What Are the Seven Social Sciences?
What are the seven social sciences? The seven social sciences are: anthropology, economics, geography, history, political science, sociology, and psychology. Some people substitute religion for psychology, while some include archaeology and linguistics in the top seven while omitting sociology and psychology.
Social science is the study of society and the individuals within it. Social scientists examine the role of the individual in society, his relationships and interactions. The distinction was made between natural science and social science in the 18th century. Natural science is experimental and applied, and social science is concerned with moral philosophy. There are more than seven fields under the umbrella of social science and many times the branches of social science overlap.
What Are the Seven Social Sciences?
Anthropology is the study of humans. It covers all aspects of society, including the tools, language, values, traditions, belief system, and how humans affect other humans. It is concerned with the cultural, social, and physical development of humans.
- Cultural anthropology examines the creativity of society, especially those achievements which are passed down through the generations.
- Physical anthropology studies the origin, behavior, and development of humans.
Economics examines the whole process from making goods to consuming them. This includes production, distribution, and consumption. It also includes services that are rendered to people, and studies the principles of supply and demand.
- Macroeconomics studies the whole world, or one nation, which includes studying inflation, unemployment, etc.
- Microeconomics examines specific areas of the economy, like companies and households.
Geography is the study of the earth, and the way humans are dispersed on it. It includes studying the earth’s features and the effects between the earth and human activity. It examines the relationships between physical, human, and biological phenomena that occur on the earth. Branches within geography include:
- Human geography
- Physical geography
- Regional geography
These can range from a town to the whole world.
History studies our past and lists events in chronological order to further understand not only the sequence of events but offer explanations for them. Sources for gathering data include:
- Books
- Printed documents
- Artifacts
- Newspapers
- Oral accounts
Historians try to link events to find relationships between them and causes for them.
Political science is concerned with the structure of the political machine in society. It examines the processes and principles of government and other political institutions. It is basically the study of anything related to politics. Subfields include:
- Political theory
- International relations
- National government
Political scientists study voting behavior, economics of the political process, public opinion, political parties, and more.
Sociology is the study of social behavior and societies. It studies the origins and development of human society, and investigates the institutions of that society. It examines how a society is organized and all the social interaction within it. It studies the relationships between humans and how they evolve.
The last part of the answer to, “What are the seven social sciences?” is psychology. The word “psychology” comes from the Greek word “psyche” meaning the “mind” or “soul.” This social science is concerned with mental processes and behavior. It covers conscious and unconscious mental processes. It also studies the mind’s functions as they relate to one’s physical and social environment.
Other Social Sciences
Religion, archaeology, and linguistics are sometimes included on the list of seven social sciences. Religion deals with the relationship between humans and God or gods. Religious beliefs are at the core of society, and determine many aspects of it. Archaeology is the study of past civilizations, with information gleaned from material remains, such as, artifacts, buildings, graves, etc. The jobs of an archaeologist include surveying and mapping sites, excavating, classifying and dating artifacts, and interpreting the materials. Linguistics examines the structure of language, its syntax, phonology, semantics, phonetics, morphology, and more. It also studies the nature of language and its variations.