Department of Education

Region IV-A CALABARZON

DIVISION OF QUEZON PROVINCE
LOPEZ NATIONAL COMPREHENSIVE HIGH SCHOOL
MAHARLIKA HIGHWAY BRGY. MAGSAYSAY, LOPEZ, QUEZON

STRESSORS AND THE EFFECT OF STRESS: UNDERSTANDING THE EFFECT OF

STRESS ON ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE IN GRADE TWELVE UNDER

ACCOUNTANCY AND BUSINESS MANAGEMENT IN LOPEZ NATIONAL

COMPREHENSIVE HIGH SCHOOL, S.Y.2021-2022

RESEARCHERS:
ANGELICA S. LITA
CRIZZA JADE REQUEST
ROXANNE L. REYNALES
JOHN MARLO A. NIEVA
 CHAPTER I

INTRODUCTION

Academic performance is one of the most important requirements that all students must meet. It

identifies the behavior, skills, and how well the students perform in different activities, programs, and more.

Academic performance is the measurement of student achievement across various academic subjects

(Ballotpedia.com). These are expressed in grades or General-Point Average known as GPA. Having a high GPA

characterizes students performing well in school and adopting all the knowledge they learned, on the contrary, a

lower GPA means out of compliance.

However, several factors, particularly stress, have an impact on a student's academic performance.

Stress is one of the major problems that directly affect the student's academic performance. Stress is

defined as the body’s non-specific response to demands made upon it or to disturbing events in the

environment. It is not just a stimulus or a response but rather, it is a process by which individuals perceive and

cope with environmental threats and challenges (Alsulami, Omar, and Alhabeeb, 2018). Additionally, this time

pandemic imposes more problems on all students. A student can be stressed because of the different stressors.

Namely school activity, family conflict, friends, financial problems, relationships, work, and more. This is the

most common problem experienced by all students. Because of this, it affects the physical, mental, emotional,

and social behaviors of students that directly affect their academic performance.

Academic stress is the usual stressor of all students. It is defined as the body’s response to academic-

related demands that exceed the adaptive capabilities of students. It is estimated that 10–30% of students

experience some degree of academic stress during their academic career (Alsulami, Omar, and Alhabeeb, 2018).

Additionally. Excessive levels of academic stress can result in an increased prevalence of psychological and

physical problems like depression, anxiety, nervousness, and stress-related disorders, which in turn can affect

their academic results (medium.com). It is also a fact that 55% of students, nationally, claimed their biggest

stressor to be academic. Lastly, knowing how to better manage school stressors helps students experience less

stress, allowing them to perform to their fullest potential(oxford learning, 2018).

Moreover, relationships with family and friends also contribute to stress. According to Bennet, changes

in family dynamics—say divorcing parents—can cause children to feel guilty, neglected, or unloved and as a

result, lose focus at school. Family issues—such as divorce, financial strife, and sibling bullying—have the

potential to negatively affect those directly involved as well as distant relatives (2019). Family issues contribute

to the loss of focus of students, lack of interest, pail, and more. Other family issues are financial strife, which

affects not only the parents but also the students. Having financial problems means being unable to pay debts
over the short or long term (ginsberg). These include different projects and activities, transportation, tuition, and

other substantial thing in life. According to the Philippine Statistics Authority PSA, the Employment rate in

January 2021 stood at 91.3 percent, which is the same as the October 2020 rate. This means that 41.2 million

Filipinos were employed out of 45.2 million Filipinos in the labor force in January 2021. This portrays how

many students are working to cover all the financial needs that lead to misses in class and tests and result in a

double-ended from work to school.

In conclusion, stress is a direct specific factor that influences students' academic performance. There is a

direct relationship between students' stress levels and their academic performance. The focus and motivation of

a student to study have been affected by stress. Stress stimulates the major aspects of life, namely the physical,

mental, emotional, spiritual, and social, resulting in a loss of concentration while studying. As a result, all

students must understand the various stressors to avoid depression, anxiety, and other mental health issues. That

is why all students must perceive the importance of stress management. According to Wikipedia, stress

management is a broad range of techniques and psychotherapies aimed at controlling a person's level of stress,

particularly chronic stress, to improve daily functioning (2022). In this way, a student can maintain a healthy

lifestyle while also increasing their motivation to study more, which will benefit their academic performance.

STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

This study aims to determine how stress can affect Grade 12 ABM students' academic performances in

Lopez national comprehensive high school. This study intends to answer the following questions:

1. What are the different stressors that affect Grade 12 ABM students' academic performance?

2. What are the effects of stress on Grade 12-ABM students' academic performances?

3. Is there a significant difference in the effects of stress among sections?

4. What program can be developed to help in coping with the stress?

ASSUMPTION
 ● Different stressors exist among the Grade 12 ABM student in Lopez National Comprehensive High

School.

● Define the different stressors that affect the academic performance of the students.

● The given research instrument will accurately measure the effect of stress among grade 12 ABM

students on their academic performance.

● Effect of Different stressors on the main aspect of life and its direct effect on G12 ABM student’s

academic performance.

● The importance of stress management to all students and the value of understanding the different

stressors.

SCOPE AND DELIMITATION

The study aims to determine the effect of stress on G12- ABM students' " academic performance " in

Lopez National Comprehensive High School, by studying the significance between the two constructs among

students which are the stressors and their academic performance.

The respondents will only limit to G12- ABM students in Lopez National Comprehensive High School.

This study will not cover other problems that are not considered as one of the stress factors. The study would be

done through the utilization of questionnaires to the students as a survey and reference. By their strategy, this

study will be able to know the effect of stress among G12 ABM students from different stressors.

This research also provides the different effects of stress on the main aspect of life and the importance of

stress management particularly to students.

CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK
 Figure 1.0 shows the conceptual framework on the stressors and the effect of stress on G12 ABM

students in Lopez National Comprehensive High School.

The concept visualizes the connection between stress and academic performance. The connection of

stress to stress management and vice versa can affect positively or negatively the main aspects of life and its

direct result to academic performance.

Under the stressors are the main factors of stress include academic stress, Relationships with friends,

Family conflict, Financial problems, and other factors. The different reasons for stress.

Signifies the effect of stress on the main aspects of life, mental, physical, social, emotional, and spiritual

that exemplifies the correlation between stress and academic performance.

The connection provided by the different elements, given the importance of stress management, will

lead to a good result in developing academic performance.

DEFINITION OF TERMS
Academic Performance - Also known as academic achievements, it is the measure or extent to which is the

respondent has performed and reached the educational goal in a given curriculum.

Academic Stress - Defined as the body's response to academic-related demands that exceed the adaptive

capabilities of students. It is estimated of students experience some degree of academic stress during their

academic careers.

Behavior - This is an action that enables students to access learning and interactt with others' productivity in the

community and how students are acting in the classroom.

Emotional Aspect - A kind of aspect the students are facing that is indicated through emotional pressure or any

interpersonal factors.

GPA - General Point Average is known as GPA. Is a summary statistic that represents a student's average

performance in their studies.

Health - A state of complete physical , mental and social well being . Students with poor health have a higher

probability of school failure , grade retention , and dropout .

Health Problems - A state of being unable to function normally and without pain .

Mental Aspect - A kind of aspect the students are facing that is indicated through emotional, psychological,

and social well-being.

Physical Aspect - A kind of aspect the students are facing that is indicated through physical pain or any bodily

health problems.

Skills - It refers to a broad set of knowledge, skills, work habits, and character traits of the students.

Social Aspect - A kind of aspect the students are facing that is indicated through social attitudes and behavior.

Spiritual Aspect - A kind of aspect the students face that is indicated through religious or spiritual beliefs.

Stress – is feeling of emotional or physical tension, where it makes you feel frustrated, angry or nervous.
Stressors - A specific problem or issue that can be internal or external forces that require adjustment or coping

strategies on the part of the affected students or individuals

Students - The population where the researchers will get the respondents.

CHAPTER II

REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE AND STUDIES

This chapter represents the relevance of the various syntheses and literature to the current study. The

researcher looks for and finds various studies and dissertations to a wide range of analyses related to the study.

This literature and research will be evaluated to strengthen the importance of the current study.

REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE

The researcher gathered the following related literature, either foreign or domestic, to help support the

current study.

Stress is our body’s response to pressure state by Mental Health Foundation (2021). It asserted that

Stress is the feeling of being overwhelmed or unable to cope with mental or emotional pressure. When we

encounter stress, our body produces stress hormones that trigger a fight or flight response and activate our

immune system. Mensah, Fosu, & Oteng (2017) stated that stress can have both positive and negative

consequences for the

individual. Maximum efficiency, satisfaction, and productivity may all be achieved with the right amount of

stress. Felman also added that stress is a natural feeling of not being able to cope with specific demands and

events, (2020). However, too much stress can cause negative effects. It can leave us in a permanent state of

fight or flight, leaving us overwhelmed or unable to cope. Long term, this can affect our physical and mental

health, Mental Health Foundation (2021).

According to The Haven at College, there are 5 causes of stress, namely, financial, job outlook,

academic, family or relationship, and everything else, (2019). Every student is like a normal person who works
like having a job. Students are always exposed to different challenges and activities that make them prone to

stress and pressure. The environment of the student has a direct effect on the main aspects of life including,

physical, mental, emotional, social, and spiritual. It was confirmed by Mayo Clinic stated that stress symptoms

can have an impact on your body, thoughts and feelings, and behavior. Recognizing common stress symptoms

can help you manage them. Hill, (2014) explained that depending on our coping skills and strategies, we can

either increase or decrease our stress levels. Adequate coping skills combined with an effective support network

will result in improved stress management and, in many cases, the ability to handle bigger quantities of stress.

In opposite,

unmanaged stress can contribute to a variety of health issues, including high blood pressure, heart disease,

obesity, and diabetes,(2021).

It is the reason why all students need to handle stress. Stress is an inevitable part of life and it cartons

students' physical health, emotional well-being, and academic success if they do not learn how to manage it

properly. This is the assertion given by (NYU, n.d.). It also stated that the changes in lifestyle, increased

workload, new responsibilities, and interpersonal relationships all contribute to stress in students. Students who

had stressful life events reported poorer health outcomes and a lower quality of life. In support of this assertion,

Aafreen, Gyathri (2018)state that stress occurs when the combination of internal and external pressures

outweighs an individual's ability to cope with their situation. Depression, anxiety, and stress can all wreak

havoc on these crucial years. Students who do not cope well with stress hurt their studies and behavior. Because

of this, a negative impact can influence the academic performance of a student.

REVIEW OF RELATED STUDIES

The researcher gathered the following related studies, either foreign or domestic, to help support the

current study.

Musubiq & Karimah (2020) Study about determining the general overview of stress and its impact on

students which is viewed from daily life events. They state that there are four sources of stress: interpersonal,

intrapersonal, academic, and environmental (Ross, Niebling, & Heckert, 2008) and also four aspects of stress

effect: physical, cognitive, emotional, and behavioral (Bressert, 2016). The sample of this research is Faculty of

Psychology students, Universitas Indonesia. The results show that most students have more than one type of
stressor and have more than one aspect of stress effect. Most stressors come from intrapersonal followed by

financial conditions and responsibility in a campus organization. In addition, the results showed that stress had

the greatest impact on the physical aspect. The most commonly felt by students are fatigue and weakness.

Shankar & Park, (2016) studied that stress has a wide range of consequences for students. Their study

provides a conceptual overview of the direct (e.g., psychoneuroimmunological, endocrine) and indirect (health

behavior) pathways by which stress affects physical health, the psychological effects of stress on mental health,

and the cognitive effects of stress (e.g., attention, concentration) on academic success.

Pampilus, (2021) explains to his research that

stress is a natural phenomenon of emotional or physical tension due to demand or challenge, which

can come from a variety of different events or thoughts often leading to sadness, frustrations, and

nervousness. In addition, as related to positivity, it is the body’s reaction as a defensive mechanism to

avoid danger; however, too much of it like anything else in life is not good for survival. Since stress

aspects thoughts, feelings, and behaviors, the impact of stress on academic performance plays a

major role in learning both on and out the campus.

Nivithita & Rita (2016), propose that stress is an irritating condition where an excess of work and

overload reduces the concentration and the normal working condition of any person. They generally state that

stress is defined as a person's psychological and physiological response to the perception of demand or

challenge. They explained that students are most frequently affected by stress due to their academic life.

Students face various challenges and a whole lot of pressure in today's competitive environment. Students need

to be trained in handling stress.

Reddy et al. (2018) in their study concludes that streamwise difference in stress does exist in students.

The result of their study indicates that it is important to deal with stress at the personal, social, and institutional

levels. Remedies such as feedback, yoga, life skills training, mindfulness, meditation, and psychotherapy have

been found useful to deal with stress. Identifying the main reason for stress is the key to dealing with it.

Professionals can develop tailor-made strategies to deal with stress. The integred well-being of the students is

important not only for the individual but for the institute as well.
 Dimitrov (2017) in his study claimed that stress can be addressed by ensuring that the students give

utmost importance to their welfare. The result of his study suggests that food, exercise, work, recreation are

some of the areas to focus on. He also concluded that the education system is more to do with academic

qualifications and does not contribute enough to the holistic development of students.

In the study of Tham & Lai, (2016). This shows that higher mental toughness is associated with higher

psychological well-being and lower perceiveroleess (Gerber et al., 2013; Stamp et al., 2015). However, very

little research has explored the relevance of mental toughness as a plausible psychological coping resource to

benefit students' overall well-being and academic performance in the Asian context. As such, it was

hypothesized that (1) mental toughness predicts students' levels of perceived stress; (2) perceived stress predicts

students' levels of overall academic scores; and (3) mental toughness predicts students' overall academic scores.

STATEMENT OF THE ART

The literature and studies mentioned above were chosen because they provide significant similarities to

support the current study, as well as differences in the study.

The study given by the Mental Health Foundation and Felman described stress and how this problem

affects the student core and how the bodies respond to stress in the main aspects of life.

The study given by The Haven at Collage along with the studies of Mayo Clinic explained and described

the different stressors that strongly support the current study. They stated the different stressors that mainly

affect students and give some similarities to the current study. They also added the different effects of stress on

the student whether it's negative or positive.

The articles were given by Hills, NYU, and Aafreen & Gyathri explained and described the importance

of stress management and added the different activities to cope with this kind of problem.

In the mix study of Musibiq & Karimah, Sankar & Park, and Pampilus. They analyze the different

sources of stress and the direct wide range effect on the students when it doesn'tesnt handles them accordingly.
 The study of Nivithita & Rrevealed ithe effect of stress on the human body. They explained that the

different conditions or pressure can trigger stress and lead to a more serious problem that may put concern on

student health.

In the study of Reddy and his colleagues, Dimitrov, and Tham & Lai, proposed the direct effect of stress

on the student and how this problem affects their daily life an the influence to the academic performance. This

study suggests the importance of stress management and stated some activities to help handle the stress.

CHAPTER III

METHODOLOGY

The research methodology constructs the third chapter of the study. This

chapter illustrates the methods and procedures used to obtain the findings of the

study. It includes the research method approach, research design,

the respondent's profile, research instrument, the procedure for conducting data, and the techniques for

analyzing the data.

RESEARCH DESIGN

This study will use a quantitative method of research and will use the descriptive-survey method

research design that is appropriate to the study in collecting necessary information about the different stressors

and the effect of stress on students.

The present study will utilize quantitative research based on the nature of the study purpose under

evaluation, specific objectives, hypotheses, and the nature of the primary data to be collected and analyzed.

Quantitative research methods emphasize objective measurements and the statistical, mathematical, or

numerical analysis of data collected through polls, questionnaires, and surveys, or by manipulating pre-existing

statistical data using computational techniques. It also focuses on gathering numerical data and generalizing it

across groups of people or explaining a particular phenomenon (Creswell, 2014). This approach typically begins

with data collection based on a hypothesis or

theory and it is followed by an application of descriptive or inferential statistics (Tashakkori & Teddlie, 2003).
 The researchers will use descriptive-survey research method to determine the impact of stress on G12-

ABM students' academic performance at Lopez National Comprehensive High School. Descriptive-survey

approach in the studies is appropriate in providing facts on which decisions may be constructed. According to

Bhasin, the descriptive-survey research method provides an in-depth description of the phenomenon or

population under study. He also added that survey research is useful to obtain more accurate outcomes (2019).

This approach will help deliver critical information about the different stressors experience by G-12 ABM

students and its effect on their academic performance.

INSTRUMENTS

The researchers used a survey question as their instrument that can be answered through an online site ,

the researchers decided to make the process of answering the survey questions through online because we

believed that it will be the safest process for both the researchers and the respondents due to the ongoing

pandemic that caused by the Covid19 .

The questionnaire will distributed via Google Forms through the use of social media . considered one of

the most effective method to make the study easier and more convenient to gather data that is needed for the

study.

The researchers will design a survey question with both opened and closed ended questions from the

area of research. The survey question were structured carefully to avoid respondents not getting meaning of

questions. Simple and easy words were therefore used so that respondents will easily understand as well as

answer them.

Possible answers were provided to enable respondents tick which ever answer they find suitable in

terms of their response to the question.

In this survey questionnaire , there is a letter for our dear respondents requesting them to answer and

give necessary information to obtain accurate result of the study.

RESPONDENTS PROFILE
 The proponents selected the senior high school students of Lopez National Comprehensive High School

to be the respondents of the study, preferably the Grade twelve (12) students with the strand of Accountancy

Business and Management (ABM). They are composed of thirty five (35) students per section. Each respondent

are described according to their demographic profile such as name, age, sex and their section.The distribution of

the respondents are shown in Table 1.

GRADE LEVEL SECTION FREQUENCY

12 YVC 35

12 ADR 35

12 DAH 35

12 MEE 35

Total: 140

Table 1: Distribution of Respondents

LOCALE OF STUDY

The study area will be conducted in Lopez National Comprehensive High School, along the Maharlika

Highway. Figure 2 below show the map of the study area.

 Table 2: Satellite Map of Lopez National Comprehensive High School

DATA ANALYSIS TECHNIQUE

The information gathered from the surveys is organized into groups based on their relevance to various

research objectives. To display information processed from data describing the demographic profile of the

respondents in terms of age, sex, and section, descriptive statistics by percentages, figures, and tables will be

employed. The required data will be collected in a standard format and then analyzed and interpreted using

tables and percentages. Finally, the findings will be displayed in a bar and pie graph to show how stress affects

students' academic performance at Lopez National Comprehensive High School. These will be utilized to

ensure that the analysis is straightforward to comprehend.