THE SOCIAL SCIENCE

DISCIPLINES
DENNY ROHMAWAN

THE LIST OF SOCIAL SCIENCE DISCIPLINES

ANTRHOPOLOGY | ECONOMICS | GEOGRAPHY | HISTORY |

POLITICAL SCIENCE | PSYCHOLOGY | SOCIOLOGY |
PHILOSOPHY

ANTHROPOLOGY

The Overview of Anthropology

Antrhopolgy study human cultures, They study cultures at all levels of
technological development. From the way they gathering and hunting through
agricultural to fully industrialized. Anthropologists may divided into several
specialties :

Social/Cultural anthropogists
Ethnographer
Phsycal/Biological anthropologists
Primatologists

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The Outline of the structure of

Mode of Inquiry
Anthropology
1. Question asked

What is the nature of culture?

How do the parts of a culture fit together to make a functional whole?
How do cultures affect the personalities of the individual members?
How do cultures that come into contact influence one another?
How do cultures evolve and change?
Are there any ways in which all human cultures are alike (that is, are there any
cultural universals)?
. How do cultures influence the relationship between human beings and the
natural environment?
. How does the natural environment influence culture?

A. Mode of Inquiry
2. Research Methods (and Tools)
. Observation of behavior while living among the people (frequently referred to
as fieldwork and/or participant observation)
. Interviewing
. Description of physical aspects of culture (tools, dwellings, clothing, art, etc.)
. Analysis of written documents (e.g., official government documents, journals
written by missionaries or early explorers, carvings in stone)
. Cross cultural comparisons using ethnographies researched by various
anthropologists
. Linguistic analysis
. Excavations (digs)
. Physical analysis of fossils and other remains of early cultures (carbon dating,
etc.)

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The Outline of the structure of

Body of knowledge
Anthropology
1. Concepts
Culture
Culture traits
Nuclear families
Artifacts
Levels of Technological Development
Child-rearing practices
Diffusion
Traditions
Dwelling
Clothing
Values
Language
Customs
Ceremonies

B.

The Outline of the structure of

Body of knowledge
Anthropology
2. Generalizations (with key concept italicized)

. Culture (a system of shared beliefs, values, customs, and behavior) makes it

possible for members of a society to interact with each other and with the
physical environment to meet basic human needs.
. Every culture is made up of an interconnected series of culture traits, and thus
culture change in one or more culture traits will result in changes in other
culture traits.
. If human did not have the ability to develop complex language, then they could
not develop a culture.
. If a culture is to be preserved, then it must be passed from generation to
generation by child rearing practices.
. The Development and evolution of a culture is affected by the physical
environment.
. The nature of a culture is effected by the level of technological development of
the people.

B.

The Outline of the structure of

Body of knowledge
Anthropology
2. Generalizations (with key concept italicized)

. If a culture change involving a movement from dependence on hunting and

gathering to a dependence on agriculture takes place, then the people will
change their pattern of residence (begin to settle in permanent communities,
etc.) and to accumulate a larger store af artifacts.
. Sex roles vary from culture to culture and are passed on to the next generation
by child rearing practices.

ECONOMICS

The Overview of Economics

Economics is the study of how scarce resources are used to satisfy unlimited
human wants. The part concerned with economic analysis is divided into two main
areas: Microeconomics and Macroeconomics. Two
additional areas of
specialization are economic history and comparative economics.

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The Outline of the Structure of

Mode of Inquiry
Economics
1. Question asked
How do humans allocate scarce resources to meet unlimited human wants?
How do producers decide on what and how much to produce?
How do consumers decide on what and how much to consume?
How do the goods and service that are produced get distributed to the people
who want them?
How can productivity be increased?
How does a market operate to enable buyers and sellers to exchange goods
and service?
How are quantity supplied, quantity demanded, and price related?
How does competition affect price and the quantity of goods and services that
are produced?
How is the income of various members of a society determined, and what is the
pattern of overall income distribution?
What causes markets to fail?

A. Mode of Inquiry
2. Research Methods (and Tools)
. Mathematical and statistical analysis of data from government or other
documents (e.g., GNP, unemployment rate, prime interest rate, census)
. Surveys (of public opinion, etc.)
. Case studies
. Theoritical model building and testing
. Cross-national comparison
. Construction of tables, charts, and graphs
. Computation of ratios and percentages
. Computation of index numbers (price index, etc.)
. Computation of averages and distribution about to average (including medians
and arithmetic means)

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The Outline of the structure of

Body of knowledge
Economics
1. Concepts
Scarcity
Producers Quantity demanded
Quantity supplied
Economic wants
Consumption
Wages
Specialization
Buyers and Sellers
Production
Public goods
Savings
Markets
Rents
Opportunity costs

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The Outline of the structure of

Body of knowledge
Economics
1. Concepts
Natural Resources
Capital goods
Income distribution
Gross national product (GNP)
Inflation, recession, depression
Trade-offs
Economic institutions
Externalities
Government regulations

B.

The Outline of the structure of

Body of knowledge
Economics
2. Generalizations (with key concept italicized)

. Technological change often results in increased productivity and a change in

the type of goods produced.
. A medium of exchange (money) is needed in an economic system that is based
on specialization and exchange
. The price of a good or service has an effect on the willingness of a seller to
enter into production and the willingness of a buyer to become a consumer of
the good or service.
. Producers bring productive resources (human resources, natural resources, and
capital goods) together to produce a goods and services.
. The level of productivity is increased when investments in human capital and/or
capital goods are increased.
. Division of labor and specialization increases productivity and interdependence.
. Trad-offs (choices) must be made among alternative uses of productive
resources.

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The Outline of the structure of

Body of knowledge
Economics
2. Generalizations (with key concept italicized)

. Workers sell their services to employers in return for wages (or salaries) that
they can spend for goods and services.
. If both the buyer and the seller think that they will receive a benefit from an
exchange, then the exchange will take place.
. In a market economy, the price of a good or service is determined by the
quantity demanded and the quantity produced.
. Unregulated monopolies tend to sell goods and services at higher prices than
competitive markets.

GEOGRAPHY

The Overview of Geography

Geography is a study of earths surface and how humans affect and are
affected by their physical environment. It also divieded into two main specialties:
physical geography and cultural/human geography.
An additional subdivision of geography is cartography or mapmaking. It
interested in accurately recording the location of people and places on the earths
surface.

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The Outline of the Structure of

Mode of Inquiry
Geography
1. Question asked
Why do people live where they do?
Why do people in different locations on the globe live differently?
Why is the human population distributed unevenly over the earths surface?
To what extent does the earth shape humans?
To what extent do human shape the earth?
What is the relationship between variations in land (climate, soil, etc.) and
differences in level of economic deelopment, political organization, and other
aspects of culture?
What makes a city a city?
What are the characteristics of the various climate region?
How are people in different geographic areas interdependent?
How do region from and change?
How can a large, spherical earth be represented on a small, flat piece of paper?

A. Mode of Inquiry
2. Research Methods (and Tools)
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Surveying
Fieldwork (observing in natural settings)
Mapmaking (charting, etc.)
Tables and graphs
Regional descriptions
Analysis of cencus data
Case studies
Physical measurements (temperature, altitude, etc.)
Aerial photographs

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The Outline of the structure of

Body of knowledge
Geography
1. Concepts
Landforms
Maps symbols
Directions
Time zones
Occupations
Location
Soils
Population
Mountains
Deserts
Forest lands
Temperature
Latitude and Longitude

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The Outline of the structure of

Body of knowledge
Geography
1. Concepts
Vegetation
Trade routes
Tools
Migration
Regional specialization
Division of labor
Urban centers
Agriculture
Natural energy resources
Humidity
Seasons
Population density

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The Outline of the structure of

Body of knowledge
Geography
2. Generalizations (with key concept italicized)

. With advances in level of economic development humans increasingly modify

the earths surface feature (by clearing land, building dams, polluting the air
and water etc. ).
. The development of agriculture (and therefore food surpluses) by some
societies contributed to the development of the custom of division of labor and
the emergence of urban centers.
. The development of animal domestication resulted in changes in subsistence
activities and settlement patterns.
. A societys level of economic development helps to determine its capacity to
support a particular population density.
. Humans use the natural resources found in their physical environment to meet
their basic needs for food, clothing, and shelter.
. The human processes of production, exchange, distribution, and consumption
vary in part with geographic influences (climate, landforms, soil, water

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The Outline of the structure of

Body of knowledge
Geography
2. Generalizations (with key concept italicized)

. Advances in transportation and communication system lead to interdependence

between regions in meeting basic human needs.
. Human occupations in a region are determined in part by climate, natural
resources, and level of economic development.
. Avaibility of natural resources may lead to regional specialization.
. Populations will tend to settle in areas that have sufficient natural reasources to
meet their basic human needs.
. The earths surface features vary as function of geologic events, weather, and
human culture.

HISTORY

The Overview of History

History is the study of the human past. Historian are interested in all aspect of
past human activity. A particular historian may choose to specialize in one or more
of these aspects of human activity (social, military, art); in the history of a
particular country or geaographic region (United States, Africa, Southeast Asia); in
a particular time period (the Middle Ages, the Golden Age of Greece, the Nuclear
Age); in a major event.

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The Outline of the Structure of

Mode of Inquiry
History
1. Question asked

. What actually happened in the past?

. Do the events of the past form pattern that can be used to predict future
events?
. How can a knowledge of past events contribute to our understanding of current
events?
. To what extent can cause and effect for events of the past be established?
. Do great people make great times, or is it the other way around?

A. Mode of Inquiry
2. Research Methods (and Tools)
. Analysis of public documents (e.g., newspapers, magazines, government
reports political documents, literature, earlier histories)
. Analysis of private documents (e.g., letters, diaries, journals, wills, household
inventories)
. Analysis of physical remains (e.g., roads, bridges, buildings, fortifications, tools,
pottery, weapons)
. Analysis of nonprint materials (e.g., photographs, paintings, wall carvings,
sound recordings, video recordings)
. Interviewing
. Observation of current events

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The Outline of the structure of

Body of knowledge
History
1. Concepts
Change
Past (times)
Values
Historical events
Beliefs
Historical records
Battles, wars
Government
Power
Military leaders
Past events
Current events
Industrial leaders
Tools and Machines

B.

The Outline of the structure of

Body of knowledge
History
2. Generalizations (with key concept italicized)

. Continuous change has been a universal condition of human society troughout

all time.
. Complex historical events cannot be explained in terms of simple, one to
one cause and effect.
. Past events influence current events.
. Historical bias results if each generation re creates and rewrites history in
terms of its own values and needs.
. To understand current events adequately, one must be aware of past events.
. A revolution may occur if a significant number of the members of society feel
that they are being exploited by the political leaders.
. In the past, exploration led to culture change.
. New inventions may lead to significant culture change.

POLITICAL SCIENCE

The Overview of political Science

Political Scientist study public policy. They are interested in the development
and use of human power in society, especially as reflected in government. More
recently, political scientist have extended their concern to include the relationship
between public policy and the society in which it operates.

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The Outline of the Structure of

Mode of Inquiry
Political Science
1. Question asked
How do government and other political organizations originate?
How do leaders and/or political organizations gain power?
What purposes do political organizations serve?
How are political decisions made?
What are the agents in a society that contribute to political organization?
How do ethnic, race, sex, religious, or linguistic divisons in a political system
affect its processes and problems?
How does the international environment shape national political life?
How can citizen participation levels be modified or their composition atered?
How do political system extract resources with which to implement policies?
What different areas of life are regulated in different kinds of political systems?

A. Mode of Inquiry
2. Research Methods (and Tools)
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Analysis of official documents

Analysis of laws and court decisions
Content analysis of mass communications
System analysis
Analysis of voting behavior
Comparison of different political systems
Interviews
Opinion polls
Surveys
Case studies

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The Outline of the structure of

Body of knowledge
Political Science
1. Concepts
Power
Society
Nation
Political freedom
Majority rule
Decision making processes
Laws
Legislators
Political units
Elections
Taxes
Civil liberties
Discrimination
Autocracy

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The Outline of the structure of

Body of knowledge
Political Science
1. Concepts
Justice
Equality
Military powers
Citizens
Authority
Mass communication

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The Outline of the structure of

Body of knowledge
Political Science
2. Generalizations (with key concept italicized)

. If a government is to endure, then it must deal with the problem of the

allocation of scarce resources, establish rules and controls, and provide for a
division of labor.
. Political freedom is a workable idea only if it is balanced by corresponding
political responsibilities.
. Policy decisions are necessarily value judgments.
. Government is necessary for the production of public goods and services (e.g.,
roads, police force).
. Law is an effective mechanism for social change.
. If a government is to survive over time, then it must constantly adapt to social
change.
. Laws may serve to prepetuate discrimination.

SOCIOLOGY

The Overview of Sociology

Sociologists study the behaviour of humans in groups. Their primary interest is
in human social relationships human behavior as it manifests itself in the
development and functioning of groups and institutions.

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The Outline of the structure of

Mode of Inquiry
Sociology
1. Question asked
How
How
How
How
How
How

do human groups socialize new or young members?

do technological innovations affect social institutions?
do groups make desicions?
do groups solve problems?
do changes in institution occur?
are changes in one institution relateed to changes in other institutions?

A. Mode of Inquiry
2. Research Methods (and Tools)
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Interviews
Questionnaires
Participant observation
Case studies
Content analysis of written and spoken communications
Analysis of demographic data (cencus, etc.)
Longitudinal studies
Naturalistic observation
Laboratory experimentation

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The Outline of the structure of

Body of knowledge
Sociology
1. Concepts
Groups
Socialization
Family
Society
Values
Ethnic groups
Social status
Social organization
Population
Power
Roles
Social interaction
Rituals
Segregation

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The Outline of the structure of

Body of knowledge
Sociology
1. Concepts
Social mobility
Social relationship
Social movements
Attitudes
Structures
Group values
Group pressure

B.

The Outline of the structure of

Body of knowledge
Sociology
2. Generalizations (with key concept italicized)

. The family (as a reproductive, economic, and socializing unit) will change its
functions in response to changes in technology and social movements.
. Differences in group values (or ideologies) may result in group conflict or
violent behavior
. A society must maintain social order by a combination of group pressure,
socialization, and force, if it is to function smoothly.
. Division of labor (and specialization) is a characteristic of all social
organizations.
. In a social organization, violent behavior may erupt if differences in values are
not resolved.
. A social organization will not survive unless new members are socialized to
accept group norms and group pressure is used to maintain the norms.
. Social deviation arises when a person fails to conform to the norms of the
society.

B.

The Outline of the structure of

Body of knowledge
Sociology
2. Generalizations (with key concept italicized)

. If a culture change involving a movement from dependence on hunting and

gathering to a dependence on agriculture takes place, then the people will
change their pattern of residence (begin to settle in permanent communities,
etc.) and to accumulate a larger store af artifacts.
. Sex roles vary from culture to culture and are passed on to the next generation
by child rearing practices.

PSYCHOLOGY

The Overview of Psychology

psychology is a study of the behavior of individuals and small groups of
individuals. The discipline is sometimes defined to include all type of behavior
human and nonhuman, normal and abnormal, individual and group, physical and
mental, and instinctive and learned. Traditionally psychologists have studied
learning, growth and development, thinking, feeling, perceiving, group behavior,
personality development, and abnormal behavior.

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The Outline of the structure of

Mode of Inquiry
Psychology
1. Question asked

What makes each person unique?

What factors influence self - concept?
How do heredity, environment, and learning influence behavior?
Are there universal stages in human development?
What is the nature of thinking?
How does learning take place?
What are the relationships between the central nervous system and behavior?
What are the physiological and psychological motivational bases of human
behavior?
. What is the relationship between mind and body?

A. Mode of Inquiry
2. Research Methods (and Tools)
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Naturalistic observation
Laboratory experimentation
Interviewing
Written questionnaires
Case studies
Longitudinal studies
Participant observation
Measurements using psychological instrument (e.g., IQ tests, personality
inventories, rating scales)
. Cross cultural comparisons (e.g., using data collected by a number of
ethnographers in the field)

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The Outline of the structure of

Body of knowledge
Psychology
1. Concepts
Learning
Learned behavior
Classical conditioning
Cognitive skills
Reward (reinforcement)
Perceptions
Sensations
Individual differences
Personality traits
Motivation
Attitudes
Self esteem
Emotions
Racial or ethnic stereotypes

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The Outline of the structure of

Body of knowledge
Psychology
1. Concepts

. Sex role stereotypes

. Altruism

B.

The Outline of the structure of

Body of knowledge
Psychology
2. Generalizations (with key concept italicized)

. A behavior is more likely to be learned and repeated if the individual receives a

reward.
. All individuals exhibit behavior.
. Individual behavior is a function of the interaction between heredity and the
environment.
. If learning take place, then there is a relatively permanent change in behavior
potential.
. All problem solving is based to some extent on past learning and memory.
. Gender role is influenced by genetic factors, hormones, and learning.
. Differences in the personalities of individuals confronting the same situation.
. Self concept is learned and affects behavior.
. Human development (in language, motor skills, cognitive skills, and social
skills) follows an orderly sequence of developmental stages that is universal.
. For humans, language is the primary means for communicating thoughts,

B.

The Outline of the structure of

Body of knowledge
Psychology
2. Generalizations (with key concept italicized)

. In general, there is a sex difference in the onset of physical maturation (with

girls likely to be slighty ahead of boys at any given point in childhood).
. A sense of disequilibrium (e.g., curiosity, need or want) leads to adaptation by
the process of learning.

PHILOSOPHY

The Overview of Philosophy

Philosophy is the study of knowledge and wisdom. The term derives from the
Greek word philosophia, love of knowledge and wisdom.Philosophy is sometimes
called the science of sciences because philosophers have provided the
foundation for all of the science disciplines, both social and natural.
Philosophy may be divided into three main areas of specialization:
Metaphysics
Axiology
Epistemology

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The Outline of the structure of

Mode of Inquiry
Philosophy
1. Question asked

What fundamentally is?

What should (ought to) be?
What is the nature of knowledge?
What is the source of knowledge?
Is there really such a thing as objective truth?
What is the test for truth?
What is the nature of scientific inquiry?
What are values?
How can rational decisions be made on questions that cannot be answered by
the method of science (i.e., social or personal problems)?
. What is beauty?
. What is time and space?
. What is equality? Justice? Liberty? Goodness?

A. Mode of Inquiry
2. Research Methods (and Tools)
. Philosophical analysis
. Logical anlysis
. Inference

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The Outline of the structure of

Body of knowledge
Philosophy
1. Concepts
Knowledge
Values
Inquiry
Concept
Ethics
Aesthetics
Morals
Art
Worth
Logic
Traditions
Liberty
Justice
Equality

B.

The Outline of the structure of

Body of knowledge
Philosophy
2. Generalizations (with key concept italicized)

. The truth of a judgement lies in its correspondence with reality.

. The method of science alone cannot be used to answer a value (or moral)
question.
. If one is to arrive at a rational answer for a value question, then one must first
answer both scientific knowledge questions and self knowledge questions.
. If one seeks the truth (i.e., the answer to a knowledge question), then the
method of science (among the four ways of knowing) is the most reliable
process to follow.
. If one employs the attitude of science and the method of science, then the end
product is knowledge

B.

The Outline of the structure of

Body of knowledge
Philosophy
2. Generalizations (with key concept italicized)

. If a culture change involving a movement from dependence on hunting and

gathering to a dependence on agriculture takes place, then the people will
change their pattern of residence (begin to settle in permanent communities,
etc.) and to accumulate a larger store af artifacts.
. Sex roles vary from culture to culture and are passed on to the next generation
by child rearing practices.