THE FILIPINO CHARACTER:
STRENGTHS AND WEAKNESSES
- Below is an excerpt of the
Report “A moral Recovery
Programs Building a People,
Building a Nation” submitted on
April 27, 1988 by the Task Force to
President Corazon Aquino, the
Senate and the members of the
press by then Senator Leticia
Shahani, the moving spirit behind
the program
WHAT MAKES THE FILIPINO
UNIQUE?
Filipino have a concern for someone.
THE STRENGHTS OF THE
FILIPINO CHARACTER
In the same report in 1988, Senator Leticia Shahani said, The
strengths of the Filipino character are:
1) pakikipagkapwa-tao,
2 family orientation,
3) joy and humor,
4) flexibility, adaptability and creativity,
5) hard work and industry,
6) faith and religiosity and
7) ability to survive.
THE WEAKNESS OF THE
FILIPINO CHARACTER
1. EXTREME FAMILY CENTEREDNESS
- Factionalism patronage
- Political Dynasties
- Protection of every family member
- Results in lack of concern for the common good.
- Act as a block to rational consciousness
THE WEAKNESS OF THE
FILIPINO CHARACTER
2. EXTREME PERSONALISM
- Takes things personally
- Uncomfortable with bureaucracy with rules and
- Leads to Graft and Corruption
THE WEAKNESS OF THE
FILIPINO CHARACTER
3. LACK OF DISCIPLINE
- Manipulated in lack of precision and compulsiveness
- Poor time management and procrastination
- Lack of standardization and quality control.
- Impatience
- Inefficient work systems.
FILIPINO TRAITS AND VALUES
The ten most depicted traits were the following.
+ pakikisama
+ hiya
+ utang na loob (debt of gratitude)
+ close family ties
+ bahala na (kanya, kanya syndrome)
(talangka mentality)
+ amor proporio
+ bayahanihan
+ hospitability
+ ningas cogon
+ respect for olders (mano)
STRENGTH
OF
Pakikipagkapwa- tao
PAKIKIPAGKAPWA- TAO
Helpfulness
ang generosity
in times of
needs.
FILIPINOS
What is DIGNITY RESPECT
HUMAN
FELLOWSHIP?
FAMILY
ORIENTATION
• Filipinos possess
a genuine and
deep love for
family.
JOY AND HUMOR
Filipino have a cheerful
and fun- loving
approach to life.
FLEXIBILITY,
ADAPTABILITY
AND CREATIVITY
• Filipinos can
adjust and adapt
to circumstances,
can improvise and
accepts change
HARD WORK AND INDUSTRY.
• Filipinos have
the capacity for
hard work given
proper
conditions .
FAITH AND
RELIGIOSITY
• Filipino have a depth
faith in god.
ABILITY TO SURVIVE
• Filipino are very
resilient
EXTREME PERSONALISM
• Filipino view the world in terms of personal relationship and the
extent to which one is able personally to relate to things and
people determines our recognition of their existence and the
value.
• " take things personally".
• Personalism is also manifested in the
need to establish personal relationship
EXTREME FAMILY-
CENTEREDNESS.
• While concern for the family is one of the Filipino greatest
strengths, in the extreme it becomes a serious flaw.
• Excessive concern for the family creates an ingroup to which
the Filipino is fiercely loyal, to the determinants of concern for
the larger community or the common good
LACK OF DISCIPLINE
• Procrastination.
• Impatient unable to delay gratification or reward resulting in the use
of shortcuts skirting the rule (palusot syndrome) and foolhardiness.
• ningas cogon- starting out project with full vigor and interest which
abruptly die down, leaving things unfinished.
PASSIVE AND LACK OF
INITIATIVE
• Generally passive and lacking in initiative.
• Strong reliance on others
• High tolerance for inefficiency for service
and even violation of one's basic right
• Too patient and long-suffering (matiisin) to
easily resign to one's fate.
COLONIAL MENTALITY
• Filipinos have a colonial mentality which is made up of two
dimension:
• First is a lack of patriotism or an
active awareness appreciation and
love of the Philippines.
second,is an actual
preference for famous foreign.
KANYA - KANYA SYNDROME
• Kanya-kanya syndrome Filipinos have a selfish, self-serving attitude
that generates a feeling of envy and competitiveness towards
others.
• crab mentality“
• The kanya-kanya syndrome is also evident in personal ambition and
drive for power and status that is completely and Insensitive to the
common good.
LACK OF SELF-ANALYSIS AND
SELF-REFLECTION
• In the face of serious problem both personal and social,
there is lack of analysis or reflection.
• Joking about the most serious matter prevents us from
locking deeply into the problem
OTHER
STUDIES ON
FILIPINO
MORAL
CHARACTER
Another way of looking at the problem of morality in
the Philippine is to consider the actual and prevailing
norms of right and wrong among Filipinos. It is quite
obvious that there is a conflict between what they say as
Christians and what they do as Filipinos; between their
actual Filipino behavior and their ideal Christian
behavior; in short, between what is and what ought to
be.
KAMI MENTALITY
“what will my family, or my relatives and friends, or my barkada think
or say?”
“What will others say"
-usually determines Filipino moral behavior; it is "conscience from the
outside”.
"CONSCIENCE FROM THE
OUTSIDE”.
• It is a private experience, and a form of self-knowledge;
from one’s conscience one can learn one’s own values and
morals. This is the root of the word, from the latin con-
scientia, perhaps translatable as “together-with-knowing”
– to be together with one’s knowledge (of morality).
IMPACT OF CULTURE
ON MORALITY
“ Guilt Culture”
When Filipino commits an immoral act,
he would of course feel guilty, but after
confessing his sin, he may feel as if he is
back to the normal thing and can sin again.
REFLECTION
Among the weaknesses of the
Filipino character which applies
to you? What have you done to
counteract such to become the
moral person you are called to
be?
