COMMON INSECURITIES OF TEENAGERS (SAMPLE ONLY) 1

TRECE MARTIRES CITY SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL

COMMON INSECURITIES OF TEENAGERS AND THE PROCESSES THESE YOUNG

ADULTS DO TO OVERCOME THEM

This study aims to explore the common insecurities faced by senior high school

students and the things they do to cope and overcome them.

Specifically, this works on the following:

1. What are the common insecurities of senior high school students?

2. What do students normally do at the moment they experience such insecurity?

3. How do students overcome the feeling of being insecure?

COMMON INSECURITIES OF TEENAGERS (SAMPLE ONLY) 2

TRECE MARTIRES CITY SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL

Chapter 3

METHODOLOGY

Research Design

This empirical study is a qualitative approach to explore a certain phenomenon that

is why a phenomenological design is most appropriate for this. As defined by Smith (2003),

this design is “the study of structures of consciousness as experienced from the first person

point of view (p. 11). The consciousness refers to the perceptions of the informants based

on their first-hand experience of a phenomenon—in this case, of insecurity. This pertains to

the actual lived experience of the informants which is essential for a phenomenological

study to succeed (Manen & Adams, 2010). In this light, the researchers are curious to find

out the common insecurities teenagers face, the at-the-moment coping mechanism, and

their practices to overcome the feeling.

Research Locale

The setting of the study is a public standalone senior high school in Cavite where

more than 2,000 students are enrolled. A standalone senior high school only has Grades

11 and 12 in its population which is perfect for the desired participants of the study. The

location is chosen because this is where the researchers are enrolled, too. They want to

find out the people around them so they can better cope with the society they are in.

Subjects of Analysis

The probe will interview 10 female and 10 male Grade 12 students. Since this uses

a phenomenological approach, 10 is enough to suffice the rule of thumb for the number of
COMMON INSECURITIES OF TEENAGERS (SAMPLE ONLY) 3

TRECE MARTIRES CITY SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL

informants. But because of the desire to explore both male and female insecurities, the

researchers decided to work with at least 20 informants containing fair number of sexes.

Senior high school students are teenagers whose ages range from 16 years old and

above. They are the perfect choice because this study goals to work on the insecurities of

teenagers.

Sampling Procedure

This study will use purposive or judgmental sampling. Creswell (2007) states that

the use of this procedure requires the researchers to set specific criteria and makes sure to

choose the most qualified. Since this study will work on teenage insecurities, the

researchers brainstormed on the possible students who possess qualities of being insecure.

Susan Krauss Whitbourne (2015), a renowned psychologist, suggested four signs that a

person might be insecure and they are as follows:

a. An insecure person tries to make someone insecure about his self.

b. He needs to showcase his accomplishments.

c. He humblebrags most of the time.

d. He often complains that life is not good enough.

Because of the aforementioned characteristics, the researchers decided to interview

people who often brag on social media, specifically Facebook. The bragging is focused on

showing off new possessions, relationship what-abouts, travelography, food, and many

more. As mentioned in the study’s number of respondents, 10 students will be chosen to

answer the structured interview.

COMMON INSECURITIES OF TEENAGERS (SAMPLE ONLY) 4

TRECE MARTIRES CITY SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL

Research Instrument

This qualitative approach will use an interview protocol patterned from the work of

Creswell (2007). A structured interview will be used so that the researchers can maximize

their time and limit the unnecessary answers from the informants.

The protocol is checked by the research adviser so the questions will jive with the

Statement of the Problem; by an English teacher who majored in the target language to

detect ungrammatical structures; and by a psychologist and psychometrician to identify if

there are questions that might offend the informant. Once done, a Certificate of Validation

is given to the checkers for signing.

The interview protocol consists of five parts: background of the interviewee,

introduction, opening questions, content questions, and closing instructions. The first part

identifies the name of the interviewee, position, address, and location and time of the

interview. The introduction consists of introducing the researcher’s name, the research title,

and the objectives of the study. The third part refers to the questions that establish

camaraderie between the interviewer and his interviewee. Meanwhile, the content

questions refer to the actual questions from the Statement of the Problem. Lastly, the

closing instructions signal the end of the interview by concluding the questions and saying

goodbyes.

The content questions include the following:

1. Are there times that you get insecure?

2. What are your common insecurities?

3. What do you normally do at the moment you experience such insecurity?

4. How do you overcome the feeling of being insecure?

COMMON INSECURITIES OF TEENAGERS (SAMPLE ONLY) 5

TRECE MARTIRES CITY SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL

Data Gathering Procedure

The researchers will follow the scheme below in data gathering:

(1) Send letter of permission to the school head.


(2) Develop the interview protocol.

(3) Validate the interview protocol.

(4) Send and confirm consent forms.

(5) Conduct the interview.

(6) Transcribe the interview.

(7) Code the results.

(8) Validate the codes.

(9) Write the summary of findings and conclusions.

Figure 2. Data Gathering Scheme

Figure 2 shows the scheme the researchers plan to use for data gathering. The first

step includes sending the letter of approval to the school head so they will have a legal

permission to conduct the study. Next is the development and validation of an interview

protocol which is thoroughly discussed in Research Instrument. Once the researchers

received the signed consent form from the informants, the interview will be conducted on

the location, date, and time agreed upon by both parties. When the audio recordings are

consolidated, the researchers will start to transcribe the conversations. The answers to each

question will be coded, then checked by the adviser. When all the steps are taken legally

and accurately, the researchers may write the findings and the conclusions.