CHAPTER 3

Results and Discussion

This section presents the results that were generated from the data gathered. It
is sequenced based on the objectives of the study, as shown in the first chapter.

Profile of the Respondents

Presented in Table 1 is the summary of the frequency and percentage of respondent’s

distribution according to the identified profile in the statement of the problem.

Table 1. Profile of the respondents according to gender

Respondents Frequency Percentage

Male 12 13.30%
Female 78 86.70%

In this study, the researchers were able to gather responses from 90 Social Work
students from Holy Cross of Davao College wherein 12 are identified as male and 78
students are identified as female. In terms of gender, the majority of the Social Work
Students of HCDC are female. This is because there are less enrolled male students
this year making the female students to be greater in number.

Table 2. Profile of the respondents according year level

Respondents Frequency Percentage

First Year 31 31.40%

Second Year 25 27.80%
Third Year 34 37.80%

In this study, the researchers were able to gather responses from 90 Social Work
students from Holy Cross of Davao College. There are 31 respondents from 1st year,
25 respondents from 2nd year and 3rd year has tallied 34 responses.

Supposedly, the researchers suggested having at least 135 students, however,

this study only gathered 90 respondents because some students don’t have internet
access or offline students. Some also ignored the researchers’ messages since it's
already the end of class and are not willing to participate in this study.

Level of Respondent’s Knowledge towards Ageing

Presented in Table 3 is the summary of the mean and the level of knowledge among
social work students in Holy Cross of Davao College towards ageing in terms of
physical facts, mental facts, and social facts.

Table 3. Level of Respondent’s Knowledge towards Ageing

Respondents knowledge Mean Description

towards ageing
A. Physical Facts
1. Ageing tends to experience 4.03 Agree
loss of muscle tissue.
2. Ageing may diminish to see 4.12 Agree
close objects.
3. Ageing leads skin becomes 4.13 Agree
thinner and less elastic.
4. All five senses tend to 4.19 Agree
decline with age.
5. Most of old people lose interest 3.87 Agree
in and capacity for sexual relations.
6. Aged people might experience severe 4.47 Highly Agree
body pain after a strenuous activity.
7. Ageing can cause height loss 3.87 Agree
for about half an inch.
Overall 4.1 Agree

B. Mental Facts
1. Aged tends to act like a child. 4.07 Agree
2. Majority of old people are bored. 3.75 Agree
3. Aged people have more trouble 3.7 Agree
sleeping than younger adults.
4. Aged tends to experience 4.48 Highly Agree
memory loss.
5. Aged people easily get mad. 4.21 Highly Agree
6. Aged people are irritable to discuss 4.04 Agree
that on topics that they considered taboo.
7. Most of the aged people tend to 3.89 Agree
rehash their ideas.
Overall 4.02 Agree
C. Social Facts
1. Aged people are less sociable. 3.6 Neither/Nor Agree
2. Aged people need utmost respect. 4.47 Highly Agree
3. Aged people are considered in 4.3 Highly Agree
various circumstances.
4. Elders demand patience and 4.52 Highly Agree
understanding from other people.
5. Older people are much happier 3.62 Agree
if they can disengage from society.
6. Most of aged people prefer to 4.61 Highly Agree
be with their family for care.
7. Aged people usually do routine 4.1 Agree
In engaging other people.
Overall 4.17 Agree

Level of Respondents Knowledge Towards Aging 4.09 AGREE

Table 3 as shown above presents the 4.1 mean score on physical facts, 4.02

mean score on mental facts and 4.17 mean score on social facts. The overall mean

score of the 3 indicators is 4.09.

As indicated on the result, the highest of all the indicators is social facts which

garnered a 4.17 mean score of the responses. This signifies that the respondents are

familiar that aged people are less sociable and that most of them prefer to be with their

family for care. This also shows that the respondents are aware that elders demand

patience and understanding from other people. In support of the statement of Hub

Pages (2012) that an elderly person might also want to remain in their home for as long

as possible, to be within their own surroundings and maintain as much of their own. He

said that a person can become extremely frustrated when they can’t do something, and

this can cause them to become low in mood. Being able to do everything and then
suddenly noticing that you struggle with tasks you consider to be easy is very hard, and

it can dent confidence levels to an extreme level.

The second highest is mental facts. This indicator garnered a mean score of

4.02, which described as agree which means that the respondents have a high

knowledge on ageing. This suggests that the respondents are convinced that ageing

tends to experience memory loss, aged people are short tempered and tend to rehash

their ideas which is true. According to Singh and Sabharwal (2017), the effect of normal

ageing on memory may result from the subtly changing environment within the brain. It

suggests that anger, far more than sadness, is linked to negative effects on older

people potentially by contributing to inflammation and chronic disease. However, it

reminds us that emotions have physiological effects, such as raising the level of cortisol

in our bloodstream and can affect our health. It shows that high levels of anger is

associated with poor health in older people.

Lastly, based on the results shown above, the respondents are aware of the

physical facts that are aligned with aging with a mean score of 4.1. This can be

supported by the study of Amarya (2017) which claims that the functionality of the

human body deteriorates with age that is clearly visible in the physical appearance of a

person. The emergence of health concerns with regards to the five senses are

undeniable. Commonly, these may include problems relating to the vision and hearing

of the older people. As people grow older, the muscle tissues weaken making the

elderly prone to experiencing severe body pain after any activity. With all of these, this

means that the various changes in the physical aspect of the aged people requires

greater attention for healthcare and personal care help.

 In total, the table 3 presents that the overall indicators were noted to have 4.09

as a total mean score which means that the respondents have a high knowledge

towards aging. Although the result shows that Social Work students have high

knowledge towards ageing it is still important that continuous education as to what

ageing really is all about must be manifested. It is because as indicated in the result the

highest level should be a mean score of 5 in equivalent to the interpretation

respondents having a very high knowledge towards ageing. Maybe some of the

respondents are not well knowledgeable in some of the aspects or facts towards

ageing.

Table 4. Test of Difference in the Respondents’ Level of Knowledge towards Ageing

according to gender
PHYSICAL FACTS
GROUP MEAN STD. P-VALUE DECISION
DEVIATION
Female 4.13 0.56 0.42 ACCEPT Ho
Male 3.89 0.91
MENTAL FACTS
Female 4.03 0.56 0.74 ACCEPT Ho
Male 3.96 0.66
SOCIAL FACTS
Female 4.2 0.47 0.36 ACCEPT Ho
Male 3.97 0.81

The table above shows that the researchers will accept the null hypothesis since
the p-value presents that there is no significant difference between the gender and the
level of knowledge towards aging of the respondents. This means that the gender of the
respondents do not affect their knowledge towards aging.

This current study agrees with the study conducted by Ginschel (2000) about the
Education on Old Age and Ageing in School which stated that there is no significant
difference between the students’ gender and their views and perceptions towards the
aging process.

Table 5.Test of Difference in the Respondents’ Level of Knowledge towards Ageing

according to year level
PHYSICAL FACTS
GROUP MEAN STD. P-VALUE DECISION
DEVIATION
First Year 4.10 0.51 0.80 ACCEPT Ho
Second Year 4.12 0.55

Third Year 0.06 0.74

MENTAL FACTS
First Year 3.85 0.57 0.08 ACCEPT Ho
Second Year 4.19 0.53
Third Year 4.05 0.60
SOCIAL FACTS
First Year 4.12 0.49 0.51 ACCEPT Ho
Second Year 4.28 0.55
Third Year 4.15 0.57

For the test of difference according to year level, the figures in the table presented above
shows that the researchers will accept the null hypothesis since the p-value reveals that there is
no significant difference between the respondents’ level of knowledge towards ageing according
to the different year levels.
The results can be supported by the claims of the National Institute on Aging (2014)
which states that the knowledge on aging is innate in every person. Aging is a concept that is
already implicit in the minds of humanity at a young age. There already exist various
perceptions with regards to aging. These perceptions change as time passes and it is molded
with the different experiences as people age. Investigation into well-being in later life has gained
momentum in recent years. Many studies have emerged aligned with aging as it is inevitable in
the lives of the people. These successful researches paved the way for the awareness and the
spread of knowledge about aging in any age and status across the world.

Overall, the results signifies that there is no significant difference between the profile of
the respondents towards their level of knowledge on aging. The researchers find it appropriate
to know what are their views towards aging knowing that in the near future they will be
Registered Social Workers and will be dwelling with different king=ds of people with different
attitudes, behaviors and personalities. According to the World Health Organization, aging is a
course of biological reality which starts at conception with death. It has its own dynamics, much
beyond human control. However, this process of aging is also subject to the constructions by
which each society makes sense of old age. The researchers would like to put emphasis on
how important people should be knowledgeable about aging as elderly face various problems
and require a multisectoral approach involving inputs from various disciplines of health,
psychology, nutrition, sociological and social sciences.