty. ✓ **Government** \- set of personnel who manages the affairs of the state in its act of allocating scarce values \- **Aristotle** provided a system of **classification of governments based on number of rulers and its efficiency in governance** (Curtis, 1981). ------------------ ------------- ---------------- NUMBER OF RULERS NORMAL FORM PERVERTED FORM one monarchy tyranny few aristocracy oligarchy many polity democracy ------------------ ------------- ---------------- ✓ **Sovereignty** \- the capacity of a political system to make independent decisions within its territory. \> ***Internal sovereignty*** refers to the capacity of a political system to implement its rules and policies within its territory \> ***External sovereignty*** \- refers to the recognition of that system\'s existence and authority by other actors and systems ✓ **Territory** the geographic space in which the sovereignty of a state is exercised ✓ **People** \- the most crucial of all, as it is through the existence of the people that concepts on government, state, territory, and sovereignty take shape \- in the context of political science, the term people is synonymous to a nation. A nation is a concept that is related to ethnicity, as people within it are bound by cultural and historical ties. **SYMBOLS** \- an object, a word or action that stands for something else without natural relationship that is culturally defined. **SYMBOLISM** \- is when something represents abstract ideas or concepts. **TYPES OF SYMBOLS** **Cultural Symbols** --manifestation that signifies the ideology of a particular culture that has meaning within that culture. **Social Symbols** --relating to human societies and its models of organization. **Political Symbols** --used to represent a political standpoint; seenin various media & forms. (banners, flags, mottos, etc.) **Economic Symbols** --used in production, distribution, and consumption of goods and service. (currency, market, labor, demands and other economic activities). **[Functions of Symbols & Symbolism]** **Social Symbols** \- are used to transfer culture, ideologies or beliefsfrom a group to another group of people, or from our elders to the new generations of people. \- symbols are also used to preserve traditions or beliefs of a certain group of people. \- Create movements \- Spread ideas \- Share advocates **Social Symbols and Practices** \- Clothing and possessions \- Societal recognition \- Material possessions **STATUS SYMBOL** is generally an object meant to signify its owner's high social and economic standing. **\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_** **Cultural Symbols and Practices** Examples are objects, figures, sounds and colors. \- Facial expressions \- Word interpretations \- Gestures (handshakes and hand signal) **Cultural Practices** \- these are the manifestation of a culture or sub-culture. **Examples**: **Religious and spiritual** \- Obando Festival in Bulacan for Fertility \- Panaad sa Camiguin as act of Penance and Pilgrim **Medical treatment** \- Traditional Medical Practices -- belief in "albularyo", herbal medicines, alternative medicines, and other home remedies. **Culinary** \- Adobo, Sinigang, Balut, Street Foods, Rice Cakes **Child-rearing** -Mano, Ninong/Ninang, Family Meal Time, Use of Belt **Some Cultural Symbols in the Philippines** \- create Filipino identity and to promote solidarity and unity. Jeepney, Philippine Flag, National Hymn, Philippine Eagle **\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_** **Political Symbols and Practices** \- It is related to the practices done in administration, distribution and attainment of power, bureaucratic composition, etc. Executive Legislative Judiciary **Common Color Symbols** Red- blood, war, passion, danger Purple- royalty White- purity, peace Yellow- violence, bubbly Blue- calm, peaceful Black- evil, death \_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_ **Economic Symbols** \- They represent economic standpoints which may be seen in various media such as: Stock exchange Money and Currency Gold and Petroleum Life Insurance, Banking, etc. \_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_ **Significance of Symbols and Symbolism** 1\. As rational thinkers, we have been making and giving meaning to symbols for a long tie. 2\. Symbols have been a part of our lives and growth as human kind. 3\. The usage of symbols and symbolism has given mankind an avenue to communicate with the different group of people, influence others ofdifferent ideologies, and observe values that were transferred from generations to generations. **Socialization and Current Situation** **Socialization** \- the process of learning how to become part of a culture. \- unending process of learning through our own experiences or through institutions we have in our communities. \- people learn the attitudes, values, and behaviors proper for members of a society. Socialization occurs through human interactions that begin in infancy and continue until one die. **Types of Socialization (Lumen)** 1\. **Primary Socialization** - during the earlist life of an individual. It is when infant learns language & cognitive skills adopts norms and values gradually through his/ her family members. 2\. **Secondary Socialization** - process where socialization occurs through peers/peer groups. The growing individual learns lessons in social conduct from his/her peers. 3\. **Adult Socialization** - process of role taking. This teaches an individual to take duties & greater responsibilities such as work, raising family, being a parent and spouse 4\. **Anticipatory Socialization** - process by which an individual learns a culture of a group with expectation of joining that group 5\. **Resocialization** - process of declining former conduct and accepting new ones, as part of changes in ones life. One departs the former undesirable Lifestyle and accepts new pattern for better **SOCIOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVES OF SOCIETY** **SOCIAL GROUPS** \- are fundamental parts of human life A collection of people who regularly interact with one another based on shared expectations concerning behavior and who share sense of common identity. We could be a member of a church group, college class, workplace, sports team and others **SOCIAL AGGREGATE** **-** collection of people who are in the same place of the same time but who otherwise have nothing else in Common A crowd of a sporting event, audience at a movie or play are examples of social aggregates **SOCIAL CATEGORIES** \- people who share common characteristics but do not necessarily interact or identify with one another Commonalities can range from age, gender, race, income level, education level, religion etc. **SOCIAL FUNCTION** \- an individual interac- tion with their environment & the ability to fulfill their role within such environment as work, social activities and relationship with partners & family. **FORMS OF SOCIAL GROUP** 1\. **Primary Group** is just a small group with members engaged in tight, private & lasting relationships 2\. **Secondary Group** can be a big or small Social group usually formed for a short term period. The members are not related to one another and are not influenced by perso- nal feelings 3\. **In-groups** is a social group to which a person identifies with. He or she may feel loyalty and respect toward the other members of the group 4\. **Out - groups** are groups to which a person does not identify with. He/she may feel dislike or hatred toward a member of this group. IN-Group --- brotherhood / fraternity OUT-Group --- oponents/rivals 5\. **Reference Group** serve as an element or component that individuals use as a standard toward the achievement of a desired behavior in making judgement about quality of life or things. It is not necessary that we become a member of a reference group; this can be a person\'s favorite fashion style, artist, pop idols etc. 6\. **Networks** is a group that includes individuals who come into casual connec tion but who do not have sense of belongingness. Examples of these are facebook, instagram, twitter and other Social networking sites.