NCERT Solutions for Class 9th Social Science Chapter 1 Why Should We Study Social Science? — In-text Questions
Book page 10 Updated on2026-09-08
Q1.
After exploring how Social Science helps us observe events, ask questions, and examine evidence, an important question arises: how does this knowledge help us in our lives?
Answer
It helps in four ways, each set out in the pages that follow the question.
It explains the systems you already depend on. The house you live in, the water you use, the roads you travel on, the school you attend, the markets you visit and even the digital spaces you use are "part of systems created and managed by society". Social Science shows how those systems developed, how they work, and how they affect different groups of people — so you are not simply a user of them.
It makes diversity intelligible. You live among people who speak different languages, follow different customs and practise different occupations. Social Science explains such variation "as outcomes of geographical, historical, cultural, and economic factors", which builds respect and cooperation instead of suspicion — while helping you see the underlying unity that binds this diversity together.
It prepares you for citizenship. In a democratic society, laws, rights and responsibilities guide how people live together. Once you understand how governments function and how decisions are made, you are "better prepared to participate responsibly in civic life".
It gives you a way of handling shared problems. Faced with environmental protection, public health, employment or urban growth, you learn to ask informed questions about causes, effects and possible solutions. The chapter calls this "habit of careful questioning and reasoning" essential for problems that affect society as a whole.
Above all, Social Science "connects the past, present, and future": understanding how past decisions shaped the present is what equips you to make wiser choices for what comes next.
The chapter's own example from page 4. A single event runs through the environment, the economy, politics, society and culture at once — which is why Social Science is a group of related disciplines rather than one subject.
Why it happens: The usefulness of Social Science does not come from remembering facts about society. It comes from a habit — observe carefully, ask why, look for evidence, and check whether the parts fit together. Page 12 puts it plainly: Social Science "is not about memorising dates, maps, or definitions—it is about understanding people, places, society, culture and power."