The Filipino ‘Kapwa’ Psychology

By Johanne R. Macob

 

THE election fever is here! We actually began to feel the heat even before our candidates filed their respective certificates of candidacy last week. But before we go through the main political campaign period, I’d like to share what I’ve learned in one of my online classes. It’s about us as a people, our values and understanding why we behave the way we do during election periods.

Firstly, we are a people with unique values. We are a race with such an indomitable spirit that inspire, respectful of others’ feelings, generously hospitable, bound by closely knit family relationships. Note that when a visitor come to our homes, we tend to offer everything to make them comfortable, often more than what we actually have. We are also respectful, especially towards elders and leaders. This is well manifested with our use of po and opo and the practice of pagmamano. We have close and extended kinship, that our family relationship doesn’t end with our father, mother, and siblings but extends to our relatives and sometimes, even to our neighbors we have learned to regard as part of our extended families. These in many ways led to the Filipino culture of bayanihan.

An expert in Filipino psychology, Virgilio Enriquez (1992), classified the Philippine values into four, namely surface values, pivotal, core, and foundation of human values. The first category includes the values of hiya, utang na loob, pakikisama, bahala na, sama/lakas ng loob, and pakikisama. The second, which is said to be the source of the surface values, is all about pakikiramdam or being highly aware of others feelings. The core Filipino value revolves on the kapwa psychology, as we, Filipinos, are still generally concerned of what our kapwa or fellows would feel or say about our actions and behaviors. Finally, the last category includes that of kalayaan, karangalan, katarungan.

And with most everything that we do, our value system has two sides- positive and negative. The utang na loob can be useful in relationships for either good or bad reasons. Then, as Ma’am Ana Louise Velasco has shared with me, some people get hired because of their connections, not because of their skills and work experience. “Sometimes, it’s not about what you know, but who you know.” Our bahala na attitude sometimes prevents us from excelling in what we do for our careers, settling for half-baked outputs.

Going back to the “election fever,” these values largely influence our decision as we decide who to vote for. Is it because of hiya, utang ng loob, bahala na or pakikisama?

I trust that whatever will influence us as we decide, let competence be the first criterion, more than anything else.

(For your comments and reactions, please email to: punch.sunday@gmail.com)

Back to Homepage

Share your Comments or Reactions

comments

Powered by Facebook Comments