Social Science & Philosophy – Quick Review

History of Social Science

• Emerged formally in early $19^{th}$ century (positivism).
• Term “social science” broadened by mid-$20^{th}$ century to cover all society- & culture-oriented disciplines.
• Intellectual roots: Enlightenment, Industrial & French Revolutions; encyclopedic work of Diderot, Rousseau.
• Precursors: medieval Islamic sociology; Confucius on social roles.
• $20^{th}$ century: quantitative turn; statistics became an applied-math discipline.
• Ongoing: mixed methods & boundary fields (sociobiology, neuropsychology, bioeconomics, etc.).

History of Philosophy

• Origins in Athens, $5^{th}$ century BC (Socrates → Plato → Aristotle).
• Dominant through Roman era, Middle Ages (Christian thought).
• Enlightenment ($18^{th}$ century): rise of epistemology, new ethics.
• Late $19^{th}$ century: language, logic, meaning foregrounded.
• $20^{th}$ century: unprecedented output; applied across science, warfare, politics, AI.

Nature & Scope of Social Science

• Investigates institutions, societal functions, interpersonal relations via scientific method.
• Broad coverage: anthropology, archaeology, communication, economics, history, musicology, human geography, jurisprudence, linguistics, political science, psychology, public health, sociology.

Nature & Scope of Philosophy

• Studies fundamental questions of knowledge, truth, justice, mind, language.
• “Mother of all sciences”; builds comprehensive worldview.
• Tools: logic, reason, critical thinking, analytic writing.
• Core branches: epistemology, metaphysics, logic, ethics, aesthetics.

Importance

• Social Science: explains institutional evolution & human behaviour; gauges social impacts.
• Philosophy: clarifies concepts, aligns individual & societal activities, strengthens problem-solving.

Branches of Social Science (Essentials)

• Anthropology – humans, origins, cultures.
• Archaeology – past human life via material remains.
• Communication – processes/technologies of information exchange.
• Economics – production, distribution, consumption of goods/services.
• History – systematic study of past events.
• Musicology – scholarly study of music.
• Human Geography – spatial patterns of people & environments.
• Jurisprudence – philosophy/science of law.
• Linguistics – structure & function of language.
• Political Science – state & government analysis.
• Psychology – behaviour, mind, soul.
• Public Health – community health protection & improvement.
• Sociology – structure, development, relationships within society.

Branches of Philosophy (Essentials)

• Epistemology – theory of knowledge/truth.
• Metaphysics – reality, being, consciousness.
• Logic – rules of valid reasoning.
• Ethics – moral values & human conduct.
• Aesthetics – beauty & art (behavioural and creative expression).