UNDERSTANDING CULTURE, SOCIETY, AND POLITICS REVIEWER

© angelica garcia

FAMILY

 Arrangements of interaction that revolve around the basic social needs of their constituents. They
form the basis of both the political and cultural institutions as they could eventually emerge from
them.

KINSHIP

 The state or fact of being kin; family relationship

 A social institution that refers to relations formed between members of the society
 Sociologists – the different forms of socially accepted relations amongst people developed
through blood or consanguineal relationships, marriage, or affinal relationships, adaption, and
other culturally accepted rituals.

KINSHIP BY BLOOD

 Consanguineal kinship or kinship based on blood

 Considered as the most basic and general form of relations. It is achieved by birth or blood affinity.
 The relationship existing between parents and children, between siblings, and between
nieces/nephews, etc.

PRINCIPLES OF DESCENT

1. Unilineal
- A single line of ancestors from either the male or female line
- Both males and females are members of a unilineal family but their descent lines are
recognized only through the relatives of either the male or female member.
- Forms:
a. Patrilineal Form – both males and females belong to kin group of their father but they do not
belong to their mother’s kin group
b. Matrilineal Form – focuses on the unilineal descent that is traced through the female line.
The persons are related if they can trace their descent through females to the same woman
ancestors.

2. Bilateral
- Trace descent through study of both parents’ ancestors
- Also called non-unilineal descent or cognatic descent principle

FAMILY

 set of people related by blood, marriage, or agreed upon relations who share primary responsibility
for reproduction and caring for members of society (Schaefer)
 Is the basic or the most fundamental unit of society

FAMILY STRUCTURES

1. Nuclear – usually consists of two generation of family, parents and their own or adopted children
residing in the same household
 2. Extended – also known as the third generation family, consisting of grandparents, their children,
and their grandchildren
3. Transnational – families who live apart but who create and maintain a “sense of collective welfare
and unity, in short “family bond,” even upon national borders
4. Separated – husband and wife separated from each other
5. Single Parent – consists of one parent and a child or children residing in one household
6. Reconstituted – blended family; family where one or more parents have been married previously
and they bring with them children from their previous marriage

FAMILY CLASSIFICATION

1. On the basis of Lineage (Kinship Pattern)

- “To whom are we related?”
a. Patrilineal – only the father’s relatives are important
b. Matrilineal – only the mother’s relatives are important
c. Bilateral – both sides of a person’s family are regarded as equally important

2. On the basis of Authority

- “Who rules?”
a. Patriarchal – father is considered the head
b. Matriarchal – authority is held by mother
c. Egalitarian – family in which spouses are regarded as equals

3. On the basis of Residence

- “Where do we live?
a. Patrilocal – when a married couple lives with or near the husband’s family
b. Matrilocal – when a married couple lives with or near the mother’s family
c. Neo-local – when a married couple sets up a home separate from either side of their
families

4. On the basis of Affiliation

- “To whom are you affiliated?”
a. Family of Orientation – with your parents and siblings
b. Family of Pro-creation – with your wife or husband, and children

SOCIOLOGISTS AND ANTHROPOLOGISTS’ DEFINITION OF FAMILY

1. George Murdock
- Family is a social group that has the following characteristics:
a. Share common residence
b. Presence of economic cooperation
c. Reproduce offspring
d. Includes adults of both sexes wherein at least two uphold a sexually approved form of
sexual relationship
e. Responsible for the socialization of infants and children

2. Kingsley Davis
- Family is a group of individuals wherein the relationship is based on consanguinity and kinship
 3. Talcott Parsons
- A factory that develops and produces human factories

4. Bronislaw Malinowski
- An institution that passes down cultural traditions of a society to the next generation

POPE FRANCIS’ APOSTOLIC EXHORTATION ON THE FAMILY

 “Amoris Laetitia” or The Joy of Love – “…stable familes are the building blocks of a healthy society
and a place where children learn to love, respect, and interact with others.”

VIEWS ON FAMILY

1. Functionalist View
- Family serves 6 functions for society:
a. Controls sexual activity and reproduction
b. Provides emotional and practical support for family members
c. Agent of Socialization
d. Provides family members with social identity

2. Conflict View
- In a wide range of societies, husbands exercised power and authority within the family.
(Domestic Violence)
- View family as an economic unit that contributes to social injustice as it transfer power,
property, and privilege from one generation to the next, inheriting the privilege or unfortunate
social and economic status

MARRIAGE

 It is a special contract of permanent union between a man and woman entered into in
accordance with law for the establishment of conjugal and family life. It is the foundation of the
family and an inviolable social institution whose nature, consequences, and incidents are
governed by law and not subject to stipulation. (Article 1 of the Family Code of the Philippines)
 A socially sanctioned sexual and economic union between men and women. (Howard and Hattis,
1992)
 The sacrament of human love that Christ raised to a real efficacious symbol of his love for the
Church. (Catechism for Filipino Catholics 1875)

COURTSHIP

 Preparatory stage towards marriage and mate selection

 Conducted primarily by individuals who have a romantic interest in each other
 Internet romance is the latest courtship practice
 Influenced by the norms and values of the larger society (Carol J. Williams, 1995)
 Is the period in a couple’s relationship which precedes their engagement and marriage or
establishment of an agreed relationship of a more enduring kind (Wikipedia)
 Love: There is a simultaneous powerful, practically irresistible push and pull in the experience

ASPECTS OF MATE SELECTION

1. Endogamy
- From the Greek word, “endon” meaning within or compulsory marriage
 - Specifies the groups within which a spouse must be found and prohibits marriage with others.
- The young are encouraged to marry within their locality, racial, ethic, or religious group, and
are strongly discouraged or even prohibited from marrying outside the group

2. Exogamy
- From the Greek word, “exo” meaning outside or out marriage
- Requires mate selection outside certain groups, usually one’s family or certain kinfolk
- It prevents incest or marriage within one’s own family and class. (Incest is taboo)

THEORIES ON MATE SELECTION

1. Homogamy
- The conscious or unconscious tendency to select a mate with personal’s characteristics similar
to one’s own and in terms of socioeconomic status, ethnicity, race, age, education level,
and/or religion
- A form of assortative mating, which is a type of sexual selection, in which a person chooses a
sexual mate with similar genotypes
- The idea “like marries like” applies to this type of marriage

2. Heterogamy
- A tendency to select a mate different from one’s own
- Marriage between 2 individuals who are culturally different
- “Opposite Attracts” best characterize this idea

FORMS OF MARRIAGES

1. Monogamy
- From the Greek words “monos” and “gamos” which literally mean one union.
- One woman and one man are married only to each other
- Serial monogamy: several spouses in his/her lifetime, but only one spouse at a time

2. Polygamy
- Refers to the practice of having more than one partner or sexual mate (Saudi Arabia)
a. Polygyny – a marriage of a man to several women
b. Polyandry – family consists of a wife with more than one husband
- Todas of Southern India, Nyiriba in Nepal and Tibet

INDUSTRIALIZATION

 The industrialization era is where the society moved from an agrarian one to a mechanized one.
 According to Talcott Parsons, the industrialization era brought with it increased geographical and
social mobility, resulting in the breakdown of the extended family to the privatized nuclear family.

DIVORCE

 As divorce became socially acceptable and the government began providing financial
assistance to single parents, many families broke up.
 Due to this, more single parent families were formed as well as reconstructed ones.

CLASS

 Low incomes tend to have a higher divorce rate due to financial conflicts
  Lower class families are usually matrilocal or single parent and tend to contribute to the financial
and social instability of the society, as the financial responsibilities now fall on the one parent due
to the withdrawal of the contribution of the other parent
 Middle Class families tend to have less kids than lower class ones although there is more financial
stability
 Higher Class families have an average of one or two children, thus making higher class families
nuclear ones.

STATE BENEFITS

 If the state began granting benefits to pregnant teenagers & single mothers, there has been a
marked emergence of single parent families as less people are encouraged to get married to
seek economic support as it is provided by the state.
 4Ps – provides conditional cash grants to the poorest of the poor, to improve the health, nutrition,
and the education of children aged 0-18.

MARRIAGE AND FAMILY

1. Parenthood and Grandparenthood

- One of the most important roles of parents is socialization of children
- “Boomerang Generation” or “full-nest syndrome”
2. Adoption
- Process that “allows for the transfer of the legal rights, responsibilities, and privileges of
parenthood” to a new legal parent or parents
- “Transnational Adoption” is the adoption of non-white child by white parents
3. Dual-Income Families
- Both parents work and receive income for the family
4. Single-Parent Families
- Child only lives with either the mother or the father
5. Step Families
- Also called blended families
6. Divorce/Annulment
7. Cohabitation
- Couples who choose to live together without marrying practice
8. Remaining Single
9. Marriage without Children
10. Same-Sex Marriage

KINSHIP AND SOCIAL RELATIONS IN FILIPINO CULTURE

The Dynamics of Social Expectation:

 The basis of kinship in the Philippines is not bounded by family blood relationship BUT emphasized
on social relations with each other, that they will continuously be friends if they behave “properly”

Patterns of Behavior: Pakikipagkapwa

 One must be considered “one of us” to be socially acceptable such as “compadres” kinship

Principles of Reciprocal Obligation

a. Respect for elders is tantamount to recognizing them as the authority figures in society
 b. A dyadic bond between two individuals-utang na loob-also called “contractual reciprocal
obligation” (Kaut, 1966)
c. Hiya: The Emotional Accompaniment of Kapwa

Alliances

 Philippine Social Relationships – as a “mosaic of personal alliances” molded out of “real kinship
ties, ritual kinship relations, relationships based on special debts of gratitude, market-exchange
partnerships, patron-client bonds, and friendships.”

1. Ritual Kinship
- Baptism, confirmation, and marriage
- This mutual kinship system called compadrazgo, meaning godparenthood or sponsorship, dates
back at least to the introduction of Christianity and perhaps earlier.
a. “Godparenthood” – a ritualized form of forging co-parenthood or family
b. Through this set-up, the person close to the parents but not related by blood becomes a
family
2. Suki Relationships
- Market-exchange partnerships
- May develop between two people who agree to become regular customer and supplier.
3. Patron-Client Bonds
- Also are very much a part of prescribed patterns of appropriate behavior
4. Friendship
- Filipinos extend the circle of social alliances with friendship

Kinship of Politics

 Politics have also been influenced by kinship relations. In the Philippines, most politicians elected in
public offices and government are relatives

1. Political Dynasty
- Exists when “two or more individuals who are related within the second degree of
consanguinity” or “those relatives of a person who may be the latter’s brother or sister, direct
ascendant or direct descendant, whether legitimate or illegitimate, full or half-blood, including
their spouses” hold elected government position (David, 2014)
2. Political Alliance
- Political parties tend to align and forge cooperation with other stronger parties or with the
administration party to ensure victory in the elections or guarantee the passage of a legislation

THE SOCIOLOGY OF RELIGION

 From the Latin word, “religo” which means “to bind” or “to obligate”
 It refers to a person’s “adherence to a set of beliefs or teaching about the deepest and most
elusive of life’s mysteries.” (Renard, 2002,3)

Theories and Perspectives

1. Emile Durkheim – The Sacred and Profane

- Unified system of beliefs and practices related to social things, beliefs, and practices which
unite one single moral community called the Church
- Sacred: domain that are given respect and reverence
 - Profane: domain of everyday life or the ordinary world of everyday life
- Rituals: symbolic actions, typically performed at specified times, that help evoke an emotional
bond among participants
- Adherent: people who share the faith and join the rituals

 Basic Elements of Religion

1. A set of core beliefs
2. A set of ritual practices
3. A community of adherence

2. Karl Marx – The Opium of the People

- Religion was used to maintain the unequal social system that provides more benefits to the
elites or the upper class while negatively affecting the lower social classes
- 2 Dimensions of Religion
1. Religion offers false comfort to believers. (Illusion)
2. People in power manipulate religion.
 They play the role of drug dealers
 False consciousness

3. Max Weber – Disenchantment of the World

- Religion as an important factor toward the rise of capitalism
- Religion can affect a society’s behavior and can thereby become a possible agent of social
change
- Protestant of Ethic: Calvinist protestant that believes in extreme self-denial, frugality, and hard
work and saw the resulting economic success as a sign of divine favor.
- Spirit of Capitalism: drive to earn and save

Religious Patterns

1. Supernaturalism
- Belief in non-material forces that can influence the physical world.
2. Animism
- Belief in nature spirit
- Emphasizes ancestor worship
- The belief that deceased ancestors continue to guide them in spirit form and so they should be
venerated like the nature spirits because the ancestors spirits can be sought to help the living
3. Totemism
- Believed that natural elements, plants, or animals, can influence one’s life and the material
world
4. Theism
- People’s belief in the divinity
5. Polytheism
- Belief of the society to the pantheon of gods
6. Monotheism
- Belief in a single god.

Types of Religious Organizations

1. Church/Ecclesia
 - Institutional organization that is considered as the most recognized form of religious
organization
- A large and formalized organization that is incorporated into society and is sometimes fused
within the state
2. Denominations
- Religious organizations that have a large number of members but are less formal than a church.
- Get members by recruiting and converting members from the churches and denominations
- Examples: protestant and other Christian denominations – Baptists, Methodists, Lutherans,
Episcopalians, Unitarians, Presbyterians
3. Sects
- Religious organizations that tend to differ and oftentimes reject a larger religion’s beliefs. It
opposes religious pluralism and focus on the promotion of strict religious doctrines that
incorporate all aspects of the member’s life.
- Are developed when group members are discontented with the beliefs of their denomination.
This dissatisfaction results from breaking away and creation of a new religious sect.
4. Cults/New Religions
- Relatively small religious organizations whose doctrines are outside mainstream religious
traditions
- Small and localized communities led by a charismatic leader who exercises absolute control
over its members

Theories and Perspectives

1. Functionalist
- Religion as a source of social integration and unification
- Religion as a source of social support for individuals
2. Conflict
- Religion as a potential obstacle to structural social change
3. Feminist
- Religion as an instrument of women’s subordination, except for their role in religious socialization
4. Interactionist
- Individual religious expression through belief, ritual, and experience

Classifications of Religions (Institutionalized Religions of the World)

A. Categories
1. Monotheistic Religion
 Assert the existence of a single divine being like Judaism, Christianity, and Islam
 Western Asia
a. Judaism
o Hebrew word – “Yehudim,” which means “Judah”
o Traces its beginning to the time of Abraham, the first Hebrew, who received
revelations from God or Yahweh.
o Principal collection of holy writing is called the Hebrew Bible
o It’s foundational text is called the Torah or the Pentateuch
o Sacred temples are called synagogues
o God is both a supreme and accessible god that is both “awe-commanding and
irresistable.”
b. Christianity
o Greek word “Christos” meaning “anointed”
 o Derived from the name of Jesus Christ, the founder of Christianity
o Sacred text – Bible
o 3 main groups: Orthodox, Christianity, Protestantism, Roman Catholicism
c. Islam
o Arabic word – “Aslama” meaning “surrender”
o Strictly believes in one god called Allah
o Muhammed is the prophet or messenger of God both in Mecca around 570 CE.
o Sacred text – Koran
o 2 main groups:
i. Sunni – Muhammed did not appoint any successor
ii. Shi’a or Shi’ite – believe that Ali’s cousin and son-in-law of Muhammed was
the successor of the prophet
o 5 pillars of Islamic Faith:
i. Shahada – profession of faith that there is only one god, Allah, Muhammed is
his prophet
ii. Salat – prayer done 5x a day
iii. Zakat – almsgiving done by Muslims
iv. Sawn – fasting during the month of Ramadan
v. Hajj – pilgrimage to the holy city of Mecca

2. Polytheistic Religion
 Belief in the existence of multiple deities/gods like Hinduism, Buddhism
 South Asia
a. Hinduism
o World’s oldest living religion
o Complex set of belief systems and practices that encompasses not only religion but
also philosophy and culture
o They consider the world as evil and unimportant
o Samsara – soul is caught in a cycle of birth, death, rebirth
o Sacred texts – Vedas, Upanishads, Brahmanas
o State of Moksha – goal of Hinduism
o Liberation and ultimate freedom from Samsara.
o Brahmins – priestly class
o Gods of the Hindus:
a. Brahma – the creator
b. Shiva – protector of the animals
c. Vishnu – preserver
b. Buddhism
o 3rd major religion in India
o 1st international missionary religion established in the 6th century BCE by Siddharta
Guatama, a Kshtriyan prince who became Buddha after receiving enlightenment
o Emphasize the teaching of the 4 noble truths of Buddha
o Law of Karma – the person is responsible for his/her own happiness and misery. The
person creates his own heaven and his own hell. He is the architect of his faith (Hold
firm to the truth [Dharma] as a lamp and a refuge, and do not look for refuge to
anything besides yourselves)
o Sacred texts (Baskets or Pitaka) TRIPITAKA
a. Vinaya Pitaka – rules of monastic discipline
 b. Sutra Pitaka – compilation of Buddha’s speeches
c. Abhidharma Pitaka – 7 lengthy theoretical interpretations of teaching of Buddha

Separation of Church and State in the Philippines

 The law clearly states that the state shall ensure the inviolable “separation of Church and State”
(Article 2, Section 6 of the 1987 Constitution)
 Prohibits the imposition of a state religion in the country
 Allows individuals to personally choose the religion that they wish to practice
 Provides more outlet for individuals to express their religious and political views, criticisms,
comments, and suggestions to different Church-related and political issues without being
prohibited or harassed by the Church or the State.

SOCIAL AND POLITICAL STRATIFICATION

 Social Inequality – describes a condition in which members of the society have different amounts
of wealth, prestige, or power. Some degree of social inequality characterizes every society.
 Stratification – a structured ranking of entire groups of people that perpetuate unequal economic
rewards and power in a society
 Involves the ways in which one generation passes on social inequalities to the next, producing
groups of people arranged in rank order, from low to high
 The consequences of stratification are evident in the unequal distribution of both income and
wealth in industrial societies
a. Income refers to salaries and wages
b. Wealth is an inclusive term encompassing all a person’s material assets, including land, stocks,
and other types of property
 Social Desirables: Wealth, Power, Prestige

4 General Systems of Stratification

1. Slavery
- Most extreme form of legalized social inequality for both individuals and groups.
- Enslaved individuals are owned by other people who treat these human beings as if they were
household pets or appliances

2. Castes
- Hereditary ranks that are usually religiously dictated and that tend to be fixed and immobile
- Caste membership is an ascribed status (at birth, children automatically assume the same
position as their parents)
- Members are expected to marry within that caste
- Generally associated with Hinduism in India and other countries
- In India, there are 4 major castes, called varnas.
- A fifth category of outcastes are the untouchables that represent 16% of the population;
members are considered so lowly and unclean as to have no place within this stratification
system
- The untouchables themselves prefer “Dalit” (“the repressed”), a term that communicates their
desire to overcome their disadvantaged status. (P. Smith, 2008)
- Caste system also determines a person’s job
 3. Estates
- Associated with feudal societies
- Estate system, or feudalism, required peasants to work land leased to them by nobles in
exchange for military protection and other services
- Basis for the system was the nobles’ ownership of land, which was critical to their superior and
privileged status
- The nobles inherited their titles and property; the peasants were born into a subservient position
within an agrarian society
- The stratification system of medieval Europe, consisting of 3 estates
a. Nobility: the wealthy and the powerful families that ruled the country and owned the land
b. Clergy: the Roman Catholic Church was a political power at this time, owning vast tracts of
land and collecting taxes from commoners
c. Serfs: the commoners, including farmers, carpenters, harness makers, and servants
- In the feudal estate system, most production was agricultural, and the land was owned by the
nobility. Peasants had little choice but to work according to terms by those who owned the
land.

4. Social Classes
- Marx focused on the 2 classes that began to emerge as the feudal estate system declined: the
bourgeoisie and the proletariat.
- Bourgeoisie: capitalist class; owns the means of production, such as factories and machines.
- Proletariat: working class
- Social ranking based primarily on economic position in which achieved characteristics can
influence social mobility.
- In contrast to slavery and caste systems, the boundaries between classes are imprecisely
defined and one can move from one stratum, or level, or society to another.
- Class standing, although it is achieved, is heavily dependent on family and ascribed factors,
such as race and ethnicity
- In theory, a class system is a hierarchy based on achieved characteristics in a society of equal
opportunity. (i.e. meritocracy)
- Class systems are legitimized by the belief that rewards are proportional to the effort or talent
(i.e. people get what they deserve)
- Meritocracy: social stratification based on personal merit
- Sociologist Daniel Rossides (1997) uses 5-class model to describe the class system of the United
States: Upper Class, Upper Middle Class, Lower Middle Class, Working Class, Lower Class

 Types of Social Mobility

1. Horizontal
2. Vertical
3. Intergenerational
4. Intragenerational

EDUCATION

 Process through which the skills, knowledge, and values are transmitted from the teachers to the
learners
2 Kinds of Education

1. Formal
- Includes a classroom, a curriculum, and a hierarchy of professional teaching and non-teaching
personnel

2. Informal
- An organized educational activity that takes place outside a formal set-up
- Usually flexible and learner-centered, contextualized and uses a participatory approach

Manifest and Latent Function of Education

1. Theoretical Perspective (Manifest Function)

- Functionalism education
a. Socialization
b. Social integration
c. Social placement
d. Social and cultural innovation
2. Latent Function
- Child care
- Establishment of peer relationships
- Lowering unemployment by keeping high school students out of the full-time labor force

 Problems in the educational institution harm society because all these functions cannot be
completely fulfilled.

Theories and Perspectives

1. Conflict Theory Education

- Promotes social inequality through the use of tracking and standardized testing and the impact
of its “hidden curriculum”
- Schools differ widely in their functioning and learning conditions, and this type of inequality
leads to learning disparities that reinforce social inequality.

2. Symbolic Interactionism
- Focuses on social interaction in the classroom, on the playground, and in other school venues.
- Social interaction of schools affects the development of gender roles and teachers
expectations of pupils’ intellectual abilities affect how much pupils learn.
- Certain educational problems have their basis social interaction and expectations.

2 Most Important Goals of Education

1. Self-Actualization
- Maslow
- Desire for self-fulfillment
- “What a man can be, he must be.”

2. Productive Citizenry
- A citizen by him/herself must create the environment and opportunities to become productive.
Primary Education as a Human Right

 The Universal Declaration of Human Rights states that everyone has the right to education.
Education has to be free and compulsory at least in the primary level, whereas higher education
should be made available on the basis of merit. Technical and vocational education should also
be generally available.

SOURCES OF CHANGE AND NEW CHALLENGES TO HUMAN ADAPTATION

Functional Patterns of Change and Adaptation

1. Pure and Diluted Culture

- Pure Culture: culture as a way of life and a way of doing things may be thought of as
emanating from the very experience of the people practicing it.
- Globalization: the process of international integration arising from the interchanged world
views, products, ideas, and other aspects of culture
- Diluted Culture: impure culture; dilution connote corruptions and pollutions

2. The manner by which societies adapt to new ideas or technologies is through INNOVATION and
DIFFUSION.
- Cultural Diffusion: when one culture begins to adopt elements of another, be it in manner,
religion, clothing, food, or agricultural practice, cultural diffusion happens.
- Innovation: process of translating a new idea into something that can create value.
- Five steps on how Diffusion takes place
a. Knowledge
b. Persuasion
c. Decision
d. Implementation
e. Confirmation
- Diffusion can occur internally when the spread of information and innovation happens within
the social network, or externally when it results from the introduction of new ideas from the
outside.

3. When they encounter other cultures, they adapt through ACCULTURATION and ASSIMILATION.
- Acculturation: a process where a minority adopts the cultural aspects of the majority without
losing its own tradition and customs. Results: assimilation, rejection, integration, and
marginalization.
- Assimilation: process where some of the majority community’s cultural aspects are absorbed
and the home or the minority’s cultural aspects get mitigated or lost; a process whereby
people of a culture learn to adopt the ways of the majority culture.

POLITICAL VIOLENCE

 can be the result of ethnic conflict or class conflict

 Politically-Motivated Violence – when it occurs beyond the control of the state

Forms of Political Violence

1. Revolution – entails a public seizure of the state with the main goal of overturning the existing
political structures
 2. Terrorism – the use of calculated, unlawful, physical force or threats of violence against the
government, organization, or individual to gain some political, religious, economic, or social
objectives
3. War – organized, armed conflict between nations or distinct political and/or religious factions

POLITICAL INSTITUTION

 Deals with the exercise and distribution of power-deciding “who gets what, when, and how”
 Power is the heart of politics
 Max Weber – the ability to control the actions of others, regardless of their wishes; force the use of
physical coercion to impose one’s will on others.
 Politics – social institution through which power is acquired and exercised by some people and
groups
 Government – the primary political system; a formal institution that has the legal and political
authority to regulate the relationships among the members of the society and those outside its
borders
 Social analysts refer to the government as:
a. STATE – political entity that possesses a legitimate monopoly over the use of force within its
territory to achieve its goals.

Types of Government

1. Monarchy
- Power resides in one person or family and is passed from one generation to generation through
lines of inheritance
a. Limited Monarchs – rulers depend on powerful members of the nobility to retain their thrones
b. Absolute Monarchs – claim a hereditary right to rule based on membership in a noble family
or a divine right to rule
c. Constitutional Monarchs – the royalty serves as symbolic rulers or head of the state, while the
actual authority is held by elected officials in a national parliament

2. Authoritarianism
- Political system controlled by ruler who deny popular participation in a government

3. Dictatorships
- Power is gained and held by a single individual

4. Democracy
- People hold the ruling power either directly or through elected representatives
- Rule by the people

Types of Political System

1. Totalitarian States
- Leaders seek total control of a nation and its people
- Six traits of totalitarian states:
a. Large scale use of ideology
b. One party system
c. Terror
d. Control of media
 e. Control of weapons
f. Control of economy

ECONOMIC INSTITUTIONS

 Deals with the production, distribution, and use of resources – goods, services, commodities,
money
 Economy is the social institution that ensures the maintenance of society through the production,
distribution, and consumption of goods and services

Economic System

 Goods – tangible objects that are necessary (e.g. food, clothing, shelter)
 Services – intangible activities for which people are willing to pay (e.g. medical care, tutorial)
 Labor – refers to the group of people who contribute their physical and intellectual services to the
production process in return for wages that they are paid by firms

1. Capitalism
- Economic system characterized by private ownership of the means of production from which
personal profits can be derived through market competition and without government
intervention
- Ideal Capitalism distinctive features:
a. Private ownership of the means of production
b. Pursuit of Personal Profit
c. Competition
d. Lack of Government Intervention
2. Labor Union – group of employees who join together to bargain with the employer or a group of
employers over wages
3. Corporations (1840 – 1940) – large-scale organizations that have legal powers, such as the ability
to enter into contracts and buy and sell property, separate from their individual owners.
4. Transnational Corporations – large corporations that are headquartered in one or a few countries
but sell and produce goods and services in many countries (multinational corporations)

MARKET AND NON-MARKET

Non-market

1. Reciprocity
- Roots of informality
- Informal exchange of goods and services within formal social systems developed in response to
scarcity.

2. Redistribution
- Cultural anthropology
- Refers to a system to an economic exchange involving the centralized collection of goods from
members of a group followed by a redivision

Market System

 Social network that permits interaction between buyers and seller.

 Includes all the rules and regulation, the reputation and credentials of the companies and
individuals involved

1. Transfer or Market Exchange

- Commerce through a price on goods in a market
- Capitalism
- Appeals to our drives and well-being