Discipline and Ideas in Applied Social Science

Discipline and Ideas in Applied Social Science Notes.

1. DISCIPLINE AND IDEAS IN APPLIED SOCIAL
SCIENCES
LESSON 1: SOCIAL SCIENCE & APPLIED SOCIAL SCIENCE
SOCIAL SCIENCE
is a branch of science that deals with the institutions and
functioning of human society and with the interpersonal
relationships of individuals as members of society. It is the
study of society and the manner in which people behave and
influence the world around us.
The uttermost goal of social science is to answer different
questions and problems about society and human condition
on how to improve it. It provides vital information for
governments and policymakers, local authorities,
nongovernmental organizations, and others by providing
diverse set of lenses that help us understand and explain the
different facets of human society.
Goal of Social Science:
explain human behavior in its many cultural forms including
the past and the present, individually or in groups, national
and international geopolitical contexts, and to empower
them as democratic participants in a rapidly changing world.
to provide a substantive insight to the understanding of
society and of the relationship of individual members and
groups within the society.
to study all areas related to human behavior and society, the
institutions and functioning of human society and the
interpersonal relationships of individuals as members of
society as well as dealing with a particular phase or aspect of
human society.
BRANCHES OF SOCIAL SCIENCES
Economics - studies the allocation of scarce resources and the
production and exchange of goods and services in society.
Economics has different subfields.
o Environmental economics - studies the allocation of natural
resources
o Labor economics - focuses on the study of the decision- making
and behaviors of employees and the relationships between
employers and their employees.
o Business economics - examines the behavior of companies and
firms by studying the factors that result in profit maximization,
price setting, production goals, and the role of incentives.
o Monetary economics - on the other hand, studies the nation’s
production, inflation, income, interest rates, and monetary policies.
Anthropology - is the scientific study of humans and their cultures in
the past and present time. Anthropologist are trained in the
different areas:
o Cultural anthropology - studies the development of human culture
based on ethnologic, linguistic, social, and psychological data

2. analysis. It explains how people in other societies live and affects
their environments to their respective lives.
o Physical anthropology - studies human biological nature,
particularly its beginning, evolution, and variation in prehistory
o Archeology - studies human life in the past through the
examination of things left behind by the people.
History - is systematic study of human past events in order to
understand the meaning, dynamics, and relationship of the cause
and effects of events in the development of societies. History has
several subfields:
o Political history - studies history of political institutions
o Economic history - studies the development of economic
institutions and other economic factors.
o Social history - studies the history of ordinary lives of people like
women, children, ethnic groups, and the different sectors of society
from historical point of view.
o Environmental history - looks into the history of the interaction of
humans with the environment.
o History of medicine and public health - examines the history of
public health and human medicine
o Business history - studies the history of the development of
businesses,
companies, and industries
o Biographies - studies the history of great persons in history
Political Science - primarily studies human behavior in relation to
political systems, governments, laws, and international relations.
Political has several fields of study:
o Domestic politics - studies public opinion, elections, national and
local governments.
o Comparative politics - studies politics within countries and
analyzes the similarities and differences between among countries.
o International Relations - focuses on the study of political
relationship and interaction between and among countries.
o Public administration - studies national and local governance and
bureaucracy
o Public law - examines legal systems, civil rights, and criminal
justice.
Psychology - studies how the human mind works in consonance with
the body to produce thoughts that lead to individual actions.
o Experimental psychology - studies of humans and animals
examines how and why learning takes place.
o Developmental psychology - studies the ways people change and
behave as they go through their life.
o Personality psychology - studies human nature and differences
among people

3. o Environmental psychology - studies the effects of surroundings on
a person’s attitude and behavior
Sociology - a systematic study of people’s behavior in groups
Sociology subfields:
o Applied sociology - focus on the use and proper application of
sociological theories, methods and skills to examine data, solve
problems and communicate research to the public.
o Urban sociology - studies societal life interactions in urban areas
through the application of sociological methods like statistical
analysis and ethnographies
o Cultural sociology - analyzes the development of social
institutions, norms, and practices.
o Rural sociology - studies the social life of people in rural areas
o Medical sociology - examines the societal aspects of health and
medicine of people.
o Sociology of education - analyzes how social forces and institutions
like politics, economic systems, and culture affects school and
educational systems.
o Political sociology - examines how social structure affects and
influences politics.
o Military sociology - is a sociological study of the military
organization, the different civilian and military relationships, war
experiences, and the use and control of force.
Geography - is the study of interaction between people and their
environments.
Geography subfields:
o Physical geography - studies the natural features of the earth,
including land, water, and atmosphere
o Human geography - studies how people create cultures in their
natural environments.
Demography - according to the Max Planck Institute for
Demographic Research (2016) demography is the scientific study of
human populations across time.
Major subfield:
o Population studies or social demography - analyze demographic
data to define, explain, and foresee social phenomena. It also
studies social - status composition and population distribution.
APPLIED SOCIAL SCIENCE
A branch of study that applies the different concepts,
theoretical models, and theories of the social science
disciplines to help understand society and the different
problems and issues. Applied social sciences are utilized to
provide alternative solutions to the diverse problems of
society.
It aims to present a well-developed understanding of social
systems, social theory, and social policy. It integrates theory,
social research, skills and professional experience, and critical
thinking skills necessary to fully address social phenomena.

4. An integrated science cutting across and transcending
various social science disciplines in addressing a wide range
of issues in a contemporary, innovative, and dynamic way.
the application of Social Science, theories, and concepts.
Three Disciplines in Applied Social Science
1. Counseling - The process of guiding a person during a stage of life
when reassessments or decisions have to be made about himself or
herself and his or her life course.
2. Social Work – associated with government welfare and social
programs aimed at achieving social justice, fairness, and attainment
of social equilibrium.
3. Communication – deals with how humans use verbal and non-
verbal messages to create meaning in various contexts.
RELATIONSHIP OF SOCIAL SCIENCE AND APPLIED SOCIAL SCIENCES
Social sciences are more specific and focused on a distinct
facet of a
social phenomenon while applied social science attempts to focus on
a distinct issue but use insights arising from various social science
disciplines.
Social sciences may explore broadly their distinct disciplines,
some of their input may easily become applied while others
may remain theoretical. When social science theories,
concepts, methods, and findings gain applications to
problems identified in the wider society, then applied social
science is achieved.
LESSON 2: DISCIPLINE IN COUNSELING
COUNSELING
“counseling” is the provision of assistance and guidance, in
resolving personal, social, or psychological problems and
difficulties specially by a professional (Oxford languages).
It is the service offered to the individual who is undergoing a
problem and needs professional help to overcome it.
Counseling therefore is a more specialized service requiring
training in personality development and handling
exceptional groups of individuals.
Merriam-Webster defines it as professional guidance of the
individual by utilizing psychological methods specifically in
collecting case history, using various techniques of the
personal interview and testing interest and aptitudes.
According to Willey and Andrew - counseling involves two
individuals, one seeking help and the other a professionally
trained person helped solve problems to orient and direct
him towards his goals. It is a collaborative effort between the
counselor and client.
Nystul (2003) defined counseling as essentially an art and a
science in which you seek to weigh the objective and
subjective aspects of the counseling process. Counseling as
an art is the subjective dimension of advice. It maintains a
flexible and creative process by which the counselor modifies
the approach in order to meet the growing needs of clients.
It is also related to the act of giving oneself and being
compassionate in therapy processes. Counseling as a science,
on the other hand, is the objective dimension of the

5. consultation process. Counselors who are discerning and who
acquire skills to formulate critical conclusions and
inferences.
*Counseling is considered the “heart” of guidance service as it is
designed to facilitate positive change in behavior, feelings, and
attitude.
*Psychometrics - is a branch of psychology that deals with the design,
administration, and interpretation of quantitative tests for the
measurement of psychological variables such as intelligence,
aptitude, interests, and personality traits.
*Psychometric Test – a kind of test that measures intelligence, traits
and others.
CONTEXT AND THE BASIC CONCEPT OF COUNSELING
Peers as Context – Friends' attitudes, norms, and behaviors
have a strong influence on adolescents. Many personal issues
are often introduced to the individual by their peers.
Neighborhood as Context - The interactions between the
family and its neighborhood as immediate context are also
important to consider. A family functions within a particular
neighborhood. It can both introduce additional strengths or
challenges to parenting and resources that should be
considered when working with families.
Culture as Context
Culture provided meaning and coherence of life to any
orderly life such as community or organization.
Culture is the source of norms, values, symbols, and language
which provide the basis for the normal functioning of an
individual. Understanding the cultural context of a client
makes it easier for a counselor to appreciate the nature of
their struggles as well as their cultural conditioning that
informs certain personal characteristics such as degree of
openness to share personal concerns, self-revealing, making
choices, and personal determination for independence (Corey
1991).
Counseling as Context
Client Factors – everything that a client brings to the
counselling context.
Counselor Factors – personality skills, and personal qualities
of a counselor can significantly impact the outcomes of the
counselling
relationship.
Contextual Factors – environment where to conduct the
counseling sessions.
Quiet, Warm and Comfortable Place away from distraction
Process Factors – actual counseling undertaking. The goal
towards
INDEPENDENCE.
o Developing trust
o Exploring problem areas
o Helping to set goals.

6. o Empowering into action
o Helping to maintain change.
o Agreeing when to end the helping relationship.
GOALS OF COUNSELING
The comprehensive and broad therapy goals defined by Gibson and
Mitchell (2003) is divided into two major goals, the generic goal, and
the developmental goal. To fully understand it we will discuss each
one.
GENERIC GOALS - to lead an individual client or group to self-
emancipation in relation to a felt problem. At some stage in the
process, the client should attain insight and understanding of
oneself, achieve better self-awareness and look at
oneself with increased self-acceptance and appreciation, and be able
to manage oneself positively,
1. Development Goals – assist in meeting or advancing the client’s
human growth and development including social, personal,
emotional, cognitive, and physical wellness.
2. Preventive Goals – helps the client avoid some undesired outcome.
3. Enhancement Goals – enhance special skills and abilities.
4. Remedial Goals – assisting client to overcome and treat an
undesirable development.
DEVELOPMENTAL GOALS (Human Dimensional) - means that they
develop skills and abilities that require self-management and
improved motivation toward actions that are good for oneself and
develop a positive outlook toward the past leading to some sense of
closure and attainment of relative inner and outer harmony
resulting to improvement in relationships with family, friends,
colleagues, and others.
5. Exploratory Goals – examining options, testing of skills, trying new
and different activities, etc.
6. Reinforcement Goals – helps client in recognizing that what they
are doing, thinking, and feeling is fine.
7. Cognitive Goals – involves acquiring the basic foundation of
learning and
cognitive skills.
8. Physiological Goals – involves acquiring the basic understanding
and habits for good health.
9. Psychological Goals – aids in developing good social interaction
skills, learning emotional control and developing positive self-
concept.
PRINCIPLES OF COUNSELLING
Basic Principles of Counseling
1. Principles of Learning – the presence of the learning elements in
the entire process are accepted and recognized.
2. Principles of Acceptance – the counselors show positive regards and
accept the client irrespective of who she/he is. The client should be
given due regard to his/her rights.

7. 3. Principles of Permissiveness- developing optimism through
professional relationships allows freedom of choice and behavior.
4. Principle of Respect for the Individual - This is an attitude, which
portrays the belief that every person is a worthy being that is
competent to decide what he or she really wants, has the potential
for growth, and has the abilities to achieve what he or she really
wants from life.
5. Principle of Thinking with the Individual – It is the role of the
counselor to put him/herself in the shoes of the counselee in order
to analyze his/her thoughts, The objective of counseling is to give
your personnel support in dealing with problems so that they will
regain the ability to work effectively in the organization. Counseling
effectiveness is achieved through the performance of one or more of
the following counseling objectives: advice, reassurance, the release
of emotional tension, clarify thinking, and reorientation.
a) Advice / Advice giving – has to avoid breeding a relationship in
which the counselee feels inferior and emotionally dependent on
the counselor.
b) Reassurance – a valuable principle that can bring about a sense of
relief that may empower a client to function normally again.
c) Release of emotional tension – opportunity to get emotional
release from their pent-up frustrations and other personal issues.
d) Clarified Thinking – encourages a client to accept responsibility
for problems and to be more realistic in solving them.
e) Reorientation – involves a change in the client’s emotional self
through a change in basic goals and aspirations.
f) Listening Skills – attempt to understand both the content of the
client’s problem as they see it, and the emotions they are
experiencing related to the problem.
g) Respect – put their personal feelings aside and treat the client
with
respect. In all circumstances, clients must be treated with RESPECT,
no matter how peculiar or utterly different they are from the
counselor.
h) Empathy and Positive Regard – Empathy requires the counselor to
listen and understand the feelings and perspective of the client;
Positive Regards is an aspect of respect.
i) Clarification, confrontation, and interpretation – Clarification is an
attempt by the counselor to restate what the client is either saying
or feeling, so the client may learn something to understand the
issue better.
j) Transference and Countertransference – When clients are helped
to understand transference reactions, they are empowered to gain
an understanding of important aspects of their emotional life.
Countertransference helps both clients and counselors to
understand the emotional and perceptional reactions. The goals set
out above suggest that therapy seeks to motivate the client by
helping him / her to make important decisions in life, to build
capacity to cope, to improve productivity and to improve the quality
of life. Other than the goals discussed above, McLeod (2003)

8. presented a list of therapy priorities, some of which are to improve
the objectives set out above.
CORE VALUES OF COUNSELING
1. Respect for human dignity. This means that the counselor must
provide a client unconditional positive regard, compassion, non-
judgmental attitude, empathy, and trust.
2. Partnership. A counselor has to foster partnerships with the
various disciplines that come together to support an integrated
healing that encompasses various aspects such as the physical,
emotional, spiritual, and intellectual.
3. Autonomy. This entails respect for confidentiality and trust in a
relationship of counseling and ensuring a safe environment that is
needed for healing. It also means that healing or any advice cannot
be imposed on a client.
4. Responsible caring. This primarily means respecting the potential
of every human being to change and to continue learning
throughout his/her life, and especially in the environment of
counseling.
5. Personal integrity. Counselors must reflect personal integrity,
honesty, and truthfulness with clients.
6. Social justice. This means accepting and respecting the diversity of
the clients, the diversity of individuals, their cultures, languages,
lifestyles, identities, ideologies, intellectual capacities, personalities,
and capabilities regardless of the presented issues.

9. LESSON 3: PROFESSIONALS AND PRACTITIONERS IN COUNSELING
Roles of a Guidance Counselor
The role of a counselor is to assist the person or persons
(clients) in realizing change in behavior or attitude, to assist
them to seek achievement of goals, assist them to find help.
In some cases, the role of counselors includes teaching social
skills, effective communication, spiritual guidance, decision-
making and career choices. A counselor’s role may sometimes
include aiding one in coping with a crisis.
PHILIPPINE REPUBLIC ACT NO. 9258 (GUIDANCE AND COUNSELING
ACT
OF 2004)
- defines a guidance counselor as a natural person who has been
professionally registered and licensed by a legitimate entity and by
virtue of specialized training to perform the functions of guidance
and counseling.
- The relationship of client and the counselor are guided by rules and
regulations (Code of Ethics, RA 9258) so as to protect not only the
counselor but also the rights of the clients.
THE FUNCTIONS OF A GUIDANCE COUNSELOR:
1. Professional counselors are providers of individual & group
counseling services – counselors do not only help the individuals
understand their selves but also conducts varied tests to determine
behavioral or clinical problems. The type of counseling will depend
on the type of problem the clients have.
2. Developmental Classroom Guidance Specialist – the counselors also
prepare lessons and implement guidance instructions to students.
This is where our modules for homeroom guidance come in, the HRG
that you answer are created by the guidance counselors. They also
do talks, seminars and workshops and other activities.
3. Leaders and advocates of Academic success –professional counselors
have responsibilities to promote academic success by helping
students identify barriers. The function here of the counselor is to
help these students cope with their challenges and see these
problems are opportunities for them to grow.
4. Career Development Specialist – they care about your career
development, that you are not just stagnant, that what you choose,
you are no longer promoted, or you are no longer advanced to the
next level. Career counselors want to insure and help you in your
career.
5. Advocates of a Safe school environment – counselors are seeing if
you are free from bullying, seeing if you are safe from exploitation,
this is what adults or fellow students can give you.
6. Advocates of students with special needs & student-at-risk - let's look
at the students with special needs, they may be among the PWDs,
they need to have equal experiencing rights within the school. The
students at risk are students at risk of dropping out, they may no
longer attend or submit assignments - but the counselors, they
think about the condition of the

10. students who might be going through something serious.
7. School Communication Collaboration Specialist – another function of
a counselor. They are not only in school, but they are looking at
what the barangay and the parents can help to develop the student.
COMPETENCIES OF COUNSELORS
Guidance counseling is not for everyone, and it takes someone with
several important attributes to effectively guide clients through the
challenges they’re experiencing or may face. A good guidance
counselor must have the following abilities and characteristics.
Seven (7) distinct competence areas of counselors. (McLeod,
2003)
1. Interpersonal Skills – counselors who are competent display ability
to listen, communicate; empathize; be present; aware of nonverbal
communication; sensitive to voice quality, responsive to expressions
of emotion, turn taking, structure of time and use of language.
2. Personal beliefs and Attitude- counselors have the capacity to
accept others, belief in potential of change, awareness of ethical and
moral choices and sensitive to values held by client and self.
3. Conceptual ability – counselors can understand and assess client’s
problem; to anticipate future problems; make sense of immediate
process in terms of wider conceptual scheme to remember
information about the client.
4. Personal Soundness – counselors must have no irrational beliefs
that are
destructive to counseling relationships, self-confidence, capacity to
tolerate strong of uncomfortable feelings in relation to the clients,
secure personal boundaries, ability to be a client; must carry no
social prejudice, ethnocentrism, and authoritarianism.
5. Mastery of Techniques – counselors must have a knowledge of
when and how to carry out specific interventions, ability to assess
effectiveness of the interventions, understanding the rationale
behind techniques, possession of wide repertoire of intervention.
6. Ability to understand and work within social system – this would be
compromised of awareness of family and work relationships of
client the impact of agency on the clients, the capacity to use
support networks and supervision, sensitivity to client from
different gender, ethnicity, sexual orientation, or age group.
7. Openness to learning and inquiry - counselors must have the
capacity to be curious about client’s backgrounds and problems;
being open to new knowledge.
AREAS OF SPECIALIZATION WHERE COUNSELOR WORKS
1. CAREER COUNSELORS – they will help you if you are unsatisfied with
your career choice but are afraid to make changes or have financial
constraints. These have a background in vocational, industrial, or
organizational psychology.
2. SCHOOL COUNSELING – elementary, high school, and tertiary
counselors

11. emphasize more on preventive & developmental counseling. They
provide the students with the life skills needed to deal with the
problems before they worsen.
3. COMMUNITY COUNSELING – It uses community’s background,
culture or practices and helps the members of the community to
improve their relationship with each other. They help individual
adjust better in the community and settle issues in the society.
4. REHABILITATION COUNSELING - covers substance abuse counseling,
alcohol counseling, drug counseling, stop smoking program
manager, and crisis intervention counseling. These may take weeks
or years to ensure that when the clients leave the centers, they can
now go back to their normal lives.
5. MARRIAGE & FAMILY COUNSELING – a marriage counselor is an
unbiased third party who can help couples resolve marital problems.
6. MENTAL HEALTH AND CLINICAL COUNSELING – It addresses and treat
mental and emotional disorders and promote mental health. It
often works with mental health specialists, psychiatrists,
psychologists, or school counselors. They work together with
trained professionals to address issues (depression, anxiety, suicidal
tendencies)
7. INDUSTRIAL COUNSELING – It is human resource-counseling to
respond to the concern of the employee. It provides training or
professional development services or other activities to help
employees develop soft skills (teamwork, communication, time
management, leadership), attitude, flexibility, and motivation.
FOUR OVERALL ETHICAL PRINCIPLES OF SPECIFIC ETHICAL
STANDARDS
Principle 1 – Respect for the rights and dignity of the client
- They respect clients’ rights to privacy, confidentiality, self-
determination, and autonomy, consistent with the law. to whatever
professional action they propose.
Principle 2 – Competence
- They recognize the limits of their expertise, engage in self- care,
and seek support and supervision to maintain the standard of their
work.
Principle 3 – Responsibility
- They are aware of their professional responsibility to act in a
trustworthy, reputable, and accountable manner toward clients,
colleagues, and the community in which they work and live.
Principle 4 – Integrity
- They represent themselves accurately and treat others with
honesty, straightforwardness, and fairness.
NOTE: DO NOT JUST READ AND MEMORIZE IT, BUT PLEASE DO
UNDERSTAND IT.