UNIVERSITY OF THE EAST

College of Business Administration

Manila

RESEARCH PROPOSAL

I. Research Title:
REPERCUSSIONS OF FINANCIAL STRESS TO THE ACADEMIC
PERFORMANCE OF COLLEGE STUDENTS IN
THE UNIVERSITY OF THE EAST-MANILA

II. Name of Proponents, Program, and Year Level Babula, Ma.

Alexandrea E.
Balacoa, Charina M.
Calimag, Tracy Louiese M.
Pagayon, Charnlize C.
San Diego, Ma. Kristina Cassandra C.

III. College and Department of the Proponents

College of Business Administration-Manila/FM-Department

IV. Title of Research Course, Code and Section Business Research (BBC-
4980) - B4F

V. Abstract

College students are a vulnerable demographic that struggles with mental health
illnesses as a result of the pressures they experience to achieve academically, financial
restraints, and the demands of finding a successful professional path. The purpose of this
study was to know the effects of financial stress on college students’ academic
performances using the moderated mediation model. The study will employ a descriptive
approach of fact-finding research that includes appropriate and correct data interpretation.
The target population was students of the College of Business Administration at the
University of the East-Manila during the school year 2022-2023. The simple random
sampling techniques were used in selecting respondents, as it provided an equal
opportunity for all segments of students to be represented in the study. The research result
indicated that some of the respondents believe that financial stress can negatively affect
academic performance. Participants may also identify both effective and less effective
coping strategies which can be used by young adult students in order to manage the
negative consequences of financial stress.

INTRODUCTION

Financial problems are serious issues that must be addressed because they can lead
to a variety of other problems, including health issues and poor academic performance.
Academic performance is very important to students for them to be able to succeed in
their life. But how can they do well if there’s something that is bothering and stressing
them out? Many students want to stop studying because of the lack of money, not
everyone has a stable life like others do and are still able to study. However, even though
those students can still study these days, they are still suffering from financial stress,
thinking about where they can get money to pay for their tuition monthly. Furthermore,
those problems make students think of something that is not good for them. Financial
problems are undoubtedly one of the multiplicative effects of social factors on suicidal
behavior among students (Assari, 2018).

Given the documented negative effects of financial stress on college students’ well-
being, the purpose of this study is to identify how resources and perceptions alter the
amount of financial stress felt by college students and how this relates to academic
achievement or performance. A secondary goal is to see how financial stress affects
academic achievement while controlling financial resources and perceptions. This study
contributes to the scarce literature on the particular influence of financial resources on
college students’ financial stress and subsequent academic success.

VI. Brief Review of Related Literature and Studies

 Financial Stress among College Students

Financial stress can cause long-term physical and mental health problems, but
financial distress is also specific to your life circumstances. Financial stress is one of the
causes of college students' stress, which might lead to dropping out. Since when they
enter college, they will encounter the financial burden of the cost of their education, such
as tuition, expenses, purchasing books, and other school fees. It can also have an impact
on their commitment to study, which can result in poor academic performance. Financial
stress not only affects college student academic performance but also their physical and
mental health.

According to Addis (2018) financial stress can affect one’s own academic
performance in college or university to some extent. In research from Baker and Montalto
(2019) stated that there are levels of financial stress: low moderate and high. The study
found put that the higher level of financial stress, the bigger the impact it has on students’
academic performance. Another area of financial stress that must be considered is the
rising tuition that threatens the affordability and accessibility of the parents and students
to worry about how they will afford college. The inflation-adjusted cost of attending
public, 4-year institutions is 37% higher than in 2008, continuing the 20-year trend of
tuition 20 cost significantly increasing compared to the median income of families
(Mitchell et al., 2019). According to Peltz et al., (2020) findings discussed about family’s
socio-economic status making education pursuits of low-income family and first-
generation students to most likely be affected as they are positively having more high
levels of financial

D10O.1I:0
80/07448481.2019.1705306 stress.

Coping Strategies

Individuals' coping mechanisms play an important role in overcoming or reducing

stress. People utilize a variety of coping mechanisms to deal with stress. According to
(Morin, 2021), there are two main types of coping skills: problem-based coping and
emotion-based coping. Research on financial stress also illustrates that financial stress is
often driven by emotions that lead students to react or cope with avoidant or maladaptive
behaviors (Doehring, 2018).

Synthesis:
Every day, as a student we struggle financially. In this analysis of financial stress,
there is a cause and effect of the financial stress that students are experiencing. Some
coping mechanisms should be provided for students when dealing with stress, which can be
a problem-based and emotion-based coping.

VII. Conceptual/Theoretical Framework

Theoretical Framework

Figure 1. Moderated Mediation Model

The aim of this paper is to understand the repercussions of financial stress to the
academic performances of college students in University of the East-Manila.

Repercussions of financial stress to the academic performances of college students:

1. Unemployment of the Parents
According to (Lehti et al., 2019) the effects of parental unemployment on
children’s grade point average, enrollment into general secondary and tertiary
education by comparing the effects according to the children’s age of exposure and
the parental level of education. We use high quality Finnish longitudinal register data
and sibling fixed-effect models to obtain causal effects. We find that parental
unemployment has negative effects on both children’s educational enrollment and
performance at the educational transitional periods when children are an adolescent
but parental unemployment is not detrimental in early childhood. For general
secondary but not for tertiary enrollment, children’s poorer school performance due
to parental unemployment explains the effect entirely.

2. Poor Budgeting
Stewart (2018) College is quite a liberating experience to many students. The
new found freedom can be exciting but often times it comes with some degree of
ignorance that can lead to a series of mistakes generally and on the part of managing
finances.
While making mistakes in college is almost inevitable, some financial mistakes can
have long-term effects on one’s financial future. According to Sheila (2021) Not
tracking expenditure many students don’t realize how and where their money is
spent and end up depleting their cash even before the end of the month/semester.

3. Cost of Education
(America, 2020) In the midst of financial stress, often a student decides to
drop out of college. In the short term, this does solve the most immediate problem.
After all, without tuition, fees or books to pay for, a student’s wages stretch a lot
farther. Unfortunately, the consequences can be dire, and they can start sooner than
expected. Quitting school means immediately losing access to scholarship funds,
work-study opportunities and subsidized student prices for room, board, transit and
internet access. It also means that the student is expected to start paying back their
loans—and carrying loan debt without the higher earning power of a degree is the
absolute worst-case scenario.
 4. Socio-economic status
In research from Chen et al., (2018) Numerous studies have shown that
personal characteristics, family socioeconomic status (SES), teachers, and school
characteristics are key factors affecting students’ reading ability and academic
achievement. Therefore, it is necessary to investigate the factors that influence
students’ reading ability to explore the possible mechanisms of these factors.

5. Unexpected expenses
According to (Andoi, 2021) living a lifestyle that exceeds what you can afford
is a mistake that can get you in debt and financial trouble very fast. You have to
carefully assess all costs when you want to make a purchase or a financial
commitment.
Coping Strategies

According to (Morin, 2021), there are two main types of coping skills: problem-based
coping and emotion-based coping. In research from Y. Chen et al., (2017) Older adults were
less likely than younger adults to use problem-focused coping and reported lower levels of
positive affect. Path analysis supported the mediation hypothesis, showing that
problemfocused coping mediated the relationship between age and positive affect.
Implications are discussed on the importance of promoting problemfocused coping among
older adults.
Conceptual Framework

Figure 2. An Input-Process-Output (IPO) Model

Figure 2. Shows the Conceptual Framework of the study. The input consists of the
demographic profile of the college students in terms of age, gender, year-level, courses and
weekly allowances, primary causes of college students' financial stress in terms of
unemployment of their parents, poor budgeting, cost of education, socioeconomic status,
and unexpected expenses, does financial stress affect the academic performance of college
students, to what extent are the coping strategies of students more problem-focused or
emotion-focused. Followed by the process is divided into five which is (1) Descriptive
research (2) Survey Questionnaire (3) Gathering of data (4) Statistical and Scientific
Treatment (5) Analysis and Interpretation of Data. Lastly is the output that researchers
fulfilled the research entitled "Repercussions of Financial Stress to the Academic
Performance of College Students in the University of the East-Manila".

VIII. Statement of the Problem

1. What is the demographic profile of the respondents in terms of:

 1.1 Age
1.2 Gender
1.3 Year-Level
1.4 Courses
1.5 Weekly allowances
2. What are the primary causes of college student financial stress in terms of:
2.1 Unemployment of the parents
2.2 Poor Budgeting
2.3 Cost of Education
2.4 Socioeconomic status
2.5 Unexpected expenses
3. Does Financial Stress affect the academic performance of college students?
4. To what extent are the coping strategies of students more problemfocused or emotion-
focused?
Hypotheses:
H1: There is a significant relationship between financial stress and academic
performance of students considering the socio-demographic variables.
H2: There is a substantial relationship between the financial stress of students to the
primary causes of it that reflects on their academic performance.
H3: There is an effect on college students’ academic performance caused by financial
stress.
H4: College students experiencing financial stress will be more likely problem-focused or
emotion-focused.

IX. Assumptions
The study focused on the effects of financial stress to the academic performance of
college students. The following assumptions were made:

1. The researchers assumed that the respondents would be a reliable source of

information that makes this study success.
2. The researchers assumes that the respondents would be honest in answering the
questions.
 3. The researchers assumed that financial problems of students can be solved by
proper coping mechanisms.
4. The researchers would be able to deeply explain the purpose of the study to its
respondents.

X. Significance of the Study

This research aims to provide crucial information and knowledge regarding the
chosen topic that may help contribute some realistic solutions. It will serve as a reference
for those who wish to conduct similar research. This study is expected to be beneficial to
the following individuals:
University - This study would provide the university with more information on financial
stressors. Such information would be beneficial for them to have a betterment approach
to this kind of issue.
Educators - They would provide advice and to be more considerate to their students that
are experiencing financial stress.
Students - The findings of this study will help them deal with their financial problems, be
better students, and value a better connection at school.
Future Researchers - The findings of this study can be utilized as a guide or research
reference by future scholars who will undertake similar studies.

XI. Scope and Limitations of the Study

This research will focus on the assessment of the Repercussions of Financial Stress
on the Academic performances of college students. The researchers aim to know the
situation of the college students relating to their academic performances and financial
problems. The data collection will be conducted on 17% of the total population of the
College of Business Administration at the University of the East-Manila, school year 2022-
2023 who will represent the population. This study will not cover other problems that are
not considered as one of the financial stresses. The other college students which do not fall
as part of the college of business administration are not within the scope of this research.
The study will be done through the utilization of questionnaires to the college students as a
survey and reference. Through their strategy, the researchers will be able to know the
effects of financial stress on the academic performance of college students. XII.
Methodology with Ethical Considerations

The study will utilize a descriptive method that is fact-finding study that involves
adequate and accurate interpretation of data. The target population was students of College
of Business Administration at the University of the East-Manila during the school year 2022-
2023. The simple random sampling techniques was used in selecting respondents, as it
provided an equal opportunity for all segments of students to be represented in the study.
The instrument of this study is a web-based survey that will be delivered through Google
Forms. For the statistical test, we will be using Likert scale, chi square tests (frequencies)
and t-tests (mean comparisons).

Slovin’s Formula in Determining the sample size: n= N / (1 + Ne 2)

Whereas:
n= no. of samples N= total
population e= error
margin

Data:
CBA enrolled in UE-Manila (2021-2022) = 1,955
Confidence level: 95% alpha level of 0.05 Computation:

n= N / (1 + Ne2) n= 1,955 /
(1+1,955*0.052) n= 1,955 /
(1+4.8875) n= 1,955 / (5.8875) n=
332.059448 or 332

Ethical Consideration
The students will be given a consent form to fill out. In the survey questionnaire, in
addition, researchers will ensure the anonymity and confidentiality of the respondent's
information by offering them the option of including or not including their identities in the
survey. The survey will be distributed to students from the College of Business
Administration at the University of the East-Manila, and respondents will be able to
participate voluntarily using a Google form. After completing the questionnaire, the
researchers will make sure to thank the responders.

XIII. Expected Output

Researchers anticipated that the issue statement would indeed be addressed

appropriately. It is predicted that all of the presented reasons for financial stress will
influence the academic performance of college students as described in the theoretical
framework and will make a substantial contribution to the study. According to the
demographic profile of the respondents, females are more susceptible to financial stress,
which affects their academic performance. Also, we anticipated that emotionfocused coping
techniques would be the most common among college students.
XIV. Bibliography

Andoi, S. B. (2021, September 16). 8 common money mistakes that college students make.
Money254.Co.Ke.
https://www.money254.co.ke/post/8-common-money-mistakes-thatcollege-
students-make

America, S. (2019, October 25). Financial stress prevents college students from Graduating.
What can we do? Scholarship America.
https://scholarshipamerica.org/blog/financial-stress-preventscollege-students-from-
graduating-what-can-we-do/

Assari, S. (2018). Multiplicative effects of social and psychological risk factors on college
students’ suicidal behaviors. Brain Sciences, 8(5),
91. https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci8050091
Baker, A. R., & Montalto, C. P. (2019). Student loan debt and financial stress: Implications for

academic performance. Journal of College

Student Development, 60(1), 115–120.

https://doi.org/10.1353/csd.2019.0008

Chen, Q., Kong, Y., Gao, W., & Mo, L. (2018). Effects of socioeconomic status, Parent–Child
relationship, and learning motivation on reading ability. Frontiers in Psychology, 9.
https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2018.01297

Chen, Y., Peng, Y., Xu, H., & O’Brien, W. H. (2017). Age differences in stress and coping:
Problem-Focused strategies mediate the relationship between age and positive
affect. The International Journal of Aging and Human Development, 86(4), 347–363.
https://doi.org/10.1177/0091415017720890

Doehring, C. (2018). In over our heads with financial anxiety from student debt.
Pastoral Psychology, 67(2), 115–124.
https://doi.org/10.1007/s1108901707722

Lehti, H., Erola, J., & Karhula, A. (2019). The heterogeneous effects of parental

unemployment on siblings’ educational outcomes. Research

in Social Stratification and Mobility, 64, 100439.

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rssm.2019.100439

Mitchell, M., Leachman, M., & Saenz, M. (2019, October 24). State higher education
funding cuts have pushed costs to students, worsened inequality.
https://www.cbpp.org/sites/default/files/atoms/files/10-24-19sfp.pdf

Morin, A. (2021, November 29). Healthy coping skills for uncomfortable emotions. Very Well
Mind.
https://www.verywellmind.com/forty-healthy-coping-skills-
4586742#toc-healthy-emotion-focused-coping-skills
Peltz, J. S., Bodenlos, J. S., Kingery, J. N., & Rogge, R. D. (2020). The role of financial strain in

college students’ work hours, sleep, and mental health. Journal of American College

Health, 69(6), 577–584.

https://doi.org/10.1080/07448481.2019.1705306

Stewart, I. (2019, April 1). Successful students understand their finances

– a guide for successful students. Pressbooks.
https://ecampusontario.pressbooks.pub/studyprocaff/chapter/succe ssful-students-
understand-their-finances/

Tesfaw, A. A., & Yitayih, T. T. (2018). A study on financial stress and coping strategies among

students in rift valley university, ethiopia. Humanity & Social Sciences Journal, 13(1),

01–10. Retrieved from

https://www.academia.edu/43431729/A_Study_on_Financial_Stress_

and_Coping_Strategies_among_Students_in_Rift_Valley_University_

Ethiopia
XV. Work Plan of the Study

PHASE/ACTIVITY DURATION

1. Submission of ERC requirements 2 weeks

2. Construction of Research instrument 2 weeks

3. Gathering of Data 6 weeks

4. Editing and Encoding of Data 2 weeks

5. Analysis of Data 2 weeks

6. Finalization of Research Output 3 weeks

7. Defense of Research Output 1 week

XVI. Date of Submission of the Proposal

May 9,2022