A Study on the Coping Mechanisms, Study Habits, and Motivational Techniques of Bed Spacer

Students and Dormitory Occupants from Grade 11 Students

CHAPTER I

INTRODUCTION

A compendium of findings openly reveals that a child’s development and well-being is highly

influenced by their family. Attitudes, values, morals, and the socializing skills of a child are

developed through early childhood, thus, a strong support system, and a stable, loving family can

positively impact a child’s life. Since human babies are reliant on caregivers, proper nutrition

and the feeling of security and being cared for leads to the child’s growth in a positive direction.

In support to this, a child with healthy relationships and is constantly surrounded with a learning

environment becomes more encouraged and has more ability to enhance their basic skills. Since

the family is the child’s primary social group, they learn through socialization, but mostly

observation as they keep on growing.

Education becomes highly valued for a child for each their own reason, thus resulting in some

students moving to other places in pursuit of knowledge, where the care of their parents are

limited and not the same as when they were younger. This leads to multiple students living in

dormitories, while some become bed spacers with the hope of attaining more knowledge and

having access to a higher quality of education.

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BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY

Education provides a multitude of benefits and opportunities for a better life, which is why

people actively seek out gaining more knowledge and experience that results to others having to

be away from their homes and families to study. The researchers are determined to know of their

experiences, such as the benefits and consequences of living alone or with room/house mates,

and how the newly initiated independence have affected different aspects of their being.

Students who occupy bed spaces, live with their faraway relatives, or stay in dormitories no

longer have the privilege of having a parent dote on them and take care of chores for them, and

so these students have to fend for themselves every day. The goal is to learn their techniques in

managing their time between their personal and school life.

With their busy schedules, many questions arise such as ‘How do you find motivation to study

despite the change of environment and distance from the comfort of your loved ones?’ To

answer these questions, the researchers actively seek these students’ learning styles, coping

mechanisms, what they do to manage their stress, how this experience has helped shape them

into maturity, and if the participants have any profound struggle over their situation and how

they have matured from it.

STATEMENTOF THE PROBLEM

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 Students who live miles from home face a lot of challenges and problems as they begin their

journey on their own, without their family. This includes the feeling of homesickness, loneliness,

anxiety, and other psychological distress. It may become hard for them to adjust in new

environment, especially when they have grown dependent to their family. They will have to learn

how to do things on their own, not to mention the amount of duties that wait for them, from basic

to complex matters such as budgeting their money, doing simple chores like cooking, doing

laundry, cleaning which they are probably not used doing, and having no close family member to

run to when emergency arises. They may find their new life hard to adapt. Moreover, other

students may take advantage of this, especially for those who seek for freedom from their

parents’ grasps. If not disciplined or guided properly, they may just use their freedom to do the

things they were not able to do back in their home.

The following research questions were used to guide the research in answering the main

objectives of the study:

1.) What are the disadvantages and advantages of living in dorm or bed space?

2.) How does living away from their family affect their mental, emotional, physical and social state?

3.) What are the coping mechanisms a student living away from home performing in order to

combat loneliness and homesickness?

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SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY

The significance of the study is to determine the “Coping Mechanisms, Study Habits, and Motivational

Techniques of Bed Spacer Students and Dormitory Occupants in Grade 11” to provide multiple benefits

not only to other students, but to the School Administration as well.

This study will benefit the School Administration in giving them an idea to establish programs and a

guidance system to help students in this specific situation. Parents and teachers alike will also be aware

of a child’s coping mechanism and effective learning styles and technique to further improve one’s

education. Students also gain awareness from the experiences of the respondents and how they behave in

a new environment, the lessons learned by the respondents proving to be helpful for their peers.

Future researchers may also use this study as a basis or included in their Review of Related Literature

that could improve and/or further support the studies they will make. The main goal of this research is

designed to know how one’s coping abilities differ from one another, how their situation has made an

impact on their lives, and the students’ time management and independency skills that could help their

fellow students.

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HYPOTHESIS

The research hypothesis speculates that Bed Spacer Students and Dormitory Occupants are in need of

guidance and support from the School Administration. These students may not respond well to culture

shock or homesickness, making studying a challenge or a trial instead of a stepping stone to learning,

thus coming to the hypothesis that students in these particular situations need help with their struggles.

These students chose to live far from their hometown and family for better education, but with all these

factors that came with doing so, a student may turn out to become the exact opposite of who they have

desired to become due to their busy schedule and the consequences that come with it. Studying becomes

more difficult, and our hypothesis is that these students may be left behind from regular students for they

have too much on their hands.

SCOPE AND LIMITATION

The main focus of this study is on Bed Spacer Students and Dormitory Occupants from Grade 11 at

Academic Term 2019-2020 from all strands, two participants in STEM, HUMSS and ABM, and one

participant in ICT, GAS, MVA, and HE. All students involved were either

Bed Spacers or Dormitory Occupants who studied at. Both male and female students were part of this

research, and the duration of the study is two months.

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DEFINITION OF TERMS

In this research, readers may face some terminologies that they may not be familiar with. In light of this,

researchers provided meanings to these terminologies that could help readers in understanding the

content of this research.The following are defined operationally to better understand the study. The

following terms are as follows:

Coping Mechanism is an adaptation to environmental stress that is based on conscious or unconscious

Bed Spacer is called a person who rents a bed space.

Bed Space is the portion of a shared bed in which one person sleeps.

Home Sickness is characterized as a distress caused by being away from home. Its cognitive hallmark is

preoccupying thoughts of home and attachment objects. Sufferers typically report a combination of

depressive and anxious symptoms, withdrawn behavior and difficulty focusing on topics unrelated to

home.

Sleepiness is defined as the inability or difficulty in maintaining alertness during the major wake period

of the day, resulting in unintended lapses into drowsiness or sleep.

Time Management is about taking control of time and managing to do everything at once on time.

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Psychological Distress is a general term used to describe unpleasant feelings or emotions that impact

the level of one’s functioning.

Gastroenteritis is an inflammation of the lining of the intestines caused by a virus, bacteria, or

parasites. It spreads through contaminated food or water or by contact with an infected person.

Stress is the body's reaction to any change that requires an adjustment or response. The body reacts to

these changes with physical, mental, and emotional responses. Stress is a normal part of life. You can

experience stress from your environment, your body, and your thoughts.

Anxiety is a state of being anxious, nervous and unease typically because of the amount of things a

student shoulder in his/her new life.

Parenting is the process of promoting and supporting the physical, emotional, social and intellectual

development of a child from infancy to adulthood. It is also refers to the aspects of raising a child aside

from the biological relationship.

Dormitory is a large bedroom for a number of people in a school or institution.

Learning Styles - refers to the preferential way in which the student absorbs, processes, comprehends

and retains information.

Study Habits are the behaviors used when preparing for tests or learning academic material.

CHAPTER II

REVIEW of RELATED LITERATURE

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In accordance with Jordyn & Byrd (2003) conducted study, one of the pivotal points in a young adult’s

life is when they leave their parents’ home. They encounter the difficulty of living autonomously with

minimal help from their family. Recent findings have shown that young adults who live away from their

family affect various aspects of their personal development. It has been said that they are more likely to

confront hefty predicaments. In a study by Goldscheider & DaVanzo (1985), living far from home

discrete these young people from their customary habit of day to day interaction with their family.

Children may not also achieve full emotional and finance independence because in a way parental

authority is still there.

According to Davis (1998) said that for many students, an apartment is a serious step towards adulthood

and freedom. Compared to a dorm, an apartment means space, a living area. A bathroom that only needs

to be shared between a few people and students no longer have to rely on the campus dining hall, and

can prepare their food from their own refrigerators in their own kitchen. On the other hand, the

responsibilities of apartment life really can be a hassle. Suddenly students need to worry about monthly

bills, furniture, and cooking. Depending on where the apartment is, students may also have to deal with

the expenses and hassles of commuting. It could also affect the time the student spends for school works

and might result to decrease in grades (Gladen, 2010).According to Dinkmeyer and Dreikurs (1963) said

that learning environments focus on the characteristics of classroom environments that affect

learning, the teacher’s environment for learning, and the range of learning environment in which

students participate, both in and out of the school. Classroom environments are positively influenced by

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opportunities with others who affect learners. Technologies also influence learning which can help

teachers incorporate the tools in classroom activities.

Whilst the majority of new students cope well with the transition to university, a number experience

levels of homesickness which can adversely affect the process of adaptation .Homesickness was found to

be a reasonably common but short‐lived phenomenon, and was predicted longitudinally by greater self‐

reported dependency on other people and by higher estimates of the frequency of homesickness among

students in general. Greater anxiety and depression about homesickness were also associated with more

confiding behaviour. There was a suggestion that homesick students were more likely to seek out others,

the more common they perceived homesickness to be. (Brewin CR, Furnham A, Howes M.

Demographic and psychological determinants of homesickness and confiding among students. British

Journal of Psychology. 1989;80:467–477.)

Theoretical explanations of the homesick syndrome suggest a major cognitive component in the form of

a loss of concentration as a result of intrusive thoughts of home. Two attentional demand models

proposed by Fisher (1989, Homesickness, Cognition and Health. London: Lawrence Erlbaum) are

assessed: the ‘demand strength model’ which suggests intensity of homesickness will decrease

attentional ability, and the ‘competing demand model’ which suggests degree of commitment to a new

environment will be positively related to attentional ability. Students that had relocated to attend

university were evaluated for evidence of homesickness using the Dundee Relocation Inventory

(Fisher,1989). Homesick students and relocated students that showed evidence of commitment to their

new environment were compared on attentional ability and academic performance. Results suggest that

homesickness may reduce ability to concentrate, but that this loss of concentration is not sufficient to

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cause a marked loss of academic ability.Homesickness may negatively affect individuals’ ability to

adjust to their new social environment. Past work has documented various psychological and physical

health consequences of homesickness (Stroebe, et al., 2015). Students that become homesick upon

entering university may have difficulty adjusting to the university setting, leading to social and academic

difficulties.

Homesickness has been linked to certain social factors, such as social anxiety and social support (Urani

et al., 2003), as well as levels of belonging (Watt & Badger, 2009). However, homesickness has

typically not been tested as a risk factor for later social problems. When examining these potential social

effects, it may be important to distinguish between relationships with people at home versus people in

the new environment. Fewer positive interactions with peers and not fitting in may lead homesick

students to seek contact and support from family and friends at home, strengthening these outside

relationships but interfering with the development of new relationships (Tochkov, Levine, & Sanaka,

2010).The potential for homesickness to also interfere with academics is noteworthy given the important

long-term consequences (e.g., employment prospects, graduate admissions). Fisher (1989) proposed that

the ruminative aspect of homesickness could create attentional demands that would lead to absent-

mindedness and reduce students’ academic abilities. While some have found no evidence that

homesickness is related to academic performance (Van Vliet, 2001), others have found homesickness

predicts lower concentration abilities (Burt, 1993) and dropout (Thurber & Walton, 2012).

Moreover, students living at home got more physical exercise and consumed higher quantities of cooked

vegetables, fish, meat products, chips, bread/cereals, pulses, cooked meals, and sandwiches. In contrast,

students living away from home were characterized by higher consumption of raw vegetables, beverage

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drinks that are not allowed to minor, raw/cold meals, frozen meals and ready meals. Students living

alone were reported a greater number of gastroenteritis and perceived that they had a larger body mass.

Student lifestyles and living arrangements were associated with a shift away from the Mediterranean diet

and would appear to expose students to the risk of food-borne illness. This appeared more evident

among students living away from home, for which the assumption of primary responsibility for food

shopping and preparation can lead to unhealthy dietary habits. (Bagordo, et.al. Journal of Food &

Nutrition Research 52(3), 2013)

In addition, one reason the difficulty usually occurs is that many students are living away from home for

the first time. These students are not used to the freedom of managing their own time and often fall into

routines that are not productive. Many students waste their time without realizing it. Before they know

it, their assignments and projects are due and it is exam time. This often results in long stressful days

and nights of working on papers and cramming for exams. (Hurley, Time Management for University

Students)

Students also encounter stress especially when they are bombarded with school works and

responsibilities at home like doing their laundry and dishes, cooking, and cleaning. This may cause to

psychological distress. Psychological distress has been widely used as indicator of mental health.

Researches such as Hortwitz consider it a transient emotional response to stress, which if untreated is

pathological resulting in depression. Others such as Wheaton argue that physiological distress is a

relatively stable condition which impacts on social functioning and day-to-day living. Stress, which is

acknowledge as part of the student experience, has been defined by Lazarus and Folkman as a

‘particular relationship between the person and the environment that is appraised by the person as taxing

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or exceeding his or her resources and endangering his or her well-being. This is most common among

students who live in dormitories or in bed space. Stressors for higher education students have been

identified as including lack of financial certainty, increased pressure to do well, and the obligations they

have to finish in a particular period of time.

As stated by Hershner and Chervin in “Causes and Consequences of Sleepiness among College

Students”, many students are sleep deprived because they go to sleep late and wake up for classes before

adequate sleep is obtained. This occurs for multiple reasons; some are physiologic and others behavioral.

The behavioral components may be particularly problematic on university campuses.

Students living in dormitories are prone to sleep deprivation because they have more responsibilities and

obligations as part of independently living alone. Daytime sleepiness, sleep deprivation, and irregular

sleep schedules are highly prevalent among students. The consequences of sleep deprivation and

daytime sleepiness are especially problematic to university students and can result in lower grade point

averages, increased risk of academic failure, compromised learning, impaired mood, and increased risk

of motor vehicle accidents. In the study of Hershner, at least 60% of students report that they are

dragging, tired or sleepy.

CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK

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 DEPENDENT
HOMESICK VARIABLE
SYNDROME

POOR
LIFESTYLE
SLEEPING CHANGE
HABITS

Difficulty of
INDEPENDENT
VARIABLE living
autonomously
among Grade 11
PSYCHO- STUDY
LOGICAL HABITS
Senior High
DISTRESS
School Students

UNHEALTHY
DIETARY
HABITS

THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK

Social Cognitive Theory was propounded by Albert Bandura as early in the 1960s.

Social cognitive theory strongly lays emphasis on one’s cognition. It suggests that the mind is
an active force that constructs one’s reality selectively, encodes information, performs behaviour on the
basis of values and expectations and impose structure on its own actions.

Another theory is Gasalt Theory (1912) proposed by Werthiemer, Koffka and Kohler.

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 Gestalt theory takes into account, factors such as motivation, maturation level of students’
experience, background of the learners, the learners intelligent and interest. Children should be
encouraged in order to facilitate their interaction with the environment.

Importanc
e of
Environm
ent in
Education
Fisher's
Compos Culture
ite Facto Shock
Model
of rs Conce
Homesic pt
k-ness
7
Habits
of
Highly
Effecti
ve
People

CHAPTER III

METHODOLOGY

The methodological approach of this study is Qualitative Study. The aim of the researchers was to gain

insights and knowledge about social behaviors of a targeted specific group – the Bed Spacer Students

and Dormitory Occupants from Grade 11 who currently studies at

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---, S.Y. 2019-2020. This is the most standard methodology in the field of this study. Ethical and

philosophical considerations were present, and the researchers respected the privacy and the intimate

relationship between researcher to respondent, thus declaring integrity in this study and respecting the

words and willingness of the participants in this study.

The criteria and reliability of the validity of the methodology included only choosing a specific group of

people with a fixed set of guide questions around 10-15 inquires in order to have a wide range of

possible questions to be answered with the aim of having diversity and more data to be collected to

make interpretations highly accurate.

The questions were designed critically with only the aim of knowing the participants’ coping

mechanisms, study habits, motivational techniques, personal struggles, lessons learned, time

management, personal factors that lead them where they are now, and advice for people in the same

situation as them. For this is a qualitative research, the researchers divided the strands through their

partners among the group and interviewed the participants one-on-one in private as to not bring them

discomfort. The guide questions provided by the researchers became the main tool for data collecting,

with one of the partnered pairs asking the participant and the other jotting down their responses word per

word as to remain true to what the researchers have heard and not making up answers. The duration of

the interviews depended on the amount of willingness the participants showed.

Stated below are some examples in the Guide Questions:

1) How do you manage your time between your school and personal life?

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2) Do you feel pressured, motivated, or discouraged from studying because of your current situation and

why?

3) How do you cope in times of loneliness and homesickness?

The sample size is by Strand x Participant. For example, if there are seven (7) strands in Grade 11

classes, the researchers only need two students per strand of STEM, HUMSS, ABM, and one student per

strand of MVA, GAS, ICT, and HE. The overall number of participants in these strands would be ten

(10).

Thematic and Discourse Analysis is the form of textual analysis used for analyzing the data gathered for

the study. The researchers closely examined broad themes and patterns that showed up in similar

occurrences with one participant to another and the researchers studied the communication and meaning

in relation to their social context such as their background in life, where they came from, and other

factors.

The researchers used a novel and strong methodological approach through a carefully examined guide

question provided by the members of the research team, and the methodology had proven effective for

its accurate and genuine responses from the participants despite this method needing to take more time

than other processes.

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