The Structure Of Social Sciences
Social science is an academic branch of science concerned with the study of human societies and their interactions among people within those societies. The word has been previously used to describe the broader field of sociology, the first “scientific” science of society, established in the late 19th century. In the United States, social science is commonly thought of as the study of social problems such as poverty, discrimination, violence, and social justice. Other fields of study that are included in this broad category include anthropology, business, development, engineering, health, mathematics, political science, psychology, sociology, and the law.
Most people associate the study of the social sciences with anthropology. This is probably because anthropology is a field that almost everybody has heard of. In fact, it is often cited in support of scientific theories in the popular press, in national parroting organizations, and in the classroom. A good example of a popular applied anthropological theory is George Wright’s “human behavior as a function of geography”.
Archaeology and anthropology both fall within the larger field of social sciences, although they obviously have very different areas of focus. Archaeology focuses on ancient sites of archaeological importance such as Stonehenge and other such monuments. Anthropology, on the other hand, studies human behaviour in natural settings such as the natural environment and its effects on human societies. Sociology on the other hand is concerned with how human organisations or social ties are constructed and maintained in the present day environment.
As social sciences are concerned with human behaviour and interaction, they draw upon a number of different types of scientific research and observations. One of the most prominent branches of this science is behavioural science, which studies how people and other organisms interact and adapt to their particular surroundings. The natural sciences also play an important role in social sciences. For instance, physical science takes into consideration the structure and composition of the physical world, while biological science studies the traits that make humans unique from other animals. These two branches of science together form the natural and social sciences.
Another aspect of the social sciences that bear on human behaviour is linguistics. Linguistics attempts to describe the relationship between language and meaning. It also attempts to describe the concepts behind the language usage, as well as the relationship between language and communication.
Geography is another one of the major fields of study within the social sciences. Geography is concerned with how people form and move around the world. Political science uses geology to examine societal organisation and politics in the political world, with an emphasis on how these things affect the environment. Sociology studies human behaviour and relationships within the geographical and cultural context. While all these branches of science have something to offer to each other, they also have differing methods of observation and study.
A major component of any good social science book or research study involves the question of why we are as we are. There is too much variation within human society to be satisfied with a limited explanation of why people behave the way they do. The social sciences go further than this by putting forth an explanatory framework that allows us to look at the phenomenon of behaviour and choose a hypothesis based on it. This is done with the assumption that humans will eventually become a species with similar ways of organising their society that have evolved through time.
Economics is one of the most popular of the social science disciplines. Unlike many other sciences, the ideas of economics have been shaped by the economic activities of humans over time, rather than being the product of those actions. This means that understanding human behaviour can provide insights into how markets operate. It also offers some general ideas about the nature of the economy and how money flows through the system.