From Scribes to Seers: 400 Years of Doing Social Science in the Philippines

Abstract

This paper discusses the “doing” or practice of social science in the Philippines in the past 400 years where written documents are available during this period. It consists of three parts. First is a discussion of popular perceptions of the social sciences, often disaggregated and with particular stereotypes, e.g., history as “heroes and dates”, geography as “maps”, psychology as “behavior” and anthropology as “(exotic) tribes”. These focused perceptions lead to misconceptions of the social sciences as mainly descriptive pursuits that produce studies that are “nice to know” but which have little impact on society, especially for developing countries. Secondly, a historical survey will show how, in the past 400 years, the practice of social sciences has significantly contributed towards understanding the Philippines, with even greater challenges and potential, in the future for producing insights needed to effectively respond to social concerns. This includes the emergence of social sciences in Europe in the context of the Enlightenment, and its impact on the thinking of social reformers. In the Philippines, this would be exemplified by Jose Rizal and Isabelo de los Reyes with their unrelenting search for a Filipino identity and nationhood. The American colonial period is described in terms of its more formal definition and application of the social sciences for governance, including social engineering with its long-term impact on many aspects of public life. In the postcolonial period, Filipino social scientists followed international trends of separating the social sciences from the natural sciences, as well as arts and humanities, with academic institutions developing discipline-based silos of research. Despite the fragmentation, there have been common themes in the disciplines, particularly in a search for the “indigenous”, taking up in a sense the agenda of Rizal and de los Reyes in the late nineteenth century. Applied social sciences have also become important to better inform development efforts and have allowed greater convergence, and the adoption of inter- and transdisciplinary research.