VALUES AND

PANININDIGAN:
UNDERSTANDING THE
PSYCHOLOGY OF THE
FILIPINO
From the psychological point of view it is particularly difficult to address
the question “Who is the Filipino?” One might try to settle the issue on
legal grounds and have a definition on the basis of birth or geographic
origin or blood. While these criteria might be convenient and fairly easy
to understand and utilize, they are unfortunately far from adequate
from the psychological perspective. Considerations of historical
background or socio-cultural characteristics are not adequate either.
Birth and blood, geography and citizenship, history and cultural
background are all important to understanding the Filipino but the
question “Who is the Filipino?” cannot be adequately answered from
the psychological perspective unless attention is focused on Filipino
identity, image (be it self-image or projected image or stereotyped
image) and consciousness.
Filipino identity is not static; a Filipino's self-image as a Filipino can be as varied as his
background; it goes without saying that not all Filipinos are alike but regardless of all
these, his consciousness of being a Filipino psychologically defines him as one, no
matter how he sees and defines the Filipino. Consciousness of being a Filipino does
not necessarily imply a valid awareness of the Filipino situation, predicament and
social reality but it does imply an intimate knowledge of his personal experience as
an individual Filipino. This personal experience and knowledge starts with his first
awareness and contact with the non-Pilipino, possibly a visitor, or a missionary, or a
trader in the Philippines, or a native of another country whom the Filipino meets
should he himself travel outside the Philippines. Awareness of being a Filipino implies
identification with the Filipino as a people not just through empathy and concern but
as one of them. Some Filipinos may not “behave” like a Filipino according to
stereotypes or expectations, they may not even look Filipino but the more important
psychological element is there: he identifies and thinks as a Filipino; he also acts
accordingly. This definition is valid, as Muñoz (1971 :161) puts it: “A Filipino is anyone
who feels and thinks he is - who says he is. It is a definition he does not just want to
be smart about. It is something he has come to believe in, deeply and honestly.”
The Filipino Experience and
the Third World
The Filipino experience both at home and abroad can reasonably be viewed in
terms of the realities of the relationship between the West and the Third
World; the dominant and tie minority culture; the colonizer and the colonized.
In addition, his experience includes a growth in consciousness as he hurdles
his sub-national regional identity towards a national identity. The llocano is as
Filipino as his Cebuano or Bicolano compatriot. He is as Filipino as the Chinese-
Filipino and the mestizo who “feels, thinks, and says” he is Filipino.
Furthermore, he is an Asian. He is an Asian together with the Chinese, the
Korean and the Japanese but he sees his roots not only in Asia. His country is
in the Pacific. He sees trinity with the Indonesians, the native Hawaiians, and
the Malayo-Polynesians for he is one. He has a socio-cultural background
which relates him not only to the Christians but also to the Muslims. His
country had “special relations” with the United States after the first Vietnam:
The Philippine-American war of 1899- 1902 “with apologies to Mexicans,
American Indians, and other early victims of imperialism” (Francisco, 1973).
By whatever name, “benevolent assimilation,” “westernization” or
“modernization,” and in all stages of his history, he has a culture and identity
of his own. An early Jesuit missionary, Chirino (1604) himself admitted how
members of his religious order destroyed about three hundred Tagalog
manuscripts in Balayan, Batangas, an act which 370 years somehow cannot
erase in the despair and anger which a scholar of Filipino literature felt and
expressed (Hosillos, 1969). The Filipino and his culture is an ongoing process.
The destruction of manuscripts does not entail the destruction of the culture.
The Filipino continues to build and to grow, to fail and to succeed, to evolve
and to triumph. It can be seen in his towns and cities; it is reflected in the
growth of settlements that are transformed into cities (Zialcita, 1976), be it
Manila or Cebu. The process was concretized as success in a ceremony such as
when Emilio Aguinaldo (1898) made his inaugural address as president of the
First Republic of the Philippines. As a collective consciousness, he has his most
pleasant and most painful experiences called “peak” and “nadir” experiences
by Maslow, the psychologist.
A distinction can be made between Filipino values and paninindigan
which closely approximates the English words “commitment” and
“conviction.” What has been previously identified as values among the
Filipinos are not really as important as his paninindigan: It can be
argued that the Filipino commitments and convictions should be given
as much attention as his supposed values.
The following has been identified as some of the more enduring
paninindigan: paggalang at pagmamalasakit (respect and concern),
pagtulong at pagdamay (helping), pagpuno sa kakulangan
(understanding limitations), pakikiramdam (sensitivity and regard for
others), gaan ng loob (rapport and acceptance), and pakikipagkapwa
(human concern and interaction as one with others).
The token use of Filipino concepts and the local language have led to
the identification of some supposedly Filipino national values.
Among the more frequently mentioned values are hiya (shame),
pakikisama (yielding to the leader or the majority), utang na loob
(graditude), amor propio (sensitivity to personal affront), and bayanihan
(togetherness in common effort). Some regional values which have
been recognized include maratabat (a complex combination of pride,
honor, and shame), balatu (sharing one's fortune), ilus (sharing surplus
food), kakugi (meticulousness and attention to detail), patugsiling
(compassion), kalulu (empathy), hatag-gusto (pagbibigay), paghiliupod
(katapatan or faithfulness in need or in plenty), and pagsinabtanay
(fidelity with one's promises).
On Filipino Food and Filipino
Culture by V. Enriquez
Concerning food, I am aware of at least two arguments hurled to the
Filipino, one from an outsider (and therefore a non-Filipino culture-bearer)
and another from an insider (and therefore a “culture-bearer”). The
outsider claims that “there is no such thing as Filipino food.” My initial
reaction to this comment is “nonsense, you don't know what you are
talking about.” In fact, I actually heard this claim made at a time when I was
hankering for Filipino food. (Gusto kong dagukan, kaya lang ay nagpigil ako;
I think that's an example of how Filipinos express emotions), The argument
goes this way: Food is more social than biological in the Philippines, you get
to see and taste food when it is available and. visible. The most dramatic
example is the town fiesta. And what do Filipinos serve? Chinese food,
Spanish food or American food but Filipino food is nowhere to be found.
The well-known adobo is Spanish, so is the sarciado, menudo, embutido,
and morcon. Filipinos eat pan cit, chop sui, and sio pao. That's Chinese.
Even the Tagalog bistik is actually beefsteak.
I don't know how many Filipinos buy that kind of argument. I, for one,
don't see any validity in the argument quite apart from the fact that I
can mention examples. of fine indigenous cooking unless someone
turns up and claim that kare-kare is Indian or sinigang is Indonesian. An
important reason for going into this lengthy discussion is the fact that
this kind of argument, while patently ridiculous, is prevalently and
extensively used. The argument becomes more involved but used even
in claiming, that “there is no Philippine Culture.” Similarly, it has been
claimed that “there is no Philippine psychology.” Everything Filipino
psychologists do is an extension of western Psychology - a claim which
should prove clearly false in the light of current work on Sikolohiyang
Pilipino.