Personal, Family, School and Church Factors: Its Influence on the Stress Level of

Senior High School Students

A Research Study Presented to the

Faculty of the Senior High School Department Of

Northeast Luzon Adventist College

In Partial Fulfilment

Of the Course

Research in Daily Life

Submitted to: Dr. Eleanor Castillo

Submitted by: Guardian, Katrine Danielle

Tangid, Yboon Rose

Brillo, Deanna Lynn

Ronas, Rae Ivan

Huliganga, Vincent

March , 2018
 Dedication

To our dearest teachers, fellow students and to future researchers, we dedicate this study

for you.
 Acknowledgement

Praises and gratitude for those who had helped us to finish this study.

A big thank you to the following person who had been there for the

accomplishment of this study.

Dr. Eleanor C. Castillo, our research teacher, for teaching, guiding and for

giving or sharing to us what she knows during the process of completing and finishing

this study.

Ma’am Lisa Vallejos, Dr. Eleanor’s assistant, for assisting, encouraging and

guiding us to accomplish this study.

All the researcher’s parents, for supporting their children as they finish this

research study.

To our respondents, we thank and acknowledge your full participation in helping

us gather the necessary data for our study.

 Abstract

In the life of a student, stress is seen as an un-avoidable phase where they get to

experience time to time by different situations. This study shows that stress is found as an

agent in affecting the performance of students in Northeast Luzon Adventist College.

Factors aligned in stress such as personal, family, school, and church contributes to the

level of stress of students which makes them prone to a high amount of stress. With this

kind of situation it would be reasonable to believe that students undergo activities such as

sleeping late at night and taking in un-healthy foods. Such situation is said to be “stress-

contributing” and thus affecting their level of stress. The way parents deal with their

children/child can also be a cause of student’s level of stress whether they feel being

pressured of not. Other cases can be considered, like being overworked by school

activities and having to constantly think about one’s appearance and can’t avoid not

being conscious. As stating the obvious, students undergo stress in having to experience

all these situations which can happen at any moment and cannot be avoided. The study

wished to find the causes of stress amongst students and had found all these as results

indicating their level of stress.

 Chapter 1

THE PROBLEM AND ITS BACKGROUND

Stress is a response to a certainsituation, factors contributing to it can be either

people, objects, places or events. These are outside forces that place unusual demands on

a person’s body or mind. Modern life exposes people to many stressors. Some physical

stressors remain, including natural disasters, illness, and noise. Certain life experiences,

such as the death of a loved one, are major stressors. Day-to-day problems, such as

burning toast, taking rest, or feeling rushed, may also be stressful. People need not

experience events directly to feel stress. Television, newspapers, and other means of mass

communication flood people with information about upsetting occurrences throughout

the world. People can also imagine future misfortunes and regret past failures. Experts

consider modern life particularly stressful for children and families. (Smith E, 2008).

Any situation which causes frustration can also be cause of stress. Everyone have

different skill and capabilities so their style of handling the situations could also differ

and it is same for stress level for each person. It is possible stress level will be different

for two persons which are facing save situations. It depends on which kind of stressors

affects them both. Stress is not an extraordinary thing it is just the part of our daily life.

And even it is good for us if its amount is not too much. It can improve our motivation

and also help us to improve our productivity (Centre 2010). It depends on how we

perceived about stress. It depends how we react against it, it can affect us negatively as

well and if we always react or respond negatively against stress it also could affect our

health and happiness. Our body naturally gives response upon different types of situation
and if the situation is not favorable, it’s dangerous or you feel threatening it alarms us and

it is called anxiety (Robinson 2010). And it may cause an unpleasant feeling about the

situation and it can also have an impact on our performance. It may can decrease our

performance in the same situations in which we have performed better without stress.

Another negative result which stress produce is that, it can make them realize us that

situation is out of our abilities or simply it makes our perception that situation is beyond

our abilities and we can’t handle it (Centre 2010).

Not all stressors affect everyone in the same manner. In a particular situation, one

person may remain quite calm while another person displays many signs of stress. The

difference between the two people may be that the first person feels in control of the

situation and views it as a challenge and is committed to overcome it. The second person

does not feel in control of the situation, is threatened by it, and only wants to avoid

coping with it. Long term effects can be heart diseases, depressions, and migraine

headache. People who are aggressive and who easily get angry are most likely to develop

these problems. Adolescence is generally viewed as a stage where young people

experience rapid growth of their body and mentality to full maturity during 12~25 years

of age (Liu, 2001). In education system, adolescents are those receiving education in

junior high schools, senior high schools, vocational high schools, colleges or universities.

Due to fast physical changes and mental development at this stage, students may

sometimes experience incompatibility of their mental development with their physical

changes or with the social environment and thus suffer from problems arising from

inadequate adaptations. These problems may further cause psychological troubles and

even induce deviant behaviors.

 Student’s academic learning and performances can be affected by many factors

such as gender, age, teaching staff, father/ family’s economic condition, family’s social

status, total study hours, and accommodation of them as hostelries or day scholars

(Pritchard, 1996).

In all levels of schools, deaths caused by self-injury and suicide account for 12% of all

deaths, a ratio slightly smaller than that of traffic accidents (Department of Health,

Executive Yuan, 2006). According to Campus Security Report Center, Ministry of

Education (2009), college students have most reported suicide cases, followed by

senior/vocational high school students and junior high school students.

According to Lazarus & Folkman (1984), stress is a mental or physical

phenomenon formed through one’s cognitive appraisal of the stimulation and is a result

of one’s interaction with the environment. The existence of stress depends on the

existence of the stressor. Feng (1992) and Volpe (2000) defined stressor as anything that

challenges an individual’s adaptability or stimulates an individual’s body or mentality.

Stress can be caused by environmental factors, psychological factors, biological factors,

and social factors. It can be negative or positive to an individual, depending on the

strength and persistence of the stress, the individual’s personality, cognitive appraisal of

the stress, and social support. According to Chang’s Dictionary of Psychology Terms,

stress is “a state of physical or mental tension that causes emotional distress or even

feeling of pains to an individual” (Lai et al., 1996).

Factor Families with constant conflicts are characterized by a lack of parent-child

communication and in-depth understanding of each other’s expectations (Liu and Chen
1997). Totalitarian parents seldom show their care about their children. The control or

punishment they impose will only increase the psychological stress on their children (Liu

and Cheng, 1997).

Chiang (1995) proposed that school is one of the main sources of stress among

adolescents. Such stress comes from too much homework, unsatisfactory academic

performance, preparation for tests, lack of interest in a particular subject, and teacher’s

punishment. Generally, parents are very concerned about their children’s academic

achievement and moral behaviors. Parents expect their children not only to respect

teachers and follow moral norms but also become elite in the future

The educationist Dewey once said “education is a pursuit of a perfect life”.

However, school teachers and parents in Taiwan usually use academic achievement as

the sole criterion for evaluating a student’s performance at school. This criterion causes

double stress on adolescents. Stress from high expectations of teachers, parents, and self

is usually an agony for students studying in schools (Cheng, 1999).

Relationship factor Most adolescents are urgent to develop a relationship with the

opposite sex. As there are no absolute ways for making friends with the opposite sex,

many of them usually do not know what to do when in face of the opposite sex. Besides,

adolescents often suffer stress induced by “a sense of insecurity” when they are dating

someone. They are worried that they may lose their dates and their parents or friends may

have negative views of their dates. Therefore, developing a heterosexual relationship is a

challenge and also a stressor for adolescents (Wang and Ko, 1999).
 With the progress of human civilization and increasing plurality of the society,

people need to play more roles. Therefore, stress is ubiquitous in modern life. Formation

of stress is highly associated with the social environment. Stress arises not only in a

complicated and competitive environment but also in a monotonous and stimulus-less

one (Feng, 1992).

Purpose and Goal

The primary purpose of this study is to determine the perceived stress level of the

respondents and to identify the factors influencing the stress level. Specifically, this study

aimed at fulfilling the following objectives:

1. To determine the stress level of the respondents.

2. To determine the level of personal, family, school, and church factors

influencing the respondents.

3. To test if there is a significant relationship between the respondent’s personal,

family, school and church factors and the level of stress.

4. To find out if there is a significant relationship between the stress levels of the

respondents when gender is considered.

Scope and Limitation

This study focuses on the factors to be considered by the students in dealing with

stress. This study will determine the level of stress depending on personal, family, school

and church factors. This study will no longer discuss other matters of stress and also the

cases and issues involving stress. This study will only focus on Senior High students of

NELAC.
 This study will not focus on adults or anyone that is not stated. Also, below levels

like grade 10 and below will not be included in the study.

Significance of the Study

To the participants. Should the result be significant, this will reinforce the

outcomes of previous studies that will evaluate the factors contributing to stress level of

the respondents. Additional knowledge will hit major changes if ever given a slight

chance of results.

To Health Reformers. If proven significant, this should give an impetus to the

health care professionals to have knowledge on what and what not to be avoided for this

situation. Health promoters will have a background on main cause of patients with same

situations.

For future research. This study will focus on factors influencing stress and the

level of stress to the respondents. Given the circumstances, such information will give

prior knowledge and additional background check for future researchers.

To the teachers.Such knowledge will be useful for future situations in regards to the

students. Teachers will know what to do when situations like these will come up and will

be knowledgeable on what to do.

To the guidance counselor. If proven significant, this study will give incites to the

guidance counselor in regards to situations of future admitted students who are in need of

counseling
 Chapter II

REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE

According to Lazarus & Folkman (1984), stress is a mental or physical

phenomenon formed through one’s cognitive appraisal of the stimulation and is a result

of one’s interaction with the environment. The existence of stress depends on the

existence of the stressor. Feng (1992) and Volpe (2000) defined stressor as anything that

challenges an individual’s adaptability or stimulates an individual’s body or mentality.

Stress can be caused by environmental factors, psychological factors, biological factors,

and social factors. It can be negative or positive to an individual, depending on the

strength and persistence of the stress, the individual’s personality, cognitive appraisal of

the stress, and social support.

According to Chang’s Dictionary of Psychology Terms, stress is “a state of

physical or mental tension that causes emotional distress or even feeling of pains to an

individual” (Lai et al., 1996). Can cope with the stress is very important.

Adolescence is a dangerous period of time where young people experience self-

organization and role confusion. For them, stress mainly comes from academic tests,

interpersonal relations, relationship problems, life changes, and career exploration. Such

stress may usually cause psychological, physical, and behavioral problems. In this study,

factors contributing to stress include family, school, personal, and church.

Personal factors

Adolescents are mostly concerned about their physical appearances than about

other aspects. Many of them are even dissatisfied with their physical appearances (Siegel

and Lane, 1982). Wang and Ko (1999) pointed out that girls feel upset more easily than
boys, mainly because of their concerns about physical appearances. Girls may perceive

themselves as “very ugly”, feel that they are too fat, too short, too high, or dislike their

hair color or skin color. Lan (2003) mentioned that some physiological symptoms such as

headache were signals of a mental overload. Other signals included fatigue, depression,

anxiety, dissatisfaction with certain interpersonal relations, change of the current sleeping

habit, and a drastic gain/loss of body weight. Feng (1992) pointed out that setting high

goals, being a perfectionist, and comparing the self with others, and self-degradation may

all cause stress and result in depression.

Another factor of health related issues creating stress among students is the

nutrition or their diet routines. Research has shown there is a relationship between diet

routine of the student and their academic performance. They say that eating breakfast

affects their active working behavior, their memory and recall ability in positive way and

students eating breakfast gets higher GPA’s in universities (Trockel et al., 2000; Benton

& Sargent, 1992). Though, the effects of diet routines and breakfast routines on

elementary students has received much attention for the research studies, however on the

college and universities couldn’t receive that much. (Benton & Sargent, 1992; Kalman,

1997).

Wolfenden (2011) added that students who don’t have healthy sleeping habits or

don’t get enough sleep at night are more likely to feel stressed than students who get

plenty of sleep, according to the National Sleep Foundation. Sleep allows a student’s

body and brain to recharge, and it helps to keep the immune system strong. Inadequate

amounts of sleep can make a child more aggressive and limit his ability to learn,

concentrate and solve problems. The National Sleep Foundation recommends that young
people sleep 8.5 to 9.25 hours per night, and that they maintain a regular sleep schedule.

According to the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine, poor nutrition and

unhealthy eating habits can increase a student’s stress level,. Foods that can increase

stress levels in students include those that are high in fat, caffeine, sugar and refined

carbohydrates, which is the case with many types of convenience, processed and fast

foods. Examples of stress-inducing foods are sodas, energy drinks, donuts, candy bars,

processed snack foods, white bread, and French fries. A healthy diet that helps to reduce

stress includes foods that are low in fat and high in fiber and complex carbohydrates.

Such foods include fruits, vegetables, whole grains, nuts and lean proteins (Gustafson,

2017).

Family factors

Families with constant conflicts are characterized by a lack of parent-child

communication and in-depth understanding of each other’s. Totalitarian parents seldom

show their care about their children. The control or punishment they impose will only

increase the psychological stress on their children (Liu and Chen, 1997). The most

common causes of stress in family life are finances, work and health. The financial

situation is the cause most often cited for stress in family life. When there are money

problems, people tend to live in a perpetual state of stress. Work may add to family stress

as well. There are plenty of people that feel trapped in dead-end jobs with no opportunity

for advancement. They work long hours, make minimum wage and struggle to pay the

bills. Another factor that causes stress is the lack of job security.
 According to Webster A. (2008), Taking on too many responsibilities is another

major cause of stress in family life. Some people find it difficult to say no. This causes

them to be burdened with more than they can handle.

Health can be a cause of stress, especially as people begin to age or if they have a

particular health condition. Living with ill health can be stressful enough but most people

are as concerned for the financial security of their families as they are their own health.

Parental pressure can lead to high levels of anxiety in students, especially before and

during tests and examinations.Putwain, et al., (2010) conducted a study which showed

that parental pressure was directly associated with test-irrelevantcomponents of thinking

and strong worry.Thesefindings are also supported by Chen (2012) whoshowed that there

exists a positive correlation between perceived parental pressure and students’test

anxiety.However, contrasting results wereshown by Kim and Park (2006) where parental

expectation and pressure positively influenced theirchildren’s academic achievement

among studentsin Korea.

School factors

We can resolute the student’s academic achievements by their performances in

their institutions, their activities and assignments done in classes, presentations they give

and results of their exams (Ong, Bessie, and Cheong, 2009). Research have been conduct

in order to review the relationship among stress and academic performance of students

and it has been found that stress affects the academic performances of students in great

manner (Elliot et al., 2005; Choi, Abbott, Arthur & Hill, 2007). Students complained

about the stress they feel while giving their exams or any competition regarding grades or
in any case when they have so much to study and less time to do it. They say that it really

affects on their performance of work (Carveth, Gesse & Moss, 1996). One study reported

that stress among undergraduate business students is a notably important factor which is

interrelated with poor performance (Bennett, 2003). A research found that student’s

attitude towards the learning of working ethics is related to the academic performance

and achievements (Conard, 2006; Jansen & Bruinsma, 2005).

According to Lewis (2004) his avalanche of stress hinders their progress and

personalities far more than it helps, but many think they have no real alternative. Without

persistently striving toward an unattainable perfection, students find themselves trapped

between success and failure, with no “gray areas” in between. The situation worsens

every year, although there are plenty of things administrators, teachers, parents, and even

the teens themselves can to do promote calmness and balance. Before that, though, they

should understand exactly what’s at stake when it comes to stress and anxiety in the high

school classroom.

In school, according to Chang C. (1996) things are clinically depressed and the

real tragedy lies with how parents and teachers approach the subject. Other people also

believe that high-stake classroom assignments and exams plays a major role in nurturing

anxiety. More low-key assignment, like shooting videos or writing songs prove just as

effective as more route lecture based method. In order to improve communications

between teachers, this strategies include weekends with no assignments would be better

and can improve also the quality of life for students.

Church Factors

Smith (2003, p. 20) Argues that religion can strongly influence the lives of the

young people by increasing their incompetence in skills and knowledge that contribute in

enhancing their well-being and improving their life chances. He instructed such learned

competences in these three factors: Cultural capital elements when helping coordinate a

religious work shop, assisting in a tutoring program to play musical instruments, for

instance, represents a useful capability that can positively affects adolescent’s

opportunity at school (Hernandez, 2008).

Stress Levels

Students are one of the most common victims of stress. Factors such as financial

expenses, over commitment, family expectations, deadlines and workload all induce

stress in students. While a mild amount of stress is very useful and acts as a motivation

for students, too much stress can interfere with their daily lives. When built over time,

stress can give rise to a host of serious problems such as depression and anxiety.

Managing stress in its early stages can help maximize the college/university experience

and opportunities for students.

There are three kinds of common stress triggers students experience:

Social

Social stress puts serious peer pressure on students. Dealing with new

relationships, balancing academic life with social life, living with or without family

members, adjusting to the new environment, all trigger stress in students.

Academic

Strict schedules, deadlines, low grades, challenging classes, exams,

responsibilities, and poor time management all lead to a buildup of academic stress.

Daily life

This stress is associated with issues that are not related to academic or social life.

These can include daily commute, part-time job, financial burdens, and so on.

Gender

This section talks about influence of gender to the stress level of students that

results in physiological and behavioral responses.

Gender is an important determinant of human health, and there is a clear pattern

for the sex-specific prevalence rates of various mental and physical disorders.

Susceptibility to infectious diseases, hypertension, aggressive behavior, and drug abuse is

generally observed to be higher in men. Conditions such as autoimmune diseases, chronic

pain, depression, and anxiety disorders are relatively more prevalent among women. The

observed gender-specific disease pattern may be partly attributed to effects of sex

hormones as some of these gender differences emerge during reproductive years and

gradually diminish after menopause. Individual differences in stress reactivity have been

proposed as a potentially important risk factor for gender-specific health problems in men

and women.

Though they report similar average stress levels, women are more likely than men

to report that their stress levels are on the rise. They are also much more likely than men
to report physical and emotional symptoms of stress. Women are more likely to report

physical and emotional symptoms of stress than men.

Men and women report wide gaps between determining what is important and

how successful they are at achieving those behaviors.

Across the board, men’s and women’s perceptions of their ability to succeed in

areas that are important to their well-being are far out of line with the importance they

place on these behaviors. Even more so than women, men report less likelihood of

success in these areas.

Theoretical framework

Advances in stress research have always been a function of the level of our

knowledge of biochemistry and physiology. Much of what Selye believed and proposed

was not entirely correct. He was unaware of a host of other components that were

subsequently demonstrated to be important instruments in the stress orchestra. His real

legacy can be summed up by what he often reminded me: theories don’t have to be

correct – only facts do. Many theories are of value simply because of their heuristic

value, i.e., they encourage others to discover new facts, which then lead to better theories.

Selye (1970) was the first theorist to link stress with physical disease and ill

health in human beings. This link, however, is not considered to be a direct link, but is

instead affected by other social forces that allow the individual to adapt, or cope, to the

stress. Rooted in the work of Durkheim, the concept of social support is now considered

to be integral to this process (Waltz, 1994). As such, social support plays an important

role in health and illness. Although the exact mechanism of this relationship has yet to be

definitively established, social support has been correlated with increases in well-being,

as well as positive increases in an individual’s immunology (Broadhead et al., 1983;

Leavy, 1983; Mitchell, Billings & Moos, 1982; Pilisuk, 1982; Pilisuk & Froland, 1978).

The Fight or Flight Response

The first stage of the fight or flight response is activation of the sympathetic

nervous system. This causes a system-wide response. Adrenaline and noradrenaline are

released leading to increased alertness. Blood is diverted from the internal organs and the

skin to skeletal muscles. The heart-rate, force of heart contractions, and respiratory rate
are increased. The body begins to convert stored glycogen into glucose. All of these

changes allow the body to exert a large amount of energy over a short period of time so

that the individual may either fight effectively, or run away effectively.One well-known

phenomena which has it’s roots in the fight or flight response is the reporting of people

lifting cars off their loved ones after a car accident. The amount of energy that such a task

demands seems inconceivable to most people, and indeed it would be without the fight or

flight response (David McQuillan, 2008).

Research Paradigm

PERSONAL

FAMILY
STRESS LEVEL
SCHOOL

CHURCH

GENDER
 Chapter III

METHODOLOGY

Research Design

A descriptive correlation design was employed in this study to describe the levels

of stress amongst high school students of Northeast Luzon Adventist College and also to

examine the relationship between those variables.

Population and sampling techniques

The population of this study came from the enrolled grade 11 and 12 students of

Northeast Luzon Adventist College. The sampling technique this study used is purposely

sampling technique where the potential participants are selected according to the

standards such as students in grade 11 and 12. The sample was selected according to

Layman’s Computation of sample size. The sample size needed in this study is 120,

where there is 54% in the grade-11 and 46% in the grade-12 but the researchers gathered

data from 142 respondents.

Layman’s computation of Sample Size:

n X 20 where; n-number of variables

6 X 20=120

Simple Random Sampling

G-11 – 224—54% X 120 = 65
G-12 – 187—46% X 120 = 55

411 100% 120

Table 1: Age

Age
60
50 56.3
40
30
20
20.4 18.3
10
4.2
0
15 16 17 18 above

Percent

The table shows that 80 (56.3%) of the respondents are 17 years old followed by

29 (20.4 %) among the participants with the age of 16.

Table 2: Gender

Frequency

49%
51%

Female Male

Gender distribution is almost equal, with males comprising 51% of the females 49%.
Table 3: Religion

Religion Affilition
60
40
41.5
20 28.9
3.5 2.1 23.9
0
Roman Catholic SDA Methodist Mormon Others

Percent

In terms of religious affliation, 41.5% (59) of the respondents belong to the

seventh-day adventist faith, 28.9% (41) are roman catholics, and the rest belong to

protestant churches such as methodst, mormons, INC, and among others.

Table 4: Strands

Strand

43 45
28 30.3 31.7
19.7 26 18.3

ABM STEM HUMMS TECHVOC

Frequency Percent

In regards to the strands of the senior high department, the highest with a

percentage of 31.7% (45) is the HUMMS strand, followed by a percentage of 30.3% (43)

in the STEM strand and the rest 19.7% in the ABM strand and the least is 18.3% in the

techvoc strand.
Table 5: Year Level

Year Level
75
67
52.8 47.2

GRADE11 GRADE12

Frequency Percent

The table shows that there are 52.8 percent which is equivalent to 75 respondents

who are in Grade 11 and 47.2% of 67 respondents in the Grade 12.

Table 6: Distribution of Respondents

Strand Frequency Percent

Abm 28 19.7

Stem 43 30.3

Humms 45 31.7

TechVoc 26 18.3

Gender
Female 69 48.6

Male 73 51.4

Age
15 6 4.2

16 29 20.4

17 80 56.3
 18 above 26 18.3

Religion Affiliation

Roman
I Catholic 41 28.9

SDA 59 41.5

Methodist 5 3.5

Mormon 3 2.1

Others 34 23.9

TOTAL 142 100.0

i

Instrumentation

Questionnaire is used to identify the level of stress amongst grade 11 and 12

students of NELA College for a short period of time. Grade 11 and 12 answered the

following questions which identified their level of stress.

After the proposal defense, the researchers validate the questionnaire content and its

relevance to the aid of the experts so that the questionnaire be relevant. The questionnaire

is made up of five parts. The first was dealt with the personal data of the participants. The

next four portions of the questionnaire determined the level of stress among grade 11 and

12 students of Northeast Luzon Adventist College.

Data in this research was collected using the provided questionnaires. The

questionnaires were constructed using suitable questions modified from related research

and individual questions formed by the researchers. The study has the sample size of 140

students but the researchers collected data from 142 students. The survey is comprised of

72 items/questions using scales and responses ranging from always (3) sometimes (2) and
never (1), which were related to the factors influencing the stress level of the respondents.

The scale will determine the reactions of the respondents of the statements.

Data Gathering Procedure

Before data was gathered and validated by the expert validators, a letter was first

sent to the principal of the senior high school department for approval for the soon to be

distributed questionnaires for the data gathering of the study.

After the questionnaire was validated by the expert validators, the questionnaires were

then distributed by the researchers to the selected senior high school students. The

distribution was based on the simple Random sampling that the researchers used. The

researchers listed the names of the students per section which were all senior high

sections composed of the STEM A, B-11, STEM A, B-12, ABM-11, ABM-12, HUMMS

A, B -11. HUMMS-12, TECHVOC 11 AND 12. After which, names that were listed

were counted to three, by which all names in the 3 rd count were selected for the preferred

respondents of the study, which what is meant by simple random sampling. On the

questionnaires of the researchers, preferred answers were encoded for the selection of the

respondents which were: Always (3), Sometimes (2), and Never (1).

The collected questionnaires and raw data were checked and analyzed through

encoding the gathered data that the respondents answered. The researchers then cleaned

the data and analyzed using statistical package for social science (SPSS).

The data collected as determined by the scoring code as presented below.

Table 7: Scoring and Interpretation System for Positive Questions

Scale Verbal interpretation

0.00-0.33 1(Never) High

0.34-0.66 2(Sometimes) Average

0.66 above 3(Always) Low

Table 8: Scoring and Interpretation System for Negative Questions

Scale Verbal interpretation

0.00-0.33 1(Never) Low

0.34-0.66 2(Sometimes) Average

0.66 above 3(Always) High

The over-all mean was analyzed using the SPSS of the study with the computed

mean of each of the questions. In regards with the scoring system, 1= Never, 2=

Sometimes and 3= Always. So the higher the result, the higher the relationship of the

factor to the stress levels of the respondents.

 Statistical Treatment:

The Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS) for Windows was used to

analyze the data gathered from the population that the researchers surveyed. The

statistical treatment used to answers the research questions are the following.

1. Descriptive analyses in the form of frequency counts along with the percentage to

describe the personal profile of the participants from the population surveyed such as

strand, gender, age and religious affliction. The mean and standard deviation was used to

determine the extent of influence of the factors and the stress level of the respondents.

2. The population surveyed from the data resulted in the evaluation and the analyzed

result through the use of the mean and standard deviation.

3. The p-value was used to analyze the impact towards the personal, family, school,

and church factors. If p-value is at .05 or lower than .05 as the level of probability, this

means that the difference between the baseline and the endline scores of the population

survey is significant. If the p-value is higher than .05 level, this means that the difference

on the change that happens between the baseline and the endline score of the population

is not significant.
 Chapter IV

RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

This chapter shows and discusses the results of the study based on the statistical

result computed starting from the respondents’ profile, personal, family, school and

church factors, and its influence on the level of stress.

Table 9: The Influence of Personal Factors to the respondents

Personal Factors Mean SD Verbal

interpretation

I get plenty of sleep at night 1.93 .424 Average

I eat stress-inducing foods such as sodas, 1.87 .494 Average
energy drinks, candy bars, snack foods and
French fries

I feel dissatisfied with my appearance 3.04 .588 Average

I often compare myself to others 1.97 .583 Average

I often feel down and depressed 2.00 .533 Average

I talk to people often 1.81 .618 Average

I find myself a perfectionist 2.25 .632 Average

I find myself incapable in meeting 2.09 .545 Average

challenges of life
I do not have enough hours in the day to do 1.94 .522 Average
all the things that I must do.

I deny or ignore problems in the hope that 2.03 .570 Average

they will go away.
I underestimate how long it takes to do 1.89 .515 Average
things
I feel that there are too many deadlines in 1.85 .532 Average
my work / life that are difficult to meet

My self-confidence / self-esteem are lower 1.93 .615 Average

than I would like it to be
I have guilt feelings if I relax and do 1.95 .510 Average
nothing

I find myself thinking about problems even 1.54 .541 Average

when I am supposed to be relaxing

I have a desire to binge 2.07 .579 Average

I consider myself: ugly 2.15 .677 High

: Too fat 2.24 .724 High

: Too short 2.24 .724 High

I have a loss of appetite/may skip meals 2.05 .524 Average

I am unable to perform tasks as well as I 1.95 .510 Average

used to

Over-all 1.9939 .28261 Low

The researchers found positive results wherein the respondents have an average

level of stress in regards to eating stress inducing foods such as sodas, energy drinks,

candy bars, snack foods and French fries, in feeling dissatisfied with their physical

appearances, comparing themselves to others, feel down and depressed, finding

themselves a perfectionist, finding themselves incapable in meeting challenges of life,

having enough hours in the day to do all the things that they must do, denying or ignoring

problems in the hope that they will go away, sometimes underestimate how long it takes

to do things, feeling that there are too many deadlines in their work / life that are difficult

to meet, their self-esteem aren’t lower that what they would like it to be, having guilt
feelings if they relax and do nothing, finding themselves thinking about problems even

when they are supposed to be relaxing, having a desire to binge, having a loss of appetite,

and is un-able able to perform tasks as well as they used to, getting plenty of sleep at

night, and also talking to people often,

Nevertheless, the researchers also found negative results wherein the respondents

have a high level of stress in regards to considering themselves too ugly, too fat, and too

short.

Based on the researches before, adolescents are mostly concerned about their

physical appearances than about other aspects. Many of them are even dissatisfied with

their physical appearances (Siegel and Lane, 1982). And based on our study, the

researchers found that the respondents feel dissatisfied with their appearance. However as

shown on the table, the respondents always consider themselves ugly, too fat and too

short. It was proven by Wang and Ko (1999) that girls may perceive themselves as “very

ugly”, feel that they are too fat, too short, too high, or dislike their hair color or skin

color.

Feng (1992) pointed out that setting high goals, being a perfectionist, and

comparing the self with others, and self-degradation may all cause stress and result in

depression however the findings was that they sometimes found themselves perfectionist.

According to Lan (2003) others signs like fatigue, depression, anxiety, dissatisfaction

with certain interpersonal relations, change of the current sleeping habit, and a drastic

gain/loss of body weight but the respondents sometimes feel down and depressed, and

sometimes get plenty of sleep at night.

Table 9: The Influence of Family Factors to the respondents

Family Factors Mean SD Verbal

Interpretation

My family helps me avoid stress 1.81 .641 Average

My family is a main contributor to my stress 2.17 .684 High

I feel pressured by my parents regarding 2.08 .664 Average
academic performances

My parents have high expectations from me 1.75 .668 High

My parents often support me 1.67 .712 Low

I have conflicts with one of my family 2.15 .697 High
members

I tell my parents my problems 2.03 .652 Average

I can freely talk to my parents about things 1.79 .703 Low
that stresses me like: financial problem
I can freely talk to my parents about things 1.92 .769 Low
that stresses me like: conflicts or
relationship issues

My parents care about my: education 1.32 .553 Average

My parents care about my: need 1.30 .519 Average

My parents care about my: safety 1.34 .618 Average

My parents worry about my involvement 1.58 .802 Low
with: drugs
My parents worry about my involvement 1.58 .783 Low
with: alcohol

My parents worry about my involvement 1.61 .832 Low

with: cigarette
My parents worry about my involvement 1.70 .825 Low
with: opposite sex

My parents worry about my involvement 1.65 .783 Low

with: bad company or friends
Over-all 1.7320 .35513 Average
 As shown in the table above, the respondents showed positive results on the

family factors influencing their stress level. The respondents have a low level of stress in

regards to their parents supporting them, freely talking to their parents about things that

stresses them like financial problems, conflicts or relationship issues, parents worrying

about their involvement with drugs, alcohol, cigarette, opposite sex, and bad company or

friends.

The respondents also have an average level of stress in regards to family helping

them avoid stress, telling their parents their problems, parents caring about their

educations, need, and safety, and feeling pressured by their parents regarding academic

performances.

However, the respondents show a high level of stress in regards to their family

always contributing to their stress, have high expectation from them, and always have

conflicts with one of their family members.

The respondents can always freely talk to their parents regarding conflicts or

relationship issues that was supported by Liu and Chen (1997) that families with constant

conflicts are characterized by a lack of parent-child communication and in-depth

understanding of each other’s. This means that the parents of the respondents have good

parent-child communication.
Table 10: The Influence of Church Factors to the respondents

Church Factors Mean SD Verbal

Interpretation

The following church factors stress me: 2.39 .694 High

Listening to sermons

Participating in church activities 2.36 .728 High

Attending church service 2.37 1.835 High

I feel refreshed after attending church. 1.58 .788 Low

Church members talked to me when I have 2.01 .720 Low
problems.
My religion strongly influenced my 1.82 .680 Low
competence in managing stress

Church pastors or leaders comfort me when 2.01 .700 Low

I have problems.

Church activities relieve me from stress. 1.66 .651 Average

I enjoy going to church. 1.55 .648 Average

Church expectations contribute to my stress. 2.13 .723 High

Over all 1.9866 .45214 Average

Based on the data collected as shown in the table, the researcher found positive

results wherein the respondents have a low level of stress in regards to feeling refreshed

after attending church, church members talking to them when they have problems,

religion stongly influencing their compitencies in managing stress, and church pastors or

leaders comforting them when they have problems.

The respondents also show an average level of stress in regards to church

activities releaving them from stress, and enjoying going to church. However, the
researchers also found negative results wherein the respondents show a high level of

stress in regards to listening to sermons, participating in church activities, attending

church services, and church erxpectations from them.

Smith (2003), argues that religion cant strongly influence the lives of the young

people by increasing their incompetence in skills and knowledge that contribute in

enhancing their well-being and improving their life chances which matches the finding of

this study that the respondents sometimes are influenced by their religion in their

competence in managing stress, however, church activities never relieve them from stress

and they never enjoy going to church.

Table 11: The Influence of School Factors to the respondents

School Factors Mean SD Verbal

Interpretation

I feel intimidated by my teachers 2.06 .502 Average

I sleep late at night due to multiple 1.90 .510 Average
homework
I accept extracurricular activities that lead to 2.07 .626 Average
a major cause of stress in life

I work too much in group projects 1.88 .498 Average

I am being bullied by my classmates 2.27 1.706 High

The school environment stresses me 2.21 .639 Average

like:buildings
The school environment stresses me 1.99 .565 Average
like:teachers
The school environment stresses me 1.96 .538 Average
like:students

I feel anxious or frightened about school 1.85 .618 Average

problems I can’t really describe
like:additional payments

I feel anxious or frightened about school 1.83 .558 Average

problems I can’t really describe like:excess
projects

Over-all 2.0035 .34996

Based on the data collected as shown in the table, the researchers found positive

findings regarding school factors. The respondents show an average level of stress in

regards feeling intimidated by their teachers, sleeping late at night due to multiple

homework, accepting extra curicullar activities that lead to a major cause of stress in life,

working too much on group projects, school environments like buildings, teachers and

students, feeling anxious or frightened about school probelems like additional payments,

and excess projects.

The researchers only found one negative finding under school factor wherein the

respondents said that they are being bullied by their classmates that causes stress in life. It

shows that the respondents have a high level of stress regarding this.

Chiang (1995) proposed that school is one of the main sources of stress among

adolescents. Such stress comes from too much homework, unsatisfactory academic

performance, preparation for tests, lack of interest in a particular subject, and teacher’s

punishment though the respondents stated that they do not feel stressed regarding these

issues. Though according to our study, students aren’t stressed with school and says that

the only stress contributing factor in school is when they are being bullied.
Table 12: The Influence of Stress Level on Personal Indicator

Physical Indicator Mean SD Verbal

interpretation

I get severe or chronic headaches. 2.01 .545 Average

I get tension or muscle spasms in my face, 2.11 .547 Average

jaw, neck or shoulders.

My stomach aches or feels upset. 2.13 .594 Average

I have problems with my bowels 2.40 .608 Average

(constipation, diarrhea).
I feel short of breath after mild exercise like 2.11 .681 High
climbing up four flights of stairs.

Over-all 2.1549 .41077

As shown in the table, the researchers found an average level of stress in the

respondents in regards to getting severe or chronic headaches, getting tension or muscle

spasms in their face, jaw, neck or shoulder, having stomachaches or feel upset, and

having problems with their bowels (constipation, diarrhea). However the respondents

show a high level of stress in regards to feeling short of breath after mild exercise like

climbing up four heights of stairs.

According to Psychological Stress and the Human Immune System: A Meta-

Analytic Study of 30 years of Inquiry, health can be a cause of stress, especially if they

have a particular health condition. Living with ill health can be stressful enough but

according to the data collected, the respondents never get physical indicators of stress

such as what is shown in the table above.

Table 13: The Influence of Stress Level on Behavioral Indicator

Behavioral Indicator Mean SD Verbal

interpretation

I try to work while I'm eating lunch. 2.25 .646 Average

I drink alcohol or use drugs to relax. 2.52 .616 Average

After dinner I spend more time alone or 2.13 .629 Average

watching TV than I do talking with my
family or friends

At least once during the week I have a 2.37 .601 Average

shouting match with a student or a teacher.
I tend to stumble when walking, or have 2.37 .613 Average
more accidents than other people.

Over-all 2.3268 .41836 Average

As shown on the table, the researchers found an average level of stress among the

respondents in regards to working while eating or during their lunch, drinking alcohol or

use drugs to relax, spending more time alone or watching TV instead they prefer to talk

with their family or friends, instead they prefer to talk with their family or friends,

experiencing a shouting match with a student or a teacher at least once during the week,

and having to tend to stumble when walking, or have more accidents than other people.

According to Cheng, C. S. (1999) social stress puts serious peer pressure on

students. Dealing with new relationships, balancing academic life with social life, living

with or without family members, all trigger stress in students, while the researchers found

out that they never spend their time alone instead they do band with their family and

friends.
Table 14: The Influence of Stress Level on Emotional Indicators

Emotional Indicator Mean SD Verbal

Interpretation

I have found the best way to deal with 1.99 .484 Average
hassles and problems is to consciously avoid
thinking or talking about them.

I have trouble remembering things. 1.93 .579 Average

It is important for me not to show my 1.90 .611 Average

emotions to me to my family.

It is hard for me to relax at home. 2.19 .618 Average

I have temper outbursts I can't control. 2.05 .623 Average

Over-all 2.0127 .37452 Average

According on the table, the researchers found an average level of stress in regards

to having the best way to deal with hassles, having trouble remembering things,

important for them not to show their emotions to their family, hard for them relaxing at

home, and having temper outburst they can’t control.

According to the study, Feng, G. F. (1992) managing stress in its early stages can

help maximize the college or university experience and opportunities for students while

according to the answers of the respondents they never found the best way to deal with

hassles and how to forget their problems.

Table 15: Relationship between Personal, Family, School and Church Factors and

Stress Level

Factors r p-value Verbal Interpretation

Personal .573** .000 Significant

Family .214* .010 Significant

School .500** .000 Significant

Church .301** .000 Significant

Results show about a significant relationship between personal factors exist with

an r= .573 and p-value of .000. the direction of the relationship is positive, indicating that

the higher the influence of personal factor, the higher the level of stress experienced by

the respondents. This implies that those students who are conscious about their physical

appearance, eat plenty of stress inducing foods, often feel down and depressed, and do

not get plenty of sleep are the respondents with the higher level of stress.

Thus, a significant relationship between family factors and stress also exist with

an r= .214 and p-value of .010. The direction of the relationship is positive, also

indicating that the higher the influence of the family factors, the higher the level of stress

experienced by the respondents. This means that students whose families are a main

contributor of their stress, who feel pressured by their parents regarding academic

performances, whose parents have high expectations on them, and have conflicts with

one of their family members are the respondents with a higher level of stress.

Regarding school factors, the results shows also a significant relationship between

factors and stress with an r= .500 and p-value of .000, meaning the relation is also
positive, indicating the higher the influence of the school factors, the higher the level of

stress experienced by the respondents which implies that those students who feel

intimidated by their teachers, sleep late at night due to multiple home-works, work too

much in group projects, and feel anxious or frightened about school problems like excess

projects are also respondents with a higher level of stress. In regards with the last, results

have shown that there is a significant relationship between church factors and stress with

an r= .301 and p-value of .000 which means that the relation is positive, indicating that

the higher the influence of the church factors, the higher the level of stress experienced

by the respondents, this implies that those students who feel stressed listening to sermons

and with church expectations are respondents with a higher level of stress.
 Chapter V

SUMMARY, CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS

This chapter presents the summary of the research, major findings, conclusions,

and recommendations.

Summary

The personal profiles of the respondents in terms of age, gender, religious

affiliation, and strand; 51.4% of them are male with 48.6% female. 56.3% are of the age

17, 20.4% are 16 and the rest are 15 of age.

Most of the respondents are SDA with a percentage of 41.5%, 28.9% of Roman

Catholic and the rest with the different religions. Statistics shows that the stress

contributing factors weighted a mean which is interpreted as significant. In personal

factor which its mean is .000, the family factor with a mean of .010, school and church

factor with a mean of .000 which by stated that all factors presenting an interpretation

significant.

Conclusions

The results show that Personal, Family, School and Church factors Influence the

Stress Level of the Senior High School Students significantly based on the findings.

Respondents are not stressed due to personal reasons but are sometimes proven to be

insecure in regards with appearances.

 The Grade 11 and 12 students, as proven in the data, have problems in regards

with family factor. Students have said that their families are always the main contributor

to their stress.

Also, students are proven to be stress free in school factors, specifically school

activities and the school environment though have a high level of stress in regards to

bullying. Data shows that in regards to the church factors, the students are proven to have

a high level of stress.

Recommendations

Based on the result of this study, the following recommendations are given.

To Parents, you must establish a good and better relationship with your family

members especially the children. In doing so, you can learn many techniques on how to

train your child by reading and studying the bible and giving them a stress free home.

To Students, you must also have a good relationship with your family and friends.

You must have good behaviors to all the people around you. A healthy lifestyle is “a

must” in order to lessen the level of stress caused by lots of situations. An equal amount

of sleep can also be helpful in order to lessen stress. Also, students must always

remember that going to church, attending them and participating in church activities is a

blessing wherein you get to serve God.

To teachers, help students who are being bullied and try to talk and encourage

bullies to avoid bullying.