Chapter I

THE PROBLEM AND ITS BACKGROUND

Introduction

Bartending or beverage service is one of the most fascinating subjects

in hospitality since this particular subject deals with operating in the hostelry

industry with activities like bar functions, alcoholic and non-alcoholic cocktail

mixing, bar layout, bar preparation and set-ups.

A bartender is someone who has knowledge to serve and mixes

drinks to customers, either directly or through waitresses and waiters who

place drink orders in the dining table or dining room of the bar. Bartenders

play a key role in the overall health and safety conditions in nightlife

environments. They administer alcohol beverages to patrons and along with

other staff such as bouncers and DJs, contribute to the regulation of those

environments.

In addition, environmental health research on bartenders has so far

focused mainly on exposure to cigarette smoke and subsequent risks of

respiratory and cardiovascular disease, a problem addressed by recent

legislation against indoor smoking in many countries which has led to

improved health status for nightlife workers. “It’s an unconscious thing,”

According to Justice (2014), an award-winning bartender and general

manager of The Franklin Bar and The Upstairs Bar in Philadelphia.

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Furthermore, according to Hidalgo (2016), "There are people that are

hard to please, maybe they want more attention than you can’t realistically

give, and you do the best that you can”. Being a bartender is one of his

responsibility is to prevent the intoxicated costumers, it involved serving a

patron that may harmed other as a result of drinking. And also, according to

Gander (2014), “Making a genuine impact of people’s nights is always

rewarding," she adds. "Even if they won’t remember it the next day, I will."

Especially to people who spending his sleep at nights needs a reward to

return his tired and hard at work.

Bartending is the art of mixing wines and distilled spirits (liquors and

liqueur), cocktail drinks, non-alcoholic beverages (mocktails), modifier,

special agents, preparations, beverage service, merchandising and quality

service. It is one of the most interesting jobs because the profession involves

accuracy of measurements of wines, beers, and spirits and intense

understanding of several kinds of alcoholic beverage products and garnish

accompaniments to produce the best expected concoction requested by the

guest (Ditan, 2007).

An effectual bar service staff needs an absolute familiarity of alcoholic

and non-alcoholic beverages, their compositions, procedures, tools and

equipment, and ways and means of production. Being capable to

differentiate one product to another will not create an impact towards learning
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and improved service procedures. It will also impact intimacy and develop

professionalism on the part of the bartender (Ditan, 2017).

But despite the promising knowledge and skills that can be earned the

said subject can either have a positive or negative effect on the student’s

conduct on alcoholic beverages.

Bartenders also play a key role in patrons’ level of alcohol

consumption. Despite legislation against serving to intoxicated customers

and minors in many countries, several studies have found that bartenders will

serve alcohol to visibly intoxicated patrons and to minors (Tutenges, 2013).

The question of alcohol use among bartenders is significant, then, in light of

the fact that heavy alcohol use at work may put venue staff at risk of both

short- and long-term health damage, and may also impede the staff’s ability

to prevent harm among patrons or nuisance in the local community (Collins,

2011).

According to Hanson (2014), college is a time to prepare for the

future. Building lasting relationships and enjoying their time in college is

important. But the reason why students are here to get an education and to

develop who they are and who they want to be. The choices they make

outside the classroom can significantly affect their performance in the

classroom. For example, in those societies in which people don’t believe that

alcohol causes disinhibition, intoxication never leads to unacceptable

behaviors.
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But then, some observations were made. Students appear to drink

after bartending to continue the session outside the campus since the effect

of the alcohol is already “kicking in” and this will also give them the chance to

bond with each other, thus, giving them the reason to indulge to alcoholic

drinks which is a bad practice that can lead to alcoholism.

In contrast with the previous statement, few students seem to show

the application of bartending knowledge to their improvement; they gave the

impression of further studying the said subject without the excessive

experimenting with juice to come up with effective refreshment after a hard

work.

Awareness of alcohol use and misuse in college campuses is not new.

Anecdotal reports go back many years, and there is documentation in the

United States for at least 50 years. Available research indicates that

approximately 80% of college students drink and that half of college student

drinkers engage in heavy episodic drinking. Excessive alcohol intake among

college students is associated with a variety of adverse consequences: fatal

and nonfatal injuries; alcohol poisoning; blackouts; academic failure; violence

including rape and assault; unintended pregnancy; sexually transmitted

diseases; property damages; and vocational and criminal consequences that

could jeopardize future job prospects. Students who engaged in excessive

drinking, impact not just themselves. Fellow students experience

secondhand consequences ranging from disrupted study and sleep to

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physical and sexual assault. Furthermore, the institutions they attend expend

valuable resources to deal with institutional and personal consequences of

their behavior (Moore, 2013).

Although majority of the students come to college already having

some experience with alcohol, certain aspects of college life, such as

unstructured time, the widespread availability of alcohol, inconsistent

enforcement of underage drinking laws, and limited interactions with parents

and other adults, can intensify the problem. In fact, college students have

higher binge drinking rates and a higher incidence of drunk driving than their

non-college peers (Williams, 2016).

Student appear to drink a variety of alcoholic beverages for diverse

reason. Casual and social drinking is common but perhaps what is more

disturbing is the frequency in which these young adults often turn to alcohol

for the express purpose and getting lost, high or loaded. When getting drunk

is the primary objective, drinking can often result in anti-social behavior such

as hostility, aggression, or general loss of usual inhibitions (Tagami, 2014).

The researchers of the study observed that some students of the

Bachelor of Science in Hotel and Restaurant Management are much frequent

in drinking alcohol after freshmen in college. This might because of the

bartending curriculum in which students’ knowledge about alcohol is

enhanced but the same time gives them the chance to experiment with

alcoholic drinks which can lead to the possibility of alcoholism.

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Other observations of the researchers were the drastic change in

students’ performance in the school and the extent of failing other subjects

due to absences caused by drinking during school days.

With the abovementioned concepts and problems that accompany it, it

is now the researchers’ determination to find out if bartending subject can

have bad effects on the discipline towards alcoholic drinks among the

Bachelor of Science Hotel and Restaurant Management of Nueva Vizcaya

State University-Bambang Campus.

Conceptual Framework

According to Garcia (2018), bartending is not easy. It takes a lot of

skills – from memorization to accuracy – to become a bartender. It takes

practice to create that perfect glass of Old fashioned, Mojito, Margarita and

etc. To be a good bartender you need to be quick and engaging. Aside from

knowing recipes, a good bartender also has to be quick and engaging. A

bartender also needs to know what kind of glass is used for a specific drink,

the amount of ice, how to properly open a wine bottle. She says, “It’s a

difficult job because you need to learn a lot of things. As of now, I still need to

learn a lot more.”

Bartending has historically been seen as a dead-end job, a job for

people with no brains or ambition. But this is just one of the countless things

that makes bartending such as a job a true bartender will simply listen to this,

all the while knowing that they are so madly in love with and passionate
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about a job and a skill that the people asking these questions will just never

understand. When the majority of income is determined by customer

discretion contingent on arbitrary and fluctuating social norms, tipped

employees are subjected to an unequal and undefined power structure. In

stark contrast to most other low or semi-skilled service sectors jobs,

bartending is a relatively high paying service sectors occupation (Farrell,

2015).

Bartenders and their trade are surrounded by much concern critique

and controversy in the research literature. Several studies have shown that

the occupation of bartenders carries a range of risks including those

associated with working late hours. Bartenders state side are so much more

quality. It is a genuine profession, generally a number of years’ experience,

everything about the different spirits that’s on offer or the variants of

cocktails. Buying a round of drinks and soft drinks aren’t charged for, drinking

alone and tip well 4th drink is on the house. Bartender dread patrons who

lapse into indecision, turn to distracted friends or suddenly remember the

menu. Bartenders also urged patrons not to separate specific drinks from a

group tab. “it’s simpler to make them all together”, “it’s our business to serve

you but also to keep moving. When you’re not ready, that’s wasting our time.

They were encouraged by their managers to sell as much as possible, but at

the same time they are supposed to obey the law against over serving

alcohol to intoxicated and underage patrons. Previous research provides

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many examples of how bartenders develop shortcuts and bend rules in order

to make their jobs more manageable (Tutenges, 2017).

According to Rojo (2018), bartenders should always use a jigger when

pouring ad serving the drinks. It depends also on the policy or standard

practice in a particular bar. Some are using free pouring. But bartenders

must able to master the technique on how to do free pouring without

sacrificing the quality of the drink. However, a bartender is someone who

mixes and serves drinks to customers, they must know a wide range of drink

recipes and be able to mix drinks accurately, quickly, and without waste.

Bartenders work in restaurants, bars, clubs, hotels, and other food service

establishments.

The use and abuse of alcohol is widespread among students. This

observation has led a number of writers to conclude that the use of alcohol

among university students has become a culture (Matthews, 2014). The

implications of the observation are that students who drink alcoholic

beverages during high school will continue to do so at university, while those

who do not use alcohol are likely to be initiated into the use of the substance

during their stay at university. For some students, transition to university is

the first experience of being away from home, a depth which presents unique

challenges and opportunities (Robins, 2011). It is during the process of

adapting to life away from home that some students may experiment with the

use of intoxicating substances.

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The widespread use of alcohol in university campuses has led to the

need to understand the reasons why students use alcohol. There is a

research trend that points to various personality factors, among other

reasons, for alcohol use and abuse. Most studies investigating the influence

of personality characteristics on alcohol use among students argue that

sociability, sensation-seeking, depressed affect, and impulsivity are

personality factors that can predict the use of alcohol (Aneshensel, 2013).

With the abovementioned scenarios, this study aimed to determine the

relationship between bartending self-discipline and bartending skills and

competencies among Bachelor of Science in Hotel and Restaurant

Management of Nueva Vizcaya State University-Bambang campus.

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INDEPENDENT VARIABLES DEPENDENT VARIABLES

BARTENDING SKILLS AND

COMPETENCIES
 Clean Bar Areas
BARTENDING  Operate Bar
SELF-DISCIPLINE  Prepare and Mix
Cocktails and Non-
alcoholic Concoctions
 Provide Basic Wine
Services

RESPONDENT’S
PROFILE
 Age
 Gender
 Year level

SUB-VARIABLE

Figure 1. Conceptual Paradigm showing the Relationship between

the variables considered in this research study.
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The framework of this study is represented by illustration under Figure

1 that ascertains the possible relationship among the research variables

which are represented by three boxes and connecting arrows. For the first

box of the paradigm was labeled as the independent variable containing the

bartending self-discipline. The second box was labeled as dependent

variable which contains bartending skills and competencies along clean bar

areas, operate bar, prepare and mix cocktails and non-alcoholic concoctions,

and provide basic wine services. The third box was labeled as sub-variable

of the study containing the respondent’s profile in terms of age, gender and

year level. The researchers want to know the significant difference between

bartending self-discipline, skills and competencies and the respondent’s

profile. It also shows the relationship between the bartending self-discipline

and bartending skills and competencies

Statement of the Problem

Generally, this study examined the relationship between the

respondents’ bartending self-discipline and bartending skills and

competencies.

Specifically, it sought to answer the following questions:

1. What is the profile of the respondents in terms of age, gender and

year level?
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2. What is the level of the bartending self-discipline among Bachelor

of Science in Hotel and Restaurant Management of Nueva Vizcaya State

University-Bambang campus?

3. What is the level of the bartending skills and competencies among

Bachelor of Science in Hotel and Restaurant Management of Nueva Vizcaya

State University-Bambang campus?

4. Is there a significant difference in the bartending self-discipline,

skills and competencies among Bachelor of Science in Hotel and Restaurant

Management of Nueva Vizcaya State University-Bambang campus when

grouped according to respondents’ profile variables?

5. Is there a significant relationship between the bartending self-

discipline and bartending skills and competencies among Bachelor of

Science in Hotel and Restaurant Management of Nueva Vizcaya State

University-Bambang campus?

Null Hypothesis

1. There is no significant difference in the bartending self-discipline,

skills and competencies among Bachelor of Science in Hotel and Restaurant

Management of Nueva Vizcaya State University-Bambang campus when

grouped according to respondents’ profile variables.

2. There is no significant relationship between the bartending self-

discipline and bartending skills and competencies among Bachelor of

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Science in Hotel and Restaurant Management of Nueva Vizcaya State

University-Bambang campus.

Significance of the Study

This study benefited the following people as it will give them clearer

view of the perception of bartending knowledge and the discipline towards

alcoholic beverages among third year and fourth year Bachelor of Science in

Hotel and Restaurant Management students of Nueva Vizcaya State

University Bambang-Campus.

Hotel and Restaurant Management Instructors. The findings of the

study might help the Bachelor of Science in Hotel and Restaurant

Management instructors to improve their lessons to develop strategies when

dealing with the students on how they can handle themselves when they

encounter situations involving alcohol. The findings should help them identify

students with drinking problem and take immediate action to help them cope

up.

Hotel and Restaurant Students. This study will help them to know

the bad and good effects of alcohol to someone who is taking it up. This will

help them lessen the frequency of alcohol consumption of students since

excessive intake can ruin health conditions, reduce performance and school

and/or work, create bad conduct to a person, and many other related

problems.
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Future Researchers. This study will be a hand reference for them in

the conduct of other studies, especially on the impact of bartending subject

on the discipline towards alcoholic beverages.

Scope and Limitation of the Study

The foremost concern of the study will be limited to the determination

on the relationship between the respondents’ perception on bartending

knowledge and perception towards alcoholic beverages among the third year

and fourth year Bachelor of Science in Hotel and Restaurant Management

students of Nueva Vizcaya State University-Bambang Campus. The

respondents will be the third year and fourth year Bachelor of Science in

Hotel and Restaurant Management students of Nueva Vizcaya State

University-Bambang Campus. A survey questionnaire containing three parts

will be used. Part I will elicit the respondents’ profile in terms of age, gender

and year level. Part II will measure the level of bartending self-discipline of

the respondents. It consists of 10 indicators on a four-point Likert Scale. It

consists of 10 indicators measured on a four-point scale. Questions for the

third part were adapted from the study of Mason (2015). Part III consists of

questionnaire on the bartending skills and competencies in terms of clean

bar areas, operate bars, prepare and mix cocktails and non-alcoholic

concoctions and provide basic wine service. It consists of 25 indicators

measured on a four-point Likert Scale. Bartending skills and competencies

questionnaire are divided into 4 areas namely clean bar areas (5 indicators);
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operate bars (5 indicators); prepare and mix cocktails and non-alcoholic

concoctions (10 indicators); and provide basic wine service (5 indicators).

Questions for the third part were adapted from the Bartending National

Certificate II of Technical Education and Skills Development Authority

(TESDA).

Definition of Terms

For a better understanding on the study and to enlighten the readers,

the following terms were defined both conceptually and operationally defined.

Bartending Competencies. This refer to the combination of

observable and measurable knowledge, skills, abilities and personal

attributes that contribute to enhanced employee performance in bartending

(TESDA)

Bartending Skills. This refer to the developed proficiency or dexterity

in mental operations or physical processes that is often acquired through

specialized training (TESDA).

In this study, bartending skills and competencies were divided into

four area which include clean bar areas; operate bar; prepare and mix

cocktails and non-alcoholic concoctions; and provide basic wine services in

which the respondents gave their assessment as to always, sometimes,

often and never.

Clean bar areas. This refer to the provision of general assistance in

maintaining cleanliness of bar areas, related equipment and tools (TESDA).

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In this study, clean bar area was measured 5 indicators from which the

respondents gave their assessment as to always, sometimes, often and

never.

Demographic Profile. It pertains to the description of a particular type

of client or respondents. In this study, demographic profile includes age,

gender and year level.

Operate Bars. This refer to the preparing bar for service, taking drink

orders, servicing drinks, maintaining bar control procedures, closing the bar

and dealing with intoxicated persons in all providers (TESDA). In this study,

operate bars was measured with 5 indicators in which the respondents gave

their assessment as to always, sometimes, often and never.

Prepare and Mix Cocktails and Non-alcoholic Concoctions. This

refer to the preparation and mix a range of cocktails, preparation and mix a

variety of non-alcoholic drinks (TESDA). In this study, prepare and mix

cocktails and non-alcoholic concoctions were measured using 10 indicators

from which the respondents gave their assessment as to always, sometimes,

often and never.

Provide Basic Wine Services. This refer to the proper presentation

and opening, serving and the ability to further develop and update wine

knowledge (TESDA). In this study, the provide basic wine services were

measured using 5 indicators in which the respondents gave their assessment

as to always, sometimes, often and never.

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Self-Discipline. This refer to the ability to control one's feelings and

overcome one's weaknesses; the ability to pursue what one thinks is right

despite temptations to abandon it (Mason, 2016). In this study, self-discipline

was measured using 8 indicators in which the respondents gave their

assessment as to always, sometimes, often and never.