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THE IMPACTS OF SOCIAL ISOLATION ON FIRST YEAR PSYCHOLOGY

STUDENTS IN COLEGIO SAN AGUSTIN – BACOLOD

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A Research Proposal

Presented to

The Faculty of the College of Arts, Sciences, and Education

Colegio San Agustin – Bacolod

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In partial fulfillment of the requirements in

PSY 209 Field Methods in Psychology

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by

Hannah Belle M. Anape

Kristine Chynna A. Arroz

Carla Ann C. Cabarles

Jubette B. Dequiña

Aravela P. Nasis

Lm Merlinda M. Rapis

Kinah Ziph D. Sumagaysay

MAY 2024
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Chapter 1

INTRODUCTION

In a school environment, students engage in a lot of

interaction with different individuals. Different kinds of

interactions that sometimes lead them to lose their energy. As

much as they find comfort in the presence of other people, they

are still finding reasons to escape from them by isolating

themselves. While students are given to always interact with

every individual, it is important to go through the reasons and

factors why they tend to be socially isolated.

A lot of students choose to retreat and live a secluded

lifestyle, disconnecting from their social circles and families.

For young adults who have experienced prolonged periods of self-

isolation, going outside of their comfort zone can be unsafe and

uncomfortable. One crucial aspect of adolescence is social

relationships. Young adults who experience social isolation are

those who have few or no social interactions with others over an

extended length of time. Ignoring the risk could lead to the

development of mental health disorders. Individual social

relationships and interpersonal relationships may suffer

significant harm as a result of this condition.

In the past few years, social isolation has had a

significant impact on students and continues to do so. According

to Valtorta and Hanratty (2019), Social Isolation is the

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objective lack or paucity of social contacts and interactions

with family members, friends or the wider community. Social

Isolation is more intricate than just physical isolation; its

allusion to a variation of circumstances that lead to the

breaking down of social relations and dyadic relationships among

students.

In the manner of Nicholson (2009), Findings from different

studies propose that social isolation also arises from

deficiencies in the social fabric such as lack of relationships,

psychological barriers, physical barriers and deficiencies

financially or environmentally as well. Though there are students

who prefer to be alone, this may lead to a lack of social

relationships and cause them to not want to engage with others

anymore. Social isolation may arise from various factors which

can deeply affect the student’s social life. An individual must

be knowledgeable of these factors, and effects, and how to manage

and overcome them.

Students who are being assessed by interpersonal dynamics

and categorized as rejected or neglected also could be considered

social isolates because they receive either low preference or

low-impact nominations from their peers. Therefore, their peers

are inclined to loathe them (reject) or disregard them (neglect).

In consonance with Bullock (1992), a lack of friends could place

a child at risk for increased loneliness, low self-esteem, and an

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inability to develop the social skills necessary to effectively

navigate social situations.

Human mental and physical well-being can suffer when they

feel isolated and have nobody to turn to. Going to school should

be an engaging experience that allows you to make new friends,

become involved in the community, and discover new interests.

Students' mental health has declined because of these isolating

settings, which could have a lasting impact. Additionally, this

has increased social media and internet usage, which is linked to

poor mental health. Students' health is greatly impacted by

social isolation and loneliness, which also raises their risk of

mental health conditions including anxiety and

depression. According to Goncalves and Trunk (2014), students who

felt alone and ignored on campus encountered significant

challenges in their pursuit of academic excellence, which may

ultimately lead them to decide to stop their studies. Stated

differently, in a collegiate setting, psychological isolation can

be just as dangerous as other types of isolation experience of

learning.

The researchers of this study experienced social isolation

in a school environment, this inspired to explore its effects on

emotional and psychological aspects. Through the study, this

examines the impacts of Social Isolation on First Year Psychology

Students in Colegio San Agustin – Bacolod. This study aims to

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describe the factors that affects the First Year Psychology

Students in Colegio San Agustin – Bacolod which causes them to

social isolate. Also, to determine the positive effects and the

risks that influence their mental health and well-being. This

study aims to assess the level of Social Isolation among First

Year Psychology Students in Colegio San Agustin – Bacolod.

Statement of the Problem

This study aims to determine the impact of Social Isolation

on First Year Psychology Students in Colegio San Agustin -

Bacolod.

Specifically, this study aims to answer the following:

1. What is the level of Social Isolation among First Year

Psychology Students in Colegio San Agustin-Bacolod?

2. What are the positive and negative impacts of Social

Isolation on First Year Psychology Students in Colegio San

Agustin-Bacolod?

3. Is there a significant relationship between Social

Isolation and Psychology Students in Colegio San Agustin–Bacolod?

Hypotheses

H01: There is a high level of Social Isolation among First

Year Psychology Students in Colegio San Agustin - Bacolod.

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H02: There is a significant relationship between Social

Isolation and First Year Psychology Students in Colegio San

Agustin - Bacolod.

Definition of Terms

The following terms are defined conceptually and

operationally to a better understanding of the research:

Anxiety. Anxiety is a psychological and physical response to

treat a self-concept characterized by subjective, consciously

perceived feelings of tension (Spielberger, 1983). Anxiety is a

complex, yet normal, emotional response. It is when a person

experiences chronic and excessive distress and/or worry regarding

everyday life/situations, above a normal protective anxiety

threshold, that it can be problematic (Driskell, 2022).

In this study, this term is operationally defined as the

emotional response of feeling fear of the First Year Psychology

Students as a cause and/or effect of Social Isolation. Anxiety is

the emotional discomfort when an individual worries about

interacting socially.

Depression. Depression is a mood disorder that causes a

persistent feeling of sadness and loss of interest. (DSM 5,

2013). The common features of all depressive disorders are

sadness, emptiness, or irritable mood, accompanied by somatic and

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cognitive changes that significantly affect the individual’s

capacity to function (Kessler et al., 2019).

In this study, this term is operationally defined as the

mental disorder that First Year Psychology Students have as a

cause and/or effect of Social Isolation. Depression is

characterized by low mood or low pleasure that an individual may

experience.

Loneliness. Loneliness can be described as a subjective

feeling of being alone, separated or apart from others, and has

been conceptualized as an imbalance between desired social

contacts and actual social contacts. (Gardiner et al., 2018).

Also, loneliness is associated with feelings of emptiness,

sadness, and shame, alongside the subjective perception that one

is disconnected from others. (Pietrabissa et al., 2020).

In this study, this term is operationally defined as the

associated feeling of the First Year Psychology Students as a

cause and/or effect of Social Isolation. Loneliness is the

emotional discomfort when an individual perceives being alone or

the feeling of being alone.

Mental health. Mental health is a dynamic state of internal

equilibrium which enables individuals to use their abilities in

harmony with universal values of society. Basic cognitive and

social skills; ability to recognize, express and modulate one's

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own emotions, as well as empathize with others; flexibility and

ability to cope with adverse life events and function in social

roles; and harmonious relationship between body and mind

represent important components of mental health which contribute,

to varying degrees, to the state of internal equilibrium

(Galderisi et al., 2015).

In this study, this term is operationally defined as the

psychological and emotional well-being of First Year Psychology

Students. The impacts of Social Isolation could affect the mental

health of the students positively and/or negatively.

Social Isolation. Social Isolation can be described as a

state in which the individual lacks a sense of belonging

socially, lacks engagement with others, has a minimal number of

social contacts, and they are deficient in fulfilling and quality

relationships (Shvedko et al., 2018). In simpler means, Social

Isolation is a deprivation of social connectedness (Zavaleta et

al., 2014).

In this study, this term is operationally defined as the

state of the First Year Psychology Students of Colegio San –

Agustin Bacolod to disengage from current relationships, friends,

family, classmates, schoolmates, and so on. This will be measured

using the Social Provisions Scale by Cutrona and Russell (1987).

The high score indicates that the individual is receiving

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provision, which implies that the individual does not or rarely

social isolate. Having a low score indicates that the individual

does social isolate.

Well-being. Well-being has been defined as the combination

of feeling good and functioning well; the experience of positive

emotions such as happiness and contentment as well as the

development of one’s potential, having some control over one’s

life, having a sense of purpose, and experiencing positive

relationships (Huppert, 2009).

In this study, this term is operationally defined as the

quality of life of the First Year Psychology Students. Well-being

is the experience wherein the individual experiences being happy,

having good mental health, and being satisfied socially.

Theoretical Framework

In addition to simplifying the theoretical framework, these

theories delve into the context of preferred concepts, models,

and abstraction, giving a wide basis for the design and carrying

out of our study.

Giddens’ Structuration Theory

Social isolation relates to a lack of social contacts and

interactions with family members, friends or the wider community,

and results in diminished health and well-being. In this paper,

we use concepts from Giddens’ structuration theory to understand

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the strategies they use to deal with social isolation in everyday

life. Social isolation also has societal consequences. It often

results in social exclusion, low social and civic engagement, and

a lack of participation in social activities (Hortulanus,

Machielse, & Meeuwesen, 2006; Brewer, 2005; 2006; Weldrick &

Grenier, 2018). Socially isolated persons can experience intense

feelings of loneliness, but not all socially isolated people

experience such feelings (Meeuwesen, 2006a; Neves, Sanders &

Kokanovic, 2019). Likewise, one can be lonely without being

socially isolated. The focus on social isolation, defined as a

lack of supportive relationships, is important in two ways.

First, supportive networks that contribute substantially to a

person’s functioning and well-being seem to be especially

significant as people age.

The theory will serve as an additional basis of social

isolation. The theory shares the same principle; the usage of

information about social isolation is the lack of interaction

with family members, peers and wider community, the causes of a

person to isolate themselves and strategies used to cope up with

it.

Wilson’s Theory of Social Isolation

In the social sciences, the term social isolation has two

distinct usages. When applied to individuals, social isolation

refers to a lack of social ties in general. When applied to

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social groups, social isolation refers to a lack of social and

institutional ties to mainstream society. A group can be socially

isolated even if the individuals within the group share a dense

network of social ties with one another. This study shows that

even if individuals are working together, they could still

isolate themselves from society.

Wilson argues that the limited social contact of residents

with the institutions of mainstream society is the primary cause

of various community social pathologies such as high rates of

out-of-wedlock births, welfare dependency, school dropout, crime,

and exit from the labor force. Wilson’s later work more

explicitly identifies the role of high community rates of

joblessness in producing social isolation.

The closely related concept of social exclusion can be

considered a special case of social isolation in which blame is

assigned. Brian Barry (2002) notes that “exclusion” implies that

the larger society prevents social integration, whereas

“isolation” in principle can be voluntary or involuntary and

beneficial or malevolent.

The various ideas of social isolation discussed in this

theory provide support in the study. Wilson emphasized that even

if individuals are constantly interacting with one another, some

may still prefer to isolate themselves. This study explores the

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reasons, factors, and influences why some individuals would

rather isolate than be more socially exposed.

Social Integration Theory by Émile Durkheim

Social integration prevails in a group if bonds of

attraction unite its members. Persons interested in becoming

integrated members of a group are under pressure to impress the

other members that they would make attractive associates, but the

resulting competition for popularity gives rise to defensive

tactics that block social integration. When a group of

individuals shares the same activities that means that they

automatically connect. Participating in social activities shapes

the individual’s social interactions.

Durkheim believed that society exerted a powerful force on

individuals. People’s norms, beliefs, and values make up a

collective consciousness, or a shared way of understanding and

behaving in the world. The collective consciousness binds

individuals together and creates social integration. For

Durkheim, the collective consciousness was crucial in explaining

the existence of society: it produces society and holds it

together. At the same time, collective consciousness is produced

by individuals through their actions and interactions. Society is

a social product created by the actions of individuals that then

exerts a coercive social force back on those individuals.

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The theory focused on different reasons why people have

interest in having a companion and what this interaction leads

them to feel. The theory shares the same principle of isolating

themselves because of too much energy exerted in interacting and

trying everything to impress other people.

Social Cognitive Theory by Albert Bandura

The unique feature of Social Cognitive Theory is the

emphasis on social influence and external and internal social

reinforcement. Social Cognitive Theory considers the unique way

in which individuals acquire and maintain behavior, while also

considering the social environment in which individuals perform

the behavior. The theory considers a person’s past experiences,

which factors into whether behavioral action will occur. These

past experiences influence reinforcements, expectations, and

expectancies, all of which shape whether a person will engage in

a specific behavior and the reasons why a person engages in that

behavior. The goal of Social Cognitive Theory is to explain how

people regulate their behavior through control and reinforcement

to achieve goal-directed behavior that can be maintained over

time. The social cognitive theory model developed highlights the

significant effects that observed and modeled behavior have on

learning.

When a student masters a social or cognitive activity, their

sense of personal competence grows. The relationship between the

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individual, the task or action to be taught, and the physical and

psychosocial environment are all taken into consideration by

social cognitive theory. Such factors are all crucial to

learning. Concerning this study, there is a relationship between

social isolation and cognitive level; moreover, a greater rise in

social isolation over time can be correlated with lower cognitive

levels of First-Year Psychology Students of Colegio San Agustin

Bacolod.

Conceptual Framework

This conceptual framework will serve as a guide to present

the potential relationship between variables in the study,

supporting the researchers' hypotheses. This graphical

presentation will clarify the nature and help in the analysis of

the study.

Figure 1.

Level, Impacts, and Effects of Social Isolation to First

Year Psychology Students of Colegio San Agustin – Bacolod

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Figure 1 Presents the relationship between the two (2)

variables. The diagram presents two boxes representing the

independent and dependent variable in the study. This study will

show the level of isolation, the impacts, and how social

isolation affects first year psychology students of colegio San

Agustin- Bacolod.

Significance of the Study

This research will exert an influence on the relationship

between Social Isolation and Psychology Students. The outcome of

this research will be a great asset to this study:

CASE Teachers. As teachers representing the College of Arts,

Sciences, and Education (CASE), this study may help them become

more cognizant of how learners at their place of learning are

doing so. Furthermore, they would be able to propose different

approaches to the problems demonstrated by the results of the

research.

First Year Psychology Students. This research will

substantially assist students by increasing their awareness and

knowledge of the effects of social isolation. This study will

help the school's first-year psychology students measure the

impacts of social isolation.

Peers. The study's findings, conclusion, and discussion can

provide them with further information about social isolation and

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how to study it in appropriate and non-romantic circumstances.

This study can help them identify information about how people

isolate themselves.

Researchers. This study will contribute to the related

literature on social isolation. This will help the other

researchers design new metrics to study the relationship between

the effects of social isolation and students on campus.

School Executives. As the head of the college, this study

may assist them become more aware of the current scenario in

which students at their school are behaving. In addition, they

would be able to devise potential solutions to the problems

raised by the study's findings.

Scope and Limitations of the Study

This study would only involve first-year BS Psychology

students from Colegio San Agustin in Bacolod. This will be

tailored exclusively to first-year psychology majors at Colegio

San Agustin - Bacolod. As a result, as previously stated, the

results are only applicable to the respondents and not to the

rest of the students at the school. Other terms that are not

listed or taken into consideration in the study will not be

covered by this. The current study aims to evaluate how social

isolation impacts first-year BS Psychology students. This study

will be conducted throughout the school year 2023-2024 with

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first-year psychology students from Colegio San Agustin -

Bacolod.

Chapter 2

Review of the Related Literature

Foreign RRL

Social isolation is shown mostly in university students and

is on the rise in today’s society. It has various negative

impacts on an individual’s physical and mental health such as

depression, inferiority complex, cognitive decline, high blood

pressure, etc. The researchers used stratified random sampling

method and selected 199 P.G level students in Purulia district of

West Bengal State. A self-made social isolation scale is utilized

by the researchers. This scale contains a total of 44 items

including 23 positive items and 21 negative items. The

researchers conducted a descriptive survey on the participants

using the attitude measurement scale of social isolation. The

Shapiro-Wilk test is applied by the researchers to check the

normality of the collected data with the help of SPSS 26. In

Table 1, the significance value was .480 which is greater

than .05, and this implies that the data is normally distributed.

Thus, the researchers utilized t-test to analyze the date and to

test the null hypotheses. According to Table 2, the significant

value is .529, which is greater than .05, and this means that
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there is no significant difference between the attitude of male

and female P.G. level students towards social isolation.

According to Table 3, the significant value is .031, which is

less than .05, and this implies that there is a significant

difference between the attitude of rural and urban P.G. level

students towards social isolation. The significant value in Table

4 is .799, which is greater than .05, this means that there is no

significant difference between the attitude of arts and science

P.G. level students towards social isolation. According to Table

5, the significant value is .009, which is less than .05, this

implies that there is a significant difference between the

attitude of rural male and urban male P.G. level students towards

social isolation. According to Table 6, the significant value

is .225, which is greater than .05, this indicates that there is

no significant difference between the attitude of rural female

and urban female P.G. level students towards social isolation.

According to Table 7, the significant value is .670, which is

greater than .05, this means that there is no significant

difference between the attitude of rural male and rural female

P.G. level students towards social isolation. The significant

value in Table 8 is .065, which is greater than .05, this implies

that there is no significant difference between the attitude of

urban male and urban female P.G. level students towards social

isolation. According to Table 9, the significant value is .916,

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which is greater than .05, this indicates that there is no

significant difference between the attitude of arts male and arts

female P.G. level students towards social isolation. According to

Table 10, the significant value is .263, which is greater

than .05, this implies that there is no significant difference

between the attitude of science male and science female P.G.

level students towards social isolation. The significant value in

Table 11 is .396, which is greater than .05, this means that

there is no significant difference between the attitude of arts

male and science male P.G. level students towards social

isolation. According to Table 12, the significant value is .485,

which is greater than .05, this indicates that there is no

significant difference between the attitude of arts female and

science female P.G. level students towards social isolation. This

study indicates that male-female and arts-science P.G level

students have equal attitude in social isolation. While rural

male and urban male P.G level students are different based on

attitude regarding social isolation. Therefore, being detached

from society or what is commonly known as social isolation, is a

major problem especially in university students.

Research has examined how social isolation may be linked to

social distrust. Lack of trust in neighbors, peers, governments,

healthcare systems, and other institutions may lead to greater

social polarization and, by extension, to a worsening of the

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global loneliness crisis. Social isolation was defined as being

lonely most or all the time and/or having no close friends.

Social distrust was defined as reporting that parents are

uncaring and/or classmates are unkind most or all the time. The

Global School-based Student Health Survey (GSHS) uses a

standardized two stage cluster sampling method and a validated

questionnaire to examine health and risk behaviors among

nationally representative samples of secondary school students

ages 13 to 17 years in participating countries. Here is the

summary; Social Distrust: An average of 53% of students in each

country (standard deviation 11%) reported that their classmates

were rarely or never kind and/or their parents rarely or never

understood their problems and worries. The prevalence rates of

social distrust were similar for boys and girls, but the rate was

slightly higher in boys. Social Isolation: About 19% (standard

deviation 6%) reported that they felt lonely most of the time or

always and/or had no close friends. The prevalence rates were

similar for boys and girls, with the rate being slightly higher

in girls. In 72 of 84 countries (86%), there was a statistically

significant association between expressing at least one social

distrust characteristic (classmates unkind and/or parents not

supportive) and at least one type of social isolation (lonely

and/or no close friends). This trend was seen in both boys and

girls, but the association between expressing one distrust and

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one isolation characteristic was stronger in girls than boys. Our

analysis confirms that loneliness is a common adolescent

experience across boys and girls in all countries, and it reveals

a new link between social isolation and social distrust (Luke J.

Pontoriero et al., 2024).

The research study by Sutton, Charlie. (2018) entitled

“Mature students and social isolation: Being excluded or choosing

to be alone?” The main focus of this research is on the

differences in students' experiences of isolation and how age

seemed to have a direct impact on these experiences. This topic

may be especially crucial in helping to explain why older

students leave college earlier. This study found that older

students were more likely to experience social isolation during

their first semester of college, in comparison to their peers who

were their typical age. Additionally, despite the fact that all

older students expressed feeling like isolated learners, a few of

them rationalized this experience as a coping strategy to help

them manage their time well at university. Initially, social

isolation was an intentional coping mechanism selected by a few

older students, especially the younger ones. Others indicated

this because, in addition to other institutional explanations, it

was how younger individuals made them feel. Some characterized

this as a barrier, attributing it to institutional social

settings and attitude qualities in general, as well as social

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separation from their younger peers. A thorough questionnaire

survey with 828 students was conducted during the first two weeks

of the academic year. Twelve departments, selected by looking at

the age distribution of their recently accepted students, were

invited to participate. In some classes, the age distribution of

the student body was appropriate, while there were very few

senior students in other courses. This was supposed to

demonstrate if differences in experiences were related to the age

distribution of students in their peer group. Subjects with

different group sizes were also examined to see if the size of

the peer group had an impact on the students' experiences.

Students who answered the questionnaires were asked to

participate in a secondary phase of research that included diary

entries and semi-structured interviews to examine each student's

unique experiences. Students who expressed interest in

participating were chosen based on their age for this phase,

which employed quota to control for age. Discipline was also

taken into consideration to see if this had any impact on

experience. According to the first survey, older students were

generally more concerned with blending in than other age groups,

it was especially noticeable among the 40+ demographic, where

this was the most typical answer to the question, "What worries

you about university?" While nearly every older age group voiced

greater anxiety concerning this than kids of traditional age. The

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percentage change is rather small as students become older.

Concerns about fitting in increase progressively through the age

groupings, starting at 12% for students in the 17–20 age range

and reaching 14.3% for those in the 30-39 age range. The

responses from those in the 25–29 age bracket deviate

significantly from this pattern, with only 8.3% expressing

anxiety about fitting in. Instead, these individuals list

scheduling study time (33.3%) and the quality of work required

(25%) as their top worries. Students in both the usual age range

of 17–21 and the age range of 21–24. Journal entries and

interviews from the second phase revealed social isolation as a

noticeable matter. Age appears to have a major impact on whether

or not this isolation lessened, remained, or intensified over the

course of their first year.

The research study examines the social dimensions of suicide

etiology through a review of the literature on the relationship

between suicide and social isolation. Also, the study shows the

determinants of suicide, focusing mostly on individual risk

factors, specifically depression. The researchers conducted a

literature review between the variable of social isolation and

suicide by conducting searches in two databases, Medline via

PubMed and PsycINFO. The terms used are “suicide” AND

“isolation”, followed by using the Preferred Reporting Items for

Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines to

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ensure methodology appropriateness and accurate results

reporting. The study did not limit the database search by

publication dates, and articles published through April 2020 were

considered in the final search conducted in May 2020. The

researchers used eligibility criteria to select articles, and if

doubt is present whether an article should be included, two

independent experts were consulted to reach an agreement. Out of

the 2,684 articles retrieved, 50 were read in full, and 46 were

included for the final analysis. The results are that most

articles suggest a causal relationship between social isolation

and suicide. According to the findings based on the theoretical

models of E. Durkheim and T. Joiner, there is a correlation

between suicide and social isolation, which varies according to

age, gender, psychopathology, and other specific circumstances.

There is a big gap between the numbers of articles highlighting

the possible suicide risks related to social isolation regarding

related interventions. However, the study emphasizes the possible

preventive effect of social support on suicide.

Loneliness and social isolation are drivers of student

mental health problems amenable to intervention which are

becoming increasingly common among students. When they go to

university, many students move away from previous social

connections, such as school friends or family, increasing the

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risk of social isolation and loneliness. Addressing ‘upstream’

factors such as loneliness and social isolation can both

alleviate mental health problems such as depression and anxiety

and support students’ engagement in university life. (Lovelle et

al., 2023) Standardized self-complete evaluation questionnaires

were administered pre-training, immediately after training, and

post-practice (five to six months after training). Our primary

outcome, trainee confidence, was measured using nine core

questions, which asked participants to rate on a 1–10 scale their

confidence and ability to (1) assess social isolation, (2) map

social networks, (3) explore interests, (4) set goals, (5)

identify barriers, (6) overcome barriers, (7) make plans for

involvement, (8) implement plans, and (9) review progress, plus

an optional free-text box to make any additional comments. These

questions were devised for this evaluation, though we tested

their internal consistency and reliability as a scale (Cronbach’s

alpha = 0.945). An inspection of the item-total statistics

revealed positive inter-item correlations with no redundant

items. These findings indicate that the questions formed a

coherent scale, which we termed the Connecting People Confidence

Scale. Additional questions were added to the post-training

questionnaire about whether participants felt equipped to work

with socially isolated students (yes or no) and whether they

intended to use the approach (with yes or no options and a free

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text box to explain the reasons for their answer). On the post-

practice questionnaire, additional questions included whether

participants had worked with any socially isolated students

(yes/no); whether they had had a chance to use the Connecting

People approach (yes/no, and if ‘yes’ with how many students);

whether students made friends or got involved in social

activities as a result of the approach (yes/no and free-text

options to explain why and how); and whether they intended to use

the approach in the future (yes/no and free-text option to

explain their reasons). In conclusion, this evaluation has found

that providing training in Connecting People appears to increase

the confidence of staff in working effectively with socially

isolated students. The feedback from trainees was almost

exclusively positive, across all four cohorts. This was supported

by vicarious accounts of positive student feedback, including an

example of a mentor who had received Connecting People as a

student in a previous year. Further research is required to

evaluate students’ experiences and outcomes, using a control

group where possible and a validated measure of social isolation

or mental wellbeing, for example. In the meantime, this

evaluation indicates that universities can provide training in

Connecting People to improve staff confidence in working with

socially isolated students with no apparent adverse effect.

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The purpose of this study is to investigate how rural self-

efficacy influences the association between social isolation and

rural career intent. The self-reported social isolation in the

context of their study is a subjective experience. Previously it

has been suggested that perceived or subjective determinants of

social isolation are better predictors of health and behavioral

outcomes, when compared to objective measures of social isolation

(Isaac et al.,2018). Students self-reported on their feelings of

social isolation during their placement in a remote clinical

school, which served as an indicator for social isolation. "I

experienced social isolation while working in a rural area." Five

points were awarded on a Likert scale to evaluate these answers.

The responses were categorized as follows: "Neutral," "somewhat

disagree," and "strongly disagree" in contrast to "Somewhat

agree" and "strongly agree." They used SPSS Version 21 (SPSS IBM,

New York, USA) for statistical analysis. The initial ratio of

likelihood was estimated using simple logistic regression in

order to examine the relationship between social isolation and

the independent factors. The multivariate model that predicted

the desire to practice in rural areas took into account variables

that showed significance in the uni-variate analysis .Adjusted

for in models, the following variables were shown to be linked to

a lower level of social isolation: RCS was their first choice for

clinical training; they felt that RCS provided overall well-

 27

support, particularly academic assistance; and they had a

positive experience with supervision. Additionally, when students

reported that the RCS had a good influence on their well-being or

when they had higher levels of rural self-efficacy, they were

less likely to feel socially isolated. Social isolation may be

utilized for predicting a number of quality-related outcomes

instead of number of social connections. The researchers in this

study have treated social isolation as a separate concept. Prior

research has indicated that other subjective cognitive variables,

such one's perception of one's own health, can serve as a useful

predictor of a patient's tendency to seek medical attention.

This research shows how Academic and Social Isolation

correlate with each other. Given the transition of school, some

international students tend to have difficulty in making friends.

Sherry, Chui and Thomas (2009) highlighted problems international

students experienced in their studies such as adapting to a new

culture, lack of competency in the use of English language and

lack of understanding from the university community. Students are

having a hard time adapting to a new culture, that is why they

tend to isolate themselves. Social Isolation is not a new thing

on international students. Students from university, isolates

because of not having peers and they need time to process

adapting to a new environment. This study adopted a quantitative

 28

approach where numerical statistics and descriptive

interpretations complement each other to generate findings that

are substantiated with width and depth (Peel, 2000; Mark &

Anthony, 2007; Croft et al., 2010; Erichsen & Bolliger, 2011). A

quantitative approach would allow the researchers to generate

data and findings with width and apply the results in general

context as the findings are supported with statistics of large

scale (Andrade, 2006). Specifically, this study adopted the

correlational research design, and this particular research

design was deliberately selected as it allows for proper

investigation of relationship between the variables to be

measured (Creswell, 2012; Cohen, Manion, & Morrison, 2011). In

the context of this study, the correlational research design

guides for rigorous planning, implementation and analysis of

variables between student isolation in students’ academic, social

and psychological developments and students’ university learning

experiences. Students who isolate feel neglected so they struggle

in academic success which may cause them to not study. This study

highlighted the influence of student isolation on students’

university learning experiences and the strength of impact

towards different aspects in student’s university learning

experience. Findings showed that academic isolation and social

isolation were strongly associated with poorer university

learning experiences as compared to psychological isolation.

 29

Student isolation as a whole proffer's extensive negative

relationship with university learning experience. Stakeholders in

the educational context ought to prioritize the impacts of

student isolation among tertiary students as higher education

institutions are the main producer of future human capital for a

nation to continue developing its economy.

Social isolation is defined as the “inadequate quality and

quantity of social relations with others at the different levels

where human interaction takes place (individual, group, community

and the larger social environment) (D. Zavaleta, et al., 2014).

Social isolation is associated with a range of physical and

mental sequelae, even in the young. In particular, however,

Generation Z (age 18-22) and Millennials (age 23-27) cited they

were lonelier and in worse health compared to older age groups

(Cigna, Ipsos. Cigna U.S. loneliness index, 2019). Cacioppo and

colleagues noted that socially isolated students rate everyday

occurrences as more “intensely stressful,” respond to coping

passively, have more dysphoria, feel less connected to those

around them, have poorer sleep efficiency, fear public speaking,

have greater vascular resistance, and experience slower wound

healing (J.T. Cacioppo, L.C. Hawkley, 2003). Social connectedness

and its relationship to health have been studied to a limited

degree in medical student populations. Brazeau and colleagues

found that medical students matriculate with better indicators of

 30

mental health (eg, less burnout, symptoms of depression, and

quality of life measures) than age-matched college graduates, yet

express high rates of distress and mental deterioration while in

medical school. They attributed this decline, at least in part,

to the learning environment and training process (C.M. Brazeau,

et al., 2014). Vora and Kinney found that changing a medical

school curriculum to include more distance learning decreased

student connectivity, sense of community, and academic

satisfaction (R.S. Vora, M.N. Kinney, 2014). Although learning

environment and demographics in related health professions

contribute to outcomes, what is still unknown is whether specific

factors exist that place students at risk or protect them from

social isolation. This study evaluated both quantitative and

qualitative risk factors and protective factors impacting

isolation among both professional and graduate students of health

profession disciplines. The objective of the study is to

determine the prevalence of social isolation and associated

factors in graduate and professional health science students.

Quantitative and qualitative data were gathered via an online

survey from graduate and professional students in the colleges of

dentistry, medicine, nursing, pharmacy, and public health at a

Midwestern university. Questions assessed students’ demographics,

weekly activity hours, support systems, and financial concerns,

and included the 20-item UCLA Loneliness Scale. Logistic

 31

regression was performed using the binary outcome of feeling

socially isolated (yes/no) and examined program-related

respondent comments using thematic analysis. There were 427

survey respondents with 398 completing the full survey. Students

answering the social isolation question (n=386) were included in

the regression analysis. Nearly one-fifth (19.4%) of respondents

indicated social isolation, with the highest percentage among

nursing respondents (40.7%). Lacking a strong support, being a

non-native English speaker, having caregiving responsibilities,

and experiencing “lonely” items described in the UCLA Loneliness

Scale were positively associated with social isolation. Social

isolation was more extensively noted in college of nursing

students as compared to other students. A greater percentage of

graduate students in this program self-reported taking online

coursework which may have played a role in this finding, though

there is also a possibility for selection bias. Additional

research regarding the effects of online training on social

isolation may be helpful. This study revealed nearly one-fifth of

graduate and professional health care students- respondents

indicated they experienced social isolation. Numerous factors are

associated with increased risk; social isolation is more likely

to occur in students with no strong support system, in those who

are non-native English speakers and in those needing to care for

family members or dependents. In contrast, ample support systems

 32

help students remain engaged with others. Creation of a

purposeful plan for monitoring for social isolation and proactive

engagement of students at risk through a variety of modalities,

may be helpful in fostering inclusion and increasing the

perceived value of student interactions with peers and faculty.

One of the most important predictors of life satisfaction,

which has received less attention in studies, are related but

independent concepts of belongingness and the need for

belongingness (Raijman & Geffen, 2018). Despite the emphasis on

the importance of satisfying the need for relationships in

individuals' well - being, there is little understanding of the

mechanisms linking the sense of belongingness, the need for

affiliation, and social isolation with life satisfaction in

students (Li et al., 2021). Hence, the research study aimed to

investigate the roles of social and psychological distress

regarding belonging and life satisfaction among university

students. The research design used was descriptive-correlational.

The statistical population consists of 200 undergraduate students

at Ferdowsi University of Mashhad in the spring semester of the

academic year 2022 -23, which Multi -stage random sampling method

was used. First, five academic groups were randomly selected

based on the university's educational structure, and then two

classes were randomly selected in each group according to the

 33

year of admission to the university. Finally, the questionnaires

were distributed among 20 students present in the classrooms

during data collection. The Sense of Belonging Instrument (SOBI)

was developed by Hagerty & Patusky (1995) and consists of two

subscales: Antecedents of SOBI (SOBI -A) with 9 phrases to

measure individuals' motivation to engage meaningfully with

others and Psychologically Related Experiences of Belongingness

(SOBI -P) with 18 phrases to measure psychologically related

experiences of belongingness to others. Participants respond to

the items on a four -point Likert scale ranging from strongly

disagree (1) to strongly agree (4). Higher scores indicate more

positive antecedents and psychological experiences related to

belongingness. The Need to Belong Scale (NTBS), introduced by

Kelly (1999), consists of 10 phrases that are scored on a scale

of 1 (not at all) to 5 (extremely). A higher score indicates a

greater unfulfilled need for belongingness. The Young Schema

Questionnaire -Short Form (YSQ -SF), developed by Young (1998),

consists of 75 phrases that are rated on a six -point Likert

scale ranging from completely untrue (1) to completely true (6)

and measures 15 maladaptive schemas. In this study, the subscale

of social isolation, consisting of 5 phrases, was used. A higher

score indicates a more unfavorable condition. The Depression,

Anxiety and Stress Scale (DASS -21), developed by Lovibond &

Lovibond (1995), consists of 21 phrases, each of which is

 34

assigned to one of three sub-scales of 7 phrases. The scale is

scored on a four -point Likert scale ranging from never (0) to

always (3), and higher scores indicate greater prevalence. The

Kessler Psychological Distress Scale (K6), developed by Kessler

et al. (2002), consists of 6 phrases that are scored on a five -

point Likert scale ranging from never (0) to all of the time (4).

Higher scores indicate greater psychological distress.

Satisfaction With Life Scale (SWLS) was developed by Diener,

Emmons, Larsen, & Griffin (1985) and consists of 5 statements

that are scored on a 7 -point Likert scale ranging from

completely disagree (1) to completely agree (7). A higher score

indicates greater satisfaction with life. The results indicate

that the sense of belonging has a negative relationship with the

need for belonging, social isolation, depression, and

psychological pressure, and a positive relationship with life

satisfaction (P ≤ 0.001). The need for belonging also has a

positive relationship with social isolation, depression, and

psychological pressure, and a negative relationship with life

satisfaction (P ≤ 0.001). The relationship between social

isolation, depression, and psychological pressure with life

satisfaction is also negative and significant (P ≤ 0.01). The

results showed that the precursor of belongingness had a direct

effect on life satisfaction via depression (β = 0.145) and

psychological pressure (β = 0.177), with psychological pressure

 35

having a greater mediating role. Social isolation did not have a

mediating role in this. The psychological antecedents of

belongingness had a direct effect on life satisfaction via

depression (β= 0.212). The indirect effect of this variable on life

satisfaction was also significant, with a mediating role of social

isolation and then depression (β = 0.073) and psychological pressure

(β = 0.075). The need for belongingness also had an indirect effect on

life satisfaction via psychological pressure (β = 0.191), and social

isolation had a mediating role in the indirect effects of the need for

belongingness on depression (β = 0.070) and psychological pressure (β

= 0.071). Finally, social isolation had an indirect effect on life

satisfaction via depression (β = 0.238) and psychological pressure (β

0.318). The amount of variance in life satisfaction explained by the

predictor variables was 0.28, meaning that 28% of the variance in

students' life satisfaction was influenced by belongingness, need

for belongingness, social isolation, depression, and

psychological pressure. This study showed a significant positive

and meaningful relationship between social isolation and

psychological distress (Giovenco et al., 2022). Therefore,

students with lower levels of belongingness are more likely to

feel lonely and isolated, which leads to experiencing depression

and psychological pressure.

This research shows how social isolation affects students'

well-being. Great heterogeneity in students is a challenge to

 36

establishing connections and developing a sense of community.

This means that when a student is in a large group of people,

they will have a hard time connecting because every person has

different characters and personalities. Weiss, social isolation

is used to describe feeling lonely because of a lack of

integration as opposed to Social Isolation predominantly affects

international students (also known as sojourners, foreign and

overseas students) or domestic students studying away from home.

Students who left home to study abroad show that they isolate

because of feeling lonely. However academic stress is a major

factor that most students isolate themselves because of pressure.

They tend to have a lack of confidence and lack of competence,

the reason why most students at the university isolate

themselves. A significant number of studies on social isolation

focus on solutions that require students to take part in

activities that are in addition to their study load. There are,

however, ways of addressing this issue through curriculum and/or

learning space design. Schar et al. (2016) argues for curricula

activities that increase opportunities for engagement and develop

agency. Pedagogies that are designed to foster engagement and

connection can help remedy or prevent issues of student social

isolation because they help develop their sense of belonging to a

place or a culture (e.g. university, school or discipline)

(Krause & Armitage, 2014), promote interactions with peers and

 37

educators (e.g. relational core) (Pattison, 2019) and/or

stimulate greater engagement with the learning content or

experience (e.g. participatory or active learning) (Leveson et

al., 2013). With this the result shows the size of populations

studied varied from large scale (7), medium high scale (9),

medium low scale (10) to small scale (13) (Table 4). The size of

the sample population was not related to whether the study

focused on students enrolled in programs delivered to large class

sizes. As outlined in Table 5, only 4 studies explicitly focused

on large cohorts. It should, however, be noted that what

constitutes a large cohort depends on the context. For example,

Exeter et al. (2010, p. 765) defined a large cohort or very large

classes of 550 or more students, while Lane and Harris (2015)

large cohorts to be up to 300 students. Also, 12 studies

specifically engaged solely or partly with Business School

students. Finally, 22 studies focused on issues of stress and

isolation for international students.

Local RRL

Much research carried out reveal different factors such as

culture shock, racism, language barrier, academic stress,

financial difficulties, new ways of education and cultural

adjustment that have contributed to international students’

experiences. Although these are two separate notions loneliness

 38

can be regarded as the result of having no friends. Loneliness

according to its definition means absence of something; what

Weiss (1973) has put for example is the lack of necessary bonds.

On the contrary, Peplau and Perlman (1982) argue that social

isolation comes about when one is deprived of their social life.

It is assumed that relationships do not measure up to what one

would like them to be. Again, they assert an ideal versus

perceived discrepancy in terms of social bonds. Many research

studies have concentrated on the experience of international

students and some of the factors of social isolation highlighted

include coping with new cultures, adapting to new educational

systems, financial constraints they face, academic stressors,

language barriers/ problems in communication, social

interactions/ relationships, culture shock; racial discrimination

and difficulties making friends abroad. In addition to these

potential academic problems, such isolation may also result

because of such isolation which could also increase stress. The

experience of isolation is our focus in this study among

university students in the Philippines. We interviewed 34

students from different academic levels, nationalities, races and

religious backgrounds who were divided into 14 females and 20

males. The interview guide was specifically designed by

professionals; the interviews were conducted privately while

participants used fake names to protect their identity. Data was

 39

collected from universities located both in private and public

sector in the regions of Visayas and Luzon. We chose participants

deliberately to give a variety of perceptions based on gender,

religion, race and academic level among others. Additionally,

snowball sampling helped us to reach international students that

we did not know before. Interviews were recorded, transcribed and

some notes taken for initial analysis purpose. We analyzed data

as it came, spotting topics for discussion that were recurrent

with each interview. We utilized HyperResearch software for

organizing and analyzing data during this research work. Our

findings emanate from these themes as conclusions were drawn

based on them following qualitative research guidelines. The

present study presented six main findings: time spent with

others, reasons for being alone, type of friends that would be

preferred to isolation, impact of isolation on an individual, how

one can deal with the challenge of being alone and

recommendations. They focused on recurrent patterns rather than

isolated events. This was a commonly reported observation in

other studies (Trice, 2007). Participants struggled to adjust to

different cultures without training (Myers-Walls et al., 2011).

Building friendships with locals was hard (Yeh & Inose, 2003;

McLachlan & Justice, 2009). Some tried but found it tough to

maintain lasting bonds (Flug, 2010). Even when they had local

friends, these connections felt shallow (Trice, 2002). Consistent

 40

with previous researches racial discrimination and academic

stress were prominent factors leading to isolation among

students(Church,1982;Ryan&Twibell ,2000 ;Yeh&Inose ,2003 ;McClure

,2007 ). It has been shown that loneliness leads to depression as

well as other negative attitudes such as anger and

fear(Brislin&Brislin,Yoshida,Takashi,&Hess,&Linderman ).

Similarly coping mechanisms included focusing on academics and

religion (McClure ,2007; Trice, 2007; Rokach & Brock ,1998).

However here it was Tagalog not English which constituted a

barrier between people because the researchers could not

communicate with them in this language unlike in the other

studies (Church,1982; Zhai; a certain language spoken by

Filipinos is also difficult even if they are proficient in

English Haydon, Yeh & Inose).

Social isolation describes the absence of social contact and

can lead to loneliness. It is a state of being cut off from

normal social networks, which can be triggered by factors such as

loss of mobility, unemployment, or health issues. Isolation can

involve staying at home for lengthy periods, having no access to

services or community involvement, and little or no communication

with friends, family, and acquaintances (No Isolation, 2017,

April 18). Social Isolation has negative impacts on the health of

everyone such as depression, poor sleep quality, impaired

executive function, accelerated cognitive decline, poor

 41

cardiovascular function, and impaired immunity regardless of

their age (Hawkey and Capitanio, 2015). The study was conducted

in the University of Baguio School of Nursing wherein 25

respondents are students from 1st year to 4th year in each

section. The researchers used a simple random sampling method

where the respondents were able to engage in the study. The

research that was conducted is quantitative research, methods

emphasize objective measurements and the statistical,

mathematical, or numerical analysis of data collected through

digital questionnaires. Descriptive design was used. The

researcher carries out a survey and each item on the survey

related to qualifications is subjected to a Yes/No answer. A

questionnaire was used by the researcher through digital forms to

collect information from the respondents. There is no significant

difference between the effects of social isolation on the

University of Baguio BSN Students in terms of mental, physical,

emotional, social, spiritual, and career to the positive and

negative effects of social isolation.2.There is no significant

difference between the effects of social isolation to the

University of Baguio BSN Students encountered during this

pandemic to the positive and negative effects of social

isolation.3.There is no significant difference between the

methods used by the University of Baguio BSN Students to overcome

the negative effects of social isolation on the stressors that

 42

the University of Baguio BSN Students encountered during this

pandemic.

Distance learning is a means of teaching for people who

desire to acquire knowledge but do not have access to the

traditional learning institutions. It’s like studying on your own

rather than having a teacher in a classroom (Attri, 2012). The

internet has changed how we learn significantly and provided new

ways of studying thus enhancing the quality of teaching as well

(Dickey, 2004). Online learning has gained popularity due to the

rapid growth of internet and busyness amongst individuals

(Vonberg, 2015). Thus, schools need to adapt so as to meet the

needs of such students. However, there is an issue with online

education: isolation. Isolation refers to feeling alone or

disconnected from other individuals (Cambridge Dictionary, 2021).

People may feel isolated because they study alone far from others

or because they do not fit in (Mbukusa, Kibuule & Lates, 2017).

There are different types of isolation: feeling lonely; feeling

unlike oneself; feeling different from others (Fulmer, 2020).

Isolation is one reason why students learning online are more

likely to drop out (Chan & Lee, 2007). This is particularly the

case if these learners reside a considerable distance away from

fellow students (Dabaj & Yetkin, 2011). According to Burns (2016)

many pupils drop out of online courses as they have a perception

that they are learning on their own and have no one to assist
 43

them. In big open universities, several students fail to complete

their courses because they experience loneliness (Fozdar et al.,

2006). A lot of students stop studying due to isolation which is

an important problem in online education (Thompson, 2017). The

greatest thing about online learning is that it allows for

flexibility, but it can be very lonely sometimes according to

students (Rush, 2015). Isolation is experienced dissimilarly

across cultures; nevertheless, it hampers all the learners’

progress regardless of where they come from (Al-Harthi, 2005).

Thus, we need to think about how we can support learners feel

more connected and less lonely as they study online. And the main

question we should answer is: How were you able to cope with

loneliness while studying via internet? (Nuñez, 2021). This

research dwells on the examination of isolation experiences among

online learners. The researchers interviewed individuals who have

experienced isolation firsthand. They had dialogue with them

using questions such as “What have you experienced with

isolation?” and “What situations affect your isolation

experiences?” Different kinds of information were examined in

order to better comprehend the subject, including interviews,

documents and painting among others. As a result, it was aimed at

identifying what really constitutes the concept of isolation for

distance learners. The person studied by these researchers was

Maria Santos, an online student at Visayas State University –

 44

Open University (VSU-OU). Maria is far from the institution,

hence classified as a distance learner. VSU-OU offers several

types of master’s degrees through online learning, and Maria has

enrolled for one that deals with agricultural development.

Interviews were employed to collect data from Maria concerning

her experiences regarding isolation. Then they analyzed her

responses to decipher the major problems she faces like being

isolated, and handling more challenging conditions that make it

worse off for her. Consequently, they intend to discover more on

how this vice impacts on individuals studying away from their

universities like Maria does. The isolation themes. The learning

is made a challenge in itself by the fact that the learner

studies alone and far from campus. In the learning process,

students feel isolated when they do not receive any assistance

from their peers or even university. The feeling of lonesomeness

has increased as there has been less feedback (Fozdar, Kumar &

Kannan, 2006) and due to this incident, an individual felt that

she never belonged to any learning community (Chan & Lee, 2007).

The sub-theme revolves around barriers; however, during studying

alone obstacles have emerged which further compounded difficulty

of the learning system as a whole. The absence of stable internet

connection, environmental catastrophes like natural calamities,

Covid-19 and work schedules almost led to failing in this

modality. Covid-19 on the other hand did not cause much

 45

adjustment at all to online education for many learners including

this participant who had started prior pandemic. This case

enabled her smoothly to shift with education arrangement apart

from helping family members do so.

This emotion was often triggered by the physical distance

between the teacher and the pupil. It was an issue that educators

could perhaps mitigate but are unlikely to be able to fully

resolve. Today's children have suffered socially because of

technological innovation. Students use Facebook, Instagram, and

Whats App to communicate with their virtual friends who live far

away, but they never say hi to the person sitting next to them.

According to Roberts and McLennerney's (2004) research, a

significant stressor that led to student withdrawals was a sense

of isolation. The respondents thought that procrastination,

social isolation, and being anxious to make mistakes in online

discussions were difficult aspects of taking classes online.

However, they saw loneliness and a lack of social engagement as

less difficult (Najera & Carlito,2023). The information acquired

helped create an action plan and suggested more research. The

research methodology used for the study was descriptive-

correlational. There were 149 students who answered the survey. A

modified questionnaire that underwent pilot testing for

validation was utilized to collect the data. The findings

indicated that the respondent's lack of desire, the

 46

characteristics of online learning environments, and their sense

of isolation were the main sources of difficulty. The

environmental problems that the respondents used as a coping

mechanism were confirmed to be more effective in their online

course than the other coping methods, which included course

obstacles, technological challenges, and individual challenges.

The results had an impact on the respondents' obstacles, as they

felt that taking online classes could be isolating. Due to social

isolation or a sense of diminished social connection, the

participants in the online course faced challenges related to

isolation. When working alone in front of a computer screen, even

learners who feel a feeling of community at work may nevertheless

feel alone. One major factor in the satisfaction of students with

the web-based online course was the problem of isolation,

according to Daugherty and Funke(1998). This would help our

research identify the causes and effects of the higher likelihood

of isolation among students, regardless of the many situations in

which they may be associated with isolation.

Newly arrived international students suddenly find

themselves in a “relational deficit,” if not social isolation, at

a time when they need more than usual support. International

students find it hard to cope with Filipino habits; hence, they

feel inadequate and insecure, leading them to isolate themselves.

 47

If the need to belong is not satisfied, negative feelings are

generated, including loneliness remarks that “being accepted,

included, or welcomed leads to positive emotions such as

happiness, elation, commitment, and calm.” On the other hand,

“being rejected, excluded, or ignored leads to often intense

negative feelings of anxiety, depression, grief, jealousy, and

loneliness.” (Kosgey et. al., 2018). The researchers relied on

one-on-one semi-structured interviews, mini-focus group

discussions consisting of a minimum of 3–8 participants per

session, and observation. One-on-one, semi-structured interviews

were conducted by the researchers. The semi-structured questions

follow an open-ended approach based on an interview guide. In

semi-structured interviewing, the researchers elicit answers

fully from the perspective of the study participant and attempt

to gain a greater understanding of the context and meaning of the

responses through various forms of probing. Focus group

discussions were also conducted, wherein a purposefully selected

set of participants gathered to discuss issues and concerns based

on a list of key themes drawn up by the researchers. It was made

in an informal discussion with open-ended guided questions to

keep track of the discussion. The researchers conducted four

focus group discussions composed of students with attributes

distinct from each other to detect patterns and trends across

groups. Each session has a range of 3–8 participants, small

 48

enough for everyone to have the opportunity to share insights and

yet large enough to provide diversity of perceptions. Focus group

discussions were held in accessible places where participants

were comfortable, free of distractions, and whose privacy

concerns were assured. Observations were done in natural settings

and unobtrusively to prevent the reactivity of participants being

observed. The foreign students in Baguio City were observed

during free time at the university and outside the school

premises, like in the establishments. The researchers also

visited an institution from which all students were foreigners,

and a careful, objective note was also recorded in a field

notebook after informal conversations. Through observation, the

data obtained served as a check against participants subjective

reporting (from interviews and focus group discussions) of what

they believe and do. A semi-structured questionnaire was used in

the interview or focus group discussions. The following questions

were: a) What is the common source of your stress? b) How do you

cope with your stress? The results of this study showed that

foreign students stress is greatly influenced by the host

country's culture, which includes the physical environment,

people, communication patterns, and ways of living. Stress is

also greatly influenced by internal factors and issues from their

own culture. Coping mechanisms employed by most foreign students

include social activities and interactions within their country

 49

or with other international students. Maladaptive coping

mechanisms are viewed as temporary relief from the stresses

experienced.

This research shows what causes suicidal ideation or

suicidal attempts. It is said that the observed connection

between suicidal ideation and feeling lonely and having no close

friends supports the assertion of Bearman and Moody that social

isolation and the lack of social relationships represents an area

within the literature on adolescent suicidal behavior that

deserves more attention. Students who isolate are most likely to

think about suicide because of having lack of social interaction.

This means that we should look further at those students who

isolate themselves because they could think about harming

themselves. Social interaction prevents the person from

committing suicide because the more friends they have the less

they would think of isolating themselves. The GSHS has been

implemented by Ministries of Health and Education in many

countries with assistance from the WHO and technical assistance

from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The

GSHS can be implemented at little cost and serves as a

surveillance tool to periodically monitor the prevalence of

important health risk behaviors and protective factors related to

the leading causes of morbidity and mortality worldwide. It is a

 50

school-based survey conducted primarily among students aged 13 to

15 years, but often also includes students aged 11 to 17 years.

This study used data from GSHS surveys in China and the

Philippines that were collected in 2003. The authors did not

personally participate in the collection of these GSHS surveys.

Table 1 presents the demographic, psychosocial distress, and

health behavior characteristics of the 2 samples. The Chinese

sample had higher percentages of males (51.2%) than the Table 2.

Suicidal Intent, Psychosocial Distress, and Health Behavior

Characteristics of Chinese and Philippine Students by Gender. The

percentages reported in this table are weighted statistics that

also adjust for age and grade level. Philippine sample (43.2%).

More than half of the students in the Philippine sample (55.6%)

were 15 years of age or older whereas approximately one-fourth of

the Chinese students were of that age (26.3%). Grade level

distribution was also unequal in the 2 samples, with a very small

percentage of Chinese students in grade 4 (0.8%), compared with

27.0% among those from the Philippines. Because of these

demographic differences in the samples, the weighted percentages

displayed in Table 2 describing suicidal intent, psychosocial

distress, and health behaviors and characteristics of the samples

were statistically adjusted for age and grade level and

calculated separately for boys and girls. Philippine students

were more likely than Chinese students to report having made a

 51

plan to attempt suicide, and were also more likely to report

feeling lonely, sad/hopeless, and worrying. Philippine boys were

also more likely to report seriously contemplating suicide than

Chinese boys, but the difference between Philippine girls and

Chinese girls was not significant. Compared with Chinese

students, Philippine students were more likely to report alcohol

use, ever being drunk, ever using drugs, current smoking, being

in a physical fight, been bullied, sitting activities ≥3 hours

during a typical day, and being overweight. Chinese students were

more likely than Philippine students to report having no close

friends and being physically active 7 days for a total of at

least 60 minutes per day during a typical or usual week. In all,

4 of the multivariate logistic regression analyses (see Tables 3

and 4), having feelings of sadness or hopelessness almost every

day for 2 weeks or more in a row that stops a young person from

doing their usual activities was found to be the strongest

correlate for both measures of suicide ideation and in both of

the samples. Chinese and Philippine youth reporting these

feelings were more than 3 times as likely to report serious

contemplation about suicide and to make a plan to attempt

suicide. Other indicators of psychosocial distress included in

the GSHS questionnaire (feeling lonely, worrying, having no close

friends) also showed significant association in both samples.

Feeling lonely, having worries, and having no close friends were

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all significantly associated with increased risk of suicidal

ideation. Chinese students who felt so worried about things that

they could not sleep at night were 3.21 times more likely to have

planned to attempt suicide and 2.36 times more likely than those

not having these types of worries to seriously consider

attempting suicide.

In the Longitudinal Study of Ageing and Health in the

Philippines (LSAHP), respondents were asked how often they are

engaged in a list of activities. The daily activities of older

people are classified as sedentary, physical, and social. The

sedentary activities consist of listening to radio, reading, and

watching TV. Physical activities include physical exercises such

as walking, running, jogging, zumba, and even gardening. Social

activities are hanging out with friends and neighbors, or

basically, just socializing. The LSAHP data reveal that the top

three daily activities of older Filipinos are watching TV (66%),

physical exercises (52%), and gardening (27%). Other daily

activities of OPs are listening to the radio (23%) and hanging

out with friends and neighbours (25%). Only one in three (35%)

OPs attend social activities at least once a month. Although

humans are social beings, but older people lesser participate in

socializing as a part of their daily activities. Humans are

social beings but, at older ages, many OPs engage less frequently

in socialisation as a daily activity. Also, the LSAHP validated

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the importance of religion in the lives of older Filipinos, as

three in four OPs claimed that religion is very important in

their lives. In the research study, the result reveals that there

is no link between loneliness and social isolation. This is

perhaps due to the many factors associated with both isolation

and loneliness, such as retirement, migration, and poor health

and/or loss of mobility, which in turn lead to social network

disruption (Wenger et al., 1996). Furthermore, the LSAHP data

reveal that lesser level of socialization doesn’t really signify

to a high prevalence rate of loneliness amongst older Filipinos,

which was congruous with the findings of Cornwell and Waite

(2009). Only a small proportion of OPs feel a lack of

companionship, feel left out, or feel isolated from others.

However, the level of social isolation from friends and family

who don't live with the person being talked about OP isn't very

low, according to the LSNS-6 measurement. This disconnection

requires more focus, especially on understanding how being

socially isolated is connected to health risks like depression

and other mental health issues. This is important for improving

the overall quality of life of older people especially Filipinos.

Due to the online learning set-up, students are forced to

learn within their homes which causes them to withdraw from

social interactions. This may have a significant effect on their

self-efficacy and psychological health. One of the factors is

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loneliness. According to Hawkey and Cacioppo (2010), loneliness

is an anguish emotion of a person that doesn’t quantitatively or

qualitatively meet their social needs. This study examines how

self-efficacy is significantly correlated with loneliness. Young

adults who become socially isolated had worse social self-

efficacy (Mohammadi and Torabi, 2018). The researchers utilized

descriptive correlational research method. The respondents were

172 college students who are enrolled in any college or

universities in the Philippines. Convenience sampling was applied

because of the recent pandemic. The researchers used the General

Self-Efficacy (GSE) for self-efficacy while UCLA Loneliness Scale

was used for loneliness. The General Self-Efficacy scale has 10

items and its score ranges from 10 to 40 with a reliability of

Cronbach’s alpha ranging from .76 to .90 (Schwarzer & Jerusalem,

1995). The UCLA Loneliness Scale is a 20-item scale used to

measure each person’s feeling of loneliness and social isolation

with a consistent Cronbach’s alpha range between .89 and .94.

According to Table 1, self-efficacy and loneliness are

significantly correlated. Students who appear to be lonelier are

the ones who are at higher risk of low self-efficacy rather than

those students who reported to be less lonely (Grotan, Sund, and

Bjerkeset, 2019). Their study also states that students who live

alone reported low self-efficacy and delayed progress in their

academic performance. This study concludes that self-efficacy is

 55

correlated with loneliness, and students perceive increase in

self-efficacy as a decrease in loneliness.

Due to the switch to online classes, students are

experiencing prolonged isolation. The sudden, distant learning

that the students are still not accustomed to may raise concerns

regarding their mental health that can greatly affect an

individual’s performance in their classes. Being alone or having

a lack of social contact at this time of the pandemic leads to an

increased level of anxiety (Asaari et. al., 2023). The study was

conducted online by the researchers. The researchers gathered the

email addresses of the respondents involved, and they sent

informed consent as well as the survey questionnaires. The

respondents were 88 third-year Bachelor of Science in Medical

Technology students of Universidad de Zamboanga. The total

enumeration type of sampling technique was used in selecting the

respondents and helped the researchers determine the effects of

prolonged isolation on the mental health status of Bachelor of

Science in Medical Technology students amidst the COVID-19

pandemic. The survey questionnaire 2021 used in the study was a

modified standardized questionnaire from the internet. The

researchers incorporated some questions from known and reliable

questionnaires, such as the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-

9), Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7 (GAD-7), and Emotional

Awareness Questionnaire (EAQ). The questionnaires mentioned were

 56

modified to fit our study and were used to gather data. The

questionnaire consists of two parts: the first part is focused on

the demographic profile of the students, while the second part is

the necessary data for the study. The survey questionnaire

consists of five (5) possible answers: (5) strongly agree (very

high), (4) agree (high), (3) moderately agree (average), (2)

disagree (low), and (1) strongly disagree (very low). The results

of this study showed that the estimated effect of prolonged

isolation on the respondents’ mental health status in terms of

the emotional aspect is high. The estimated effect of prolonged

isolation on the respondents’ mental health status in terms of

psychological and social relationships is average. Regarding

their profile, such as age, ethnicity, religion, sex, and socio-

economic status, there is no significant difference in the level

of effects of prolonged isolation on the mental health status of

the respondents.

The recent pandemic has had critical implications on the

economy and health among several countries including the

Philippines, which implemented various public health measures,

such as the mandatory lockdown. These measures had significant

consequences, including social isolation and loneliness among

young people. According to Peplau and Perlman (1982), loneliness

is a negative, subjective experience in an individual which

 57

arises when social relations and interactions are perceived to be

insufficient. This is also associated with different

psychological factors. Recent studies have stated that social and

loneliness, due to home confinement measure, increase the risk of

psychological distress, depression, and anxiety in an individual,

with a longer duration of loneliness considered as a strong

precursor of adverse psychiatric symptoms (Rauschenberg, et al.,

2020; Loades, et al., 2020). This is a cross-sectional study,

which utilized an online-based data collection approach as this

was conducted during the mandatory lockdown. The participants

were college students enrolled in nursing schools in the Central

Philippines. 300 college students were initially invited to

participate in the study, however, only 261 responded. The

researchers used a 6-item Loneliness Scale to measure the

students' overall loneliness. The 4-item Brief Resilience Scale

was also utilized by the researchers to examine the capacity of

the students to rebound back from distressing events. The

researchers also used a modified version of Coping Behaviours

Questionnaire, which includes 8 items in order to identify the

students’ coping abilities. This is answerable by 5-point Likert

Scale (‘strongly disagree’ as 1, and ‘strongly agree’ as 5),

which was classified by four dimensions: humour, consultation and

seeking information, spiritual and sources of support, and mental

disengagement. The researchers also utilized a 6-item Perceived

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Social Support Questionnaire to assess the students’ opinion on

the degree of support received from others when facing stressful

events. This is also answerable by a 5-point Likert Scale. The

researchers utilized version 23 of the SPSS Statistics software

to analyze the data collected. Frequencies, standard deviations

(SD), and means were also used to present the data. Using the t-

test, analysis of variance, and the Pearson’s r correlation

coefficient, the correlations between key study variables were

examined. This study reveals that college students experienced

moderate to severe loneliness during the pandemic lockdown, with

56.7% experiencing moderate levels and 23.6% feeling severely

lonely. Age, school closures, and lack of resilience were factors

contributing to loneliness. This study also shows that younger

students experience higher levels of emotional loneliness. In

addition, female students were found to be more vulnerable to

social loneliness due to their higher value for participation in

social activities and greater interpersonal connectedness. It is

also discovered in this study that increased social support was

strongly linked to lower emotional loneliness, highlighting the

importance of adequate emotional support from peers and family

during adversity. Several studies have shown that during

stressful events, a resilient individual and those who have an

adequate support system and coping skills are less likely to be

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stressed or feel lonely (Ogińska-Bulik & Michalska 2020; Wu et

al., 2016).

Synthesis

Our study appears to have gained popularity during the recent

pandemic, as everyone has begun to avoid people like the plague

due to the outbreak's infectious nature. Since then, social

isolation has been widespread for students taking online classes

as a backup plan to keep their education on track. People have

become accustomed to isolation and have forgotten how to converse

in person as a result of the pandemic. However, there are other

common factors that contribute to social isolation; some students

or even elderly people use it as a coping mechanism, which can

have an impact on their mental health; it may also affect their

self-efficacy if they choose to continue isolating from people,

whether they are students or regular people. These related

literatures can resonate with our study, allowing us to discover

the reasons and effects of increased chance of social isolation

among students, as well as help us, as researchers, choose which

areas of social isolation to focus on and what questions to ask.

These relevant literatures can detect the connection between

psychological distress, a loss of sense of belonging, and social

isolation, which helps us comprehend the First-Year Psychology

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Students at Colegio San Agustin - Bacolod who tend to isolate

themselves.

Chapter 3

Methodology

Research Design Aravela, Lm & Chynna

Respondents of the Study Jubette, Kinah & Carla

The respondents of the study will be the 1st Year Psychology

Students of Colegio San Agustin - Bacolod of the Academic Year

2023-2024. A total of 49 students (43 females and 6 males) will

be randomly selected to participate.

Sampling Design Jubette & Hannah

Research Instrument Kinah & Carla

Validity Lm, Aravela, Chynna

Reliability Lm, Aravela & Chynna

Data Gathering Procedure Carla & Kinah & Hannah

Data Analysis Jubette & Hannah