Interpretive & Critical Social Sciences – Comprehensive Study Notes

Overview of the 3 Broad Paradigms

• Social-science research is usually grouped into three dominant approaches
  • Positivist / Positivism
    • Reality = objective facts; looks for general laws through measurement & statistics.
    • Key theories later reviewed: Structural Functionalism, Rational-Choice, Institutionalism.
  • Interpretive (Interpretivism / Interpretive Social Science)
    • Reality = socially constructed, plural, context-bound.
    • Asks what people think, feel, believe & how they attach meaning to the world.
    • Main theories: Hermeneutic Phenomenology & Symbolic Interactionism.
  • Critical Social Science
    • Reality = structured by power, inequality, injustice.
    • Goal is not only to understand but to transform society.
    • Major theories here: Feminism, Marxism, Psychoanalysis, Human-Environment Systems.

Interpretive Social Science

Core Assumptions & Features

• “Sensitive to context” (Neuman, 1997).
• People continuously create & negotiate subjective meanings; therefore no single objective reality.
• Knowledge is socially constructed; experience, emotion, culture all shape what counts as “true.”
• Typical data = rich description, narratives, field notes—not large numerical datasets.
• Favoured methods: interviews, participant observation, focus-groups, textual analysis.

Positivism vs Interpretivism in one glance

Illustrative classroom example

• Same exam, two realities
  • Student A: “The test was easy.”
  • Student B: “The test was super hard.”
  → Objective circumstance is identical, but subjective reality diverges due to preparation, confidence, emotion.

Theory 1 – Hermeneutic Phenomenology

• Hermeneutics = art/science of interpretation (root: Greek messenger-god Hermes).
• Phenomenology = study of lived experience (what it is like to encounter a phenomenon).
• Combined, the theory asks: “How do people interpret experience, given their historical, cultural & personal background?”
• Methodological mantra: Historicality → Background → Culture before drawing conclusions.
• Application cases:
  • Hijab ban in France
    • Historicality : state secularism (laïcité) separating church & state since 1905.
    • Background : Muslim girl views hijab as identity & devotion.
    • Interpretation clash : freedom of religion vs rule of secularism.
  • Holy-Week penitents (Leyte, PH)
    • Outsiders may see costumes as threatening; locals interpret them as solemn repentance rooted in Filipino Catholic culture.

Theory 2 – Symbolic Interactionism

• Premise: humans act toward things according to the meanings those things have for them.
• Symbols = objects, gestures, words that carry shared meaning (e.g., thumbs-up, wedding ring, “ma’am/sir”).
• Meanings arise in social interaction & are always open to revision.

Key concepts & thinkers

1. George H. Mead – Theory of the Social Self
   • “I” = creative, spontaneous, personal response.
   • “Me” = socialized, rule-aware aspect.
   • Development stages
     • Preparatory (Imitation)
     • Play (Pretend roles)
     • Game (Multiple coordinated roles).
2. Charles H. Cooley – Looking-Glass Self
   • We imagine •how we appear• to others → imagine their judgment → develop self-feeling (pride, shame, etc.).
3. Comparison
   • Cooley: self = reflection of imagined judgements (passive feedback).
   • Mead: self = product of active role-taking & interaction.

Symbol Examples

• 👍 (thumbs-up) = “okay/good.”
• 👌 symbol may mean “okay” locally, but an insult elsewhere.
• Ring on 4th finger = married.
• Hand-pressed “prayer” gesture: grateful respect in PH; wai greeting in Thailand; namaste in India.

Critical Social Science

General Orientation

• Unmasks hidden power structures; links knowledge to emancipatory action.
• Typical questions: Who benefits? Who is marginalized? How can we change it?

Theory 1 – Feminism

• Seeks political, economic & cultural equality of all genders; not “anti-male.”
• Sexism = belief/behaviour that one gender is superior → discrimination, objectification, harassment.
• Main currents
  1. Liberal Feminism – legal & policy reforms (equal pay, voting, education).
  2. Radical Feminism – patriarchy is systemic; demands structural overhaul, end to gender violence & objectification.
  3. Socialist Feminism – gender oppression intertwined with class, race, age; focuses on intersectionality & material conditions.
• Iconic advocates: Emma Watson’s HeForShe; Malala Yousafzai on girls’ education.

Theory 2 – Marxism

• History driven by class struggle; material/economic base determines social superstructure (law, politics, ideology).
• Historical Materialism tracks shifts in production modes → social change:
  • Feudalism (land-based) → Capitalism (factory/private) → Socialism (collective/community).
• Alienation (4 faces)
  1. From product – worker doesn’t own what they make.
  2. From process – no control over how/when work is done.
  3. From species-being – repetitive tasks stifle creativity.
  4. From other workers – competition replaces cooperation.
• Surplus Value formula
  $\text{Surplus Value} = \text{Value produced by labor} - \text{Wages paid}$
  Example: produce goods worth $1000$ pesos/day, receive wage of $400$ → surplus $600$ captured as profit.
• Pandemic lens: wealth gap widened; owners stayed online, many workers lost income.

Theory 3 – Psychoanalysis (Sigmund Freud)

• Behaviour steered by the unconscious mind (repressed memories, desires).
• Structure of personality:
  • Id (pleasure principle).
  • Ego (reality principle).
  • Superego (moral conscience).
• Topography: conscious / pre-conscious / unconscious.
• Psychosexual stages
  1. Oral (0-1 yr) – mouth; weaning issues → nail-biting, smoking.
  2. Anal (1-3 yrs) – anus; toilet-training; strict → “anal-retentive,” lax → messy.
  3. Phallic (3-6 yrs) – genitals; Oedipus/Electra complexes.
  4. Latency (6-12 yrs) – none; focus on peers/hobbies.
  5. Genital (puberty+) – mature intimacy.
• Covid insight: “pandemic babies” with limited interaction risk speech delay, anxiety, etc., once adulthood arrives.

Theory 4 – Human-Environment Systems

• Interdependence of people ↔ planet; merges social & natural sciences (cross-disciplinary).
• Sustainability tripod:
  • People (equity, health, education)
  • Planet (resource protection, ecological integrity)
  • Profit/Prosperity (jobs, stable markets)
  → If any leg breaks, the system collapses.
• Pandemic paradox: air quality improved during lockdowns, yet medical waste (masks, PPE) skyrocketed.

Comparative Snapshot of Key Theories

Real-World / Pandemic Connections (All Theories Interlaced)

• Interpretive view : Pandemic = individually lived reality (fear, boredom, spiritual awakening). Face mask becomes a new social symbol of safety & solidarity.
• Critical-Feminist : Lockdowns trapped many women with abusers; spike in domestic violence calls → need for gender-sensitive policy.
• Marxist : Essential workers exposed to virus while capital owners worked remotely; surplus value more visible.
• Psychoanalytic : Quarantine resurfaced repressed anxieties; collective dreams about contagion recorded globally.
• Human-Environment : Temporary CO$_2$ drop vs long-term PPE pollution challenge; highlights sustainability trade-offs.

Mini-Glossary / Quick Reference

• Subjective Reality – truth as interpreted by individuals; multiple co-existing versions.
• Hermeneutics – interpretation of texts, actions, symbols.
• Alienation – worker’s estrangement from product, process, self, others.
• Patriarchy – systemic dominance of men & masculine norms.
• Id / Ego / Superego – tripartite psychic apparatus (Freud).
• Sustainability – meeting present needs without compromising future generations.

Classroom Logistics Mentioned (FYI)

• This lesson completes 1st-quarter material; post-lecture: a classroom activity + time for PeTA (performance task) making.

Take-Away Matrix