STRESS AND FILIPINOS

Culture can affect stress and coping process

in four ways (Aldwin, 2007):

1. Cultural context shapes the kind of stressor

that an individual is likely to experience. For
example, Europeans find crowded places stressful
because they crave privacy, while Filipinos are
delighted to see a crowd.
Culture can affect stress and coping process
in four ways (Aldwin, 2007):

2. Culture may also affect the appraisal of a

certain event. For instance, “noise” is stressful.
But what kind of noise? Some people find the
Philippine streets – with all the honking,
peddling, and shouting – noisy. Yet, they have no
problem listening to their songs on high volume.
Culture can affect stress and coping process
in four ways (Aldwin, 2007):

3. Culture affects an individual’s coping

strategies.
4. Culture provides different time-honored
tools/mechanisms by which an individual can
cope with stress.
Filipino Traits and
Values
 FILIPINO WHY IT IS NEGATIVE IN WHY IT IS POSITIVE IN
TRAITS AND WESTERN CONCEPT ORIENTAL CONCEPT
VALUES
Hiya It stops one from taking action. It contributes to peace of mind.

It makes the person weak, timid, Not trying to achieve makes for a
and meek. less harried and stressful life.
Ningas cogon It makes a person an This trait makes for a peaceful and
underachiever because he/she tranquil life because one is
cannot persevere in seeing things unruffled should things go wrong.
(i.e., projects, tasks, or goals) to
its fruition.

Being detached allows the person to

move on to some other activities
without feeling like an absolute
failure.
 FILIPINO WHY IT IS NEGATIVE IN
TRAITS AND WESTERN CONCEPT
VALUES
Pakikisama Filipinos are said to turn a blind
eye to the wrongdoing of others
for the sake of personal
relationships (i.e., family,
friendship, coworker)
Patigasan It is about being stubborn and
resisting reconciliation.
One stands his or her ground (on
issues) and wait for the other
party to take the first step at
reconciliation.
WHY IT IS POSITIVE IN
ORIENTAL CONCEPT
In the Filipino context, pakikisam
means keeping a polite distance
from other people’s lives with
whom we share the same space
with to maintain peace and
harmony.
A trait that makes us stand for what
is right and refuse to be intimidated
or forced to submission.
 FILIPINO WHY IT IS NEGATIVE IN WHY IT IS POSITIVE IN
TRAITS AND WESTERN CONCEPT ORIENTAL CONCEPT
VALUES
Bahala na It leaves everything to chance with Putting faith on a Higher Being
the help of a divine power. develops humility and gratefulness.

The idea that he or she is not alone in

Kasi Disowns responsibility
Puts blame on others (people,
things, circumstance)
the struggle strengthens the Filipino
psyche.
Does not become overly stressed for
failing.
Failure is not personal because there
are other factors, not just “me”.

Will not stress out because of guilt

feelings or self-recrimination.
 FILIPINO WHY IT IS NEGATIVE IN WHY IT IS POSITIVE IN
TRAITS AND WESTERN CONCEPT ORIENTAL CONCEPT
VALUES
Saving face This is closely related to “hiya” and It promotes mental therapy because it
it encourages shirking from allows the person to keep his/her
responsibility. dignity.
Sakop Never learns to be independent Promotes unity, especially in the family

Relies on family and relatives Provides a sense of belongingness and

Prevents personal growth
Encourages partisanship
Bukas na (Manana Promotes laziness
habit)
Will not act when a problem is still
small, thinking that it will go away
by itself.
security
Filipinos know how to keep things in
stride rather than be stressed or tensed
One learns to go with the flow and take
what comes naturally.
 FILIPINO WHY IT IS NEGATIVE IN WHY IT IS POSITIVE IN
TRAITS AND WESTERN CONCEPT ORIENTAL CONCEPT
VALUES
Utang na loob It makes the person overlook moral This trait personifies the Filipino
principles because he or she is sayIng,
beholden to those who gave him/her
a favor “Ang hindi marunog lumingon sa
pinanggalingan ay hindi makakarating
sa kayang patutunguhan.”
Kanya kanya Seen as selfish with no regard for This trait is still in a collective context.
the world’s well-being Kanya-kanya means I take care of my
own (i.e., those that re important to
me); you take care of yours. Family is
central to the Filipino psyche; thus, the
family is always given first priority
before the self and everyone else.
The sources of social stress include (but not
limited to):

Problems with work or earning an income;

Parenting;
Education;
Sex and socialization;
Immigration status or language;
Personal, physical, and psychological health;
Peer pressure; and
Social marginalization.
Three primary types of suicide (Durheim,
translated 1951):

Egoistic suicide – occurs when a person feels he or

she is not accepted by or does not belong to society.
The social bond is weak.
Altruistic suicide – occurs when a person ends his
or hers life for others.
Anomic suicide – is linked to disillusionment and
disappointment.
Anomie – was a concept Durkheim developed to
describe a state where social and/or moral norms were
confused, unclear, or simply not present.

Two major types of stressors (Aneshensel, 1992)

Life events – important, specific experiences that
interrupt an individual’s usual activity/routine that
he/she needs to adjust to.
Chronic strains– problems that have been
occurring for some time; the person’s social role is
strained or threatened.
Common type of role strains (Copelton, 2000)
Role overload. The role demands on an individual
exceeds his or her capacity to handle.
Interpersonal Conflicts within Role Sets.
These are problems and difficulties that arise in
relationship.
Inter-role Conflict. The demands of two or more
roles held by one person are incompatible, and the
demands cannot simultaneously be met.
Role Restructuring. Long-established patterns
undergo considerable change and the person needs
to adapt/adjust.
Symbolic interactionism is a sociological perspective
that focuses on the language and symbols to help give
meaning to life experiences. Symbolic interactionists
notice that as a person, you interact with the world and
you change your behavior based on the meaning you in
your social interactions. You spend time thinking about
what to do next and adjust your approach depending on
how you believe others see you. It is your belief in how
others perceive the events or in how they see you that will
stress you out (Sands, 2014).
Three basic objectives of coping (Weiss and
Lonnquist, 2015):

Eliminate or modify the stressful situation so that it

will not be a continuing problem.

Control the meaning of the problem, by "cognitively

neutralizing" the situation.

Control the stress created by the situation (e.g.,

through stress-management techniques).
The Role of Social Class, Race, and Gender in
Social Stress
Social Class
Those who are in the lower social class have higher
mental and emotional stress man those who are affluent.
Three common factors are:
Inadequate financial resources,
Greater use of ineffective coping strategies; and
Less access to social support.
The Role of Social Class, Race, and Gender in Social
Stress

Race

Research shows that responses to stress vary, and the person's

ethnicity is relevant to his/her stress response. Ronald Kessler and
Harold Neighbors (1986) found out that even when social class is
controlled, race continues to be an important predictor of distress. Their
study showed that African American women still feel more stressed
compared with European American females of the same social class.
However, African American women also have more access to social
support than European American females. This may help explain the
pattern that even though African Americans often ONDO experience
higher levels of stress than white American females, they have lower
levels of mental disorder.
The Role of Social Class, Race, and Gender in
Social Stress
Gender

Women were found to have higher rates of psychological

distress and depression compared to men. According to
Rosenfield (1999), this is evidenced across cultures, over time,
in different age groups, in rural as well as urban areas, and in
treated as well as untreated populations.“
The Role of Social Class, Race, and Gender in
Social Stress
Gender

Possible causes for the high disparity between women and

men are:
Women tend to be delegated to the caregiver role more than
men.
Women are more inclined to be emotionally involved in the
lives of the people around them.
The Role of Social Class, Race, and Gender in
Social Stress
Gender

3. Women introject rather than express anger. Introjection is a

person's ability to a person's ability to C the expectations and
projections of others (communicated nonverbally or verbally,
covertly or overtly) and take these as the person's own.

4. Continuing power differences between women and men in

society.
How culture affects a person's experience to stress
• The type of stressor to which a person may likely be exposed
• How a stressor will be perceived
• Coping mechanisms available to deal with stress

Coping Mechanisms
Some of the ways that cultures differ in the way they
make available different coping mechanisms to their members
are:
Beliefs that allow them to make sense of stressors,
Beliefs about how stressors should be coped with, and
The availability of social support.