DUNONG

October 2016

DUNONG
The Official Graduate Research Journal
of Aquinas University of Legazpi
Rawis, Legazpi City
Volume XI, 1
November 2016
In Celebration of 2016 World Philosophy Day
Publisher
Rev. Fr. Dr. Ernesto M. Arceo, OP
Editorial Board
Editorial Adviser
SIMON S. LISTANA, M.A.Ed.
Editor
Gina P. Borromeo, M.A.Ed.
Layout/Book Design/Cover Design
John Paul Lanuza
Rannie Arnaldo
Philippine Copyright 2016
by Aquinas University of Legazpi
ISSN 2423-2785
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Towards a Metaethic of Supererogation..1

Jerahmeel C. Clerigo
Alvin A. Sario
Lived Experiences of Patients with End-Stage Renal
Disease on Maintenance Hemodialysis... 29
Frances Anne M. Vibar
Ma. Pamela M. Sorra-Vias
Dynamic Learning Program (DLP): A Tool for Teaching 61
Irene G. Deona
Ma. Christine R. Boduan
Marketing of Water Refilling Business
in Daraga, Albay...... 88
Ma. Erlinda Marcellana-Tapia
Sylva Elena B. Payonga

The Implementation of the MSME Program of the

DBP in the Bicol Region............. 98
Ma. Zyra L. Loria
Harley G. Peralta
On Postmodernism, Culture, and Faith:
Relationship and Possibilities.... 144
Danilo N. Keh Jr.
Alvin A. Sario

TOWARDS A METAETHIC OF SUPEREROGATION

Jerahmeel C. Clerigo
Alvin A. Sario
A. Introduction
We honor and value the life and works of our heroes,
saints, and martyrs. We recognize and appreciate the sacrifice
of people who live an exemplary life in this world. Dr. Jose
Rizal (Philippine National Hero), San Lorenzo Ruiz (The
First Filipino Saint), and St. Stephen (The First Christian
Martyr) are the great exemplars of extraordinary human life
and living. Dr. Jose Rizal defended his country through his
writings from the abuses during the Spanish era to the extent
that he fully accepted his death just for the sake of patriotism.
San Lorenzo Ruiz sacrificed his life for the sake of faith. St.
Stephen was stoned to death because of his Christian
teachings. The way that these people fulfilled their lives is a
full expression of ethical life; a life that we humans we cannot
escape. Rather, we are called, we are summoned, to live an
ethical life, a life with ethics and by ethics.
Honoring our heroes, saints, and martyrs simply
because of their great values brings us to a realization that
everyone, every human person living on earth regardless of
his social backgrounds, can live a good life and can become
heroes, saints, and martyrs. The path to take to realize such is
only through living with good values and doing moral virtues.
Wisdom (sophia), courage (andreia), and temperance
(sophrosune) are examples of these values. To live with these
values is to live a good and just life. We may say that
whatever values we do have should lead us to a life of justice
(dike). Living and doing moral virtues (aretai) can only be
practiced through justice.
Justice as a moral virtue enables us humans to have a
good life and to see the disposition to give and receive neither

too much nor too little of values. Such justice promotes the
value of temperance that allows us to be moderate in all our
actions avoiding extremes. There are schools of thought that
offer us the ways and means of living an ideal life. From the
Scholastics perspective, justice is defined as giving one his
due; that is, justice is to give anyone the amount according to
his work or labor. But again, the problem with this idea is that
how can we say or when can we say that what is due to a
person is really due him? There should be standards or
guidelines to say that what has been rendered to a person is
what is due him. Thomas Aquinas answered this by qualifying
the definition of due on his idea of law. Justice, as conceived
by the deontological ethics of Immanuel Kant, is found in his
categorical imperative, which as a principle, provides us a
conception of universal law serving as a guide that regulates
human actions through the universalizability test to gauge
whether an act may be applicable to all and can be accepted
by everyone. The problem with the categorical imperative,
though, is that if we would always consider the
universalizability of an act, then how are we able to make
decisions on situations that are only rare and not common?
We cannot apply the universalizability test on these kinds of
human action since it is only applicable to given contexts and
specific situations. Another ethical standard is utilitarianism.
The way utilitarians see justice is for an act to be judged
whether it is right or wrong depending on the agreements
brought about by the majority. Such concept of justice is
highly based on the promotion of human actions that would
lead us to the greatest amount of human happiness (greatest
good). Such idea may somehow promote an injustice because
the supposed truth spoken of by only the very few, the
minority for that matter, can be eliminated because of
supposed truth-claim based on the majority rule, the greatest
good of the greatest number. The critiques provided for on
the four major ethical systems show that there is a problem in
the current discourse of ethical systems in particular, and

ethics, in a general sense. If our goal is to live a good and just

life just like that of the heroes, saints, and martyrs and that
these ethical systems supposedly show us the way to such
ideal life and living, the realization of such ideal life should be
seen in these standards. But given such critiques, the four
ethical systems (Scholasticism, Virtue Ethics, Deontology,
and Utilitarianism) cannot clearly provide us the path to such
good and just life. There is a need then to have an alternative
ethic that would be more viable than the dominant ethical
theories; an ethic that is ideal but realizable as a way of life
and form of human living.
Supererogatory acts as a concept is defined as acts
that are done by the agent to which is considered to be
morally good actions that are commendable but are beyond
the call of duty.1 Supererogatory acts are usually seen in the
lives of and performed by heroes, saints, and martyrs.
Supererogation, whose acts cannot be mandated nor be
enforced by others, should be freely and voluntarily coming
from the person without expecting any praise or reward after
these acts.2 There are also different perspectives on
supererogation suggestive of unclear and indistinct
conception of the essence and nature of supererogation.3 For
Michael Ferry, Reason and the Problem of Supererogation.
Retrieved from
https://www.google.com.ph/webhp?sourceid=chromeinstant&ion=1&espv= 2&ie=UTF8#q=Reason+and+the+Problem+of+Supererogation on 8
November 2015.
2
Supererogation and Responsibility. Retrieved from
http://ethicsofglobalresponsibility.blogspot.com/2008/02/s
upererogation-and-responsibility.html on 8 November 2015.
3
Kyle Fruh, Practical Necessity and Moral Heroism.
Retrieved from http://murphy.tulane.edu/files/events/FruhPractical_Necessity_and_
Moral_Heroism_NOWAR_WORKING_DRAFT.pdf on 23
1

Hill and Cureton, even in different ethical systems the idea of

supererogation must be seen and must be present.4 But
according to Fruh, prospects of moral duty to cultivate a
character make some morally heroic actions practically
necessary.5 In the paper titled Supererogation, Crimmins
and Long present the complex nature of supererogation.6 In
the The Wisdom of Supererogatory Acts of Goodness,
supererogatory acts maybe a replacement or a payment for
obligatory acts which may have missed or we have not done
by doing supererogatory acts we are able to compensate.7
Throughout human history, only a few have dealt with
supererogatory acts and discussed in full detail.8 Even the
four major ethical systems have rarely discussed this special
category of supererogatory actions directly and
systematically.9 Some thinkers tried to pose the conflict
December 2015; Thomas Hill, Jr. and Adam Cureton,
Supererogation. Retrieved from http://web.utk.edu/
~acureto1/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/Hill-and-CuretonSupererogation.pdf on 8 November 2015; JE Crimmins and
DC Long, Supererogation. Retrieved from
http://philpapers.org/rec/CRIEOU on 8 November 2015;
Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad, The Wisdom of Supererogatory
Acts of Goodness. Retrieved from
http://aaiil.org/text/articles/others/2007/wisdomsupererog
atoryactsgoodness.shtml on 8 November 2015; Claire Benn,
What is Wrong with Promising to Supererogate, Philosophia
42, 1 (March 2014), 55-61.
4
Supererogation.
5
Kyle Fruh, Practical Necessity and Moral Heroism.
6
JE Crimmins and DC Long, Supererogation.
7
Hazrat Mirza Ghulam.
8
Supererogation. Retrieved from
http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/supererogation/ on 8
November 2015.
9
Ibid.

between supererogation and reason. Acts which we consider

as supererogatory acts are particularly commendable but not
required; yet should not be considered as supererogatory acts
and that we should set standards on making acts as
supererogatory acts.10
The concept of supererogation has repercussions and
implications on the four major ethical systems. According to
Horton, those consequentialists who deny the need to make
room for supererogation either underestimate the
demandingness of their theory or simply underestimate the
impact of modern charity organizations to lessen poverty; it
even considers the attempt to lessen these demands by
distinguishing between the use of consequentialism as a
criterion of rightness and as a decision-making procedure.
The study moves on to the three consequentialist attempts to
replace supererogation with the basic concept of doing ones
bit.11 Horton has to realize that the nature of supererogation
suggests going beyond doing ones bit. Another point that is
raised is that consequentialism refers to those actions to be
permitted as morally permissible if they maximize the value
of consequences, as Jamie Dreier puts in his work, Against
Maximizing Act-Consequentialism.12 Two points have been
raised in this work: first, act-utilitarianism fails to recognize
that morality indicates certain constraints on how we may
promote value (that is, the ends do not always justify the
means); the second point is that act-utilitarianism mistakenly
holds that morality only requires that we promote sufficiently
value leaving us a greater range of options than maximizing
act-consequentialism recognizes.13 Given these two
Michael Ferry.
Emily Suzanne Horton, Consequentialism and
Utilitarianism. (Unpublished Dissertation).
12
Jamie Dreier, Against Maximizing Act
Consequentalism, Moral Theories (April 2013), 21-37.
13
Ibid.
10
11

objections, we surmise that the idea of supererogation

transcends the very value of maximizing such value of
consequences. Supererogation does not concern itself
whether the value of our consequences is within the bounds
of our target goals and contexts of reality. While for nonconsequentialists, the decision-theoretic approach can also be
applicable with a very wide range of moral views, even in
non-consequentialist setting.14 This idea of decision-theoretic
approach may be suggestive in the effort of supererogation to
have a set of criteria for giving value to ones action but
definitely not in the context of maximizing consequential
values. The problem in utilitarianism at its core is that it fails
to have a correct moral criterion when challenged by four
cases: punishment, medical sacrifice, distributive justice, and
promising.15 These cases go beyond what is maximized by
consequential values and allow for the value of
supererogation to justify the good values of these cases. In
deontological issues, Vogt argues that the duty to cultivate
ones non-moral capacities for Kant significantly limits duties
to others, and that Kants views on his duty capture a range
of intuitions about how morality should leave room for our
own lives.16 This opens deontology for supererogation in the
Wolfgang Schwarz, Decision Theory for Non
Consequentialists. Retrieved from
http://www.umsu.de/papers/dt-for-noncons.pdf. on 12
December 2015.
15
Mark Timmons, Contemporary Utilitarianism.
Retrieved from
http://www.normanrschultz.com/ethics/Timmons_contemp
oraryutilitarianism.pdf?ckattempt=1 12 December 2015
16
Katja Maria Vogt, Duties to Others: Demands and Limits.
Retrieved from
http://katjavogt.com/pdf/katja_vogt_duties.pdf on 24
December 2015.
14

context of challenging such limits going beyond duty and not

even considers the issue of fulfilling ones duty.
Supererogation as a moral concept promotes moral
perfection and would eventually lead society into a high
culture. For James Mahon, all of us are bound to be morally
perfect, and by moral we mean that we should always be
doing what is right, which also means that we should always
do what is obligatory and to not do what is wrong that would
not lead us to moral perfection.17 In the idea of Carbonell,
saints should not really be called as moral saints because
they are ordinary people whose lives are marked by
extraordinary moral accomplishments: they do far more than
what we think morality requires of them. They exhibit resolve
and tenacity when others would give up and they bear heavy
burdens of personal sacrifice.18 When supererogation is linked
to government affairs, the idea of supererogation as ideal is
put into question relative to the actual governmental actions.
For Weinberg, not all acts done by the governments not
required by law but taken as morally good are indeed
supererogatory acts.19 All these situations push us to explore
more on the nature, conception, and extent of
supererogation, especially when considered in various cases in
different contexts.
Given all these related literature and past studies, they
suggest the need to critique the four major ethical systems in
order to articulate a metaethic of supererogation, which as an
idea, would serve as an alternative ethic in conceiving
James Mahon, "The Good, the Bad and the Obligatory.
Journal of Value Inquiry volume 40, (2006) 59-71.
18
Vanessa Carbonell, Moral Saints Reconsidered,
(Unpublished Dissertation).
19
Justin Wenberg, Is Government Supererogation?
Retrieved from http://publicreason.net/wpcontent/PPPS/Fall2008/HdeBres1.pdf on 24 December
2015.
17

supererogation especially in the context of ethical life and

living. Hence, the study intends to provide an insight on
supererogation, ideal in character but realizable in essence,
reflective and reflected in everyday ordinary human life. In
order to realize this objective, the following arguments are
raised: (1) the four major ethical systems (virtue ethics,
scholastic ethics, deontology, utilitarianism), which are truly
bases for good human life and living, do not promote in a
higher sense the meaning of a better life; (2) supererogation is
a concept that can be taken as an alternative to, not as a
replacement for, the four ethical systems in terms of realizing
ideal but realizable good human life; (3) martyrdom,
sainthood and heroism, though supererogatory, are highly
ideal and not simply accessible to everyone; (4) friendship and
love are the two principles for ideal but realizable
supererogatory life; and (5) sacrifice is the highest
supererogatory act that can be performed in everyday human
life.
B. Method
The study is a qualitative research. Specifically, it is a
philosophical research using constructivist approach in order
to arrive at a metaethic of supererogation. To articulate such
metaethic, critiquing, reconstruction, and synthesis shall be
devised given the general and specific conceptions, principles,
elements, and nature of the idea of supererogation. The main
texts to be used are Virtue Ethics (Aristotles Nicomachean
Ethics), Scholasticism (Thomas Aquinas Summa Theologiae),
Deontology (Immanuel Kants Groundwork for the Metaphysic of
Morals), Utilitarianism (John Stuart Mills On Utilitarianism),
and Supererogation (James Urmsons Saints and Heroes). The
tools of analysis used are documentary analysis (main texts)
and secondary data analysis (related literature and past
studies).

C. Conceptual Framework Model

The study is based on the four major ethical systems:

Virtue Ethics, Scholasticism, Deontology, and Utilitarianism.
Using critiquing, reconstruction, and synthesis given various
conceptions and principles in the four systems, a metaethic of
supererogation is articulated. Such metaethic as an alternative
ethic for supererogation is conceived as ideal but realizable
supererogation reflected in everyday ordinary human life. The
best form of such kind of supererogation is friendship and
love and sacrifice. Constructivism is the overarching
philosophical approach to realize such metaethic of
supererogation.
D. Concepts and Principles
1. Virtue Ethics20
Virtue Ethics as an ethical system rests on the
premise that the basis for ethical behavior is the moral
character of the person. It tries to understand how one
should live his life in this world. The proponents of this view
concern themselves more with what a human person should
be; that is, everyone is called to become virtuous. Inculcation
20

Aristotle, Nicomachean Ethics.

10

of good habits and character formation shall lead one to live a

virtuous life. To live in virtues would assure one to have a
good and happy life. Every action of a virtuous person is
considered to be a moral action because it undergoes a
deliberate decision, right knowledge, and free will based on
and guided by his virtues. If everyone is virtuous, then we
shall have a good and harmonious society.
2. Scholastic Ethics21
Naturally, man is good and he is bound to do moral
acts. These moral acts are directed by law and applied by
conscience. This ethical view is primarily centered on the
nature of the act itself, whether the act is good or bad in its
nature; and secondly on the intention of the moral agent,
whether he has a bad or a good intention in doing the act.
Human acts are all directed to their last end; that is, the
Summum Bonum, which is the Highest Good, God himself.
3. Deontology22
For an action to be determined as moral, it should be
an act from and based on duty. One must act purely only on
what is required of him and that an action becomes right or
wrong not because of the consequences neither of the
motives of the moral agent but of the nature of the act itself
only. The nature of the act is determined based on the
categorical imperative, which states that, act only on that
maxim by which you can at the same time will as universal
law.
4. Utilitarianism23
Thomas Aquinas, Summa Theologiae.
Immanuel Kant, Groundwork for the Metaphysic
of Morals.
23
John Stuart Mill, On Utilitarianism.
21
22

11

Utilitarianism follows the principle, actions are right

in proportion, as they tend to promote happiness; wrong as
they tend to produce the reverse of happiness. By
implication, to say that an act is a moral act, it should be able
to maximize utility. To maximize utility, it should promote
the greatest good of the greatest number. What matters to
the utilitarian then are the consequences.
5. Supererogation24
James Urmson, in his work, Saints and Heroes,
describes saintly actions and heroic acts as those which lie far
beyond the limits of ones duty. By duty, Urmson takes it as a
minimum requirement for living. He urges that everyone
must be able to perform supererogatory acts and at the same
time not making supererogatory obligatory.
E. Discussion and Analysis
I. A Critique of Normative Ethics
In contemporary world, new questions in ethics are
raised because of a collective need of a higher sense of
humanity with a worth great enough to warrant the
affirmation of life and a collective aspiration to bring such
warrant to a higher sense of human flourishing. These ethical
questions demand critical scrutiny of the moral principles we
hold dear across generations throughout historical periods.
They try to bring forth reconstructions and syntheses of
various moral concepts and principles, whether traditional or
nontraditional. These efforts intend to (re)create moral
perspectives given the context of contemporary life. These
questions are the problem of the nature of duty and its limits,
the relationship between duty and value, the role of ideals and
excuses in ethical judgment, the nature of moral reasons, and
the connection between actions and virtue. There is a need
24

J.O. Urmson, Saints and Heroes.

12

therefore to review the perceived and recognized dominant

ethical perspectives in human history: virtue ethics, scholastic
ethics, deontology, and utilitarianism.
Virtue ethics, as one of the four major ethical
systems, focuses on the idea of the role of the moral
character of a person as a basis of his ethical behavior. Such
ethics adheres to Aristotles idea that a person who is virtuous
is a person who has ideal character traits. These character
traits are inherent to a person and need to be nurtured. This
process of nurturing ones character (traits) must be seen
throughout his entire lifetime and across all human contexts,
situations, and conditions; for example, the virtue of honesty.
A virtuous person should practice honesty in all his activities
throughout his lifetime not because the situations demand for
honesty but because honesty needs to be practiced. He acts
with honesty not in order for him to be praised or to be
recognized as an honest person and in effect virtuous. He
practices honesty for the reason that honesty forms big part
of his character. Through this character formation, we will be
able to live a happy and good life. Eventually, if all of us are
to practice with and live in honesty, we will be able to have a
harmonious society. The character formation in virtue ethics
guides one how he should live his life in this world. The
problem though with virtue ethics is that since character
formation is a lifetime process, there can be instances where
human behavior can be (quite) inconsistent. Personality or
character is fragmented. Since human action is seen in a
concrete specific case or situation, what we see in these acts
are inconsistent and disintegrated character traits. There can
be instances where a person would manifest an opposite
attitude different from what he used to be. A person may be
honest towards his family and/or friends but he is not honest
in his work. So how can we now say if that person is really
honest or virtuous if he has practiced dishonesty even once,
in a particular condition, in his life? When can we really say
that indeed a human person is (truly) honest?

13

Scholastic ethics, the most systematic and organized

as a school of thought among the ethical systems, is grounded
on the idea that man is hylemorphic: that is, man is a
substantial union of body and soul. The body is corruptible
but the soul is not. The soul, as incorruptible, has two
faculties: the cognitive and the affective; the cognitive faculty
is the intellect whose subject is to know the truth while the
affective faculty is the will whose subject is to do the good.
Man by nature, we can say, is good because we have the
natural inclination to truth and goodness. Nature also says
that man is bound to do moral actions that are directed by
law (taken as ordinance of reason promulgated for the
common good). Natural law in human nature is seen in
human reason. As such, scholastic ethics is centered on the
nature of the act itself (as to whether the act is good or bad)
and secondary on the intention of the one doing the act. All
moral acts as human actions are directed to their last end: the
greatest good. Putting things in the context of morality
(whether an act is good or bad) is problematic because
everything will just be taken as either good or bad and,
therefore, just a series of rewards and punishments. If every
human act is seen as right or wrong, then there is
automatically a value judgment whenever an act is committed.
The focus is deemed on the rightness or wrongness of an act
and not looking at human reality in a broader sense and in a
wider context. Scholastic ethics provides rules and by
implications resolutions on different ethical questions which
should be strictly followed. What if there are situations that
call for judgment or action labeled as bad but would bring
common good and reasonable outcomes? What if human
freedom demands a re-creation of his ethical standards? What
if there are indeed actions that should go beyond law but
would even actually make us better in our humanity?
Deontology, the strictest among the four, is centered
on the nature of the act itself. This ethical theory holds that
some acts are always wrong even if the act leads to a good

14

result. Actions in deontology are always judged independently

of their outcome; an act can be morally bad but may have
better results. Kant believes that since man has the unique
capacity for rationality, he is able to use his rationality on his
thoughts and actions. The human person should be able to
do actions in accordance to moral law or duty. Every action
that the human person performs should only be based on
such duty because that is what is ought. Kant bases the
morality of the human act on categorical imperative (that act
only on that maxim by which you can at the same time will as
universal law); whatever actions we may do should be actions
that are universal law (meaning, they passed the
universalizability test) and therefore should be based on duty.
That is something what is required of him. But what if there
are conflicting values since every act that one should do is
based only on his duty? Which action should prevail if the
two actions are based on duty but are in conflict with each
other? While every act should be done based on duty, there
are situations in which an act should be done over another.
One crucial question is, even if we accept that we are
somehow bound to do what is ought to be done, is it possible
to do actions that are beyond the call of duty and yet are
good and even better than what our duty prescribes?
Utilitarianism, the most common and practical ethical
system as a form of consequentialism, is a standard by which
human actions are judged as right or wrong and by which the
rules of morality, public policies, and social institutions are to
be critically evaluated based on the production of happiness
and the reduction of unhappiness. All actions are only
concerned to promote the maximal amount of happiness and
to determine this maximal amount of happiness as usually
gauged by the majority of people. This means that what is
good should be agreed upon by the most number: the
number of people experiencing happiness is subordinate to
the overall amount of happiness produced by the act. The
primary concern of a utilitarian is not the equal distribution of

15

happiness; but rather the totality of happiness produced by

the act. In essence, the principal responsibility of any person
is to act in ways that lead to the greatest amount of overall
happiness. But the problem with this idea is the relative
values attached to the greatest amount of overall happiness.
What if a (specific) value would promote what is good, which
means it is beneficial, useful, beautiful, desirable, and would
promote maximal amount of happiness for an individual
human person and not because of a different perspective.
Whose perspective then should be followed? Is number the
best possible gauge of what (greatest) good is? Would human
actions, the morality of which are based on consequences, are
as shallow as an ethical system? Is it possible for us to
conceive of ethics going beyond the consequences primarily
because the greatest good can be sought outside such
consequences? Is utilitarianism ideal for humanity yearning
for higher sense of human living?
Given our extrapolations, it seems that virtue ethics,
scholastic ethics, deontology, and utilitarianism cannot be our
model for ethical life given our individual and collective sense
of human flourishing. Virtue ethics demands the entire
lifetime to prove that one is indeed virtuous. Scholastic ethics
imposes standards no longer sensitive to human situatedness
and other contexts. Deontology contains itself with its dutybound laws and principles. Utilitarianism is consumed by its
own practicality and relativism. There is a need for us to have
an alternative way of ethics that would be responsive to the
contemporary world and at the same time committed to
ethical ideals and principles.
II. A View on Supererogation
What is supererogation?
John Paul II was shot thrice by a man from the
audience in the Vatican. After his recovery from the injury, he
visited the shooter in prison, had a long talk with him, and
forgave him. Benigno Ninoy Aquino, who fought for the

16

restoration of democracy from the Marcos dictatorship, was

shot dead as he arrived at the Philippines. Nelson Mandela
was imprisoned for fighting the rights of the black people in
South Africa and for that he was regarded as the Father of
the Nation. Mother Theresa of Calcutta dedicated her life in
the service of the poor, the marginalized, and the sick in
India. Florence Nightingale, a nurse during the World War II,
took care of the sick, attended the wounded and the
dismembered, and advocated equality for healthcare. Maria
Goretti chose to be killed than to be raped just to preserve
her chastity and for that reason she was stabbed more than 20
times. Goretti is considered as the Patron Saint of the
Youth. St. John Vianney, known to be the cure de ars opted to
enter into priesthood in spite of his old age. He is recognized
as the Patron Saint of the Priests. In all these supererogatory
actions performed by these respected people, we may ask:
what makes their acts supererogatory? What makes
supererogatory acts indeed supererogatory?
Supererogatory acts are actions that are praiseworthy
but not fundamentally obligatory. These supererogatory acts,
as good acts, are done in complete voluntariness and out of
full goodness. The perfect example is the Parable of the
Good Samaritan. The Samaritan in the story saw the need
and responded to help the man robbed along the road. He is
not basically obliged to help because the man in need is
considered to be in the lowest social class unworthy of any
praise or recognition. All the good things done by the
Samaritan are done out of complete volition and pure
goodness. This is clearly supererogation. All the saints,
heroes, and martyrs are able to perform nonobligatory actions
outside of their duty in their respective contexts and
conditions. In that sense, supererogation is an act that is not
strictly required. San Lorenzo Ruiz, for instance, chose to
defend his faith for whatever it might take even if it caused
him his own life. Given these extrapolations, we can say that
the nature of supererogation is characterized by action that is

17

good to be done but not bad not to be done; meaning, it is

morally praiseworthy indeed but its omission is not at all
blameworthy.
The paper argues that such conception of
supererogation leads us to the following assertions: (1) it
promotes and focuses on human actions that are beyond the
call of duty; (2) it promotes virtues that are realized in time;
(3) it considers ethics not solely centered on human action
but on the ethical subject; (4) it is highly ideal in the sense
that only martyrs, saints, and heroes can fulfill supererogatory
acts (taken as edifying ideals); in effect, supererogation is
elitist (only for exemplars); (5) it is not commonly realized by
the population; and (6) it is taken as moral generally. The first
three are the strengths of the idea of supererogation; the last
three are its weaknesses.
Supererogation, as an ethical perspective, presents
itself outside normative ethics; that is, human actions are
taken not simply in the context of moral obligation and social
responsibility but even beyond the call of duty. Since
supererogation is done out of utmost volition with pure
intention, it is not demanded, imposed, obliged, and made
compulsory. It is always to be taken as something out of
human persons (natural) goodness for these supererogatory
acts are primarily intended for doing something higher than
the usual good and right human actions. It is out of human
conscience that one performs supererogation. This makes
supererogatory a strong concept for it is not normative; it is
transformative.
Supererogatory acts are indeed supererogatory for
they are performed out of ones virtues. Virtues are in the
disposition of the ethical subject. Supererogatory acts are not
simply human actions because they are primarily virtuous
actions. This implies ones habit. Virtue, by its nature, is a
repeated good action. We can say that one is honest not
simply because he is honest in one particular instance, say a
student telling his parents the truth about his failing grades.

18

Beyond this, he is truly honest because he is honest in every

particular instance and circumstance, say in his formed
relationships with his friends, loved ones, and others. We say
that everyone has the capacity to inculcate a virtue in him as
long as his act is consistent, stable, and compatible to other
virtues. Based on human experience, we notice that virtues
are harnessed and realized in a given time. And given a
certain period of time, everyone can develop these virtues.
They would seek consistency in their virtuous actions as a
form of habit establishing a certain form of stability (for the
right reasons) seeing some compatibility with other virtuous
actions. The virtue of honesty is not in conflict, for example,
with the virtues of truthfulness, sincerity, and justice.
Supererogation affirms that virtues are true and that they are
realized (or seen) in human life in time. Supererogation
enables us to realize virtues in our everyday human
experience.
Since supererogation is something beyond the call of
duty (and therefore is voluntary) and virtue as its
groundwork, we may say that supererogation is focused more
on the ethical subject and not on the moral action. Moral
actions, such as supererogatory acts, are performed primarily
because of the ethical subject. It is the human person himself
doing the act that must be given credit. Supererogation
highlights the knowledge, freedom, and voluntariness of the
ethical subject. The ethical subject decides to opt for good
and right action transcending it as supererogatory action.
But the idea of supererogation at the same time
suggests that it is elitist. In the history of moral philosophy,
only the heroes, saints, and martyrs are supererogatory as
exemplars of ideal life. Supererogation, as a moral norm, is
highly ideal. It seems then that only the heroes, saints, and
martyrs can transcend their good and right actions out of
indomitable courage, exemplary holiness, and solid faith. For
the reason that it is elitist and ideal, supererogation is not
commonly realized by the population for the standards set for

19

it is the life of heroes, saints, and martyrs that are rare. Only
few can do heroic, saintly, and martyrly actions. This sets
supererogation as something that is only realizable by some
and not by all, not even by the majority. As observed, it
seems that almost all who have lived supererogatorily are
those who have lived a moral life. Moral life demands
rigorous religious living. Not everyone can live and intend to
live a moral (holy) life but are capable of doing good to
others. Supererogation has to present itself not only to people
who live a religious life. The mere fact that supererogation is
commonly attributed to saints and martyrs because of their
holy actions, common people tend to label these
supererogatory actions as something holy, religious, and
exemplary only for religious icons making supererogation
inaccessible to many people. It seems that supererogation is
only for religious individuals. Only the saints and martyrs can
truly live a supererogatory life. To become a saint or a martyr
entails highest standard of moral living. Supererogation is
only confined to such moral standard.
III. A New Supererogation
Given the strengths and weaknesses of the
conception of supererogation, there is a need to reconstruct
such idea by: (1) still taking supererogation as ideal but it
should also be at the same time as realizable; (2)
supererogation has to show that supererogatory acts can be
performed by everyone in everyday ordinary human life; and (3)
supererogation has to be taken as ethical in essence; not in
moral or religious sense.

20

Supererogation has to be ideal but at the same time

realizable. Supererogation, calls for actions beyond the call of
duty, not merely within the limits of moral obligation and
social responsibility; by centering on the role of the ethical
subject out of his volition to perform actions transcending
the usual giving more depth and meaning for his actions. This
sets the ideal. We cannot oblige everyone to perform
supererogatory actions but if everyone wants to live a more
meaningful life, in consideration of all his human
relationships, he is to live a life out of supererogation. And
living such life is realizable because virtues, as the backbone
of supererogation, are harnessed, developed, and enriched in
time given the various contexts of human experience in
everyday human life struggle. With his capacity to self-govern,
self-regulate, and self-actualize, he can set his life performing

21

supererogation believing in depth and meaning. He does not

need to become a hero, saint, or martyr in order for him to
do beyond his duty, to do more beyond what is expected, and
to perform far beyond what is required. Supererogation, as
realizable, is taken now as (fully) accessible to ordinary life
making ordinary individuals able to recognize and appreciate
their extraordinary actions. Everyone (now) has the capacity
to transcend thoughts, beliefs, and actions relative to human
conditions and circumstances. Let us cite some common
human actions that are supererogatory: (a) a teacher who
provides free tutoring to his students outside his mandatory
working hours because he wants to facilitate further their
learning competencies; (b) a mother who provides extra care
and does things with full diligence and love for the good of
her children; (c) a citizen who follows laws not only for the
sake of obeying laws but for his subscription to the
promotion of common good and greatest happiness of the
society where he belongs; (d) a student who does his best and
ensures above average performance in his courses not
because of anything else but because of his belief in the value
of excellence; (e) and a friend who shares his presence
genuinely for comfort, care, and counsel. All these examples
suggest ethical life; that is, living a life out of autonomy and
reflection giving (more) depth and (more) meaning to
supposedly ordinary human actions in everyday ordinary
human life.
Our conception of supererogation is ideal but
realizable as reflected in everyday ordinary human life. This
means five things: (1) it aims at higher ideals but beyond
Kantian duty and Millian common good; (2) it transcends
egoism, law, and culture; (3) it requires disposition on the part
of the ethical subject; that is, with beneficent intention and
altruistic motive out of autonomy and justice; (4) it can in
principle always improve and further realize virtuous
character traits, ethical ideals, or the goal of promoting
human happiness (in virtue ethics sense but) in the context of

22

moral identity, autonomy, and authority of reflection (new

elements of supererogation); and (5) supererogatory acts
commonly reflected in everyones everyday ordinary human
life are friendship, love, and sacrifice.
Since supererogation is a metaethic concept, it still
pursues higher ideals of being and becoming good. Such
ethical conception promotes human flourishing, excellence,
and ideal human living. It has to be clear from the onset that
supererogation is not a moral obligation and a social
responsibility. It is the act of full deliberation to perform
supererogation. It calls for higher reflection, to see and act
beyond what is expected, that motivates one to do
supererogatory acts. It is definitely not deontological. It does
not expect that what is deemed supererogatory has to be
perceived as a maxim to be willed as universal law and,
therefore, everyone has to endorse (or reject) the act, as
stated in the categorical imperative. Supererogatory actions
do not need to pass through a universalizability test. They
simply flow from our values (i.e. virtues). Since
supererogation flows from our deeply held values, it is always
taken from the perspective of the individual good. It is the
ethical subject that takes full responsibility for supererogation,
not even the collective good (against the individual good). As
such, we cannot articulate a conception of greatest happiness
or a common good. The idea of greatest happiness or
common good is suggestive of culture, norm, and tradition. If
supererogation is taken given the common good,
supererogatory acts become a moral obligation or a social
responsibility. That will contradict the nature of
supererogation. It totally anchors on the subjective will. The
human person as an ethical subject reflects on the value of his
action; he is inclined to give more value to his act beyond
what his duty implies. It becomes supererogatory when one
gives a (higher) valuing than what his duty provides. It
essentially depends on ones reflection and valuing to qualify
an act as supererogatory or simply based on duty. Hence,

23

supererogation presents itself outside Kants call of duty and

Mills greatest happiness.
Supererogation transcends egoism, law, and culture. It
goes beyond egoism for it affirms and confirms ones
capability to do something good higher in valuation in such a
way that it becomes a selfless act; that is, an act that does not
even simply promote his own personal good and interests. It
goes beyond what the law requires; in effect, it promotes a
higher sense of life and living. It is not confined to common
beliefs, traditions, and practices. Supererogation tries to make
more sense and more meaning to our usual social
arrangements. For example, we are called by our society and
culture to have a good relationship with our neighbors and
we can do it supererogatorily by extending such relationship
to loving and caring for them. There is a need then to affirm
the central role of the ethical subject of having the beneficent
intention and altruistic motive clarifying therefore the merit
(or demerit) and the manifest (or hidden) nature of the act in
order for us to have it as supererogatory (or not).
Supererogation rests on the idea of virtue, that which
anchors supererogatory actions as good that is something
beyond ones moral obligation and social responsibility. It
does not need the entire lifetime to establish ones virtue.
Supererogation recognizes that virtuous character traits are
displayed (possibly) in every particular human situation. This
is because the ethical subject, as he exercises supererogation,
acts out of his autonomy pushing for the authority of his
reflection. The ethical subject, in effect, does supererogatory
acts, as a product of his reflection and autonomy.
Supererogation is commonly reflected in everyones
everyday ordinary human life through our experience of
friendship, love, and sacrifice. The greatest union is between
friends: everyone has friends. Everyone can express care
towards his friends. Everyone can be a guide, a person that
can fully accept a friend, embrace his weaknesses, motivate in
his affairs, reinforce his good works, support his

24

achievements and failures in his lifetime. Friendship does not

need to be narrow. Supererogation is seen in a friend who
never leaves his friend, whether in times of joy or sorrow; a
friend who just understands regardless of situations,
conditions, and contexts. He gives more valuing to his sense
of friendship than what duty of friendship usually requires.
The greatest human experience is love: everyone experiences
love. Everyone can love and can be loved. Love can be fully
expressed as care. Care as love is something everyone does at
least to someone else. Love does not need to be romantic.
Love is seen in a mother who never fails to constantly care
for her children; to feed them and give them their needs
whatever it takes. It is also seen in a husband whose fidelity
with his wife and to his family is manifested throughout his
life. One cares not simply because he sees it as his moral
obligation to care; he cares because he gives premium to care
for someone beyond what duty usually requires. The greatest
love is selfless in form and content: everyone has the ability
and willingness to sacrifice for someone. Sacrificing is
something we usually do as humans. What makes us humans
is our capacity to do some sacrifices at least to someone.
Sacrifice is seen in everyday human situations. Sacrifice does
not need to be dramatic. Supererogation is seen in parents
who think of the future of their children; those would choose
to go abroad seeking for opportunities for them to be able to
give the best future possible for them even if it means
sacrificing the time to be with and moments with their
children. Supererogation then totally depends on how one
values his action; definitely not simply in the context of moral
obligation but more so on how one gives (much) value to his
action especially on what the act of sacrifice implies in this
case.
Supererogation is not reserved only for exemplars but
is realizable by all individuals. Every human person has to
learn how to form and discover his moral identity in the light
of his final end through the exercise of his autonomy. This

25

would lead him to do good-specific motives, value-guided

dispositions, and virtue-based actions.
F. Conclusion
Supererogation as an ethical conception does not
need to be for heroes, saints, and martyrs only. We can see it
in everyday ordinary human life especially in our experiences
of friendship, love, and sacrifice. Its value is still ideal but
realizable; accessible to everyone and therefore does not
require one to be special or elitist in order to be
supererogatory. It highlights the ethical subject as
autonomous and reflective; not as a moral agent bound by
the nature and/or consequence of the act. Supererogation as
a common experience demands deliberative will and authority
of reflection from the ethical subject. As a reflective agent,
the human person is inclined and invited to have a good (or
better) sense of value to the things and actions he performs.
Such capacity for valuing connotes giving more value to duty;
in effect going beyond our duty since we no longer see our
action in the context of moral obligation but in the light of
personal valuing so we do out of our ethical reflection
beyond our duty. Our significant human experiences as seen
in everyday ordinary human life manifest supererogation as
common yet transcendental, ideal yet realizable, and moral yet
ethical. We come to honor and value the life of every human
person who lives as ordinary and at the same time
extraordinary because of his supererogatory acts rooted in his
common experience. Every human person then is ethical.
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29

LIVED EXPERIENCES OF PATIENTS WITH ENDSTAGE RENAL DISEASE ON MAINTENANCE

HEMODIALYSIS
Frances Anne M. Vibar
Ma. Pamela M. Sorra-Vinas
Introduction
My experience of having to constantly undergo hemodialysis,
the way I see it, is persecution; suffering; a seemingly hopeless situation.
Like how you suddenly find yourself trapped in a quicksand and youre
unable to get out. My familys suffering, my own suffering, are all because
of this hemodialysis treatments, uttered the patient in a strained,
quivering voice. The person talking is a patient with EndStage Renal Disease (ESRD) on maintenance hemodialysis
for eight years and counting. A diagnosis of ESRD means
that the patient is in the fifth and final stage of Chronic
Kidney Disease (CKD). In this advanced stage of kidney
disease, the kidneys are no longer able to remove wastes and
fluids from the body, toxins build up in the blood, and renal
replacement therapy in the form of dialysis or kidney
transplant is required to sustain life (Di Maria and Leonard,
2012).
Worldwide, CKD is being increasingly recognized as a
global public health problem. The Centers for Disease
Control initiative report of 2015 lists kidney disease as the
ninth leading cause of death in the United States. United
States Renal Data System annual data report of 2010 shows
the leading causes of CKD leading to ESRD as diabetes
mellitus, hypertension, and glomerulonephritis. The report
further states that in most countries worldwide, the leading
cause of ESRD is diabetes as reflected in Australian,
European and Asian Registry Data (USRDS, 2010).
In the Philippines, Department of Health (DOH)
statistics and demography of 2015 lists kidney disease as the

30

ninth leading cause of death among Filipinos. The DOH data

further share that one Filipino develop renal failure every
hour or 120 Filipinos per million population per year.
Consistent with worldwide statistics, diabetes mellitus and
hypertension have taken center stage as the main causes of
ESRD (Danguilan, 2008). The National Capital Region is on
the top spot with the most number of kidney disease cases
nationwide, followed by Region IV, and the Bicol Region in
third place (Tejano, 2015). In the Bicol Region, kidney disease
ranks seventh among the top ten killer diseases (Calleja,
2013).
ESRD affects a persons health in several ways.
Common problems include: inability to urinate, fatigue, a
general ill feeling, headache, unexplained weight loss, nausea
and vomiting, changes in skin color, bruising, sleeping
problems,
confusion/difficulty
concentrating,
swelling/edema especially in the hands or legs, and difficulty
of breathing. These problems are caused by waste products
that build up in the blood, a condition known as uremia
(National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney
Diseases, 2011).
With hemodialysis treatment, a machine and a special
filter called a dialyzer are used to filter out accumulated
wastes in the blood. This treatment method is usually carried
out for four hours twice or three times per week. The DOH
data reveal that at the end of 2013, close to 23,000
hemodialysis cases were recorded and are increasing at a rate
of 10-15% per year (Crisostomo, 2014). The number is
growing so fast that records from the Philippine Health
Insurance Corporation show that dialysis patients ranks
number one in terms of accounts served by PhilHealth,
outranking childbirth that had been number one for the past
decades (Tejano, 2015).
Vast source of foreign and local literature provided an
overview of what life with ESRD involves and how
hemodialysis as the treatment regimen affects an individual.

31

One of the biggest adjustments that a patient must make is

following a strict schedule of the prescribed hemodialysis
regimen. Changes are made in the patients work or home life
as they have to give up some activities and responsibilities.
Patients on dialysis may have lost their jobs, or their position
as the major source of income of the family may have been
altered, and their standing as the leader of the family may
have been shaken. Consequently, the burden is borne not
only by the patient, but by the entire family. Commonly, a
family member has to stop working to care for the patient
undergoing hemodialysis. A patient may sometimes be too
weak to provide self-care and loses independence. Patients
who cannot afford treatment rely on other family members to
look for the needed funds. Children stop schooling, savings
are used up, objects of value are sold, and all the earnings of
those who work are used to pay for dialysis. This may result
in families getting impoverished because all the resources are
devoted to the patient with kidney failure who needs
treatment.
The purpose of this study is to explore, examine, and
describe the lived experiences of patients with end-stage renal
disease dependent upon hemodialysis therapy for their
survival. The lived experiences refers to the subjective
experiences of an individual who has first-hand knowledge of
states, situation, emotion or sensations of a given
phenomenon (Munhall, 2007). The lived experiences in this
study refer to the physical, psychological, and socio-economic
domain of human involvement of one with ESRD on
maintenance hemodialysis treatments.
This study included the background information of
the patients by looking into their family, socio-economic, and
medical situation. It analyzed and described the underlying
themes embodied in their thoughts, feelings, and perceptions
related to their experiences in having ESRD and undergoing
hemodialysis along the physical, psychological, social and
economic domain. From these, insights were drawn, which

32

form part of the core of their lived experiences. Finally,

implications to the nursing practice were culled to come up
with an integrated nursing care through a more holistic
approach.
Theoretical Background
The researcher anchored the study on four theories
that served as its foundation which provided it with strength
and clarity. The theoretical underpinnings of the study
include Sister Callista Roys Adaptation Theory, Elisabeth
Kbler-Rosss Grief Cycle Theory, Jean Watsons Human
Caring Theory, and Rosemary Rizzo Parses Human
Becoming Theory.
The foregoing concepts of the studys theoretical
underpinnings showcase the central theme of the study which
is the lived experiences of the patient with end-stage renal
disease undergoing maintenance hemodialysis. The
participant, who is a patient with ESRD, is considered as a
biopsychosocial
being
with
interacting
biological,
psychological, and socio-economic components. The
patients experience with the phenomena can therefore be
understood at multiple levels of organization, from physical
to societal. Hence, the nurse researcher is required not just to
explore the renal pathology or aspects in the biomedical
management of the disease process, but also to understand
the patients subjective experience as an essential contributor
to health outcomes and humane care.
The patients experiences of coming to terms with
chronic kidney disease, hemodialysis treatment, and the
concept of dying, can be manifested in a number of
responses be it denial, anger, bargaining, depression or
acceptance. As the patient undergoes this passage towards
adjustment and coping, the nurse researchers caring
consciousness becomes essential for the connection and
understanding of the other persons perspective and thereby
forms a transpersonal caring relationship. The phenomenal

33

field or the totality of the patients lived experience which

consists of feelings, bodily sensations, thoughts, spiritual
beliefs, goals, expectations, environmental considerations,
and meanings of ones perceptions all of which are based
upon ones past life history, ones present moment, and ones
imagined future are explored by both the patient and the
researcher. By being authentically present, opening to others
with sensitivity and compassion, being supportive of the
expression of positive and negative feelings, and the creative
use of self to engage in artistry of caring-healing practices, the
uniqueness of both the patient and the researcher emerges
which is fundamental to the relationship.
As such, the one caring and the one cared-for, both
connect in mutual search for meaning and wholeness. In this
process, the nurses whole being is immersed with the patient
as the other illuminates the meanings of his or her situation
and moves beyond the moment. The nurse illuminates
meaning to uncover what was and what will be,
synchronizes rhythms in order to lead through the discussion
to recognize harmony, and mobilize transcendence to dream
of possibilities and plan to reach them. Thus, there is better
understanding of the human lived experience, and new
nursing knowledge may be developed which may ultimately
contribute to health, quality of life, and quality of nursing
practice. As a result, therapeutic alliance between the nurse
and the patient in their partnership for care is enhanced, and
maximum potential for living is achieved.

34

Figure 1. Conceptual Framework Model

Method
This study employed the phenomenological type of
qualitative research. The main approach used was
interpretative phenomenology, attributed to the German
philosopher Martin Heiddeger (1889-1976). Borrowing the
words of Smith and Osborn (2007), interpretative

35

phenomenological analysis involves a dynamic process with

an active role for the researcher in that process (p.53). In
this type of research, a two-stage interpretation process, or a
double hermeneutic, is involved. The participants are trying
to make sense of their world; the researcher is trying to make
sense of the participants trying to make sense of their world
(Smith & Osborn, 2007, p.53).
Three patients from the local support group
Nephrology Club Dialysis were purposively selected to
participate in the study. To provide demographic diversity in
her selections, the researcher considered variance along the
dimensions of gender, age, civil status, socio-economic status,
and severity of existing co-morbidities. These patients were
officially endorsed by the support groups President after due
consideration of the vastness of their experiences with the
given phenomena, willingness to participate, ability to share
and articulate their experiences, and availability to be
interviewed. Ethical considerations were addressed and
informed consent from each participant was secured. The
participants were cognitively intact as determined by a
Folsteins test or a mini mental status examination (MMSE) at
the time of the interviews.
The participants experiences were gathered through
multiple means such as interviews, story-telling, and
observation. All interviews were audio recorded and
transcribed verbatim by the researcher. Field notes were also
taken during the interview to record body language or other
contributing factors observed that were not reflected in the
audio recording.The modified van Kaam method as described
by Hathorn, Machtmes, and Tillman (2009) was employed for
data analysis.
Step One: Listing and Preliminary Grouping
The researcher listed and preliminarily grouped the
data by transcribing each audio file verbatim as soon as
practically possible after the interview. Three columns were

36

prepared: the first for the researchers questions, the second

for the participants responses, and the third for the
significant non-verbal features or impressions observed at the
time of interview. The researcher did not skip over any
statement or word from the transcription, and considered
each phrase equally relevant. This is known as
horizontalization or viewing each statement as having equal
value.
Step Two: Reduction and Elimination
In this stage, the transcript was read and reread
closely in order to become as familiar as possible with the
account and to get a general sense of the interview.
According to Smith and Osborn (2007), This is close to
being a free textual analysis. There are no rules about what is
commented upon, and there is no requirement, for example,
to divide the text into meaning units and assign a comment
for each unit (p.67). Some parts of the interview may be
richer than others and so warrant more commentary. The
comments will be attempts at summarizing or paraphrasing,
some may be associations that come to mind, amplifications
or contradictions on what the person is saying, and others
may be preliminary interpretations. The researcher did data
reduction by eliminating statements that did not answer the
guiding question. Overlapping, cyclic, and vague expressions
were also eliminated. The remaining statements became the
invariant constituents or the meaning units of the experience,
and described the phenomenon in exact descriptive terms. As
participants were added, the invariant constituents increased.
Step Three: Clustering and Thematizing the Invariant Constituents
In this stage, the researcher clustered the invariant
constituents and defined the core themes of the experience.
The themes were not selected purely on the basis of its
prevalence within the data. Other factors including the
richness of the particular passages that highlight the themes

37

and how the theme helps illuminate other aspects of the

account, were also taken into consideration.
Step Four: Final Identification of the Invariant Constituents and
Themes by Application/Validation
The researcher checked the invariant constituents and
the themes against each individual transcript to make sure the
theme was expressed either overtly or was well-matched with
the constituents. This process helped determine the
congruency of the experience. In order to document
emerging theme titles, the initial notes were transformed into
concise phrases which aim to capture the essential quality of
what was found in the text. The themes then move the
response to a slightly higher level of abstraction. These
themes were discussed with the participants, in an
intersubjective validation, to determine the accuracy of the
researcher's perception of the themes.
Step Five: Construction of Individual Textural Description
For each participant the researcher described what the
patient experienced using excerpts from the transcript. This
was done essentially by explaining the themes in a narrative
format. This process helped the researcher to understand
what the patient experienced.
Step Six: Construction of Individual Structural Description
For each participant, the researcher incorporated into
the textural description a structure explaining how the
experience occurred. As the researcher wrote the textural
description, the researcher reflected on the conditions that
precipitated what the participant experienced. This process
helped the researcher to understand how the experience
occurred. The researcher used acts of thinking, judging,
imagining, and recollecting, in order to arrive at core
structural meanings (Hathorn, et al, 2009, p.234). By using
imaginative variation, imagining the experience occurring in a

38

variety of structures, the researcher perceived the experience

occurring in different circumstances and identified the
conditions that accompanied the experience. This helped the
researcher understand how the participants experience came
to be what they were and the conditions that were met to
develop actions.
Step Seven: Construction of a Textural-Structural Description
For each participant, the researcher merged the two
narratives textural and structural that were generated from
steps five and six. The finished narrative description included
the researchers understanding of what (texture) occurred
and how (structure) the experience occurred for each
participant. After an exhaustive imaginative and reflective
study, the researcher explained the experience according to
how the researcher understood it, from his vantage point, and
described the essence of the experience.
Step Eight: Textural-Structural Composite Description
This entailed using synthesis to create the final writeup and statement outlining the meanings inherent in the
participants experience. This process helped the researcher to
determine the essence of the overall experience.
Profile of the Participants
The participants of this study are three patients with
End-Stage Renal Disease on maintenance hemodialysis. They
are members of the support group Nephrology Club Dialysis
and are dialyzing in various hemodialysis centers in Albay.
Their ages range from 41 to 65 years old. People living in
household together with the patient are nuclear and extended
family members. In terms of socio-economic background,
their educational attainments vary from High School
Diploma, Bachelor and Masters degrees. Their monthly
family income ranges from less than P3,000 to P20,000
coming from family members since all patients are presently

39

unemployed or retired due to limitations brought about by

their current health state. In terms of medical condition, the
patients Stage 5 Chronic Kidney disease was caused primarily
by hypertension, diabetes, and chronic glomerulonephritis.
Patients have been on maintenance hemodialysis for 2 to 8
years, on a twice or thrice a week schedule. All are dialyzing
via arterio-venous fistula vascular access. Co-morbidities cited
were hypertension, diabetes and hepatitis, along with cardiopulmonary complications and mobility problems.
Thematic Presentation
Thorough analysis of data derived from the interviews
of the three participants revealed varied lived experiences, of
which three focal meanings emerged. These are (1) Kidney
Disease and Starting Dialysis, (2) Living with Hemodialysis,
and (3) Acceptance and Outlook on the Future. Themes were
identified and grouped according to these focal meanings.
From the focal meaning Kidney Disease and Starting
Dialysis, three themes emerged which are: (a) The Root
Cause, (b) Ignoring the Warning Signs, and (c) The Turning
Point.A large bulk of the interviews content centered on
issues pertaining to the here and now, or what the
participants experience while living on dialysis. Six themes
were identified under the focal meaning Living with
Hemodialysis which are: (a) The Downside of Dialysis, (b)
Being Subordinate to a Deteriorating Body, (c) Alone with
Existential Thoughts, (d) Fear of the Unknown, (e) Money
Matters, and (f) A Changing Social Life. Finally, the focal
meaning Acceptance and Outlook in the Future yielded three
themes which are: (a) Making Sense of the Experience, (b)
Striving to Live a Good Life, and (c) Keeping Hope Alive.

40

Table 1: Themes and Definitions of the Lived Experiences of

Patients with End-Stage Renal Disease Undergoing
Maintenance Hemodialysis
Focal Meaning
Themes
Definition
Main cause of and
The Root Cause
aggravating factors to the
disease
Kidney Disease
Early manifestations of the
and Starting
Ignoring the
disease and initial response
Warning Signs
Dialysis
to symptom experience
Life-threatening symptoms
The Turning Point and initial reaction to
hemodialysis
Side effects, adverse
The Downside of
reactions, and vascular
Dialysis
access problems
Being Subordinate
Complications of kidney
to a Deteriorating
disease and dialysis
Body
Alone with
Emotional struggles in
Existential
dealing with current health
Living with
Thoughts
state
Hemodialysis
Fear of the
Anxieties and fears about
Unknown
the uncertain future
Economic implications of
Money Matters
hemodialysis
Social implications brought
A Changing Social
about by the disease and
Life
hemodialysis
Reflections about the
Making Sense of
meaning of disease and
the Experience
dialysis experience
Acceptance and
Outlook on the Striving to Live a
Coping strategies and the
Future
Good Life
value of a support system
Keeping Hope
Expectations, plans, and
Alive
aspirations for the Future

41

The Comprehensive Chronic Hemodialysis

Experience Model
The
Comprehensive
Chronic
Hemodialysis
Experience Model was devised to showcase the essential
themes of the study grouped accordingly within the three
focal meanings Kidney Disease and Starting Dialysis, Living
with Hemodialysis, and Acceptance and Outlook on the
Future, interwoven within the physical, psychological, social,
and economic domains. The model is a composite thematic
and structural representation of the lived experiences of
patients with ESRD on maintenance hemodialysis, depicting
what occurs and how it occurs within the specific
domain cited yielding the core or nucleus of the themes.
In the focal meaning Kidney Disease and Starting
Dialysis, the three themes generated are: (a) The Root Cause,
(b) Ignoring the Warning Signs, and (c) The Turning Point.
The theme The Root Cause identifies the main cause of and
aggravating factors to the occurrence of ESRD which the
participants regard as a significant matter, whether it was a
disease they could do nothing about, one they could but
chose not to, a medication-related adverse reaction, or a
negligent and over-indulgent lifestyle. The theme Ignoring the
Warning Signs discusses the early manifestations of the
disease and the participants initial response to disregard the
minute symptoms as they did not have a definite diagnosis of
their condition yet. Lastly, the theme The Turning Point
identifies the life-threatening symptoms experienced by the
participants which precipitated them to finally seek urgent
medical attention.

42

Figure 2. The Comprehensive Chronic Hemodialysis

Experience Model
The participants initial reaction when the news that they
needed to begin maintenance hemodialysis was broken to
them by their health care providers was also incorporated in
this theme.
The focal meaning Living with Hemodialysis centered
on issues pertaining to the here and now, or what the
participants experience while living on maintenance

43

hemodialysis treatment. Six themes revolve around this focal

meaning: (a) The Downside of Dialysis, (b) Being
Subordinate to a Deteriorating Body, (c) Alone with
Existential Thoughts, (d) Fear of the Unknown, (e) Money
Matters, and (f) A Changing Social Life. The theme The
Downside of Dialysis incorporates the intradialytic
complications of and the adverse reactions to hemodialysis
that the patients have experienced. Complications and
adverse reactions during hemodialysis were identified as:
difficulty of breathing, weakness, dizziness, fatigue, body
pain, head and eye aches, muscle cramps, and bleeding
episodes. Vascular access problems that the patients have
encountered were also identified and discussed in this theme.
Access problems were identified as: infection from temporary
vascular catheter, damaged arterio-venous fistula, frequent
surgeries to establish a vascular access, and problems in AVF
cannulation. The theme Being Subordinate to a Deteriorating
Body involves the complications brought about by
hemodialysis, the participants underlying co-morbidities, or
by the disease process itself. The theme Alone with
Existential Thoughts reveals the patients emotional struggles
as they come to terms with the restrictions and limitations of
having a gradually deteriorating health. Patients cited feeling
dismayed, confused, miserable, angry, regretful and
depressed, especially during their early years in hemodialysis.
These complex existential issues are magnified when the
patients are alone. The theme Fear of the Unknown involves
the patients fear and anxieties now that they are living with
an unpredictable and uncertain future.
The theme Money Matters tackles the economic
issues of living with maintenance hemodialysis. Patients
consider the financial implications of hemodialysis treatment
as the most difficult to bear since this burden is not borne by
them alone, but by the entire family. Since hemodialysis
treatments are not fully subsidized by the government,
patients rely on financial support from family members,

44

financial assistance from different government/nongovernment agencies, political organizations/personalities,

and random donations in order to make ends meet.
Finally, the theme A Changing Social Life describes
the social implications brought about by having ESRD and
being bound to lifetime hemodialysis sessions. Findings show
that encounters with people, especially those who once
shared close ties with the patient but have been perceived
now as lacking interest in or compassion for their situation,
engenders deep emotional pain, feelings of abandonment,
rejection, and worthlessness. Consequently, the patients
become reluctant to socialize and have the tendency to
become withdrawn or to isolate themselves. Nevertheless, the
hemodialysis experience brought about unity and
cohesiveness in their families. The regular hemodialysis
sessions opened up an avenue for the patients to meet new
friends and value old ones. The outpouring of social support
from the patients family, other hemodialysis patients and
their respective relatives empowers the patient as it provides
them with a sense of community.
The double-headed arrow pointing between the
aforementioned focal meanings show the relationship
between the two in a classic example of how the past impacts
the present. The lived experiences of the participants
embodied in the focal meaning Kidney Disease and Starting
Dialysis are what the participants believed to have lead to
their present situation described in the focal meaning Living
with Hemodialysis. Thus, as the patient deals with their
current situation in living with their illness and corresponding
treatment regimen, it is inevitable that one looks back to the
circumstances which lead to their current demise.
On the top center point of the model, the focal
meaning Acceptance and Outlook in the Future yielded three
themes which are: (a) Making Sense of the Experience, (b)
Striving to Live a Good Life, and (c) Keeping Hope Alive.
Although all of the participants perceived hemodialysis as a

45

barrier to normalcy, all of them shared worthwhile reflections

on the meaning of their entire disease and dialysis experience.
Each of them discussed how a valued support system makes
striving for normalcy easier. Developing acceptance and a
positive outlook for the future was believed by the
participants as essential in maintaining the quality of life. The
arrows pointing from the focal meanings Kidney Failure and
Starting Dialysis and Living with Hemodialysis towards the
focal meaning Acceptance and Outlook in the Future
portrays how patients consistently strive to derive meaning
from their experiences and develop an attitude of acceptance
despite the many issues they are facing.
Eidetic Reduction
The life worlds of the hemodialysis patients in this
study show that humans are responsive beings that react to
every stimulus perceived. When confronted with the
inevitability of life struggles, people learn to acknowledge the
pain and allow themselves to be vulnerable. But it is the
resilient human nature which allows humans to adapt to their
circumstances; to go with the flow of the wind, not against it;
like a bamboo that bends under pressure from the wind, it
returns gracefully to its upright position after the wind had
died down. The three participants stories are that of
resiliency; of being confronted by a turning point in life and
still be able to deal with adversity with courage and patience.
It is about refusing to give up. Resilience is the quality of
character that allows a person to rebound from misfortune,
hardships and traumas (Dudely, 2011, p.38). It is rooted in a
tenacity of spirit; a determination to embrace all that makes
life worth living even in the face of overwhelming odds.
When a person has a clear sense of identity and purpose, he is
more resilient because he is able to hold fast to his vision of a
better future.
By examining the agony and lamentations of the three
participants through the identified themes, the power of

46

human resilience stood out. The encompassing resiliency

and unwavering optimism of the indomitable human spirit to
embrace and live through ones fate emerged as the nucleus
or core of the lived experiences of the patients with ESRD on
maintenance hemodialysis. Charles Darwin, an English
naturalist best known for his contributions to evolutionary
theory, once said that It is not the strongest of the species
that survive, nor the most intelligent, but the one most
adaptable to change. It is this astounding power of human
resiliency exhibited in the ability of the wounded to pick
themselves up and keep going after enduring the most
traumatic circumstances conceivable that is embodied in the
lived experiences of the participants.
As the patients health is threatened, they become
emotionally drained, financially bankrupt, and mentally
exhausted while at the same time enduring the unpleasant
physical symptoms of the disease. But through supportive
family structures, the patients are able to develop resilience.
Family relationships serve as a strong foundation to the
patients lives as caring is indeed so much a part of the values
of the Filipino family. Filipino values are, for the most part,
centered on maintaining social harmony, motivated primarily
by the desire to be accepted within a group. Thus, no matter
how the patient gets close to their breaking point, they bend
but do not break. They continue to try their best to not let
the situation get the best of them. A measure of hope takes
them through the unpleasant ordeal that by dreaming for a
better tomorrow or a better situation, things may not be as
bad as they seem to be.
This unwavering optimism comes together with
resiliency. Just as it is inherent for humans to adapt, it is also
in mans nature to always reach for a better feeling or thought
that brings relief from ones adversities. The proverb There
is a silver lining to every cloud is a reminder to never feel
hopeless because difficult times always lead to better days.
Difficult times are like dark clouds that pass overhead and

47

block the sun. But as one look more closely at the edges of
every cloud one can see the sun shining there like a silver
lining. This stands for hope, or a comforting prospect in the
midst of difficulty. Living with ESRD and being put on
maintenance hemodialysis is like having an obscure view of
the sun. The patients may not have found all the light they
need but they have found the silver lining the individual
personal meaning of their experiences which gives them
purpose to keep on trying and pushing through the
complexities of life, and to hope for brighter days.
By cultivating spirituality and the positive aspects of
human behavior, patients begin to find that silver lining and
learn to acknowledge their essential nature as men and the
presence of the Higher Order. It is easier then to instigate
burying their inner solitude and learn to embrace and live
through ones fate; to live for the moment in all its intricacies.
They learn to accept that what has happened to them has
changed their lives. They will never see life the same way and
they will never be the same people. But as they attempt to
move forward, they also come to realize that they are
survivors who have been strong enough to endure what is
probably one of lifes harshest blow, and are continuously
adapting to survive. By addressing their multitude of issues
and coping with them, they struggle to continue their journey
while making this devastating adversity a part of their own
personal history, a part of their life's story, a part of their very
being.
Symbolic Reflection
The metamorphosis of a butterfly represents the
essence of this study. It is an evolution, a changing pace, for
mans experiences are never stagnant. The larva or caterpillar
represents the stage of evolution where it loses its old skin so
many times as it grows. It signifies the struggles and plight of
the participants as they deal with the complexities of living
with ESRD and maintenance hemodialysis. They have lost

48

not just their skin but almost their whole body, questioned
their faith at some point, denunciated themselves in some
ways, and were forced to respond to the inevitability of life.
As the caterpillar may look hideous for some, so did the
participants had to deal with social and even familial
estrangement. But it is an evolution; so the caterpillar savors
everything that comes with it, with the intuition that there is
something worthwhile to look forward to.
The pupal stage then follows, as the caterpillar turns
into a chrysallis. From the outside, it looks as if the caterpillar
is just resting. It stands still. It does not physically rage against
the process of evolution. But on the inside, the caterpillar is
changing. The old parts of the caterpillar are undergoing a
remarkable transformation to become the parts that make up
the butterfly. Similarly, the lived experiences of patients with
ESRD on maintenance hemodialysis portrays the essence of
the indomitable human spirit to develop resiliency and
unwavering optimism to wholeheartedly accept ones fate.
The patients have learned that not fighting against the wind
makes it easier to foster an attitude of acceptance; to live a life
of optimism by finding meaning in their experiences that
provide them a sense of purpose in life; and to hope that
better days are not impossible despite their crippling disease.
Finally, the caterpillar transforms into a butterfly a
beautiful metamorphosis that captivates people with its
beauty, its intricate design and the colorful pattern of its
wings, and its grace and elegance as it blends with nature. The
participants experiences and consciousness transformed
them into a butterfly with resiliency and optimism. The
complexities of a mysterious metamorphosis that they went
through gave them a vibrant, resilient and indomitable spirit
that serves as wings as they aim for quality, meaningful lives,
and inspire other people. It is an evolution, for being
confronted with adversity and struggles is life-long in human
beings, but one constantly adapts with the changes brought
upon by nature. And as a caterpillar metamorphoses into a

49

glorious butterfly, so does a human becomes more

empowered in spirit.
Implications to the Nursing Practice
The derived implications to the nursing practice were
organized within the fields of clinical nursing, nursing
administration, nursing education and nursing research. In
the clinical nursing practice, this study yielded that improved
time and work management by the nurses, provision of
adequate health education, employing a non-judgmental and
non-discriminatory attitude, and keeping a pleasant outlook
and positive disposition are crucial to rendering effective
hemodialysis care. In terms of nursing administration, it is
considered helpful if directors and managers of hemodialysis
facilities provide adequate information to both patients and
health care personnel. In nursing education, the importance
of on-going education in evidence-based practice and
inculcating effective communication skills to students is
reinforced as these enhance nurses knowledge and skills in
the science and art of caring and consequently contribute to
creative approaches to care. In nursing research, quality of
care provided by health care personnel, quality of life of the
patients, and existential issues in the perspective of health
care personnel or family members are seen as important areas
for further investigation.
In the light of the findings of the study, the following
are recommended: In Clinical Nursing Practice, there is a
need to combine technical and medical abilities with open
communication skills and to listen to patients lived
experiences and to understand their situation and life world in
order to provide a holistic nursing care approach. Health care
providers are urged to instill an unbiased, non-judgmental
attitude and positive disposition in providing care. Patients
existential thoughts and feelings must also be addressed and
coping strategies and skills must be taught or reinforced.
Church members must provide spiritual support to patients

50

and their families since it is very much helpful in alleviating

their fears about dying or losing a loved one, in mitigating
grief with their difficult situation, and enables them to
maintain a sense of hope despite what they are going through.
In Nursing Administration, support groups for
patients with chronic illnesses must be encouraged since they
provide patients and families with the opportunity to learn
about their condition, assimilate effective coping strategies,
provide them with a sense of community, and give them
voice to convey to the public their plight and advocacies.
Proper and adequate health education within the patients
level of understanding must be provided by nurses as it is
vital in promoting awareness, optimization of health, and
maintenance of well-being. Hemodialysis nurses must be
encouraged by their nursing administrators to join and
participate in accredited nursing specialty organizations such
as Renal Nurses Association of the Philippines in order to
keep abreast with new knowledge and skills in their field for
the benefit of their patients. Moreover, nurses must work to
improve the coordination and organization of care to
facilitate patients negotiation of the health care system in
their specific situation of co-morbidities and hemodialysis
treatment.Opportunities to improve health services within the
primary health care must also be utilized so that lifestylerelated disease must be addressed early on within the
grassroot level to prevent progression of complications.
Primary health care could take over routine check-ups or
simple diagnostic procedures such as blood pressure or blood
sugar checking and urinalysis, facilitate referral to specialists
as needed, and foster health promotion through health related
activities such as health classes or exercise programs.
Likewise, social workers and dieticians must also be actively
involved in the care of hemodialysis patients and render
appropriate services from their field of expertise since
provision of care is the responsibility of every member of the
care team. It is vital to develop a humanitarian society

51

equipped with a unique struggle to maintain health and

wellness through a shared goal of maintaining a wellinformed and productive community, since the struggle for
health is the struggle to decrease incidence of renal failure by
increasing health awareness.
In the field of nursing education, the importance of
on-going education in evidence-based practice and inculcating
effective communication skills to students must be reinforced
as these enhance nurses knowledge and skills in the science
and art of caring which consequently contribute to creative
approaches to care. Finally, as nurses are caring for patients,
they must also be encouraged to take care of themselves to
prevent burnout or compassion fatigue. Spiritual guidance
and support must also be provided to nurses since the role
that they perform to patients is that of a holy vocation
requiring unselfish care and compassion. Should compassion
fatigue be experienced as the nurses care for these terminally
ill patients, they must be assisted to find their way back and
feel better about their lifes work; because though patients
come and go, what nurses have done for these people and the
world remains and is immortal.
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61

Dynamic Learning Program (DLP): A Tool for

Teaching
Irene G. Deona
Ma. Christine R. Boduan
Abstract
The Dynamic Learning Program is a teaching strategy
developed to improve student learning and retention. Its
implementation scheme also addresses the teacher-to-student
ratio problem in the Central Visayas Institute Foundation
where it was initially implemented. This program was
developed with primary- and secondary-level students in
focus, and has caught the attention of educational institution
leaders nationwide. The applicability of a full-implementation
of the DLP in the tertiary level, specifically, in AMA
Computer College, depends on two factors: the readiness of
the students to shift from instructor-centered to studentcentered learning, and the similarities and differences between
primary/secondary level and tertiary level settings. This
research focuses on the former, although, it can be already
deduced from observation that there are major differences
between primary/secondary and tertiary level settings that can
affect the extent of the implementation. Based on the
findings, the study habits of students were found to be
needing improvement. Since to fully implement the DLP
would mean they will be given more responsibility for their
learning, the unremarkable study habits indicate that they are
not ready to take on these new responsibilities. From these
two factors, the full-implementation of the DLP is not
applicable to AMACC Legazpi Campus. It does not,
however, mean that it will not be suitable at all. Modifications
need to be introduced to make it work for this particular
setting. These modifications will be the basis for designing
specific learning activities for the students. Based also on the

62

recommended activities for improving study habits, the

educational institution will need to foster a better
environment for studying and support activities that
encourage students to be more independent and more
responsible.
I. Introduction
The Philippine government has recently proposed the K12 program which aims to improve the quality of education
in the country. Republic Act No. 10533, also known as the
Enhanced Basic Education Act of 2013, under Section 2.c,
states that [the Senate shall] make education learner-oriented
and responsive to the needs, cognitive and cultural capacity,
the circumstances and diversity of learners, schools and
communities through the appropriate languages of teaching
and learning, including mother tongue as a learning resource
(Official Gazette, 2013). The Commission on Higher
Education (CHED) is also implementing Outcomes-based
Education (OBE) in response to the same call for producing
globally competitive graduates.
The Dynamic Learning Program (DLP) is a teaching
method developed in 2002 by Dr. Ma. Victoria CarpioBernido and Dr. Christopher Bernido, and was first
implemented in Central Visayas Institute Foundation (CVIF).
It was created especially for improving learning of grade
school and high school students. Through a systems-based
scientific approach (INCITE, 2013), the program is a
response to the challenges posed on the Department of
Education in reinforcing quality education in the Philippines.
DLP focuses on student-centered learning, which is
founded on the principle of learning by doing and features
an implementation scheme of 70%-80% independent student
activity, and 20% - 30% lecture and discussion.
Currently, there are 20 basic education schools (BES) in
Luzon implementing the DLP, 7 BES in the Visayas,

63

including CVIF, and 8 in Mindanao (Smart Philippines,

2012).
In May 2013, a webcast seminar (webinar) was
conducted by AMA Education System introducing the DLP
to all college faculty members nationwide. Ms. Riviera G.
Guiyab, Senior Manager for Instructional Materials
Development, discussed the DLP as a tool for teaching
various subjects. As a culminating activity, Ms. Guiyab
required the attendees to submit an activity sheet based on
any of the subjects being taught by the faculty. This inspired
the researchers to try using the new method as a
supplementary tool for teaching some of the college subjects
during the first semester of 2013 2014.
The experimental implementation did not yield any
conclusive results that would signify the effectiveness of the
DLP with college students. This encouraged the researchers
to conduct this study to find out how DLP can be
appropriately applied to the aforementioned setting.
II. Materials and Methods
This study utilized the descriptive type of research. Such
type was deemed appropriate because after gathering the data,
collating and presenting them in tabular form, textual
narratives were provided. Appropriate interpretation was
given in order that the users of the outcome of the study
would fully understand the pattern and characteristics of the
variables used particularly on the study habits of the students
of AMA Computer College Legazpi. This was used as the
basis to determine the applicability of DLP to the institution,
and in turn the basis for a customized DLP specifically
designed for the students of AMA.
In the process cited above, the method involved in the
interpretation of meaning and significance of what is
described was given emphasis. Thus, description was
combined with comparison and contrast involving
measurement, classifications and evaluation.

64

The population of the study was gathered from a block

of students enrolled in Analytic Geometry. The data was
obtained from the School Registrar. Complete enumeration
in gathering the data was used. Secondary sources include
newspaper articles, journals, websites, and electronic media.
The researchers used a survey questionnaire purposely to
gather the responses of the targeted participants. The study
habits were assessed in terms of time management, study
environment, test taking/preparation skills, note taking skills,
reading skills, writing skills, and math skills.
The respondents study habits were evaluated to know if
the Dynamic Learning Program is applicable to students of
AMA Computer College Legazpi Campus, and to determine
the readiness of the students to shift from instructor-led to
learner-centered education.
In conducting the survey on the population, the
proponents secured a written approval from the School
Director regarding the conduct of the study. Then a validated
survey questionnaire was administered to the students.
An instruction on how to answer the survey items was
provided in the questionnaire. The statistical tool used in
analyzing the problem was frequency count. A Likert scale of
1 to 5 was employed to determine the responses by using
mean and ranking. The students were asked to check their
perception on each item. Mean values were obtained to two
decimal places from the statistical processing of the raw data,
and then were ranked. The questionnaire was based on the
Virginia Gordons University Survey: A Guidebook and
Readings for New Students.
The data that were gathered from the respondents were
coded for computerization using Microsoft Excel. The
computer statistical printouts were transformed into tables
for interpretation and analysis. The frequency count and
mean were applied to describe the variables of the study.
Analysis of the responses was made using the Likert scaling
method and was interpreted as follows:

65

Scale

Range

4.50 5.00

3.50 4.49

2.50 3. 49

1.50 2.49

1.00 1.49

Interpretation
81 100 %
practiced
61 80 %
practiced
41 60 %
practiced
21 40 %
practiced
20%
practiced

Always
Often
Sometimes
Rarely
Never

Table 1. Interpretation of Likert Scale

III. Results
Learning how to study is an investment of time in terms
of improving students grades. Anyone who wants to improve
his learning process should adopt the following principles of
time management and prioritization.
Good defines study habits as a students way of study
whether systematic, efficient or inefficient, etc. Good study
habits are perceived to be the determinants of academic
performance. That is why efforts are made to develop and
improve study habits of students (Ghulam, 2013).
Study Habits along Time Management
Time management is doing the things that help students
achieve their goals and the things that they personally
prioritize and value. It is straightforward but takes time.
*(https://www.brookes.ac.uk/student/services/health/time.
html). It is an important skill to master because it can help the
student manage various responsibilities in life.
According to Centura College, students can start with the
more difficult task and materials that they have for every

66

study session. Moreover, most people are more open to

difficult materials in the beginning of the study session and as
the session wears on and students start to get tired, that is the
time when students will deal with the materials that they have
a good understanding of the basic tasks to complete on a
project or assignment. It is important for the students to
prioritize their tasks before studying each and every study
session (Centura College, 2013).
Table 2 presents the study habits along time management
as perceived by the students. The findings revealed that Do
you regularly attend your classes? obtained the highest
weighted mean of 4.80 or always. On the other hand, Do
you make a Master Schedule for each semester? has a
weighted mean of 2.47 or sometimes. This implies that
students put prime importance in being in class. However,
they are not conscious of the bigger picture, which is the
planning of their activities for an extensive period of time.

67

Table 2. Study Habits Along Time Management

A. Time Management
Mean
Do you make a Master Schedule for each
1
2.47
semester?
2 Do you update it weekly/daily?
2.73
3 Do you stick to it?
2.87
Do you allow time for exercise and
4
4.47
socializing with friends?
Do you get at least 6 hours of sleep each
5
4.00
night?
Do you study at least 2 hours for every hour
6
2.73
in class?
7 Do you get your assignments done on time?
3.20
8 Do you regularly attend your classes?
4.80
Mean
3.41
Legend: I Interpretation A Always S Sometimes
O Often
Study Habits Along Study Environment
Table 3 shows that Is your area comfortable yielded
a weighted mean of 3.67 or often. Whereas, Do you have
an area where you always go to study?, Can you study for at
least a half hour without getting up, walking about, taking
snack or TV or phone breaks, were both rated rarely,
having a weighted mean of 2. 47. Likewise, Do your friends
leave you alone when they know you want to study got a
weighted mean of 1.80, or rarely.
It can be inferred that students would find a comfortable
environment conducive to studying. However, they cannot
focus on studying as external influences often distract them
from their study tasks.

I
S
S
S
O
O
S
S
A
S

68

Table 3. Study Habits Along Study Environment

B. Study Environment
Mean
Do you regularly study at one particular
1
2.73
time (say every 6:00 PM)?
Do you have an area where you always go
2
2.47
to study?
Is your study area free from noise and
3.27
3
distractions?
Do you have all your supplies near you
4
3.20
when you study?
5 Is your area comfortable?
3.67
Can you study for at least a half hour
6 without getting up, walking about, taking 2.47
snack or TV or phone breaks?
Do your friends leave you alone when they
1.80
7
know you want to study?
Do you use your time between classes to
8
2.60
study?
Mean
2.78
Legend: I Interpretation O Often S Sometimes
Rarely

I
S
R
S
S
O
R
R
S
S
R

Study Habits along Test Taking/Preparation Skill

Table 4 presents the data on students practices
regarding test taking /preparation skills. The survey results
showed that Are you able to finish your tests in the allowed
period of time obtained a weighted mean of 3.93 or often.
The lowest rating along test taking / preparation skills was
2.27 or rarely which was garnered by Do you attend extra
help sessions or office hours provided by the instructor.
Being able to finish the exam on time can mean two things:
either the test items were too easy, or the students really
prepared well. Students not attending extra help sessions or
not taking advantage of consultation hours may mean that

69

they are confident about their performance in class, or they

do not feel up to consulting.
Table 4. Test Taking/Preparation Skills
C. Test Taking / Preparation Skills
Mean
1 Do you study for each class every day?
3.20
Do you start reviewing for major exams at
2
3.00
least 3 days in advance?
3 Do you belong to a study group?
3.47
Do you attend extra help sessions or office
4
2.27
hours provided by the instructor?
Do you know what kind of tests you will take,
5 i.e., essay, multiple choice, and how to prepare 3.07
for different types of tests?
Can you predict what types of questions will
2.60
6
be on the test?
Are you able to finish your tests in the
7
3.93
allowed period of time?
If you do not do well on a test, do you review
8 it with the instructor and/or analyze it to see 3.13
where you had problems?
Mean
3.08
Legend: I Interpretation S Sometimes O Often R
Rarely
Study Habits along Note Taking Skills
Table 5 shows the data on note taking skills. The
respondents gave a rating of 3.60 or often to Are you able
to take notes in class, keep up with the instructor, and
understand the concepts at the same time? This implies that
students are well adept at multitasking. It also implies that
writing down notes is important for them, probably since
they dealt with a mathematics subject, which is difficult to
keep up with without notes.

I
S
S
S
R
S
S
O
S
S

70

Also, the respondents gave a rating of 2.73 or

sometimes to Do you review your notes after each class,
preferably right after class? This means that they do not
schedule review right after class, and probably have a
different schedule for review, say just before a quiz.
Table 5. Note Taking Skills
D. Note Taking Skills
Mean
Are you able to take notes in class, keep up
1 with the instructor, and understand the 3.60
concepts at the same time?
2 Do you have an efficient system of note taking? 3.07
Do you review your notes after each class,
3
2.73
preferably right after class?
Do you know what is the important stuff to
4 write down and what are the cues that this is an 3.40
important stuff?
In addition to highlighting, do you make notes
5
2.87
as you read class materials?
Can you put class notes from texts into your
6
2.80
own words?
Mean
3.08
Legend: I Interpretation O Often S Sometimes
Study Habits along Reading Skills
The results for reading skills are shown in Table 6. The
respondents perceived that When reading a text, do you read
the headings and chapter outlines first? topped among the
six indicators with a mean of 3.47 or sometimes.
Whereas, the respondents perceived that Can you read
and learn at the rate of 12 15 pages per hour for historytype materials? to be the least important skill by giving it a
rating of 2.33 or rarely, which implies that students find
static text boring, and would probably prefer materials that

I
O
S
S
S
S
S
S

71

tease the imagination. That, or they simply find reading

uninteresting.
Table 6. Reading Skills
E. Reading Skills
Mean
Can you read and learn at the rate of 12
1 15 pages per hour for history-type 2.33
materials?
Do you keep up with the readings for all
2 your classes and have the materials read 2.73
before the lecture?
Can you concentrate and understand the
3 materials you read without re-reading a 3.07
second or third time?
When reading a text, do you read the
3.47
4
headings and chapter outlines first?
Do you adjust your reading styles when
5 you are reading for literature, social 3.07
science, or science classes?
Do you do your study-reading during the
6
2.73
time of day when you are most alert?
Mean
2.90
Legend: I Interpretation R Rarely
S Sometimes

I
R
S
S
S
S
S
S

Study Habits along Writing Skills

Table 7 shows the results on study habits along writing
skills. The findings show that among the six indicators, If
you are assigned a research paper, do you know how to use
the library or Internet to research topic? ranked first with a
mean of 3.74 or often. Students are well-acquainted with
the Internet, being in a computer school that offers
Information Technology courses integrated into every
program.

72

However, respondents gave a rating of 3.13 or

sometimes for Are you able to communicate effectively in
writing? It can be inferred that since they are enrolled in an
IT-related course, they prioritize technical know-how over
communication skills.
Table 7. Study Habits Along Writing Skills
F. Writing Skills
Mean
Are you comfortable with your command of
1
3.33
English grammar, punctuation, and spelling?
Do you have a clear idea of what the instructor
2
3.40
requires for a writing assignment?
Do you make an outline of your paper, starting
with the thesis statement and outlining how
3
2.53
the subsequent paragraphs will support your
thesis?
If you are assigned a research paper, do you
4 know how to use the library or Internet to 3.73
research your topic?
Do you start your research in time to complete
5 it and write your paper without pulling an all- 3.13
nighter just before the paper is due?
Are you able to communicate effectively in
3.60
6
writing?
Mean
3.29
Legend: I Interpretation O Often S Sometimes
Study Habits along Math Skills
Table 8 shows the results on the study habits along math
skills. The findings showed that among the six indicators,
Do you have enough time after taking your tests to review
for errors and careless computations?, got rank one with a
mean of 3.93 or often as perceived by the respondents.
This implies that students are aware of the importance of

I
S
S
S

O
S
O
S

73

double-checking their computations, since mathematics

requires precision and accuracy.
The least rated among the indicators is Can you explain
to another student how to solve all the problems on a math
test?, giving it a rating of 2.33 or rarely. This reveals that
students rely on formulas and expect problems appearing on
exams to be formatted from the examples given by the
instructor.
Table 8. Study Habits Along Math Skills
G. Math Skills
Mean
Do you have a good command of the
1 prerequisite skills for the math class in which 2.93
you are enrolled?
Do you always do your homework
2 assignments and work the problems before 2.93
looking at the solutions?
Do you participate in class and ask questions
3.00
3
when you dont understand a concept?
Do you at most miss only two math classes
4
2.33
per semester?
Can you explain to another student how to
5
2.53
solve all the problems on a math test?
Do you have enough time after taking your
6 tests to review for errors and careless 3.93
computations (like misplaced + or signs)?
Mean
2.94
Legend: I Interpretation O Sometimes S Sometimes R
Rarely
Overall Attributes of Study Habits
Table 9 presents the over-all perception of the
respondents on study habits. The table is composed of eight
indicators which were used in evaluating the attributes of
study habits.

I
S
S
S
R
S
O
S

74

Study Habits Indicators

A. Time Management
B. Study Environment
C. Test Taking / Preparation Skills
D. Note Taking Skills
E. Reading Skills
F. Writing Skills
G. Math Skills
Legend: I Interpretation S Sometimes

Mean
3.41
2.78
3.08
3.08
2.90
3.29
2.94

I
S
S
S
S
S
S
S

All the attributes were rated Sometimes, which

means that their study habits are neither excellent nor very
poor. It does, however, mean that they need improvement.
Activities to Improve the Study Habits of Students
The following are the proposed activities to enhance
the study habits of the students. These were based on
Academic Skills Center, Dartmouth College 2001 (Academic
Skills Center, 2001).
Time Management
1. Create a master schedule, which is a schedule of
activities that is fixed.
2. Continually look at ways of freeing up your time.
3. Try to use waiting time-review notes or do practice
problems.
4. Maintain and develop a list of specific things to be
done each day, set priorities and get the most
important ones done as soon in the day as you can.
Evaluate progress at the end of the day briefly.
5. Try rewarding oneself when things get done as you
planned, especially the important ones.
6. Find time to concentrate on high priority items or
activities.

75

7. Put efforts in areas that provide long term benefits.

8. Think on paper when possible-it makes it easier to
review and revise.
9. Be sure and set deadlines whenever possible.
10. Ask for advice when needed.
Study Environment
Below are some activities to set up the right classroom
based on the students study habits along study environment.
(Study Magazine Education Matters, 2010).
1. Filter out distractions.
2. Separate work and play.
3. Clean up and organize your area.
4. Get off ones phone, Skype, Twitter and Facebook.
5. Schedule meal and coffee breaks.
Test Taking
The following activities, derived from Test-Taking
Strategies at Bucks County Community College, are
recommended to improve the test-taking skills of students.
Before the Test
1. Stay up-to-date on assignments.
2. Understand the information while learning from it.
3. Read and study information in meaningful chunks (by
chapters or units).
4. Analyze past tests to determine how to improve test
results.
5. Get the big picture. Ask the instructor about the test.
Find out what information will be stressed and the
kinds of questions that will be asked. Then go over
the text and lecture notes to develop a study strategy.
6. Before a test or exam, break study sessions into
manageable time segments and meaningful units.

76

7. Practice answering essay questions BEFORE the test.

Use cognitive questions at all levels to assure learning
and ability to answer essay questions.
8. Use mnemonic techniques to memorize lists,
definitions, and other specific kinds of information.
9. Form a study group with other students in the class to
discuss and quiz each other on important material.
This will add other perspectives and help to
"complete" the study.
10. Maintain healthy living habits. Get a good night's
sleep before the test.
During the Test
1. Get to the test site early. Be prepared with pencils,
paper, calculator, books (if appropriate), etc.
2. Get the big picture. Survey the entire test before
answering any questions to get an overview of whats
expected and to strategize on how to take the test.
3. Take a few deep breaths and to relax tense muscles.
Repeat throughout the test. This will make one stay
relaxed and make more energy available for
remembering, thinking, and writing.
4. Read directions carefully. Ask questions to
understand or if there is a clarification.
5. Do a quick "mind dump" of information. Write it
down on scrap paper or in the margin.
6. Answer the easiest questions first, to help yourself
calm down. Matching questions are often good to
start with because they provide a reminder of
important terms and definitions.
7. Use good strategies for answering multiple choice and
other objective questions.
8. When answering essay questions, remember that the
objective is to demonstrate how to explain and
support an idea, not just what one know.

77

9. Keep an eye on the clock. Make sure to complete the

test sections with the highest value, if not the entire
test.
After the Test
Go over the test paper to determine areas of strength
and weakness in test-taking skills. If done poorly, learn from
mistakes. Analysis must be done of the tests to improve
future test results.
Note Taking Skills
Note taking encompasses a three step process that
includes organization, recording, and reviewing of
information. These were gathered from St. Marys College of
Californias Note-taking Strategies.
Organization
1. Use a three ring binder and binder paper rather than a
spiral notebook.
2. Use one binder per class so that notes stay organized
and do not get blended with other class notes.
3. Use only one side of the paper when taking notes.
This will take the notes out and place side by side for
easier review.
4. Always read the chapter assigned before attending the
lecture. This allows for better recall and familiarity of
materials to recognize important points and main
ideas and record appropriately.
5. Get to class early so that one can quickly review their
notes from the previous lecture to better connect the
new information about to be presented.
Record
1. Either create abbreviation system or use standard
ones. Be consistent in its use and that the symbols
and abbreviations only have one meaning. Make sure

78

to create a legend to easily remember what each

abbreviation means.
2. Be an active listener.
3. Record general main ideas and details rather than
verbatim notes. Notes serve to record information for
recall and should show the main points of the lecture
in an organized manner so that the relationship
between points and details are distinguishable.
Use a dual or multicolumn note taking method for:
1. Easier revision
2. Better organization
3. An efficient format to easily pull out the main ideas of
the lecture.
Review of Notes
1. Review notes as soon after the lecture as possible for
optimum memory for filling in and revision.
2. Review notes daily for maximum recall of materials.
3. Schedule weekly review sessions that encompass
looking at both lecture and textbook notes and
reciting information by synthesizing materials.
4. When using the dual or multicolumn system, cover
the main body and recite the answers to the questions
in the cue or recall column. When reciting, use ones
own words then uncover the main body and ensure
to cover all points and details. This process shifts the
recall of information in short term memory to true
learning and stores it in long term memory.
Reading Skills
To improve a students reading skills, the following
activities are recommended by Salisbury University:
1. Previewing
2. Contextualizing

79

3.
4.
5.
6.
7.

Questioning to understand and remember

Reflecting on challenges to ones beliefs and values
Outlining and summarizing
Evaluating an argument
Comparing and contrasting related readings.

Writing Skills
From Think Literacy: Cross-Curricular Approaches, the
following are activities identified to improve writing skills:
1. Generate ideas by rapid writing, setting the context,
and adding content.
2. Develop and organize through webbing and mapping,
supporting the main idea, and adding details.
3. Revise and edit by reorganizing ideas, asking
questions to revise writing, peer editing and
proofreading without partners.
Math Skills
To improve the students performance in mathematics,
the following are enumerated by Math Goodies:
1. Focus on mastering the topic before moving on to
the next topic.
2. Work on example problems and check answers to
gain practice with every lesson.
3. Keep the solutions neat and line-by-line.
4. Do not work at problems very late at night.
5. If the problem lends itself to it, draw a picture of the
problem.
IV. Discussion
The Dynamic Learning Program is a teaching strategy
developed to improve student learning and retention. Its
implementation scheme also addresses the teacher-to-student
ratio problem in the Central Visayan Institute Foundation

80

where it was initially implemented. This program was

developed with primary- and secondary-level students in
focus, and has caught the attention of educational institution
leaders nationwide.
The applicability of a full-implementation of the DLP
in the tertiary level, specifically, in AMA Computer College,
depends on two factors: the readiness of the students to shift
from instructor-centered to student-centered learning, and
the similarities and differences between primary/secondary
level and tertiary level settings. This research focuses on the
former, although it can already be deduced from observation
that there are major differences between primary/secondary
and tertiary level settings that can affect the extent of
implementation.
Based on the findings in the preceding chapter, the
study habits of students were found to be needing
improvement. Since to fully implement the DLP would mean
they will be given more responsibility for their learning, the
unremarkable study habits indicate that they are not ready to
take on these new responsibilities.
From these two factors, it can be concluded that the
full-implementation of the DLP is not applicable to AMACC
Legazpi campus. It does not, however, mean that it will not
be suitable at all. Modifications need to be introduced to
make it work for this particular setting. The modifications are
found in the table below. These modifications will be the
basis for designing specific learning activities for the students.

81

Table 9. Proposed Modifications to DLP

Implementation
DLP Feature
Modification
One subject is taught Classes are taught separately.
simultaneously to different Scheduling and subject
classes by a single instructor, loading policies must be
aided by facilitators
adhered to.
70 80% facilitation, 20 50%
instruction,
50%
30% instruction
facilitation. College students
are already specializing; more
input from the instructor is
needed.
No homework policy
Homework still needs to be
given, especially term papers
and
researches.
This
provides opportunity for
practice.
Based also on the recommended activities for
improving study habits, the educational institution will need
to foster a better environment for studying and support
activities that encourage students to be more independent
and more responsible.
Full-implementation of the Dynamic Learning
Program in the AMAES Curricula may be inapplicable, but
with modifications, it can aid in improving the students
learning ability and retention.
College students are in that stage where they are
already specializing in a particular field. Therefore, the level of
instruction must also be adjusted. Although independent
work is encouraged and opportunity for exploration is a must,
instruction must still be incorporated, especially with study
habits that are not very encouraging. The researchers would
like to recommend that further study be conducted that
would give a more in-depth look at the modifications on the
DLP.

82

V. Literature and Studies

According to Phyllis Blumberg, learner-centered
teaching is an approach to teaching that is being encouraged
in higher education. This approach emphasizes a variety of
types of methods that shift the role of the instructors from
givers of information to facilitating student learning
(Blumberg, 2008). In contrast to instructor-centered
teaching, this approach lets the students be more responsible
of their education because they are actively involved in their
own learning (Lambert & McCombs, 2000).
Active learning, is a process in which students
engage in the material they study through reading, writing,
talking, listening, and reflecting, (Center for Teaching and
Learning, 2008) as opposed to passive learning, where the
instructor does most of the processing of the material for the
students. Cooperative learning is a part of active learning
which involves activities done in groups of three or more.
Donald R. Paulson and Jennifer L. Faust (2010) in their
online article Active Learning for the College Classroom
suggested exercises for individual students and for groups
that an instructor may make use of to promote active
learning. Individual exercises are advantageous for providing
the instructor immediate feedback on the students grasp and
understanding of the lessons. Activities may include having
the students write a daily journal, questions and answers, and
puzzles. On the other hand, group activities foster teamwork
and help bridge the gap between students who have mastered
the requisite skills and those who have not.
Outcomes based education (OBE) is a process that
involves the restructuring of curriculum, assessment and
reporting practices in education to reflect the achievement of
high order learning and mastery rather than the accumulation
of course credits (Tucker, 2004). Many educational
institutions make use of OBE by setting a specific goal at the
end of the course, then working backwards to determine the

83

necessary techniques and strategies to be employed to achieve

this goal.
The study CVIF Dynamic Learning Program: A
Systems Approach to Process-induced Learning by Ma.
Victoria Carpio-Bernido and Christopher C. Bernido outlined
the features of the Dynamic Learning Program in the Central
Visayan Institute Foundation. One such characteristic of the
program is that 80% of a class schedule is devoted to learning
activities designed by the teacher, and only 20% is allotted for
discussion and lecture. It also offers Parallel Classes
Scheme where a teacher can hold simultaneous classes of
one subject. Classes are held only four times a week, with one
day allotted for non-academic subjects, and students are given
no homework (Carpio-Bernido & Bernido, 2011).
Christopher C. Bernido, Ma. Victoria Carpio-Bernido
and Dr. Carolina Porio assessed the performance of high
school students who joined in the preliminary
implementation of the Learning Physics as One Nation
(LPON) project for the School Year 2008 2009. The
project, which was spearheaded by the Fund for Assistance to
Private Education (FAPE), was aimed to address the lack of
qualified physics teachers using learning activities and video
lessons based on the concept of the Dynamic Learning
Program (DLP) of the Central Visayan Institute Foundation
(CVIF). The Center for Educational Measurement conducted
separate pre-test and post-test to assess the students
performance, the results of which signified a positive effect
on student learning, in particular, in terms of gain in pre-testpost-test scores and in number of students achieving given
performance levels, compared to benchmark performance
levels characteristic of the norm group and accredited
Philippine private schools (Philippine Education Research
Journal, 2013)
The study conducted by Marie Jean N. Mendezabal,
Study Habits and Attitudes: The Road to Academic Success
investigated the relationship between study habits and

84

attitudes and performance in licensure examinations. The

population of the study was composed of graduates of the
University of Saint Louis in Tuguegarao City in Cagayan from
different programs requiring licensure examination.
According to Mendezabal, students who have more
favorable study habits and attitudes obtained better rating in
the licensure examination, [and] when regressed, results
show that study habits, expressive of students work methods
and time management, can most likely predict success in
licensure examination (Mendezabal, 2013).
The Dynamic Learning Program promoted by the
Bernidos is a novel teaching method developed specifically
for primary- and secondary-level students. Based on the
results of the assessment done on the preliminary
implementation of the Learning Physics as One Nation
(LPON) project, the DLP achieved high success rate for
improving knowledge acquisition of the participant-students.
The DLP, however, is not designed for the college setting,
and does not consider the students study habits.
The study of Mendezabal discusses the relationship of
good study habits to performance in licensure examinations.
It emphasizes that external forces do have effects on
stuedents rate of success. But it also points out that natural
aptitude of students must also be considered, and that having
good study habits does not necessarily assure passing the
examination.
By identifying the study habits of college students the
researchers would be able to determine the readiness of the
students to take a bigger chunk of responsibility for their
learning. The study habits would also enable the researchers
to propose modifications to the implementation of the DLP
that would fit AMA students. This, in turn, would give way to
the development of new teaching strategies that address the
pressing concerns posed by the academic community.

85

VI. References
1. Baker College. Activities for Learner-Centered Teaching,
Michigan, 2009
2. Center for Faculty Excellence. Classroom Activities for
Active Learning For Your Consideration: Suggestions and
Reflections on Teaching and Learning, pp. 1 4, 2009
3. Lambert, N.M. & McCombs, B.L. Introduction: Learnercentered schools and classrooms as a direction for school
reform, Washington DC: American Psychological
Association, 2000
4. Mendezabal, M.J. Study Habits and Attitudes: The Road to
Academic Success; International Journal of Applied Research
and Studies, pp. 1 14, 2013
5. Think Literacy. Writing Strategies. Ontario, Canada, 2013
Internet
1. http://episteme4.hbcse.tifr.res.in/proceedings/strand-iiicurriculum-and-pedagogical-studies-in-stme/bernido-bernido,
CVIF Dynamic Learning Program: A Systems Approach to
Process-induced Learning, by: Ma. Victoria Carpio-Bernido
and Christopher Bernido (Accessed October 5, 2013)
2.
http://www.usciences.edu/teaching/learner-centered/,
Learner-Centered Teaching, by P. Blumberg (Accessed
March 25, 2014)
3.http://www.ascd.org/publications/curriculum_handbook/
413/chapters/An_Overview_of_OutcomeBased_Education.aspx, Special Topics: An Overview of
Outcome-Based Education, by: R. Brandt (Accessed March
20, 2014)
4. http://faculty.bucks.edu/specpop/tests.htm, Test-Taking
Strategies, by Bucks Community College (Accessed March
20, 2014)
5. http://episteme4.hbcse.tifr.res.in/proceedings/strand-iiicurriculum-and-pedagogical-studies-in-stme/bernidobernido/view, Curriculum and Pedagogical Studies in

86

STME, by Ma. Victoria Carpio-Bernido and Christopher

Bernido (Accessed January 31, 2013)
6.
http://www1.umn.edu/ohr/teachlearn/tutorials/active/what
/, What is Active Learning, by Center for Teaching and
Learning (Accessed March 25, 2014)
7.
http://www.mathgoodies.com/articles/improve_your_grade
s.html, Top 10 Strategies to Improve your Math Grades, by
J. Gibson (Accessed March 20, 2014)
8.
http://cite.edu.ph/pages/news/title/dynamic_learning_prog
ram_, News: Dynamic Learning Program, by Center for
Industrial Technology and Enterprise (Accessed October 6,
2013)
9. http://www.gov.ph/2013/05/15/republic-act-no-10533/,
Republic Act No. 10533, from Official Gazette (Accessed
October 9, 2013)
10.
http://web.calstatela.edu/dept/chem/chem2/Active/#auth
ors, Active Learning for the College Classroom, by D.R.
Paulson and J.L. Faust (Accessed March 23, 2014)
11.http://www.perj.org/assessment-of-student-performancein-the-learning-physics-as-one-nation-project/, Assessment
of Student Performance in the Learning Physics as One
Nation Project, from Philippine Education Research Journal
(Accessed October 21, 2013)
12.http://www.stmarys-ca.edu/academics/academicresources-support/student-academic-supportservices/tutorial-academic-skills-4, Note Taking Strategies,
by Saint Marys College of California
13.
http://www.salisbury.edu/counseling/new/7_critical_readin
g_strategies.html, 7 Critical Reading Strategies, by Salisbury
University (Accessed March 20, 2014)

87

14. http://partners.smart.com.ph/dlp/about/implementingschools, About Us: Implementing Schools, by Smart

Philippines (Accessed October 6, 2013)
15. http://lsn.curtin.edu.au/outcomes/docs/LitReview.pdf,
Literature Review: Outcomes-focused Education in
Universities, by B. Tucker. (Accessed March 2014)

88

MARKETING OF WATER REFILLING

BUSINESSES IN DARAGA, ALBAY
Ma.Erlinda Marcellana-Tapia
Sylva Elena B. Payonga
Abstract
The study aimed to determine the marketing
strategies of water refilling businesses in Daraga, Albay.
Specifically, it sought answers to the following: (1) What is
the business profile of water refill businesses in Daraga, Albay
in terms of: (a)form of business; (b) capitalization; (c)
estimated monthly income; (d) length of operation; and, (e)
target market; (2) What are the strategies employed by the
water refilling businesses in terms the 4Ps (product, price,
place and promotion) in marketing?; and (3) What are the
problems encountered in marketing by water refill
businesses? The respondents of the study were the owners of
water refilling businesses in Daraga, Albay who invested in,
established and managed the business. The descriptive
research was adopted using a questionnaire to generate the
data needed. Interviews, personal observation and
documentary analysis were employed by the researcher. The
results of the study revealed that: (1) The water refilling
businesses in Daraga, Albay were solely owned; (2) The initial
capitalization of the water refilling businesses ranged from
Php 150,000.00 - Php 200,000.00 for machine and Php
400,000.00 Php1,000,000.00; (3) The mean estimated
monthly income of water refilling businesses was Php
82,750.00; (4) The average length of operation of the water
refilling businesses was 6.6 years; (5) All or 100 percent of the
respondents concentrated on purified water with similar
pricing of Php 25.00/container for pick-up and Php
30.00/container for delivery; (6) Common among the water
refilling businesses was the giving of water dispenser in

89

exchange for an exclusive contract, and plus one sales

promotion for regular orders or refills; and (7) The high cost
of maintenance/operations and business permits were the top
problems encountered by water refilling businesses.
Keywords: Marketing, Water refilling business, Marketing
strategies, Problems encountered
Introduction
Water is very essential in our daily life. It has been
considered as a public and social good for years with the
arguments that every human being needs water to survive and
everyone is supposed to have access to it regardless of his
qualifications (Brei and Bohm, 2011; WHO and UNICEF,
2005). However, because of human introduction, directly or
indirectly, of substances into the marine environment, water
has become polluted and undesirable. People nowadays have
an access to proper sanitation so they prefer to consume safe
purified water to prevent diseases related to dirty water.
About a million Filipinos get sick with water-borne diseases
yearly. And these are diarrhea cases alone. They do not
include other water-borne diseases, like amoebiasis, cryptosporidiosis and cholera
(http://www.health.gov.au/internetpublications/publishing.n
sf/Content/ohp-enhealth-manual-atsi-cnt-l-ch6.1-Ch6.1. July
10, 2014).
Providing adequate, safe, potable, and cheap water is
a continuing and imperative concern of the government and
private utility firms. Being an essential daily need of everyone,
water is an economic item in the budget of every household.
The idea is to make water available to the poor and indigent
families at no cost (Belmonte, 2009). Because of waters
crucial role on human body, we need to ensure that water
resources are well taken care of to have a healthy life
(Buenaventura, 2010).

90

Because of the high demand for clean water, starting

and organizing a water refilling business has become one of
the promising businesses today. A water refilling business is
one of the most popular ventures for entrepreneurs as it is
simple to operate and has a steady demand. Success in the
business depends a lot on how one markets and manages the
business considering that the technical aspect is already
developed (www.businesscoachphil.com). Purified water
businesses dominate the percentage of consumers as seen by
the growth of this business in terms of population and its
existence around the municipalities and even in the rural
areas. In the municipality of Daraga, from six (6) registered
water refilling businesses in 2004, now it has a total of fortyone (41). Water refilling businesses can be a good source of
safe drinking water in the Philippines (Magtibay, 2011).
Purified drinking water can meet the aesthetic standards in
terms of taste, color and smell that could be detected by
people. The water purification processes can make the quality
of water superior over the traditional water systems. But the
risk of possible contamination is always there if handling
practices are not closely monitored. That is why the
Department of Health (DOH) has set regulations for water
refilling stations, that include (1) The production area must be
at least 25 square meters, enclosed and air-conditioned, and
separate from the receiving area. These procedures prevent
contamination; (2) Whether the refilling stations main
purification system is reverse osmosis, distillation or
micron/carbon block filtration, the DOH mandates that it
should be supported by an ozonator. Ozonation eliminates all
bacteria, mold, fungi and viruses. An ultra violet light over the
water-dispensing spout is likewise required as protection
against microorganisms; (3) The DOH also recommends the
use of virgin plastic material in the use of caps. A single,
one-time use of caps for plastic gallons will ensure you get a
new cap every time. Many refilling stations recycle caps.
There is a risk the caps were not disinfected. As the caps get

91

recycled, they also become loose, making the container prone

to contamination; (4) Lastly, the DOH requires refilling
stations to have their product water tested every six months
for microorganisms. The laboratory must be DOH
accredited, and the result should be negative for fecal and
total coliform presence.
Based on the known benefits of purified water, this
study was conducted to provide knowledge on the marketing
of water refilling businesses in Daraga, Albay; their profile;
their strategies in marketing in terms of product, price, place
and promotion; problems encountered by the water refill
businesses; and recommend measures that will improve or
enhance marketing of the water refill businesses.
Statement of the Problem
The study determined the marketing strategies of
water refilling businesses in Daraga, Albay. Specifically, it
sought answers to the following:
1. What is the profile of water refilling businesses in
Daraga, Albay in terms of:
a. Form of business,
b. Capitalization,
c. Target market,
d. Estimated monthly income, and
e. Length of operation?
2. What marketing strategies do the water refilling
businesses employ in terms of:
a. Product,
b. Price,
c. Place (Distribution), and
d. Promotion?
3. What are the marketing problems encountered by the
water refilling businesses?

92

4. What measures can be recommended to improve or

enhance the marketing of the water refilling
businesses?
Method
The study was undertaken using the descriptive
method of research. A descriptive research is concerned with
the description of data and characteristics about the
population, the goal of which is to acquire factual, accurate,
and systematic data that can be used in averages, frequencies,
and similar statistical calculations (Valdez, 2013). Data were
sourced from both primary and secondary sources. The
primary sources were the respondents, the owners/managers
of the water refilling businesses while secondary sources
include books, documents, internet, and other related
materials. A sample of ten (10) of the registered forty (40)
refilling businesses in Daraga, Albay served as the
respondents of the study. A questionnaire was prepared for
the purpose of gathering data on the profile, marketing
strategies in terms of the four Ps (product, price, place, and
promotion), and marketing problems encountered by the
water refilling stations. Frequency, percentage, mean, and
rank were the statistical measures used to analyze and
interpret the data.
Results
The study revealed the following findings:
1. The profile of the water refilling businesses in Daraga,
Albay was: (a) All of the ten (10) water refilling
businesses operated on a single proprietorship type of
business. This suggests that they were into single
proprietorship since it is easy to establish this type of
business as it does not require many employees. (b)
Six (6) or sixty percent (60%) of the water refilling
businesses had a capitalization of Php 400,000.00 or
above. (c) One (1) or ten percent (10%) had a

93

capitalization of Php 300,000.00 Php 350,000.00,

and another one (1) or ten percent (10%) ranging
from Php 200,000.00 Php 250,000.00. (d) Two (2)
or twenty percent (20%) of the respondents had a
capitalization ranging from Php 150,000.00 Php
200,000.00. The result indicates that the establishment
of a water refilling business requires a large
investment. (e) The estimated average monthly
income of water refilling stations Php 82,750.00. (f)
The highest estimated income of water refilling
businesses ranged from Php 200,000.00 Php
250,000.00, the lowest Php 25,000.00 PhpPhp
50,000.00. (g) Nine (9) or ninety percent (90%) of the
water refilling businesses had both the residences
(households) and institutions as target markets. Only
one (1) or ten percent (10%) sold to residences
(households). (h) Three (3) or thirty percent (30%) of
the water refilling businesses have been operating for
5 6 years. The longest length of operation of the
water refilling businesses was fifteen (15) years, the
lowest ranging from 1 5 years.
2. Majority or seventy percent (70%) of the water
refilling businesses soldonly purified water as their
product; one (1) or ten percent (10%) sold mineral
water, and another one (1) or ten percent (10%),
alkaline water; and one (1) or ten percent (10%) had
three (3) products: purified, mineral and alkaline
water. There were two (2) or (20%) water refilling
businesses that sold purified ice.
3. All of the water refilling businesses used a plastic
gallon/container. They adopted their own labeling
and branding. Five (5) or fifty percent (50%) followed
twenty-one (21) purification process; three (3) or
thirty percent (30%) had twenty-four (24) purification
process; one (1) or ten percent (10%) used twentyseven (27), and another one (1) or ten percent (10%)

94

4.

5.

6.

7.

used thirty-one purification (31) process for their

product. Of the ten respondents, seven (7) or seventy
percent (70%) sourced water from deep well, and
three (3) or thirty percent (30%) had the Daraga
Water District (DAWD) as their source of water.
The pricing of all the water refilling businesses was
based on pick-up or delivery price. Nine (9) or ninety
percent (90%) of the water refilling business had a
price of twenty-five pesos (Php 25.00) for pick-up,
and thirty pesos (Php 30.00) for delivered. Only one
(1) or ten percent (10%) had a price of twenty pesos
(Php 20.00) for pick-up and twenty-five pesos (Php
25.00) for delivered.
The main distribution strategy of the water refilling
stations was to market/sell their product to both the
households and institutions, and this comprised
ninety percent (90%) of the respondents. Only one
(1) or ten percent (10%) sold to households.
Of the ten (10) water refilling businesses, five (5) or
fifty percent (50%) used a promotion strategy of
providing free use of H & C water dispenser in
exchange for an exclusive contract. Two (2) or twenty
percent (20%) used the strategy of five + one free
deal, and another two (2) or twenty percent (20%)
used the ten + one free deal. Only one (1) or ten
percent (10%) of the respondents did not use any
promotion strategy.
The water refilling businesses encountered marketing
problems, ranked as follows: 1- high cost of
maintenance (machines and fleet) and business
permit; 2 stiff competition in the water refilling
business; 3 increasing cost of consumables, such as
seals, stickers, containers, and dispensers; 4
inadequate protection against negative speculations;
and 6 frequent absences and fast turnover of
delivery men.

95

Conclusions
Based on the findings of the study, the following
conclusions were drawn:
1. The profile of the water refilling businesses
proved sufficient to market water -- mineral,
purified alkaline, or a combination of these. The
owners possess the marketing as well as
management and financial capabilities needed in
the business.
2. The water refilling businesses utilized various
marketing strategies in terms of product, price,
place (distribution), and promotion, which are
aimed toward maximizing income or profits of
the business. The strategies in terms of marketing
mix variables were fairly limited.
3. The marketing problems encountered by the
water refilling businesses were generally costrelated and competition-related.
Recommended measures:
Based
on
the
findings,
the
following
recommendations are forwarded for the improvement of the
marketing of water refilling businesses in Daraga, Albay:
1. The water refilling businesses should not only
focus on one product. They should cater to all
other water products mineral water, alkaline
water and even pi or ionized water. This strategy
will ensure availability of whatever type of water
customers would prefer. This will provide a
greater edge in terms of competition because
most of the water refilling businesses cater to
purified water only. Different types of water have
different characteristics, and the immune system
of a person works according to the type of water
intake.

96

2. There should be a variety of containers, small and

large bottles, aside from the commonly used
gallon-size containers. This will cater to specific
target markets.
3. Pricing of water products, pick-up or delivered,
must be according to the volume or quantity
purchased. The flexible pricing strategy to
maintain customers and attract new ones should
be adopted. Other pricing strategies, such as
product line pricing or product bundle pricing,
may also be adopted. Flexible payment scheme
maybe allowed for orders/purchases in bulk or on
wholesale. For walk-in customers, the pay as you
order policy must be strongly implemented.
4. The distribution route of water refilling businesses
as a marketing strategy must be expanded to be
able to reach target markets.
5. For the promotion of water refilling businesses,
free delivery services must be given for
orders/purchases in bulk. They must also focus
on personal contacts. The people nearby the
location of the firm will technically talk about the
new company established. Since the water refilling
businesses do not have discounts, the water
refilling owners, can continue with the Buy 10 +
1 water discount. An advertising strategy must
be employed. Another idea of advertising is
through display advertising, specifically through
brochures or through radio ads.
6. Water refilling businesses must distribute flyers to
new target markets to promote the business.

97

References
Belmonte, F., Jr., (2009). Water Districts: Facing the
Challenge of Non-Revenue Water Reduction. Aquarius
magazine, vol. 3, No. 4, October-December 2009 issue.
Buenaventura, B. (2010).Focusing on Sustainable
Environmental Solutions on Water Safety and
Security.PhilWater 2010.18th International Conference and
Exhibitiion.Boracay Regency and Beach Resort and
Convention Center. October 13-15, 2010.
Brei, V., Bhm, S. (2011).Corporate Social Responsibility as
Cultural Meaning of Management. A critique of the
marketing of bottled water.Business Ethics.European Review
20 (3), 233-252
Cross, Vanessa.(2013). How to Grow a Small Bottled Water
Delivery Business, Retrieved from http://goo.gl/47eX3X
Hernandez, Jennelyn. (2013). Water Refilling Station The
Profit Assurance in Having This Business, Retrieved from
http://goo.gl/pwSe9n
Kruha.(2012).Bottled Water
http://www.kruha.org/page/en/dinamic_list/56/Bottled_W
ater.html.
Magtibay, Bonifacio B. (2011). Water Refilling Station: an
alternative sourceof drinking water supply in the
Philippines. Mapua Institute of Technology Manila,
Retrieved from http://goo.gl/qfeXDG
Not All Water Refilling Stations Are Created Equal, Retrieved
2013, from http://goo.gl/7hTFnc.
Schaefer, Patricia. (2011). The Seven Pitfalls of Business
Failure and How To Avoid Them, Retrieved from
http://goo.gl/xw9Su1
The Health Benefits of Drinking Purified Water, Retrieved
2015, from http://goo.gl/3fafAm
Trevorw. (2013). How to Design & Operate a Water-Filling
Station, Retrieved from http://goo.gl/1FWHpX
WHO, UNICEF, (2005).Water for Life. Making It Happen. 1-38.

98

THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE MSME

PROGRAM OF THE DBP IN THE BICOL REGION
Ma. Zyra L. Loria
Harley G. Peralta
Introduction
The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) released
Circular No. 625, Series of 2008, pursuant to the provisions
of Republic Act (R.A.) No. 6977, amended by R.A. No. 8289
in 1997, and 9501 in 2008, known as Magna Carta for Micro,
Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs), thru Resolution
No. 1928 dated October 2, 2008, stating the mandatory
allocation of credit resources to micro, small, and medium
enterprises. Starting June 17, 2008 to June 16, 2018, banks
allocate at least eight percent (8%) to micro and small
enterprises (MSEs), and at least two percent (2%) to medium
enterprises (MEs), of their total loan.
Micro and Small Enterprises (MSEs) are business
activities or enterprises engaged in industry, agribusiness trade
and/or services, whether as single proprietorship,
cooperative, partnership or corporation, with total asset size
up to P3,000,000.00 for micro enterprises, and P3,000,001.00
to P15,000,000.00 for small enterprise. (DBP, 2015).
On the other hand, Medium Enterprises (MEs) are
business enterprises engaged in industry, agribusiness trade
and/or services whether as a single proprietorship,
cooperative, partnership or corporation with total assets of
P15,000,001 to P100,000,000, inclusive of those arising from
loans but exclusive of the land on which the particular
business entitys office, plant, and equipment are situated
(DBP, 2013).
According to the Department of Trade and Industry
(DTI), SMEs account for 99.6 percent of total registered
enterprises. Out of the 820,255 businesses that operated in

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the country, 816,759 w SMEs while only 3,496 were large

enterprises. Of these, 91 percent (743,250) were
microenteroprises and 8.6 percent (3,287) made up mediumsized companies (Camposano, 2014).
Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) are
now recognized as major economic growth drivers,
unconsciously contributing more in development,
employment, and competition boost. A number of Philippine
policies have been implemented designed solely to abet the
productivity of MSMEs. Regardless of this, MSMEs still find
it hard to boom impressively because of challenges on
regulatory requirements, productivity, market access, and
access to credit, specifically on collateral requirements. Credit
constraints lead MSMEs deprivation of involvement in
growth-enhancing activities such as marketing, investing,
exporting, and importing. Thus, majority of the entrepreneurs
start or operate their businesses by the customary utilization
of their hard-earned money. Despite the various policies and
regulations implemented by the government to assist
MSMEs, entrepreneurs still find them a dilemma to conform
with.
The emerging concept of globalization poses both
potential income and constraints to Philippine MSMEs.
International access could boost Philippine MSME exports in
terms of garments, machineries, textiles, and automotive.
However, the growth in the countrys export may be affected
by controlled connections in the international trade and the
complexity of global production system, in which Philippine
MSMEs are not equipped of.
Government, central banks, and development banks
around the world have a long history of intervention in the
credit market for small and medium-sized enterprises
(Centralbank.ie). In the Philippines, the Development Bank
of the Philippines (DBP) is the premier financial institution
that is dedicated in supporting the Philippine governments
key development programs. In support to the MSMEs, the

100

Sustainable
Entrepreneurship
Enhancement
and
Development (SEED) Program of the DBP was created. Its
objective is not just to augment the access of MSMEs in
credit accommodations, but to speed-up the credit process as
well. In 2013, DBP rolled-out its new Retail Lending Program
for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises in its forty-five (45)
branches nationwide. Under this program, DBP would make
lending decisions using credit scoring software, which would
determine loan approvals based on verifiable client
information and an objective credit score, replacing the
current approval process which relies on loan officers
perceptions about applicants credit worthiness (Gharad
Bryan, 2013). The Retail Lending Program for MSME, in its
entirety, is centralized in the DBP Head Office (HO),
through the Small and Medium Investment Loans for
Entrepreneurs (SMILE) Department.
The Underhill Corporate Solutions (UCS) led by
Edmore Mahembe, instigated a study entitled, Literature
Review on Small and Medium Enterprises: Access to Credit
and Support in South Africa, as commissioned by the
National Credit Regulator (NCR) of South Africa. The
survival rate of SMEs in South Africa is among the lowest
worldwide. Though duly notable that SMEs have significant
contribution to the growth of the economy, the SMEs in
South Africa have been observed to having continuous
challenges impeding growth. More to that, the lack of
insufficient training and education led SMEs to endure poor
management skills, as shown in the 2001-2010 Global
Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM) Reports. The focus then
of the study was to determine different researches that were
written and conducted on SMEs access to credit support,
with the aim of identifying any financing gap and in providing
assistance to NCR in the creation of policy proposals relative
to consumer credit facility. Mahembes study resulted to the
conclusion that despite the various existing literature reviews,
there is no exact level of preciseness as to the sufficiency of

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the financing for SMEs due to shortage of information and

lack of access. With these factors at hand, a more detailed
research is adequate to determine the exact needs on
financing of the SME sector in terms of quality and quantity,
which happens to be one of the purposes of this present
study.
In India, the MSME sector has been experiencing
series of credit issues owing to delay in payments and
hesitation of banks in granting credit. As such, the
government formed a committee to identify the root of the
problems by the MSMEs. Mr. Dinesh Rai, Secretary of the
Ministry of MSME of the Indian Government said, Sending
affirmative signals, the Government of India has appointed a
committee of secretaries to look at the problems being faced
by the MSME sector, which include arenas of skills
development, clusters approach, credit availability, and
technical and market considerations. Integrating the sector
with global players is also of immense importance for the
holistic development of India, Correspondingly, Mr. Bernd
Mutzelburg, Ambassador of the Embassy of Federal Republic
of Germany said, Fundamentals of Indian economy are very
strong and this is the time that the world should look up to
India to mitigate the current global crisis. We need a stimulus
package for the industry. The potential of MSMEs in India
has been recognized. This sector is most flexible and willing
to change, with its innovative and cost effective
methodologies. The sector needs to focus on infrastructure
and technological aspects of the economy, (Menon, 2014).
Another study from India, entitled Bank Finance to
Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises, by Kushalakshi,
provided evidence as to the banks deficit in financing to
MSMEs despite the increase in credit granted to the said
businesses. According to Kushalakshi, MSMEs contribute
about 8 percent of Indias Gross Domestic Product (GDP),
45 percent of the manufactured output, and 40 percent of its
exports. But of this relevant figures, only 5.18 percent availed

102

of bank financing, whereas, 2.05 percent availed of financing

from non-bank sources. The remaining 92.77 percent
financed their own businesses. Despite the increase in
financing to the MSME sector there is still a considerable
credit gap, which needs to be bridged (Kushalakshi, 2014). It
was concluded that government should focus on promoting
MSMEs by trade fairs, export shows, and most importantly
by hitting on finance policy supports to enable banks or
financial institutions to adequately provide credit to MSMEs.
This study by Kushalakshi opened the relevance of
augmenting bank credit to MSMEs, an idea similar to the
current study. However, it did not delve into the factors that
hamper banks in granting credit effectively to MSMEs.
P. Nishanth studied in 2014 the barriers faced by
MSMEs in raising finance, primarily from the 200 MSMEs
owners in Kozhikode District of Kerala in India. Although
considered as the emblems of growth and development in the
country, the MSMEs still encounter constraints in the areas
of timely granting of bank finance. The study showed that
67.65% of sole proprietorship firms do not use credit
schemes, 54.55% of partnership firms and 66.67% of
cooperatives use credit schemes (Nishanth, 2014). The
percentages reflected that only a minority portion of the
MSME population availed of the credit schemes of banks.
The highest percentage of respondents feels that too many
formalities are there while availing of credit schemes
(Nishanth, 2014). The researcher concluded that the
government must initialize trainings and programs for
education and knowledge on the relevance of timely permits,
licenses, and clearances, thereby enhancing the managerial
capacities of the owners. More to that, the banks were
encouraged to re-assess their existing policies in terms of
documentary requirements, then effecting a decrease in
formalities, resulting to quicker availment of credit. To
determine the necessary irrelevant formalities in banks credit
program is among the possible outcomes of this current

103

study, focusing primarily on the MSME credit program of

DBP.
Even the Muslim-majority countries in the Middle
East and North Africa (MENA) suffer from funding gap for
micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises. According to
World Bank Groups Enterprise Surveys, more than thirtythree percent (33%) of these enterprises experience
difficulties in gaining access to finance. The funding gap was
estimated at USD 2 trillion. The study of AtillaYucel
pertaining to the Alternative Approach to Financing Micro,
Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises: Crowdinvesting with
Profit-and-Loss Sharing Instruments in the Middle East and
North Africa, with a Special Focus on the Arab Republic of
Egypt, assessed several complementary financing schemes
for MSMEs. Conventionally, financing institiutions hamper
the growth of the MSMEs owing to the traditional financial
intermediaries and policies. Yucel introduced the probability
of incorporating Islamic profit-and-loss sharing (PLS)
instruments and cross-border crowdfunding (CF) as
substitute. Through the utilization of surveys by experts and
desk research, Yucel developed a profit-and-loss sharing
crowdinvesting model fostering on smaller-scale enterprises,
integrating at the same time the diminishing partnership
intermediaries, and inclusion of investors. Several challenges
still exist, nevertheless, the model could advance lower the
financing gap for smaller-scale enterprises serving as funding
channel within the context of finance development (Yucel,
2013).
Customarily, the main financial institutions, such as
banks, provide the financing for micro, small, and medium
entrepreneurs. This was the same objective that Nigeria had
when it focused on the improvement of MSMEs rather than
the large-scale enterprises, due to bigger potential of
employment generation, domestic linkages, and increase in
the GDP of the country. MSMEs represent about 8 percent
of all firms operating in Nigeria (Babajide, 20110. However,

104

despite the contribution value of the MSMEs, businessmen

still face problems on productivity and failure. In Nigeria, the
problem is not limited to lack of long-term financing and
inadequate management skills and entrepreneurial capacity
alone, but also, includes the combined effect of low market
access, poor information flow, discriminatory legislation,
poor access to land, weak linkage among different segments
of the operations in the sector, weak operating capacities in
terms of skills, knowledge and attitudes, as well as lack of
infrastructure and an unfavorable economic climate
(Babajide, 2011). The Nigerian government, to elevate the
status and growth of MSEs starting the year of 1960, has
initiated various programs and policies, including the
Microfinance Policy Regulatory and Supervisory Framework
(MPRSF). The latter primarily concentrated on the lack of
access to bank credits by the MSMEs. The study of Babajide
on the impact of microfinance to the MSMEs performance,
growth, and survival revealed that it did improve the
survivability of the businesses but not vastly on the growth
and expansion. Bottomline, microfinancing was not effective
in Nigeria due to the offering of loans on an individual basis
rather than by group. This study of Babajide provides more
relevance to this current study as the financing institution
being studied is a government bank, a primary source of fund
for MSMEs.
Gratis Foundation in Ghana, India has for its
objective the provision of assistance to selected Ghanaian
micro, small, and medium enterprises clients involved in the
food processing and metal subsectors. The corresponding
challenges and constraints involved were the focus of the case
study conducted by Michalowski. The analysis of the macroeconomic forces and the industry dynamics within the food
processing and metal sectors in Ghana, demonstrated that
GRATIS clients can only overcome the difficulties they are
encountering if GRATIS Foundations methods and
approaches towards business development are tailored to the

105

business environment of MSMEs in Ghana (Michalowski,

2008) It largely indicated that a generalized approach is not
applicable for all the MSMEs in Ghana. The study of
Michalowski is related with the current study in a way that the
setting took place in a developing country similar to the
Philippines. More so, the respondents involved as well
comprising of clients and personnel of the subject
organization.
Another study taken in Ghana, India settled on the
women partaking on the saloon business industry specifically
within the small and medium-sized enterprises. Financial
institutions in Ghana normally give out loans to medium and
large scale enterprises within the formal sector, an incident
which is disadvantageous to women since they mostly form
the SMEs within the informal sector. The study of Cham
made a contribution to Ghanas development to determine
the document encountered by women entrepreneurs in the
said locality, and suggested policies and strategies to be
implemented by the Ghanaian government to illustrate the
gravity of the problem (Cham, 2011). With the aid of an
interview, Cham uncovered that despite the threats on
inaccessibility to finance and capital, lack of relevant skills,
and equal access to education, Ghana women entrepreneurs
found them to be minor dilemma as they preferred using
their personal savings rather than obtaining loan from banks.
According to them, the process of bank loans was slow and
bureaucratic; also their high-quality knowledge and education
compensated for the success of the business. Nevertheless,
recommendations were still provided to the micro-credit
facilities, banks, network affiliation and government, and the
manner of hiring and training of staff. Although the present
study is not gender focused , this should be an organization
entity for parallelism of thought, it likewise conveyed that
among the problems faced by SMEs include bank financing.
For more than a decade, Ghana, India has been seen
to be proactive in developing its MSMEs by eradicating the

106

problems prohibiting its growth. The study conducted by

John Ackah and Sylvester Vuvor on the challenges faced by
SMEs in obtaining credit in Ghana was another important
contribution. Utilizing a quantitative approach for eighty (80)
SMEs, major findings were highlighted. Banks and non-bank
financial institutions were willing to provide funds to SMEs
but Ghanaian SMEs were unable to meet the requirements
due to the issue of collateral and small equity base (Ackah &
Vuvor, 2011). A secondary concern was presented on the
high interest rates, and short repayment periods, thus
hindering the SMEs to expand and develop. Considering the
factors involved, this study is essential in the current
endeavor since the stated problems were same problems that
the respondents are experiencing.
Correspondingly, Duke Grosh conducted a field
survey for this study on the approaches to energy deficiency
among MSMEs in India, as well as the drivers and barriers
affecting the business decision to adopt an energy efficient
technology. As decreed by the United Nations World
Commission on Environment and Development, there is
sustainable development (SD) when a developing project
addresses the present needs without prejudicing the future
generations ability to meet their own needs (Ghosh, 2011).
However, MSMEs tend to forfeit the purpose of SD in order
to survive. Through the use of exploratory research
methodology and personal interviews using a structured
questionnaire, it was deduced that when it comes to
protecting the environment and its resources, most SMEs
become inhibitors on the goals of SD (Ghosh, 2011). But
then again, the resulting resistance of the MSMEs was
attributable to external obstacles by MSMEs such as the
governments failure to generate awareness regarding
profitability (Ghosh, 2011).
Considering the intense effort of India in developing
the growth of MSMEs in the country, an article was written
by C. Paramasivan to identify the progress and performance

107

of MSMEs in India. The government institutionalized in 1999

the Ministry of MSME to focus on the development and
promotion sector. Consequently, a new policy package was
promulgated in August 2000. Six years after, the MSME Act
of 2006 was created with the primary mandate to enhance
MSMEs competitiveness. Soon after, the MSMED Act 2006
was transformed to Micro, Small, and Medium EnterprisesDevelopment Organization (MSME-DO) having a broader
mandate directive for the development and promotion of the
MSME Sector (Paramasivan & Selvan, 2013). The evaluation
revealed that the 67 percent of the entrepreneurs engaged in
manufacturing activities, 17 percent belonged to service
activities, and 16 percent belonged to the repair and
maintenance activities (Paramasivan & Selvan, 2013). The
nature of operations and type of organization further
concluded that the MSMEs concentrated on meeting the
local and global demands through the utilization of their
distinct product and services. Hence, the paper concluded
that the progress and performance of the MSME was
significant during the study period (Paramavisan & Selvan,
2013).
It has been widely known in Ghana, India that
MSMEs contribute immensely to the economy, employment,
and revenue growth, as well as poverty reduction in the
country. However, it has been observed that the industry is
disintegrating resulting from poor performance. A study was
conducted by Daniel S. Adjei on the challenges of the
MSMEs and identified the means to sustain the role of
industries. The study revealed the following as among the
challenges: high female youth domination, low level of
education among entrepreneurs, lack of qualified personnel,
poor coordination methods used by supporting institutions,
high percentage of self-financing of SMEs, lack of access to
credit, and dominance of importation foreign goods (Adjei,
2012)

108

Just last May 2014 a discussion paper was undertaken

entitled, Do Interventions Targeted at Micro-Entrepreneurs
and Small and Medium-Sized Firms Create Jobs? A
Systematic Review of the Evidence for Low and Middle
Income Countries. The review showed that in totality,
creation of employment is a very complex challenge (Grimm
& Paffhausen, 2014). The objective of the researchers was to
evaluate the different programs created by the government to
enhance the labor force, thus, the creation of new MSMEs.
According to Grimm and Paffhausen, the effects created by
the programs were more observable to be seen on
management practices and profits, rather than on
employment. Yet, the review revealed that about a third of
the interventions were not primarily designed to create
employment but rather strive for income stabilization and
poverty reduction (Grimm and Paffhausen, 2014). The
context of this study is parallel with the existing study
considering the intent to evaluate the government program
directly created for the creation of MSMEs. However, the
present study does not focus on the employment aspect of
the MSMEs.
In 2011, Philippine SMEs accounted for thirty-two
percent (32%) of the countrys Gross Domestic Product
(GDP), according to former Sen. Edgardo Angara,
stating,MSMEs are the real backbone of our economy.
People do not realize that their businesses have greater direct
impact on Filipinos lives than do big players. But more than
this, they provide opportunities to those who could not have
started businesses otherwise. Not only that, MSMEs created
as well 3.872 million jobs in 2011 which was more than the
2.473 million employment caused by large enterprises.
(Camposano, 2014). R. Aldaba said in his report
titled,ASEAN Economic Community 2015 SME
Development: Narrowing Development Gap Measure, that
the most critical factor influencing the competitiveness of
MSMEs at present is the access to credit or finance. The plan

109

is to have two million new and maintainable jobs in 2016 and

boosting the MSMEs contribution to the economy by forty
percent (40%). Consequently, the 2011-2016 Micro, Small,
and Medium Enterprises (MSME) Development Plan targets
to resolve the primary reasons prohibiting the growth and
effectiveness of MSMEs (Camposano, 2014).
Rhodora M. Leano discussed the Philippine strategies
for SMEs sustainable growth and development in the
country, encircling the serious factors on finance, product
development, technology, training, and marketing. Leano
pointed out that President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo called on
her previous administration the creation of the SME Unified
Lending Opportunities for National Growth (SULONG)
program. The program is geared towards expanding the
enterprise base by graduating micro, small, and medium
enterprises to higher levels of classification by providing them
with more access to government assistance (Leano, 2006).
The Department of Trade and Industry led the program
concentrating on the elements of human resource
development, entrepreneurship training, market development,
product development, technology interventions, advocacy for
enabling environment, and financing. The Small and Medium
Enterprise Development (SMED) Council oversees all the
exertions in the promotion, growth, and development of
SMEs. The Secretary of Trade and Industry headed the
council; and the council was composed of the Director
General of the National Economic and Development
Authority (NEDA), the Secretaries of Agriculture, Labor and
Employment, Science and Technology, and Tourism.
Included as well were Chairpersons of the Monetary Board
and the Small Business Guarantee and Finance Corporation
(SBGCF), three representatives from the private sector, and a
representative from the private banking sector (Leano, 2006).
The council had an integrated approach, meeting at
least once a month discussing issues, evaluating activities, and
mapping out SME development short-term and long-term

110

plans. There were five areas that were delved into by the
council: (1) One town, one product; one million pesos
programme; (2) trade fairs for marketing; (3) training and
human resource development; and (5) product development
and technology intervention.
The Small Business Guarantee and Finance
Corporation (SBGFC) also called as the Small Business
Corporation (SBC), as mentioned in the previous discussion
paper by Leano, is considered as the Credit Champion for
SMEs. This was thoroughly discussed in the paper of Benel
D. Lagua, entitled The Incubation-Graduation Model. The
SBGFC was created on January 24, 1991, ten years after the
implementation of the RA 6977- Magna Carta for Small
Enterprises, and was specially designated to cater for the
MSMEs financing needs. SBGFC is the financing arm of
the DTI working within the policy framework of the SMED
Council, and was given the authority to offer a wide range of
financial services. In order to come up with strong financing
programs, the SBC undertook actions to learn the advantages
and mishaps of the past, and its existing programs. They
evaluated the mix-up viewpoints of both the financing
institutions and the MSMEs owing to the rational actions
brought about by heated situations.
Benel Lagua even said,Financial institutions have
adequate information about SMEs. They consider the
transaction costs of funding SMEs, given the smaller values
per deal, as too high. Lenders are uneasy about the risks
involved, and fail to see quality in small portfolios. SMEs are
believed to be more vulnerable to market in a volatile
economy. This is aggravated by the inferior collateral and low
capitalization of small businesses. With these constraints, the
SME sector has been perceived to be a low profit arena for
banking operations. Reversing the roles, SMEs perception of
banks likewise has not been tasteful. Banks are thought to
impose very cumbersome procedures in dealing with small
businesses such that credit, if it is provided at all, is usually

111

inadequate and delayed. Banks are thought to be narrowminded as they insist on collaterals rather than view the
paying capacity of the enterprise.
Given the analysis of the perspectives of the
stakeholders, the SBC likewise took the initiative to
comprehend the different types of clients as based on their
needs and capacity to obtain credit from banks and other
financial institutions. The paradigm shift was called
Graduation Model of SBGFC. The SMEs were classified into
bankable, near-bankable, or pre-bankable, serving as the basis
of identification for the appropriate financial assistance to be
rendered.
The Philippine government has instigated various
policies and programs for MSMEs advancement and country
development. Nonetheless, the last decade showed a slight
increase in the progress of MSMEs in the manufacturing
industry. Such is the cause for the study of Rafaelita M.
Aldaba for SMEs in the Philippine manufacturing industry
and globalization, and how to meet the development
challenges. It reassessed the existing Philippine SME policies,
manufacturing industry developments, relative to the network
of global production. Highpoints pertained to the relevance
of a creation by the Philippine government of a separate
government office with the sole responsibility of
synchronizing and organizing MSME policies and programs
to upkeep the entrepreneurs in the chain of global
production.
The study on Benchmarking Credit Policies of
International Banks led to the conclusion that the large
majority of the forty-five banks need to devote significantly
more attention to developing clear sector and issue policies
(BankTrack, 2007). Forty-five banks were included in the
study referring to three core dimensions: (1) transparency; (2)
accountability; (3) content; and (4) implementation. Despite
the established credit policies and guidelines of banks in
terms of credit, several cracks still open for indifferences in

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those core dimensions, between the policy contents and the

banks survivability intentions.
The study conducted by Prof. Gwendolyn R. Tecson
of U.P. School of Economics evaluated the existing
Philippine policies and regulations for micro, small, and
medium enterprises by focusing on its contents as directed by
various government agencies, and its corresponding effects
on MSMEs. Of the many findings of the study, two obstacles
to growth stood out, namely, the difficulties encountered by
the microenterprises with regard to registering their
businesses, and the lack of access, particularly of SMEs, to
finance. A few have tried but were discouraged from
obtaining loan from financing institutions due to collateral
requirements (Tecson, 2005). Processing of the loans take 3
to 13 months with minimal update from the Bank on loan
status, making the MSME borrowers wait indefinitely. On top
of this, taxes, technology, trade policies, and human resource
or labor development policies contributed to the heavy
experience of MSMEs (HeniKartikawati, 2000).
In 2008, a financial crisis spurred in Ireland which
immensely affected MSMEs. On top of this, SMEs found it
hard to access credit due to lack of agency credit rating,
unavailability of relevant financial information, reliance on
local market, lower volume or range of tangible collateral, and
uncertainty of future cash flows for small enterprises. The
government, in an effort to alleviate the credit flow to SMEs,
initiated policy measures with credit institutions. This led
Sarah Holton, Fergal McCann, Kathryn Prendergast, and
David Purdue to conduct a survey on the range of SME
credit schemes that are available to policy makers, in turn,
letting Irish position in a comparative environment. Varied
range of options were unearthed incorporating loan
guarantees, direct lending to firms, credit mediation bodies,
guarantees on exporting activity, the development of
securitization markets, provision of low-cost funding to
financial institutions, information dissemination through

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credit registries, and the development of non-bank

alternatives, such as peer-to-peer lenders and retail bond
markets. Although the policies already had brisk expansion,
there still remains a room for improvement.
The paper by J.K. Rosengard and A. Prasetyantoko
presented the large requirement of loans by micro, small, and
medium enterprises (MSMEs), and the regulations of the
Bank of Indonesia (BI). After discussing the likely impacts of
the banks regulations, it was suggested that authorities
intensify bank competition by removing entry barriers (Seiro,
2011). The regulations prioritized more the financial stability
of the Bank of Indonesia rather than offering bank loans to
MSME. The authors instructed that change must be
instigated to formulate regulations relative to loan supply,
trade off stability, and balance with bank financial stability.
Kerala, a small state in India, not only serves as the
headquarters of the four top private banks in the country, as
well as home to great number of well-achieved and cultured
individuals. It is the work of the MSMEs that led to the
growth of the socioeconomic sector of the state. The article
of Parvathy Menon, Role of Private Sector Banks in MSME
Financing in Kerala, mentioned that the banks and financial
institutions supports the MSME by providing the financial
assistance, thereby creating a high competition between banks
for capturing the customer base, as well as an increase in the
number of branches of private sector banks in Kerala. The
quantity of bank branches and net advances to MSME sector
by the private banks are interconnected.
The Central Institute for Economics Management
(CIEM) and the Bank for Foreign Trade of Vietnam (VCB),
in cooperation with the Finance Working Group of APEC
Business Advisory Council (ABAC) piloted a survey on SMEs
access to formal financing. The findings of the survey were
presented during the meetings of ABAC in Montreal, Canada,
and Cebu, Philippines. The survey questionnaires were
disseminated to the member banks of the Asian Bankers

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Association (ABA). The main purpose of the study was to

determine the obstacles and significance of SME
development, and access to formal finance. The researchers
clearly stated that, Apart from SMEs efforts, it is essential
that both the banks and government in the Asia-Pacific make
important provisions to facilitate SMEs access to formal
finance. Besides loans, factoring, forfeiting, leasing, the banks
see credit rating and corporate guarantee scheme as the most
important. In fact, these were also the most popular
provisions by the banks. Meanwhile, the role of the
government is critical, particularly in providing state
guarantee, credit rating, and special funds to lend to SMEs. In
fact, SME development has been prioritized by the
government, with clear visions and/or strategy. Yet both the
bank and SMEs feel that government policies are probably
more favorable to large enterprises, than to the SMEs
themselves.
In a discussion paper conducted by Rafaelita M.
Aldaba, entitled Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs)
Access to Finance: Philippines, it highlighted access to
finance as among the difficulties encountered by SMEs.
Ninety-seven (97) firms from the industries of electronics,
garments, textiles, automotive, and food manufacturing were
surveyed, specifying SMEs continued reliance on internal
financing. It does not only cover the start-up phase, but also
dwell on the daily operations of the business. Out of the 41%
entrepreneurs that expressed their intentions for expansion,
67% of whom related that internally-generated funds did not
suffice, hence the need for credit financing. But then again, a
gap seems to be present between the borrowing idea of the
SMEs and the fund availability by banks. Banks have been
continuously receiving loan requests from the MSMEs, and
the survey disclosed that the main reasons for the loan
disapprovals are poor credit history, insufficient collateral,
insufficient sales, income or cash flow, unstable business type,
and poor business plan. With these at hand, change and

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improvement are imperative to both banks and SMEs. The

mindset of banks must be enhanced allowing a nontraditional approach to SME lending, and on the part of the
SMEs, trainings and capacity building programs must be
introduced for management capacity and financial literacy.
The group of Valerie B. Yerger evaluated the
implementation process of Richmond, Californias citywide
smoke-free multiunit housing ordinance (Yerger, 2014)
Qualitative content analysis was used to interpret the data
gathered from the focus group transcripts from multiunit
housing tenants, managers, and owners, thereby resulting to
two groups of findings, the pre-implementation and postimplementation. The tenants favored the ordinances,
however, no proper information dissemination was
conducted. Smoking cessation is a condition that cannot be
enforced urgently. If the policy makers intend to make the
ordinance successful, the primary beneficiaries or people
involved must be opined to properly carry out the
implementation.
In Lebanon, a non-traditional pharmacy residency
program was developed and implemented in the Veterans
Affair Medical Center (VAMC). The purpose of the program
was to allow the hospitals practicing pharmacists to complete
their residency program but not sacrificing their patient care
services. The researchers, Khenh S. Vong and company,
through staff survey responses, limited publications on
nontraditional programs, and extrapolation from traditional
programs, realized that the program generally had positive
outcomes. The hospital administrators and leaders were able
to present to the hospital staff that their concern and
enthusiasm for their growth and success was significant.
The group of Emily C. Pherson conducted another
study related to health system where it pronounced the
development and implementation of a post-discharge homebased, pharmacist-provided medication management service.
This was conducted to prevent readmissions of patients, as

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well as to deter the continuous confusion of patients in terms

of its medication pattern in its transition from the hospital to
home. To conclude, the implementation did not only boost
the patient care continuity, correspondingly, medication
discrepancies were pinpointed and resolved, with the end
result of having more educated patients, primary care
providers, and community pharmacies.
Another pharmacy-related program was initiated by
Morgan B. Smith, Karl F. Gumpper, Grazyna Riebandt, and
Evelyn M. Handel in October 2014. The Pharmacy Practice
Model Initiative (PMMI) was studied incorporating its goals
and measures to cancer centers across United States, and the
overall progress of its implementation. The group of Smith
stated that, The PPMI goals are interrelated, wherein the
advancement in any one area of pharmacy practice is
dependent on the ability to grow and improve in another.
Overall adoption of the PPMI is multifaceted and requires
flexibility in many aspects of the pharmacy department
workflow and organization to reallocate resources and
individuals into progressive practice models. The results and
conclusion were feasible and reliable due to the hospital selfassessment questionnaire and 10-item supplemental survey.
The University of Wisconsin Hospital and Clinics
(UWHC) have been using the cartfill medication process for
its patient care units. However, due to the decrease in the
length of stay of patients, as well as the overall change in
orders and volume, the cartfill process is taking longer than
normal, which then required for re-evaluation and re-design
of the cartfill process. With the situation at hand, Korby
Lathrop, Jim Lund, Brad Ludwig, and Steve Rough made an
effort to develop and evaluate the implementation of thricedaily cartfill in UWHC with the sole purpose of dropping the
medication returns and efficiency improvement.
Antimicrobial stewardship programs (ASPs) have
been advocated in acute care facilities to decrease
antimicrobial expenditures and lessen selective pressure that

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could contribute to the development of resistance (Dellit TH,

2007). A 155-bed community hospital adopted the ASP with
an accountable care organization (ACO) and facilitated by
one full-time pharmacist, nine full-or part-time pharmacists,
with weekly rotation, and all with no residency training. James
M. Barllet and Patricia L. Siola studied its first-year outcome,
and identified a weighty attainment for a decrease in the
microbial expenditures, and an increase in pharmacistinitiated i.v.-to-oral conversions (Barleet & Siola, 2014).
Enterprise Resources Planning (ERP) started in the
90s through manufacturing resource planning and worked its
way to other areas of business activities due to relevance.
Simply put, it designs one platform for an organization
through network building of all its stakeholders for efficiency
in operation. This lead the researchers, Ha Jin Hwang and
Young Jun Park, to identify the applicability and effect of
enterprise resource planning for Kazakhstan companies. They
utilized the 5-point Lickert scale and questionnaires to
ascertain the critical success factors of the awareness and
implementation of the ERP system in Kazakhstan. As such,
the ERP system encountered minor problems in its
implementation that were easily resolved otherwise. Not only
that, it reflected that there is an increasing demand for the
implementation of the ERP system in Kazakhstan as it is
essential in business processing management for control of
tax pressures and moderate inflation.
In the field of education, Aleisha M. Clarke and
company, conducted a study on evaluating the
implementation of a school-based emotional well-being
programme. It was partaken in Zippys Friends, an
international school-based emotional well-being programme
taking 766 children in various disadvantaged schools. To
define the emotional literacy outcomes, an Emotional
Literacy Checklist was utilized, whereas, a Strengths and
Difficulties Questionnaire was accomplished for emotional
and behavioral outcomes. Although the program did not have

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a substantial effect to the childrens emotional and behavioral

problems, it did not create positively an impression on the
childrens emotional literacy scores on motivation, self
regulation, self-awareness, and post-intervention.
Secondary school students were the focus of the
study in exploring the implementation of the Ontario School
Food and Beverage Policy (P/PM 150) during fall of 2012. A
qualitative study was undertaken using ANGELO framework
and three focus groups with the secondary-students, both
from high and low communities. The drive of the program
was to ensure healthy eating for students, except that, it
affected the buying capacity of the students. As stated by the
researchers,Perceived impacts of p/pm 150 included highpriced policy-compliant food for sale, lower revenue
generation, and food purchased off-campus. Limited
designated eating spaces, proximity to external, nonpolicycompliant food, and time constraints acted as key local level
barriers to healthy eating. Pricing strategies are needed to
ensure that all students have access to nutritious food,
particularly in the context of vulnerable populations.
Recognition of the context and culture in which school
nutrition policies are being implemented is essential (Vine,
2014).
The different studies and literature focused on
MSMEs, credit policies, MSME credit schemes, MSME
financing, and implementation. Micro, small, and medium
enterprises are gaining recognition and importance not just in
the Philippines, but also in other nations. It is not just in the
Philippines where MSMEs are, up to now, facing a lot of
growth barriers, where the common concerns pertain to lack
of equity, government rules and regulations, access to credit,
and technological and skills advancement. National
government of various countries created a separate ministry
or council to oversee MSMEs and concentrate on
diminishing the barriers to promote growth and
competitiveness.

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The inability of the MSMEs to obtain credit from

financing institutions places inconvenience to both financing
companies and enterprises, as both tend to misconstrue each
other in terms of viewpoints and purpose. Lack of collateral,
stringent policies, excessive loan requirements, high interest
rates, and slow loan processing, were perceived as the
common contributory factors to credit inaccessibility.
Notwithstanding the scope, subject matter, or field,
the concept of implementation evaluation and analysis
produces alike outcomes. Roughly majority of the
implementation endeavors were successful, and only a small
portion is attributable to the opposite. For a program or
scope to be successfully implemented, the views of the
primary beneficiaries must be solicited. Furthermore, feeble
areas are identified and resolved, resulting to a multifaceted
overall adoption of the idea. Problems are always present, but
are manageable.
In the Bicol Region, there are six MSME Centers,
located in each of the provinces of the Region, namely,
Legazpi, Daet, Sorsogon, Naga, Masbate, and Virac. Three
SME Account Officers (AOs) from the HO are detailed; one
for SME Center-Daet, one handling both SME Centers Naga
and Sorsogon, and another one both for SME Centers
Legazpi and Virac (new accounts only). The Branch AO, a
non-SME AO, handles the Masbate accounts, and existing
Virac accounts.
For those branches that have designated SME AOs,
the entire credit process is delegated and performed by them.
But for those branches without designated SME AOs, the
Branch AO continues to assist in the processing and
documentation, while approval, loan release or rollover
transactions are performed by the SMILE HO.
The pre-approval requirements will depend on the
type of borrower and nature of project or financing facility,
based on the list of requirements. Approval of loan
applications and other transactions are done in the HO via

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telephone-conference. Once approved, but prior to the initial

loan release, the borrower is required to execute the legal
documents, promissory note, and other pre-release
conditions. The standard process flow and turn-around-time
(TAT) from loan application, approval, and releasing is thirty
(30) days from the date of submission of complete
documents. But in actuality, based on the current manpower
set-up, processing for loan approvals takes at most three (3)
to twelve (12) months.
Cited literature and studies predominantly discoursed
on the significant hurdles that micro, small, and medium
enterprises faced both in the past and modern settings. The
root causes were determined and government policies and
procedures were released to reduce the difficulties. An
endeavor was even undertaken in the Philippines to
understand the rationale behind the dissatisfaction of MSMEs
with financing institutions in obtaining credit.
Yet no study was undertaken to look into the details
of the credit program itself that financial institutions, with
government banks in particular, offer to MSMEs. The
previous studies lunged into the provider and beneficiaries,
but the medium used was sidestepped. Such is the gap that
the study yearns to acknowledge with emphasis in the area of
Bicol Region.
In view of the increasing stringency of monitoring
and evaluation, and the Magna Carta for MSME, this study
was conducted to evaluate the implementation of the MSME
financing program in the Bicol Region in terms of manpower,
money, method, machine, and memoranda; identify the
challenge encountered in the implementation of the MSME
financing program along manpower, money, method,
machine, and memoranda; and recommend measures to
improve the implementation of the MSME financing
program.

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The study is grounded on Iglesias Model of

Implementation, Smith Model of Policy Implementation, and
Grindles Model of Implementation.
The model of David U. Iglesias views the process of
implementation as a function of an administrative agency,
and so, if the policy is not well implemented, the
administrative agency ought to be blamed (Ozumba, 2014)
He looked into the specific details or factors that would assist
to augment an administrative agencys capacity in
implementing programs. The following are the identified
factors that will aid in implementing shemes:
1. Structure. For any policy to succeed, there must be a
stable organized structure;
2. Technology. This refers to information essential to the
operation of the organization. For instance, if any external
affairs minister is brought into a system he is not familiar
with, he cannot perform. He needs good knowledge of what
is involved;
3. Support. This refers to the range of actual potential roles
and behavior of persons and entities which tend to promote
attainments of set organizational goals. Any policy that does
not have support, input, and compliance from the people will
not work. Thus, part of the reason why the Structural
Adjustment Programme in Nigeria failed was that people did
not support the programme following the hardship it brought
to the people;
4. Resources. These refer to personnel; without good
expertise the project will not succeed; and
5. Leadership. Good leadership that can influence, facilitate
implementation, and change things is necessary for any
organization to succeed. Poor leadership hinders progress;
Another theory was presented by Thomas B. Smith in
his paper, The Policy Implementation Process, where the
implementation of policies is perceived to be an influence
that creates tension in the society. It has been a common
notion in the society at large that newly approved policies are

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always implemented. Yet this does not relate to Third World

governments since the policies created lack the substantiality
for implementation. Accordingly, interested and affected
groups and individuals aim to distress the implementation
instead of the formulation process. According to Smith,
tensions are generated between and within four components
of the implementing process: idealized policy, implementing
organization, target group, and environmental factors. The
tensions result in transaction patterns which may or may not
match the expectation of outcome of the policy formulators.
Both the transaction patterns and the institutions may
generate tensions, which, by feedback to the policymakers
and implementers, may support or reject further
implementation of the policy (Smith, 1973).
Merilee S. Grindles Model of Implementation argued
that the implementation of a programme is influenced by
those interested and affected by the programmes (Ozumba,
2014). His belief focused on the Third World Countries, an
area similar to Iglesias Smith, and on how they process
implementation of various projects. Grindle identified three
stimulating elements: (1) inadequate definition of goals; (2)
socio-political context in which the policy is proposed and
executed; and (3) political nature of the place which the policy
is to be implemented (Ozumba, 2014). Seemingly, there is no
coordination between the company or agency tasked to
implement a specific project or program as regards the
means, participants, machinery, and time. This kind of
scenario opens up the crack for interference and lack of
commitment and continuity.
The conceptual framework of the study is anchored
on the Iglesias Model of Implementation, Smith Model of
Policy Implementation, and Grindles Model of
Implementation.
The aim of this study is to identify the status and
challenges in the implementation of the MSME financing
program of the DBP, confined within the SME Centers in the

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Bicol Region, for the purpose of creating an enhanced

program.
The current structure incorporates the factors of
manpower, money, method, machine, and memoranda, which
will be the base for the evaluation of the existing
implementation of the said program. An assessment would be
made as to its efficacy, relevance, and turn-around-time.
Identifying the challenges led to the analysis of the
various factors affecting its strengths and weaknesses for the
purpose of finding ways to improve the (1) effectiveness and
efficiency of operations; (2) reliability of loan
recommendations; and (3) compliance with applicable laws
and regulations.
The evaluation and findings of the implementation of
the MSME financing program in the Bicol Region are geared
towards not only improving the program but also fulfilling
other responsibilities, which will benefit the public and the
common good.
Method
The study employed the descriptive-survey method of
research. A descriptive-survey involves asking the same set of
questions to a large number of individuals either by mail,
telephone, or in person with the use of a questionnaire
(Wallen,2007). Primary and secondary data were utilized. The
primary sources of data from the responses of the
respondents comprised of the clientele, SME Account
Officers, and operations personnel from the DBP SME
Center in Legazpi, Sorsogon, Naga, and Daet.
Secondary data were sourced out from documents
such as credit policy memoranda and reports of the DBP,
theses, journals, publications, books, and online references
that supplemented in the evaluation of the variables.
The DBP SME Account Officers of the Bicol Region,
loan borrowers starting December 31, 2013 to August 31,
2015, and the regional marketing personnel served as the

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respondents and population of the study. The total

population is 66, with 100% level of confidence.
This study utilized a survey questionnaire instrument
to identify the status and confirm the efficiency of the current
implementation conditions and practices of the MSME credit
program in the Bicol Region.
A structured questionnaire was provided for this
study using a combination of the four-point Lickert scale and
open-ended question format. It was patterned after the
standard loan process and matix of activities and
responsibilities stated in the credit guidelines of the bank;
however, certain terminologies were modified for applicability
to current circumstances of the MSME program. The
respondents were given the option whether or not to reflect
their names. Questions with no relation at all to the program
were scrapped to capture true activities. There were certain
items with Remarks or Please Specify options for
answers that were not included in the options given, thus,
allowing key informants for further elaboration of their
responses.
The questionnaire was divided into five parts;
manpower, money, method, machine, and memoranda. It
dealt with the status of implementation of the MSME
financing program as observed by the SME AOs of the Bicol
region, other regional personnel, directly or indirectly
involved in the implementation, and MSME loan borrowers
from Legazpi, Sorsogon, Naga, and Daet. This showcased the
current situation of the program if it is being acted upon as
planned.
The research instrument used for the respondents
was tested to check for the comprehensiveness and clarity of
the survey questionnaire. This was given to the operations
personnel of DBP Legazpi Branch who were involved,
directly and indirectly, in the MSME credit program process.
Questionnaires were distributed to retrieved from the
respondents either personally or through electronic mail due

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to location constraints. Clarifications to responses, if any,

were gathered personally, or through modern means of
communication such as electronic mail, text messaging, or
other social media conversation boards.
The respondents were required to encircle only the
appropriate column of their choice of answer for each
question. A respondent was not compelled to indicate his or
her name, although a space was provided should the
respondent wish to write his or her name on the
questionnaire.
Descriptive statistics was used in the study in which
certain statistical procedures were used to depict and describe
only the population being studied, hence, no generalization to
any larger group. This helped in the organizing, presenting,
analyzing, and interpreting the collected data. Statistical
techniques included frequency distribution, percentage,
weighted mean, and ranking.
A tabulation of the data gathered from the
respondents was facilitated systematically for purposes of
obtaining accurate information relative to each element of the
population. Defined below are the survey scales which a
portion of the tabulation was derived from:

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Scale

Range

4.01-5.00

Descriptive
Rating
Outstanding

3.01-4.00

Satisfactory

2.01-3.00

Fair

1.00-2.00

Poor

Verbal
Interpretation
This represents the
highest degree of
efficient and effective
performance beyond
moderation
This represents a
satisfactory degree of
performance
This represents a
neutral stand on the
survey issues
This represents the
highest degree of
inefficient and
ineffective
performance.

Results
The status of implementation of the MSME financing
program of the DBP refers to the condition of carrying out
the MSME program along manpower, money, method,
machine, and memoranda.
A. Manpower
The respondents confirmed there is manpower
deficiency for the entire SME Centers in the Bicol Region
pertaining, but not limited, to SME AOs, loan
recommendation reviewers, and team leader. On the other
hand, it is demonstrated that the insufficient quantity of
handling AOs for Bicol accounts stemmed from the inability
of the SME AOs to conduct a quarterly project visit to all the
accounts, a protocol which is mandatory for the bank. The

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effort being exerted by the management in hiring additional

manpower has been observed to be insufficient.
However, the borrowers were pleased that the SME
AOs were able to visit their respective businesses prior to
loan approval. The capabilities of the handling SME AOs
together with the designation of individual targets and
responsibilities were seen workable. SME AOs receive the
sufficient quantity of trainings, which according to one of the
respondents, should be within 3-5 trainings in a year. More
so, in the instance that evaluation of the loan applications,
loan renewals, and other supplemental recommendations, had
been completed, such transactions were approved,
authenticated, and legally reviewed by the appropriate
authorities or personnel.
Accordingly, the status of the implementation of the
MSME program yielded a neutral stand on the issue of
manpower.
B. Money
The non-collection of service fee for savings and/or
checking accounts that do not meet the Average Daily
Balance (ADB) that should be maintained in the bank
account/s has been noted. One of the respondents
conferred that the collection has never been practiced,
even prior to the MSME accounts centralization.
Likewise, the banks reduction in past due rate was not
met.
An average rating was attained for the timely release
of loan proceeds. It can be inferred that the target
amount of releases of the MSME sector of the bank is
attained for certain months, but not all the time.
Nonetheless it did not limit the capacity of the MSME
financing program to slightly increase the banks loan
portfolio, either by having new accounts or increase in
the loan of existing accounts.

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DBP being a government bank has the capability to

provide lower interest rates as compared to other private
and rural banks. The borrowers and employees were
delighted and contented with the efficiency and
reasonability of the interest rate that they currently
experience and offer in the bank. There is transparency
on the part of the bank as to the computation of the
interest rate, and the factors involved directly affecting
the interest rate. Contrary to the study of John Ackah and
Sylvester Vuvor, MSMEs in Bicol region are not
apprehensive as to the high interest rate in obtaining bank
financing.
Prompt payment of principal loan obligations on its
promissory note (PN) maturity date has also been noted.
Thus, causing a satisfactory target on the principal
collections. Likewise, a timely collection on the interest
payments, either monthly or quarterly basis, is being
practiced.
The payment by the borrowers of their mandatory life
and/or property insurance is considered as one of the
areas with high financial vulnerability. It is the primary
task of the SME AO to ensure collection of the said
insurance, which showed a fitting implementation. The
SME AOs and loan-booking units were successful in the
collection of necessary fees prior to loan release, as well
as in meeting the target collections on interest.
The borrowers attested the satisfactory degree of
performance of MSME AOs and operations personnel in
ensuring the payment of the mandatory fees prior to the
release of the loan proceeds.
This indicator is one of the known areas looked upon
by the Commission on Audit, Internal Audit, and BSP.
Failure to obtain the payment is an automatic ground for
audit findings, thus, decreasing the performance level of
the personnel, as well as of the entire bank.

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C. Method
The complete turn-around-time of the loan from
submission of complete set of documents up to the loan
release should be thirty (30) days. However, a longer
period on the processing of the loan has been revealed.
This turn-around-time for the signing of legal documents,
a pre-requisite procedure for the approved loan and/or
transaction implementation, entailed unnecessary extent
of time and monetary expenses on the part of the bank
and the borrowers. More so, the conduct of interest rate
review on a per account and per loan availment basis, is
rarely undertaken as required, by the SME AOs.
As stated in the banks Circular No. 15 dated May 4,
2015, a simultaneous evaluation of the account must be
done by the SME AO and the Credit and Appraisal
Management. However, said procedure is deemed
practiced conventionally. New clients were screened
properly upon their initial approach with the SME AO.
It is noteworthy that the SME AO satisfactorily
performed the inspection of the completeness of the loan
documents submitted by the loan applicants as well as the
SME AOs assurance on the compliance with the findings
of the credit committee. Both activities are relevant for
the final signing of approval by the appropriate
authorities. Noticeable in the data is the proper conduct
of review in the SME Department- Head Office, of the
loan recommendation prior to endorsement for the
Credit Committees deliberation for approval.
Lastly, after the approval-signing of the loan
recommendation and compliance with the conditions
prior to the release of the loan proceeds are satisfactorily
prepared.
Among the items being verified by audit institutions is
the observance of the compliance by the borrower and
AO with conditions prior to the release of the loan.
Notably, the satisfactory practice of this compliance gives

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good indication of the prevention of related audit

findings in the future.
D. Machine
Company-provided transportation is unavailable to
SME AOs in the Bicol Region.
The DBPs systems compatibility with other banks
indicated a wide gap for an updated and modern loan banking
system. The employees have witnessed that the SME AOs do
not have their own direct line and local phone connection,
and one of whom have not yet been issued a company-owned
computer or laptop.
Marketing personnel utilize the Credit Information
Builder (CrIB), a loan marketing system, for the input of the
borrowers data, in the preparation of transaction medium for
recommendation to the DBP Head Office. However, despite
the presence of this system, it is still far from competition
with the technology of other banks.
In terms of provision of Local Area Network (LAN)
connection for the SME AOs, the management has provided
an average facility. Branch delegated SME AOs communicate
entirely with the Head Office personnel through e-mail, duly
connected in the LAN. Without this facility, information,
updates, and notice take some time to be delivered to
branches.
Another necessary facility for SME AOs in the proper
and timely conduct of responsibilities is the allocation of at
least one computer set, fully provided by the DBP.
It was observed in SMEC-Legazpi that the AO
utilizes a personal laptop in the conduct of daily work.
The strategic location of SME Centers in the
downtown area of various cities has also been attributed to a
satisfactory degree of performance.
Another satisfactory rating was given to the fitting
provision of mobile phone units to each personnel.

131

It signified the borrowers appreciation of the speedy

communication of the SME AOs to their queries and
concerns, irrespective of the various workload that the latter
have.
E. Memoranda
There is dissatisfaction by the employees and
borrowers on the voluminous requirements in applying for a
business loan. Loan officers have an acceptable level of
familiarity with the credit guidelines and policies. This is
somehow the effect of the credit policy portal, which is fully
accessible via LAN. It allows the users to apprehend the new
guidelines and policies disseminated by the DBP Head
Office.
The borrowers appreciate the effort of the SME AOs
on the full disclosure and clarification of the terms and
conditions stated in the loan agreement and other supporting
legal documents. Failure of the AO to orient the borrowers
would be tantamount to failures and mistakes on the part of
the borrower for their succeeding transactions, thus, enabling
the occurrence of past due accounts, among others.
The initial evaluation of new loan applications using
the credit scoring system was perceived to be functioning
pleasingly.
The employees and borrowers revealed a fair
condition of the status of the implementation of the MSME
financing program of the DBP. It can be deduced that the
implementation is acted upon on a reasonable basis.
Meanwhile, the challenges encountered in the
implementation of the MSME financing program of the DBP
involved manpower, money, method, machine, and
memoranda.
Along
manpower
complement,
manpower
outsourcing, and conduct of quarterly project visit by the AO,
were the utmost problems currently being experienced by the
DBP in the Bicol Region pertaining to manpower.

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The normal ratio of loan accounts and loan officer is

10:1. At present, ratio for SME Center-Legazpi is 35:1, 19:1
for SME Center-Daet, 15:1 for SME Center-Daet, and 16:1
for SME Center-Sorsogon. As a result, SME AOs scarcely
have the time to go out for official business travel to conduct
projects visits, client calls, and other agency verifications. The
approved organizational plan for SMEC-Bicol, as seen in
Table 2, provides for the hiring and delegation of a Team
Leader solely focusing on Bicol region accounts, and two (2)
AOAs to assist AOs from Virac, Daet, and Sorsogon in the
evaluation of loan applications. Whereas, Masbate and
Legazpi are ought to its own AOAs due to the volume of
accounts. In contradiction to the approved plan, Bicol region
still shares with the Team Leader of Southern Luzon, much
more for the non-availability of AOAs and additional AOs
for Masbate and Virac.
Consequences of insufficient manpower do not only
relate to borrowers, but to employees as well. Majority of the
marketing personnel experience fatigue, lack of sleep, physical
relapse, stress, and emotional setbacks. There has been a
delay in the hiring of additional manpower to cater effectively
to the individual needs and demands of the Bicol accounts.
According to the human resource and administrative
personnel in the DBP Head Office, the delay in the hiring is
attributable to the deficiency of passers in the entrance
examination, lack of applicants from the locality, and the slow
processing in the Human Resource and Management
Department for the papers of the applicants and passers alike.
More so, the concern on the convenience of the AOs
to conduct quarterly project visits for every account seemed
to be a worrying factor both for the employees and the
borrowers. Legazpi has the most number of accounts.
However, only 16 out of 28 borrowers from Legazpi ranked
the indicator as poor, compared to the Sorsogon, Naga, and
Daet borrowers in which all the accounts gave the poor
ranking. This implies that the current manpower setting

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inadvertently calls for inadequate monitoring of the status,

existence, profitability, and background of the existing
accounts. When continuously practiced, it may result to poor
evaluation of accounts for loan renewal, and increase in past
due rate.
On money, the management found it difficult to
collect the service fee from the borrowers due to the nonattainment of ADB maintenance on the borrowers savings
and/or checking accounts. To enact the collection would be
tantamount to complaints from the borrowers since the very
purpose of them in obtaining bank financing is the lack of
capital, and yet they are required to maintain at least 3% of
their outstanding principal balance (OBP) on their respective
bank accounts.
The number of past due accounts increased upon the
centralization of the MSME program. There was significant
increase in the accounts turning past due for Daet. All the
borrowers from SMEC-Daet signified a poor rating on this
area. It is an implication that either the existing past due
accounts are still on the same status, or the other existing
accounts with current status fear of their accounts turning
sour due to the untimely renewal of the loans. Next to Daet is
Legazpi where 12 out of 28 accounts remain past due.
With regards to method, the most intricate area as
observed by all the external respondents is the complete turnaround-time of thirty (30) days from loan application to loan
approval. It is the same scenario, which the internal
respondents, the borrowers, had also difficulty in dealing
with, then clearly symbolizing the borrowers dissatisfaction
over the poor processing of loan application approval.
Notably, Legazpi has the longest processing time of loan,
from evaluation to loan release. As identified by one of the
respondents during the interview, the account took more
than a year prior to approval of the loan. More so, the lack of
manpower resulted to the contribution of prolonged
processing time for loan applications, either new or

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additional. Additional factor for the delay is the immense

volume of accounts that SMEC-Legazpi has, having 28
accounts in total, a quantity which is below the normal ratio
of account to AO of 10:1. When verified from the e-mail
correspondences and transmittal of documents, it further
showed that other departments involved in the entire credit
process contribute at large to the length of processing time
such as the credit and risk review departments, credit and
appraisal units, and legal review unit.
Another issue on the turn-around-time is the signing
of the legal documents. SME AOs will draft the legal
documents and send it via-email to the Regional Office of the
Legal Council in Naga City for review. It normally takes one
week before the final drafts of the legal documents are
returned to the AO for printing and signing of the borrowers.
Once signed, the legal documents are then sent via courier to
the DBP Head Office in Makati City for the signature of the
SMILE Department Head (DH), and consequent
notarization on the DH part. It then takes 2 weeks before the
signed and notarized legal documents are returned to the
respective SME Center. Once received, notarization on the
part of the borrowers can then commence.
Women entrepreneurs from Ghana, India expressed
as well that to finance their businesses, they would rather
prefer spending their own personal savings than obtain bank
loan. The study of Cham reasoned that the hesitance was due
to the slow and bureaucratic processing, an incident which is
likewise experienced here in the Philippines.
As per inquiry from one of the SME AOs, the cause
of the inability to conduct interest rate review is due to the
inadvertent non-performance of other AO monitoring
functions due to voluminous accounts.
Meanwhile, there is lack of bank service vehicle for
the SME AOs. This is one causal factor for the poor rating
obtained in the conduct of projects visits; another is the
conduct of other governmental agency transactions. Loan

135

personnel take the public utility vehicles to conduct field

works which is time-consuming, physically degrading, and
expensive.
The compatibility of the banks systems as compared
with other private banks, and even some, with rural banks,
was considered as another factor for the delay in the
processing of loans and related transactions. These
predicaments on technology hinder the capacity for a faster
timetable on loan processing and release.
Lastly is the concern on the direct landline and local
phone connections. For an AO handling voluminous
accounts, calls are made to clients several times a day, taking
at most hours on the phone. It is such a predicament to
continuously share the phone with the operations personnel
due to their timely usage as well of the unit. More so,
borrowers who do not have their own mobile phones, solely
rely on the landline units to contact the concerned AO.
It was a setback for borrowers in complying with the
numerous loan requirements. DBP is a government bank
which is subject to rigorous audit by different government
and external bodies, thereby creating series of requirements,
as mandated by BSP, in granting loan facility. However, the
businessmen, specially the micro and small entrepreneurs, do
not have adequate knowledge and time in procuring some of
the requirements which are redundant in nature. Feedback
from certain borrowers reflected that private banks require
lesser requirements, and yet loans are being granted. This is
the same challenge that Nishanth discovered in this study,
where the concern of the majority of the respondents was the
many formalities in availing financing from banks. Nishanth
even proposed for the Indian government and banks to
review their existing policies on the documentary
requirements in availing credit from banks, thereby putting
into effect a speedier release of the loan proceeds.

136

Discussion
The status of implementation of the MSME program
of the DBP in the Bicol Region represents a neutral stand on
the survey issues that included (1) Manpower- manpower
complement, manpower outsourcing, and conduct of
quarterly project visit of the SME AO; (2) Money- reduction
of past due accounts, and collection of service fee for not
meeting ADB requirement; (3) Method- turn-around-time
for the signing of legal documents, complete turn-aroundtime for thirty days from the loan application to loan release,
and conduct of interest rate review; (4) Machine- availability
of bank service vehicle, state-of-the-art technology,
compatibility with other banks systems, and provision of
direct landline and local phone connection; and (5)
Memoranda- quantity of loan application requirements.
On manpower, the study revealed that Legazpi
accounts had the most concern for the insufficient manpower
complement and manpower outsourcing with the equivalent
28:1 accounts to AO ratio. This in effect instigated the
inadvertent lack of quarterly project visits or client calls for
sufficient evaluation and monitoring.
Along money, findings revealed that the entire region
had difficulties in obtaining the service fee as a penalty for the
accounts for non-maintenance of ADB on their current or
savings account/s, either due to fear of complaints from
clients, or has never been practiced before. Past due accounts
are increasing in quantity in all the SME Centers in the Bicol
region, primarily in SMEC-Daet and SMEC-Legazpi. Target
versus actual past due rate revealed: Daet with 0.00% vs.
19%; Legazpi with 21.61% vs 58%; and Sorsogon and Naga
with 0.02% with 21%.
In terms of method, the turn-around-time (TAT) for
the processing of new loan applications, renewal of loans,
and additional loans, from evaluation to release of proceeds,
was the primary problem by borrowers and employees, with a
resulting 100% affirmation and costs both for the bank and

137

borrowers, on top of the intangible effects of stress, fatigue,

and physical illness arising from the former.
On machine, the bank lacks adequate physical
facilities to facilitate an efficient, timely, and effective
performance of duties and responsibilities by the SME AOs,
and operations personnel directly involved in the loan
transactions.
The bureaucratic and overwhelming quantity of
documentary requirements for loan application provided the
most setbacks not just for the borrowers, but for the AOs
handling the accounts as well It results to opportunity loss
and a contributing factor for the delay in the loan processing.
This is an issue along memoranda.
The study concluded that upon the implementation
of the MSME Program in the Bicol Region, it established a
fair performance and has done its operations as planned. The
policies, guidelines, and procedures stated in the Banks
circulars were appropriately carried out in several areas,
though not in totality.
Nevertheless, negative fallouts from the areas of
manpower, money, method, machine, and memoranda were
brought about predominantly by: (1) the lack of manpower in
the marketing and administrative units; (2) quantity of
documentary requirements for loan application; and (3)
inadequate provision of physical logistics facilities. It can be
inferred that the major constraints give out a domino effect,
thereby, causing the other exposed problems and
inconsistencies.
Micro and small enterprises are well capable and have
the greatest potential to upgrade their livelihood and
contribute to the countrys economic growth and
development, by creating their own business ventures and
expansion in the long run. Needless to say, these are
hampered by lack of capital, and likewise, the problems posed
by the borrowers with regard to the MSME program of the
DBP do not only provide discouragement for the aspiring

138

entrepreneurs, but block existing businesses in their way to

progress as well.
The development Bank of the Philippines has the
primary mandate to implement and monitor the Magna Carta
for Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises by the Bangko
Sentral ng Pilipinas. The feedback from this study outweighs
the objective of the BSP and DBP to provide utmost
assistance to micro, small, and medium enterprises in the
Philippines to upgrade growth, competitiveness, employment,
and export.
The root cause for the most part of the observed
challenges is the lack of manpower. Considering the
approved organizational plan of the MSME unit, the Human
Resource and Management Group of the bank should do
their part and speed up their processing time. Regardless of
the number of applicants and passers, if the approval and
timeframe for their papers take more than a year, the
momentum and efforts exerted by the administrative unit of
the MSME Department will be pointless.
Once this area is addressed, other areas of concern
will likewise be addressed. SME AOs will have the normal
ratio of accounts, thereby allowing the timely monitoring of
accounts in terms of loan payments, timely processing of loan
renewals, timely conduct of interest rate review, and quarterly
visits to the projects of the borrowers. As an end product, the
occurrence of accounts turning sour will be prevented.
Likewise, additional manpower with the sole
responsibility of evaluating new loan applicants must be in
place. This will relieve duplication of duties for the SME AO,
thus, the assurance of focus, accuracy, and timely processing
of loan recommendations for approval of the Credit
Committee.
The delegation of Bicol-based Team Leader and
Credit Committee solely for Bicol Region is also
recommended. This will not only emphasize supervision on
the accounts in need of primary attention, but reduce as well

139

the TAT for the signing of legal documents necessary for the
implementation and booking of an approved loan. The legal
documents are sent to the Head Office since Bicol region
does not have yet its own Team Leader and Credit
Committee to conduct the approvals and signing of loan legal
documents.
The management should give priority to the
procurement of bank service vehicle at least one unit for the
region. The SME Centers in Legazpi, Daet, Naga, and
Sorsogon could just take turns in the usage if the vehicle by
proper planning of their individual itineraries. Addressing this
concern will compensate another solution to the concern of
lack of projects visits to accounts prior to loan approval and
monitoring of accounts.
Should the above recommendations be carried out,
their implementation would reach out a long way for the
advancement and promotion of MSME activities, thus, a
significant contribution to the Philippine economy.
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144

ON POSTMODERNISM, CULTURE, AND FAITH:

RELATIONSHIP AND POSSIBILITIES
Danilo N. Keh Jr.
Alvin A. Sario
Introduction
This study analyzes and adequately conceptualizes the
engaging phenomenon of Postmodernism. Its aim is to cite a
range of concepts that have, under the banner of the
Postmodernism, sought to explain, enhance and even criticize
the tenets of this contemporary world. Through doing this,
it will build up a picture of Postmodernism and
Postmodernity that will allow readers to begin to approach
the primary texts of postmodern theory and culture with
confidence.25In addition, this study also explores the
concepts of culture and faith as they are seen to interact and
even fuse with one another to help people make sense of
reality given this postmodern setting.
1. Postmodernism in Context
The world today moves at an almost
incomprehensible rate. Space and time almost shrink to
nothing as people move around the world at breakneck
speed. Cultures, traditions, religions, and moral perspectives
clash giving rise to new practices and ideas that either
transform or annihilate the identity of people. Sovereignty
between peoples and nations has become more fluid that the
once impenetrable ideas and practices now have become
relatively insignificant. The world is now, quite literally, at
our fingertips as we choose and purchase lifestyles from
Simon Malpas, The Postmodern (London: Routledge,
2005), p. 1.
25

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wherever we please, eclectically piecing together patchworks

of images and signs to produce our identities.26
In the words of French postmodern theorist JeanFranois Lyotard,
We now live in a world where Eclecticism is
the degree zero of contemporary general
culture: you listen to reggae; you watch a
western; you eat McDonalds at midday and
local cuisine at night; you wear Paris perfume
in Tokyo and dress retro in Hong Kong;
knowledge is the stuff of TV game shows. . . .
Together, artist, gallery owner, critic, and
public indulge one another in the Anything
Goes it is time to relax.27
Anything goes is the most profound image of
Postmodernity. The purported essence of Postmodernism lies
in its capacity to fabricate and form new trends and ideas that
sometimes define or deny peoples truth-claims. Anything
considered true may be false and what was once considered
false may now be deemed as true. On the one hand,
Postmodernism is celebrated as the end of philosophical
self-delusion, a critical attack on all the oppressive
metanarratives and the final dissolution of foundational
thought. On the other hand, Postmodernism is denounced as
relativistic, nihilistic, irrational and hyperrational.28 It is
Ibid., p. 1.
Jean-Franois Lyotard,The Postmodern Explained,
trans. Don Barry, Bernadette Maher, Julian Pefanis, Virginia
Spate and Morgan Thomas (Minneapolis: University of
Minnesota Press, 1992), p. 8.
28
William Grassie, Postmodernism: What One
Needs to Know, in Zygon: Journal of Religion and Science, Vol.
32, Issue 1(March, 1997).
26
27

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within this milieu that human beings find themselves

treading. It reminds them that their truth-claims and their
knowledge about themselves might have been, and might yet
be, otherwise. This paper argues that Postmodernity poses a
big opportunity for self-rediscovery and at the same time, a
great challenge for the dominant institutions who claimed to
be the standard of what is true, good and beautiful.
2. Nature of Postmodernism
2.1 Lyotards Definition of Postmodernism

Postmodernism is the current trend of this

contemporary world. It is thus necessary to begin with a
straightforward definition of Postmodernism, one that sums
it up and grasps, in its essence, what it is all about. This
definition could then be explained and developed to provide
a broad basis for an understanding of the phenomenon that
would show how it is relevant to contemporary culture and
important for the future.29
Postmodernity uses the prefix post meaning after.
Hence, Postmodernity literally means after modernity. This
term is used to describe the historical period that has,
presumably, succeeded modernity.30 But there is more to this
definition than meets the eye. The complex relationship of
Modernity and Postmodernity is not just a mere historical
succession. In a short but very important essay called Note
on the Meaning of Post-, written in 1985, Lyotard attempts
to tackle precisely this question by suggesting that the relation
of the postmodern to the modern takes the form of a
tripartite structure.
Malpas, The Postmodern, p. 4.
Bryan Taylor, Postmodern Theory in Engaging
Organizational Communication Theory and Research, eds., Steve
May and Dennis Mumby (USA: Sage Publications, Inc.,
2005), p. 114.
29
30

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The first relationship briefly explains a change from

one period to another. Postmodernity is a new period
different from the earlier ones.
This perspective is that the post- of postmodernism
has the sense of a simple succession, a diachronic sequence of
periods in which each one is clearly identifiable. The postindicates something like a conversion: a new direction from
the previous one.31
Second relationship enunciates the decline in the
moral and scientific ascendancy of people. It identifies
Postmodernity as a moment at which innovation and
development can no longer be equated with progress.32 It is
a time when most changes are negative and despite lifes
conveniences, people are inevitably in the process of
retrogression. In Lyotards words, it is
a kind of decline in the confidence that, for
two centuries, the West invested in the
principle of a general progress of humanity. . .
. It is no longer possible to call development
progress. It seems to proceed of its own
accord, with a force, an autonomous
motoricity that is independent of us. It does
not answer to demands issuing from human
needs. On the contrary, human entities
whether social or individual always seem
destabilized by the results and implications of
development.33
Third, Postmodernity does not seek to replace
modernity but a reminder for human beings to unceasingly
re-evaluate traditional concepts and beliefs which may prove
Lyotard, The Postmodern Explained, p. 76.
Malpas, The Postmodern, p.43.
33
Lyotard, The Postmodern Explained, pp. 77-78.
31
32

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ineffectual in this ever changing world. Postmodernity is not

a new age, but rather the name for a collection of critiques
that seek to challenge the premises of those discourses that
have shaped modern experience. It is thus a critical attitude
within the modern rather than a replacement of it.34
The question of Postmodernity is also, or first of all, a
question of expressions of thought: in art, literature,
philosophy and politics. . . . [It involves] a kind of work, a
long, obstinate, and highly responsible work concerned with
investigating the assumptions implicit in modernity... [It is] a
working through (durcharbeiten) performed by modernity on its
own meaning.35
The tripartite relationship of Postmodernism to
Modernism argues that Postmodernism and its concepts do
not seek to replace the existing sciences, religions, cultures
and philosophies. On the contrary, its aim is to find out how
modern ideas have come into existence and how their
interplay directly influences an individuals way of life.
Postmodernism does not seek to abolish but rather to
replenish; it does not seek to negate but to confirm what is
and what is not. Postmodernism encourages people to
recheck, rethink and reevaluate everything about themselves.
It serves as the filter so that modernity would reach the end it
was destined for.
In order to understand the implications of the
postmodern, it is but vital to have some sense of what
Modernity is. The very construction of the terms
Postmodernism and Modernism points to an indubitable fact:
Postmodernism only makes sense when connected to
Modernism. It is not by chance but by need that this paper
deals with some aspects of the modern period.

34
35

Malpas, The Postmodern, p. 44.

Lyotard, ThePostmodern Explained, p. 79-80.

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2.2 Modernity and Postmodernity

Modernity, put simply, is the period of the new.36 It
is in this period that the world saw different innovations in
philosophy, technology, religion, art and politics. It is deeply
characterized by change and transformation. This is the
reason why modernity comes to be identified as a period
guided by humankinds striving for continual progress. 37
Nothing was exempted from modern innovations that
continually and directly influence the life of the community
and the individual. It is often characterized by the triumph of
reason over medieval superstition and ignorance. It is the
period of creativity, openness and acceptance directed against
the rigidness and exclusivity of the Middle Ages.
Modernity is characterized by several dominant
elements. These elements include:
1. The development of
mechanical and electrical
technologies, and the
associated industrialization of
production;
2. Theoretical revolutions in the
physical and social sciences,
many of which reflected
positivist faith in achieving
objective knowledge of
phenomena;
3. Large-scale demographic
upheaval, including
cataclysmic urban migration
that disrupted rural, agrarian,
and communal traditions;
36
37

Malpas, The Postmodern, p. 46.

Ibid., p. 49.

150

4. The growth of consumer

capitalism;
5. The rise of multinational
corporations and the
internationalization of
markets;
6. The normalization of
instrumental rationality
(i.e., narrow means-end
reasoning) and bureaucracy
as paradigms for social life;
7. The development of
powerful mass media systems
that enable both totalitarian
control of publics and their
fragmentation into markets
and audiences;
8. The growth of nation-states
projecting ideological
influence and military force
throughout the globe; and
finally,
9. A drastically fluctuating
world economy that binds
the fates of nation states
through international trade
and loans.38
In Jrgen Habermas book Modernity: An Unfinished
Project, he argues that modernity is characterized by,
separation of substantive reason, formerly
expressed in religious or metaphysical
Taylor, Postmodern Theory in Engaging Organizational
Communication Theory and Research, pp. 114-115.
38

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worldviews, into three moments, now capable

of being connected only formally with one
another. . . . In so far as the worldviews have
disintegrated and their traditional problems
have been separated off under the
perspectives of truth, normative rightness and
authenticity or beauty, and can now be treated
as questions of knowledge, justice or taste
respectively, there arises in the modern period
a differentiation of the value sphere of science
and knowledge, of morality and of art.39
Habermas contends that the rise of scientific and
logical inquiries has defeated the outlandish explanations of
mythology and religion about nature, experience and morality.
Modernity enabled the world to be more intelligible to
people. It is a period that gave rise to humanism. It
understands the world in terms of the recognition that human
beings are the basis of knowledge and action, are inherently
valuable and dignified, and have free will. It is the epoch of
gradual emancipation from superstition and mysticism as the
Enlightenment, which became central to philosophical
thought during the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries,
sought to provide a rational and scientific basis for human
experience.40
The Middle Ages commonly known as the Dark Ages
champions the idea of faith over the believer and Truth over
truth. It sees people as subordinate to a divine agency.
Everything makes sense when looked through the glasses of
Jrgen Habermas, Modernity: An Unfinished Project, in
Maurizio PasserindEntrves and SeylaBenhabib (1996)
Habermas and the Unfinished Project of Modernity: Critical
Essays on the Philosophical Discourse of Modernity
(Cambridge Polity Press, 1996), p. 45.
40
Malpas, The Postmodern, p. 33.
39

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faith. Absolute truth resides inside the walls of the Church

and is manifested in her teachings. Outside the Church is
nothing but falsity. The Church even extended this to the
salvation of souls. No one is saved who does not live and
dies as a Roman Catholic.41
However, the modern man holds the conviction that
faith is not anymore the criterion of truth. Modernism
therefore acknowledges the primacy of reason over faith and
God. Reason must set the standard of truth and falsity, and of
goodness and evil. Human beings actively create and imbibe
the truth under the banner of reason. Truth is not something
given from above but something coming from peoples
rationality. In everything, reason becomes the basis, the
starting and end points of things. The Period of Faith is now
just a thing of the past. To be modern is to be caught up in
the inevitable progress of history: to have ones roots swept
away into the past as one journeys into a future that promises
to be radically different.42
Differentiation of the Middle Ages from the Period of
Modernity
The modern project rejects faith as the ultimate
criterion for truth. In fact, it only comes second to reason.
Modernitys rejection of mythology and religion as a
foundation for knowledge heightens the awareness of the
important role that history plays in the construction of
human identity and culture. The idea that there are eternal
truths and transcendent structures that organize reality was
gradually replaced by analyses based on notions of historical
Curtis Jahn, Extra EcclesiamNullaSalus (Outside the
Church, No Salvation): A Story of Doctrinal Development in the
Catholic Church as it Pertains to Catholic Views of Non-Christians,
p. 5.
42
Malpas, The Postmodern, p. 48.
41

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development and progress towards enlightenment and

justice.43
At the beginning of The Philosophical Discourse of
Modernity, Habermas cites a key passage from the preface to
the Phenomenology of Spirit, written by the influential German
philosopher G.W.F. Hegel and first published in 1807, which
powerfully evokes this idea of progress and transformation:
our time is a birth and transition to a new period. The Spirit
has broken with what was hitherto the world of its existence
and imagination and is about to submerge all this in the past;
it is at work giving itself a new form. . . . [F]rivolity as well as
the boredom that open up in the establishment and the
indeterminate apprehension of something unknown are
harbingers of a forthcoming change. The gradual crumbling .
. . is interrupted by the break of day, that like lightning, all at
once reveals the edifice of the new world.44
Habermas agrees with Hegel that rationality and
reality are historically determined and human beings have the
capacity to radically and deliberately transform their society
into a more promising one. There are no eternal truths that
one can adhere to. There is no divine plan written by a divine
hand. The future lies in peoples hands. Modernism places
high value on peoples freedom and their capacity to make
things meaningful for them.
In addition, Habermas argues alongside with Karl
Marx that,
It was no longer intellectual elites who
experienced the release of the life world from
boundaries fixed by tradition; in the Communist
Manifesto Marx could already appeal to
everyday experience when he traced the
Ibid., p. 53.
Jrgen Habermas, The Philosophical Discourse of
Modernity: Twelve Lectures, trans. Frederick Lawrence
(Cambridge: Polity Press, 1987), p. 6.
43
44

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uninterrupted disturbance of all social

conditions, everlasting uncertainty and
agitation back to the revolution in the modes
of production and exchange. . . . Only what
has, since the start of the nineteenth century,
been called a social movement can liberate
mankind . . .45
Habermas shares the same conviction with Marx that
since human nature is not divinely given or eternally fixed but
develops from a social context which is historically mutable,
this nature can be changed. If changes in culture and society
can change human experience, then there is a point in
challenging existing structures in order to liberate those who
are oppressed or marginalized, and this struggle is a practical
social one rather than just an intellectual exercise.46 The
point of Modernism is not just reason but also action.
Peoples reason prompts them to overturn standards of
judgment, thought-patterns, lifestyle and sources of
inspiration in favor of the affluent and powerful members of
society.
Confidence in reason has been the foundation of
Modernity. Inevitably reason replaced faith as the sole basis
of peoples truth claims. And it is through this renewed
confidence in the inherent power of human beings that made
them active participants in co-creating a better world.
Without exaggeration, Modernity served as the beacon for
progress and success. Nevertheless, if modernity has been the
epoch of human development, why did it end? Did
confidence in reason waver? What follows then is a
discussion of the birth of Postmodernism. The succeeding
part also includes an exploration of the main protagonists of
45
46

Ibid., pp. 60-61.

Malpas, The Postmodern, p. 54.

155

Postmodernism and their ideas that helped shape the

Postmodern era.
2.3 Nietzsche, Foucault and Derrida
Any intellectual movement is characterized by its
philosophical premises. Those premises state what it takes to
be real, what it is to be human, what is valuable and how
knowledge is acquired.47 Therefore, any intellectual
movement has a metaphysics, an ethics and an epistemology.
Postmodernism claims itself as anti-philosophical since it
rejects traditional concepts of truth, beauty, goodness and
being. Absolute standards that used to define what is good,
true, and beautiful are now regarded as obsolete and
irrelevant. The fixed points established and maintained all
throughout the Middle Ages until Modernity are beginning to
collapse. Postmodernity becomes a journey into unknown
territory where the old cultural constraints no longer apply,
and our collective security is potentially compromised.48
Postmodernity is said to be,
a social formation that takes root in the last
years of the nineteenth century, puts forth its
first shoots amid the social, economic and
military conflicts that scarred the first half of
the twentieth, and comes into its own about
the middle of that century as it replaces the
modern as the dominant form of cultural and
social organization. Trends such as
globalization, the transformations of colonial
Stephen Hicks, Explaining Postmodernism: Skepticism
and Socialism from Rousseau to Foucault (Wisconsin: Scholargy
Publishing, 2004), p. 6
48
Arnold Tonybee, A Study of History, Vol. IX
(Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2002), p. 17.
47

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power, the development of new media and

communication networks, and the collapse of
religious and political traditions and beliefs
across the world all appear to point towards a
culture that has rapidly become fundamentally
different from that experienced by earlier
generations. The threat of the obliteration of
all existence, whether brought about by
nuclear war or natural catastrophe, has
weighed on ideas of what it is to be part of a
community or society, and even what it is to
be human, forcing thorough going
reconceptualization of some of the most basic
categories of philosophical, social and political
thought.49
Postmodernists
reject
the
epistemological
foundationalism50 that puts reason on a pedestal. It is not that
postmodernists are irrational. They do not reject reason but
Reason. They deny the notion of universal rationality; reason
is rather a contextual and relative affair.51 What counts as
rational and universal is relative to the established narrative
and discourse in a given society. Postmodernism maintains
that reason is always situated within particular narratives,
traditions, institutions and practices. This situatedness
conditions what people deem rational.52
Malpas, The Postmodern, p. 34.
Epistemological Foundationalism maintains that
some beliefs are properly basic and that the rest of ones
beliefs inherit their knowledge or justification in virtue of
receiving proper support from the basic beliefs.
51
Kevin Vanhoozer, The Cambridge Companion to
Postmodern Theology (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press,
2003), p. 10.
52
Ibid., p. 10.
49
50

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Nicolaus Copernicus, in his Heliocentric Theory,

demonstrated that the sun did not revolve around the Earth.
It is the other way around. Further decentering happened
when it was discovered that the solar system where human
beings belong is just one of the many solar systems in the
galaxy. The postmodern variation of this Copernican
revolution is just as far-reaching: instead of history and
culture revolving around reason, reason is now seen to orbit
particular cultures and particular times in distinctive ways.53
The modern world and the certainties that go along
with it are now vulnerable to new possibilities and dangers.
Reason which serves as the only foundation for peoples
truth-claims is now being criticized left and right. Grand
claims, which for the longest time have provided constancy
and stability, are proven ineffectual or even hostile. Reason,
as the filter for human experience, has lost its grand place
insofar as postmodernism adheres to the basic assumption
that reason is just one of the many sources of peoples truthclaims. The overall skepticism in regard to truth claims
which appears to be an ingredient in all flavors of
Postmodern thought would seem to rule out the possibility of
making general statements about the social world.54
What follows then is a discussion of Postmodern
philosophers who despite employing different methodologies
and espousing varied articulations of Postmodernism share a
common contempt for reason. All condemned reason as a
totally artificial and limiting faculty, one that must be
abandoned in the bold quest to embrace reality.55
Ibid., p. 10.
Ron Brown, The Eclipse of Social Theory: Influence of
Nietzsche on Postmodern Thought (Canada: Simon Fraser
University, 1993), p. 1.
55
Hicks, Explaining Postmodernism: Skepticism and
Socialism from Rousseau to Foucault, p. 51.
53
54

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2.3.1 Friedrich Nietzsche

Nietzsche is one of the key thinkers of
postmodernism. Together with the other postmodern
philosophers, he looks at reason with disdain. He rejected
the values of the enlightenment and enlightenment
philosophers such as Descartes who held that the capacity to
reason is the basis of what makes us human.56 For him, the
rise of the rational man meant the fall of his other faculties.
For when reason takes over, human beings
no longer possess their former guides, their
regulating unconscious and infallible drives:
they were reduced to thinking, inferring,
reckoning, co-coordinating cause and effect,
these unfortunate creatures, they were
reduced to their consciousness, their weakest
and most fallible organ.57
Nietzsche argues that human beings are not solely
defined by their rational capacity. His intention is to
demystify the concept of reason by stripping it off of its
transcendental claims. 58Our capacity to reason is not as
objectively reliable as enlightenment philosophers claimed,
M. Guy Thompson, Postmodernism and
Psychoanalysis: A Heideggerian Critique of Postmodern
Malaise and the Question of Authenticity, in Way Beyond
Freud: Postmodern Psychoanalysis Observed (London: Open Gate
Press, 2004), p. 175.
57
Friedrich Nietzsche, Genealogy of Morals (Oxford:
Oxford University Press, 1996) in Hicks, Explaining
Postmodernism: Skepticism and Socialism from Rousseau to Foucault,
p. 56.
58
Brown, The Eclipse of Social Theory: Influence of
Nietzsche on Postmodern Thought, p. 24.
56

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because humans are driven by passions, the source of which

is usually unconscious.59 If people then cannot arrive at truth
through the power of reason, then is knowledge of the truth
still possible? Or better yet, is there such a thing as truth?
Nietzsche is an advocate of perspectivism. This view
denies the existence of facts, and insists there are only
interpretations of the world. Since the world is devoid of any
single meaning, but rather a variety of meanings,
perspectivism seeks multiple interpretations of phenomena
and insists there is no limit to the ways in which the world
can be interpreted.60
Nietzsche champions the idea that truth is
interpretation. He argues that there are no facts, only
interpretations, and he argues that all interpretation is
constituted by the individuals perspectives and is thus
inevitably laden with presuppositions, biases, and
limitations.61 For him, absolute truths which transcend time
and historicity and which provided stability amidst the
parameters of this changing world are just illusory. Reality is
always dependent on who is viewing it. Hence if there is no
fixed reality and no stable vantage point from which to
observe it, knowledge can never be anything but semblance,
art, deception, points of view, and the necessity of
perspectives and errors.62
Nietzsche argues that perspectives provide people
with a venue to interpret reality and make the world
Thompson, Postmodernism and Psychoanalysis: A
Heideggerian Critique of Postmodern Malaise and the Question of
Authenticity, p. 175.
60
Friedrich Nietzsche, The Birth of Tragedy, trans.,
Walter Kaufmann (New York: Vintage Books, 1967), p. 326.
61
Steven Best and Douglas Kellner, The Postmodern
Turn in Philosophy: Theoretical Provocations and Normative Deficits,
(New York: The Guilford Press, 1997), p. 5.
62
Nietzsche, The Birth of Tragedy, p. 23.
59

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intelligible and meaningful for them. They serve as a lookingglass human beings can use to view reality. Reality is what
we interpret it to be and that our interpretations are more
indebted to our passions than to our reasons.63Just as there
are many people in the world, a variety of interpretations
would always be the case. And the more perspectives the
individual has, the more he can see and interpret the world
and the better his chances are to understand and grasp a
particular phenomenon.
The concept of perspectival seeing and
interpretation provides Nietzsche with a critical counter
concept to essentialism: objects do not have an inherent
essence, but will appear differently according to the
perspective from which they are viewed and interpreted and
the context in which they appear.64 Therefore experience
and perspective go hand in hand. There is no one grand
experience that is true to all since every experience is
mediated by the interpretation each individual or group uses.
Because everyones perspective is different, not merely from
one person to another but from one moment or situation to
the next, each of us abides by different truths at different
times and occasions, so the task of ever knowing ourselves
and others is constantly unfolding.65 Nietzsche rejects
absolute truths since truth is wedded to the perspective of
the person who promotes it.66 Indeed for him it is
Thompson, Postmodernism and Psychoanalysis: A
Heideggerian Critique of Postmodern Malaise and the Question of
Authenticity, p.176.
64
Steven Best and Douglas Kellner, The Postmodern
Turn in Philosophy: Theoretical Provocations and Normative Deficits,
p. 5.
65
Thompson, Postmodernism and Psychoanalysis: A
Heideggerian Critique of Postmodern Malaise and the Question of
Authenticity, p. 176.
66
Ibid., p. 179.
63

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interpretation all the way down. The postmodern condition

is therefore one of undecidable and unfinalizable
interpretation.67 Therefore, one of the main characteristics
of postmodernism is perspectival thinking. Nietzsche
spearheaded this concept.
2.3.2 Michel Foucault
Michel Foucault is another great postmodern thinker.
He is considered by some as the greatest of Nietzsches
postmodern disciples. Inevitably, traces of Nietzsches
thoughts appear in his work. It should be noted, however,
that he did not just continue his predecessors work but
fashioned for himself a different way of looking at
postmodernism.
Foucaults works provide an innovative and
comprehensive critique of Modernity. He is hostile to the
idea that reason grants humans their humanity. On the
contrary, he contends that power, not reason, makes humans
who they are. He believes that modern rationality is a
coercive force, dominating the individual through social
institutions, discourses and practices.68 For the longest time,
reason attempted to classify, categorize and regulate all forms
of experience through a systematic and organized fabrication
of discourse and knowledge. Foucault holds that various
human experiences, such as madness or sexuality, become the
objects of intense analysis and scrutiny. They are discursively
(re)constituted within rationalist and scientific frames of

Vanhoozer, The Cambridge Companion to Postmodern

Theology, p. 13.
68
Steven Best and Douglas Kellner, The Postmodern
Theory: Critical Interrogations (New York: Guilford Press, 1991),
p. 43.
67

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reference, within the discourses of modern knowledge, and

thereby made accessible for administration and control.69
Foucault believes that power is the basis of social
relationships. The operation of power cannot be separated
from the treatment of knowledge and discourse. Where
modern theories tend to see knowledge and truth to be
neutral, objective, universal, or vehicles of progress and
emancipation, Foucault analyzes them as integral components
of power and domination.70 In human relations, whatever
they are whether it be a question of communication
verbally, as we are doing right now, or a question of a love
relationship, an institutional or economic relationship
power is always present.71 All individuals exercise power and
are subjected to power through this net-like framework of
social institutions from penal system, hospitals, schools and
others. However, this dominance is typically achieved, not
through explicit and obvious coercion but through a more
subtle and intangible cultural process. Humans become
unaware of the extent to which power affects their lives.
Technologies of power have been subsumed into peoples
natural way of life that traces of them are hardly identified.
These technologies of power take on different forms.
Foucault writes,
Each society has its regime of truth, its
general politics of truth: that is, the types of
discourse which it accepts and makes function
as true; the mechanisms and instances which
enable one to distinguish true and false
statements, the means by which each is
Ibid., p. 43.
Ibid., p. 44.
71
Charles Davis, Religion and the Making of Society:
Essays in Social Theology (Cambridge: Cambridge University
Press, 1994), p. 163.
69
70

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sanctioned; the techniques and procedures

accorded value in the acquisition of truth; the
status of those who are charged with saying
what counts as true.72
The criteria then for determining which interpretation
is correct or valid are presented as a form of social power.
What counts as knowledge is defined by power. Indeed,
knowledge and power become synonymous in this view.73
Foucault believes that the trade of the postmodern thinker is
to expose temporarily these hidden power-knowledge
constellations without erecting a new explanatory
hermeneutic that becomes reified as a new grand theory.74
These new metanarratives would become new instruments of
delusion, oppression, exploitation and alienation. Truth on
this view is a compelling story told by persons in positions of
power in order to perpetuate their way of seeing and
organizing the natural and social world.75
Following
Nietzsche,
Foucault
rejects the
philosophical pretension to take hold of all of reality within
one philosophical system or from one central vantage point.
No single method or universal theory is conclusive enough to
grasp the full meaning of the plurality of discourses, power
play and institutional relationship that comprise postmodern
society. This battle for truth is not for some absolute truth
that can be discovered and accepted, but is a battle about the
rules according to which the true and false are separated and
Paul Rabinow, ed., The Foucault Reader: An
introduction to Foucaults Thought (London, Penguin: Hayward,
Clarissa Rile, 1991).
73
Grassie, Postmodernism: What One Needs to Know in
Zygon: Journal of Religion and Science.
74
Ibid.
75
Vanhoozer, The Cambridge Companion to Postmodern
Theology, p.11.
72

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specific effects of power are attached to the true a battle

about the status of truth and the economic and political role
it plays.76 In a nutshell, postmodernism, through Foucault,
argues that power defines reality through discourses which
take on the forms of seemingly different yet connected
material and social aspects of society.
2.3.3 Jacques Derrida
One cannot think of postmodernism without the
thought on deconstruction. It refers to a series of techniques
for reading texts mostly developed by Jacques Derrida. It
might be said that deconstruction is a way of reading texts
philosophical texts with the intention of making these
texts question themselves, forcing them to take account of
their own contradictions, and exposing the antagonisms they
have ignored or repressed.77
Deconstruction was understood as a response to
structuralism. Structuralism argued that individual thought
was shaped by linguistic structures. It therefore denied or at
least severely deemphasized the relative autonomy of subjects
in determining cultural meanings; indeed, it seemed virtually
to dissolve the subject into the larger forces of culture.78
Proponents of structuralism believe that the culture where the
individual belongs to provides him with meaning and set the
criteria for truth and falsity and for good and evil. It sees the
individual as someone who passively receives from the
culture ideas, beliefs, practices, rituals and customs that would
enable him to make sense of this world.
Rabinow, ed., The Foucault Reader: An introduction to
Foucaults Thought.
77
Saul Newman, Derridas Deconstruction of Authority
(Sydney, Australia: Macquarie University, 2001), p.
78
Jack Balkin, Deconstruction (Yale Law School 19951996)
76

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Deconstruction attacked the assumption that these

structures of meaning were stable, universal, or ahistorical.79
Following the postmodern claims of perspectivism and
relativism, cultural meanings can change and are subjected to
the vicissitudes of this world. The individual, though
culturally determined to some extent, is an active agent in the
proliferation of truth and knowledge. Humans are responsible
for the construction of meaning hence not entirely over
determined by linguistic and psychic structures, but are
capable of reflecting and creatively transforming their social,
linguistic and psychic situations.80
Derrida claims that the metaphysical and ontological
standards that serve as the foundation of knowledge and
meaning are flawed and arbitrary. He argues that words do
not derive their meaning from the word itself, logos,
(Wittgenstein) or the presence of objects in our
consciousness (Husserl). Here Derrida is attempting to show
that meaning, truth and knowledge are not grounded on
certain ultimate metaphysical principles such as a logos, a
being, reason, or any abstract principle.81
Words have no fixed meaning. Instead of having an
objective reference point, words gain their meaning from a
constant process of negotiation with other signs. Meaning as
such has no outside foundation and is constantly in flux.
Because signs refer to other signs and meaning is decided
instantly by the interpreting subject, meaning is constantly
changing, thus doing constant violence to the text.82
Interpretation is a key theme in Derridas thought. It consists
Ibid.
Peter Zima, Deconstruction and Critical Theory, trans.
Rainer Emig (New York: Continuum Books, 2002), p. 59.
81
Jacob Gabriel Hale, Derrida, Van Til and the
Metaphysics of Postmodernism, in Reformed Perspectives, Vol.
6, No. 19 (June 30-July 6, 2004), p. 5.
82
Ibid., p. 7
79
80

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of a continuous inescapable cycle of subjects doing violence

to both words and objects as they continually re-make and
redefine them according to their own personal image.83
Humans cannot know the thing-in-itself, only that which has
been remade according to their liking. Hence, the identity
and intelligibility of things depend on humans as they fashion
reality according to their own interpretations. We make signs
and yet signs make us and we can never step outside the
network of sign making.84
Derrida cites that there is nothing outside context. 85
By this Derrida means that it makes no sense to inquire into
the meaning or truth of a sentence or text outside of a
specific context.86 Hence nothing is ever true at all times.
Our speech and action are always situated, and conditioned,
by one vocabulary or another. Language thus stands for the
socially constructed order within which we think and have
our being.87 If language then is socially constructed, it
follows that every linguistic structure can be disassembled,
and undone, that is deconstructed.
Since meanings are in constant flux, it follows then
that a general and comprehensive meaning does not exist.
Ideologically, deconstruction does not appear as a
philosophical iconoclasm that is primarily concerned with
offending the exponents of institutionalized philosophy, but
as a corrective of the philosophical mainstream founded on
Ibid.
John Milbank, The Word Made Strange (Oxford:
Blackwell Publishing, 1997), p. 2. As quoted from; R.R Reno,
The Ruins of the Church, (Michigan: Brazos Press, 2002), p.
65.
85
Jacques Derrida, Afterword, in Limited Inc.
(Evanston: Northwestern University Press, 1988), p. 136.
86
Vanhoozer, The Cambridge Companion to Postmodern
Theology, p. 13.
87
Ibid., p. 13.
83
84

167

the naive assumption that its concepts have been fixed once
and for all.88 There is no one general meaning but each
meaning would change depending on the person talking and
the context to which the meaning owes its validity.
Deconstructionism is hostile to the theory that there is the
possibility of a grand and final definition that would
transcend historicity and time. It is based on the idea that all
theoretical discourses emerge in dialogical contexts and that
concepts can undergo a change of meaning both between
heterogeneous discourses and within one and the same
discourse that always displays a dialogical structure.89
It should be noted, however, that deconstruction does
not lead to nihilism. It tries to re-evaluate traditional concepts
and practices to modify, enhance, emphasize what needs to
be emphasized and deemphasized what proves to be
insignificant or irrelevant. For instance, deconstruction is by
no means a rejection of ethics, even when it questions moral
philosophy: rather, it is a re-evaluation of ethics. It shows us
that moral principles cannot be absolute or pure: they are
always contaminated by what they try to exclude. Good is
always contaminated by evil, reason by unreason.90 Derrida
advocates deconstructionism not to shake the basic tenets of
this world but to bring fresh, new, and life-giving insights to
the meaning and interpretations people construct about the
world.
2.4 Paul Ricoeur
Ricoeur is one of the greatest postmodern thinkers
whose breadth of work follows a long philosophical itinerary.
However, his thoughts on hermeneutics preoccupied much
Zima, Deconstruction and Critical Theory, trans. Rainer
Emig, p. 50.
89
Ibid., p. 50.
90
Newman, Derridas Deconstruction of Authority, p. 13.
88

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of his life and works. He conceived of man as a linguistic

being whereby it is in and through language that man
expresses himself and manifests his being; in other words, it
is by means of language that man relates with other beings
and with the world.91 The different linguistic formulations
that man creates define him. That is why, in general terms,
language serves as the route to self-understanding.92 And yet
the very source of mans understanding of himself, language,
poses some problems. Language is complex. The vast arrays
of words that constitute a certain language alone are by and
large polysemic.93 Although words are rich in meaning, each
word has more than one meaning.
Ricoeurs concept of hermeneutics centers on
symbolic words, words which have symbolic significance.
Symbols for him are, structures of signification in which a
direct, primary, literal meaning designates, in addition,
another meaning which is indirect, secondary, and figurative
and which can be apprehended only through the first.94
Paul Ricoeur, The Question of the Subject: The
Challenge of Semiology, in The Conflict of Interpretations: Essays
in Hermeneutics, trans. Kathleen McLaughlin (Illinois:
Northwestern University Press, 2007), p. 256.
92
Alexis DeodatoItao, Paul Ricoeurs Hermeneutics
of Symbols: A Critical Dialectic of Suspicion and Faith, in
Kritike, Vol. 4 No. 2 (December, 2010), p. 2.
93
Paul Ricoeur, The Problem of Double Meaning as
Hermeneutic Problem and as Semantic Problem, in The
Conflict of Interpretations: Essays in Hermeneutics,trans. Kathleen
McLaughlin (Illinois: Northwestern University Press, 2007),
p. 76.
94
Paul Ricoeur, Existence and Hermeneutics, in The
Conflict of Interpretations: Essays in Hermeneutics, trans. Kathleen
McLaughlin (Illinois: Northwestern University Press, 2007),
p. 12.
91

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Ricoeur is not really interested in the meaning of the

word. Rather, he is interested in the particular linguistic
expressions expressed in symbols that communicate meaning,
be it latent or patent. Going further, discussion on symbols
would lead to his idea of interpretation because where
symbols are involved, interpretation becomes necessary.95
Interpretation for Ricoeur is, the work of thought which
consists in deciphering the hidden meaning in the apparent
meaning, in unfolding the levels of meaning implied in the
literal meaning.96
Interpretation then is employed to decode the
meaning of symbols. Its goal is therefore to have the hidden
meaning of symbols uncovered, brought to light, deciphered,
and understood.97 Since symbols and interpretation go hand
in hand, every symbol needs interpretation. However, no
single method of interpretation could decipher the full
meaning of the symbol. There is no general hermeneutics,
no universal canon for exegesis, Ricoeur claims, but only
disparate and opposed theories concerning the rules of
interpretation.98 As a result, diverging even conflicting
interpretations arise.
Ricoeurs hermeneutics posits the fact that the grand
claims of the Middle Ages and Modernity are nothing but
interpretations hence must be subjected to constant reevaluation and re-examination. These are just interpretations
Emerita S. Quito, The Philosophers of Hermeneutics
(Manila: De La Salle University Press, 1990), p. 85.
96
Ricoeur, Existence and Hermeneutics, in The
Conflict of Interpretations: Essays inHermeneutics, p. 13.
97
Itao, Paul Ricoeurs Hermeneutics of Symbols: A
Critical Dialectic of Suspicion and Faith, in Kritike, pp. 2627.
98
Paul Ricoeur, Freud and Philosophy: An Essay on
Interpretation, trans. Denis Savage (New Haven: Yale
University Press, 1970), pp. 26-27.
95

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disguised as eternal and unchanging truths. Hence, the fare of

human beings is to uncover the hidden meaning behind these
truths and discover their life-giving characters or their deathdealing aspects. Grand claims should then be demystified to
reduce any form of illusions that cloud the real meaning of
symbols or seek to recover their original meaning.
3. The Tenets of the Postmodern World

Having discussed the main protagonists of the

Postmodern world, it is now of utmost importance to explore
the tenets of this era. This paper argues that postmodern
thinking is divided into three main concepts: (1) Relativism
and Absolute Truth; (2) Discourse and Social Construction;
and (3) Subjectivity and Metanarratives. Alongside Lyotard,
Nietzsche, Foucault, Derrida, Ricoeur and other postmodern
thinkers, this paper contends that Postmodernism is not just
a passing fad but a reality to be taken seriously.
3.1 Relativism and Absolute Truth

Plurality is the key feature of postmodern life.

Elsewhere in the world, there exists people of diverse
cultures, creeds, races, and colors. Inevitably, plurality
presupposes diverse notions of what is true, good and
beautiful. Postmodernists hold the conviction that everything
is relative. Therefore finding unity amidst these diversities
seems futile. There is no such thing as absolute and universal
truths. The mere fact of pluralism makes the existence of
these absolute truths absurd. Postmodernists generally reject
claims to absolute truth that is, unchangeable and/or
universal truth in social contexts, in light of differences of
perspective.99
Liz Jackson, Nietzsche and the Paradox of Postmodern
Education in Philosophical Studies in Education, Vol.
99

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Modern societies are said to be characterized by deep

diversity and cultural pluralism.100 It follows then that
universal and absolute precepts are deceptive and nothing but
figments of the imagination. Truth-claims are always relative
to the individual or group. Truths that claim universality have
the tendency to inflict, impose, alter, shape or modify
peoples way of life. However, as it has always been the case,
imposing oneself to others is not that easy. Attempts to
discover universal standards of truth, beauty and goodness
are now declared not only futile but also restrictive and even
tyrannizing. In place of a quest for validity and certainty,
postmodern thinkers advocate the recognition of infinite
differences and the acceptance of uncertainty in regard to all
human knowledge.101
Postmodernity is characterized by an increasing
suspicion and rejection of foundational narratives that have
long dominated the world since the advent of human
civilization. The so-called absolute truths that science
(Physical World), philosophy (Reason) and religion (Dogmas)
offer are being scrutinized at every level. What is common is
that the promise of these grand narratives to provide
absolute, permanent, and universal Truth for their audiences
falls short. Alternately, contemporary cultures increasingly
embrace the small stories of local, situated, and temporary
experience. These stories often are produced by marginalized
cultural members (e.g., gays and lesbians) and challenge
hegemonic values (e.g., of heteronormativity).102 In the
postmodern world, everything including reason is relative.
Reason, which became the new God for modernists, has
Will Kymlica, Contemporary Political Philosophy, 2nd ed.
(New York: Oxford University Press, 2002), p. 327.
101
Brown, The Eclipse of Social Theory: Influence of
Nietzsche on Postmodern Thought, p. 6.
102
Taylor, Postmodern Theory in Engaging Organizational
Communication Theory and Research, p. 17.
100

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now become an idol whose power was temporal and whose

knowledge was limited. Postmodernity is relativity in motion.
The way to truth, if there is truth, has many roads and is not
anymore exclusive to reason. Postmoderns are suspicious of
truth-claims, of getting it right. Upon hearing the assertion
that, Thats the way things are, postmoderns are likely to
respond, Thats the way things are for you.103 Postmoderns
champions relativism and are hostile to any claim of
universality.
3.2 Discourse and Social Construction

In the modern world, it is generally believed that

individuals, equipped with the power of reason, are the
source of their intentions and actions. They can decide for
themselves and act according to their will. Nevertheless,
postmodern theorists argue that human experience is
mediated by a great external factor. Human experience,
according to them, is
never direct, pure, or immediate. Instead, it is
always-already structured by language. This is
because the structure of language creates a
cultural technology that is utilized by
institutions to shape the processes of human
development. In this process, potential human
subjectivity is structured through discursive
operations as an actual orientation (or
interpellation) of the knowing subject toward
Self, Other, and the World as objects. Because
language is the medium for the reproduction
of ideology, this process also means that the
particular identities (or subject positions) we are
Vanhoozer, The Cambridge Companion to Postmodern
Theology, p. 11.
103

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hailed to assume by organizational discourses

are pre-structured to facilitate actions that are
ideologically productive.104
Since all things are relative, it follows that everything
is an interpretation, a language-game.
Postmodernists take discourse to be central and
primary to all organizational processes. They view all human
understandings and relationships to be constituted and
mediated by language.105 Society determines who people are
by arranging discourses that will enable them to become
productive. Admittedly, people s identities do not depend on
what they make of themselves, but on what society makes out
of them. Individuals identities are constructed largely by the
social-linguistic groups that they are a part of, those groups
varying radically across the dimensions of sex, race, ethnicity
and wealth.106 The interplay of language is seen in the
different establishments that exist in the society that
determine who they will be. Everything, therefore, is a social
construct.
Postmodernists are critical to modern epistemology
especially its view on language. Modernists hold that
language is referential, where words unproblematically
represent extra-linguistic things and unproblematically
express feelings and values.107 Postmodernism views
language not as a neutral instrument but as a tool for social
construction. Language then becomes an extension of
knowledge explicitly and power implicitly. This means that
Taylor, Postmodern Theory in Engaging Organizational
Communication Theory and Research, p. 124.
105
Ibid., p. 121
106
Hicks, Explaining Postmodernism: Skepticism and
Socialism from Rousseau to Foucault, p. 6.
107
Vanhoozer, The Cambridge Companion to Postmodern
Theology, p. 11.
104

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language is not merely a tool for communication and

referentiality, but essentially refers more to the construction,
deconstruction, and reconstruction in the context of both the
spoken and written word as an element of action.
Modern societies control more and more aspects of
social life, including the construction of meaning. Foucault
introduces the category of discourse as a socially constructed
system of rules which determine the status of various types of
statements.108 In his book History of Sexuality,109 he traces how
society turned sexuality into a discourse. He argues that
discourse about sex has only intensified and proliferated since
the eighteenth century. The focus was not anymore on the act
but the discourses behind the act. Foucault explained how
sexuality is connected to confession, to psychiatry, to
demography, and so on. Priests expected confessions to
divulge the smallest temptation or desire. An imperative was
established to transform every desire into discourse. With this
intensification and proliferation of discourse, the emphasis
moved from married couples to cases of sexual perversion,
child sexuality, and homosexuality. According to Foucault,
sexuality is merely a social construct maintained for
production. Behind every discourse on truth lurks rhetorical
posturing: knowledge claims are violent impositions by
powerful institutions; universal truth claims are simply masks
for ideology and the will to power.110
Following the idea of social constructs,
postmodernists pose a technology of deconstruction. This
Brown, The Eclipse of Social Theory: Influence of
Nietzsche on Postmodern Thought, p. 13.
109
See Michel Foucault, The History of Sexuality: An
Introduction (New York: Vintage Books, 1979), The Use of
Pleasure (New York: Vintage Books, 1986) and The Care of the
Self (New York: Pantheon, 1986)
110
Vanhoozer, The Cambridge Companion to Postmodern
Theology, p. 11.
108

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term formally describes the literary-critical process of

disassembling a text and uncovering its tensions,
contradictions, absences, and paradoxes. In this view,
meaning is not contained in the superficial content of the text,
but dispersed throughout various relationships activated by its
component signs. These relationships include those between
textual signs and their multiple connotations, between the
text and all other texts from which it draws its significance
(i.e., itsintertextuality), and between the text and its readers,
created as they apply differing frameworks of interpretation
that are shaped by their relationships to the texts encoded
ideologies (a condition known as polysemy). The goal of
deconstruction is to reveal arbitrary patterns of language use
and to open the text to alternative interpretations that are
otherwise hidden by dominant meanings.111
Metanarratives which were once impenetrable and
invulnerable are now the objects of deconstruction. This is
because there are still many prevalent practices and concepts
in the society hostile to people. The postmodern theory
reminds people that meaning is never universal, total, neutral,
or permanent. It questions how particular meanings are
produced in the situated, arbitrary, and interested fixing of
relations between signifiers, as well as how those
configurations might be changed.112
Following social constructions, Nietzsche is critical of
dominant belief systems that have provided the world with
uniform even universal perspectives. For the longest time,
people have relied heavily on faith and reason as their glasses
of interpretation. However, human beings find themselves
having different and even conflicting interpretations. These

Taylor, Postmodern Theory in Engaging Organizational

Communication Theory and Research, pp. 126-127.
112
Ibid., p. 131.
111

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belief systems can only be the effect of particular values

being imposed as universal definitions.113
He understands that universal perspectives which
supposedly should give meaning and which should validate all
actions are socially constructed. The existence of
transcendental goals or unifying themes are fabricated by
powerful groups of people either because of historical
necessity or maintaining the status quo. Nietzsche aims to
show that values are not otherworldly but produced by the
worldly interests of particular groups or individuals.114
Nietzsche blames religion for social constructs
prevalent in the society today. When it comes to morality, he
recognizes the fact that all concepts of good and evil are
nothing but social constructs. Formerly one sought the
feeling of the grandeur of man by pointing to his divine
origin; this has now become a forbidden way, for at its portal
stands the ape, together with other gruesome beasts, grinning
knowingly as if to say: no further in this direction.115
Modern science and Darwinism, in particular, has ruled out
the possibility of discovering the meaning of human existence
in some type of primordial truth.116 For Nietzsche, as it is for
the other postmodern philosophers, to deconstruct reality is
to remove the discourses, the symbolisms and the
interpretations that go along with it.

Brown, The Eclipse of Social Theory: Influence of

Nietzsche on Postmodern Thought, p. 31.
114
Ibid., p. 23.
115
Friedrich Nietzsche, Daybreak: Thoughts on the
Prejudices of Morality, trans., R. J. Hollingdale (Cambridge:
Cambridge University Press, 1986), p. 49.
116
Brown, The Eclipse of Social Theory: Influence of
Nietzsche on Postmodern Thought, p. 28.
113

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3.3 Subjectivity and Metanarratives

The subject, the I, the one that experiences and
interacts with the world is one of the central concepts of
modernity. Prior to modernity, the subject is seen as created
by a powerful being who determines his fate. His knowledge
therefore of the world is seen in the light of this omnipotent
being. However, dependency on an unintelligible being about
the intelligible world is too much to ask. In Rene Descartes
book Meditations on the First Philosophy (1641); he set out to
secure a valid ground for human experience. Certainty about
the world is not given by some divine agency but by reason.
Reason is the fixed and stable point to judge ideas as true or
false. This subject is able to make things meaningful for him
because of his rationality. Echoing what Rene Descartes had
said,
I had persuaded myself that there was nothing
at all in the world: no sky, no earth, no minds
or bodies; was I not, therefore, also persuaded
that I did not exist? No indeed; I existed
without doubt, by the fact that I was
persuaded, or indeed by the mere fact that I
thought at all. . . . So that, after having
thought carefully about it, and having
scrupulously examined everything, one must
then, in conclusion, take as assured the
proposition: I am, I exist, is necessarily true,
every time I express it or conceive of it in my
mind.117
Stated in its more familiar terms, I think, therefore I
am, Descartes argument finds within human experience a
Ren Descartes, Discourse on Method and the
Meditations, ed. and trans. F.E. Sutcliffe (Harmondsworth:
Penguin, 1968), p. 103.
117

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principle that acts as the basis for a systematic knowledge of

the world.118 Reason is mans crowning glory. It separates
him from the rest of creation. By his rationality, he is able to
think meaningfully about the world. Nevertheless,
Postmodernism has rejected the concept of
the individual, or subject, that has prevailed
in Western thought for the last few centuries.
For the latter tradition, the subject has been a
privileged being right at the heart of cultural
process. Humanism has taught us to regard
the individual subject as a unified self, with a
central core of identity unique to each
individual, motivated primarily by the power
of reason. . . . Rights and privileges could be
ascribed to that subject, whose development
and self-realization came to be regarded as a
central objective (if not the central objective)
of Western culture. . . . [For] postmodernists,
the subject is a fragmented being who has no
essential core of identity, and is to be regarded
as a process in a continual state of dissolution
rather than a fixed identity or self that endures
unchanged over time.119
Who is the individual now? Is his existence only
modified by external factors? If yes, then who controls the
flow of ideas and who has access to them? Lyotard argues
that we now live, in a knowledge-driven economy in which
technological innovation and the ability to access and

Malpas, The Postmodern, p. 59.

Stuart Sim, ed., TheRoutledge Companion to
Postmodernism, (London: Routledge, 2001), pp. 366-367.
118
119

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manipulate ideas rapidly is a key means of surviving,

flourishing and making profits.120
Lyotard holds that the set of rules that modern
society has, manifested by its discourse, forms a
metanarrative which provides criteria that allow one to judge
which ideas and statements are legitimate, true and ethical for
each different form of narrative.121Alongside these
metanarratives, Lyotard introduces the concept of grandnarratives that produce systematic accounts of how the world
works, how it develops over history, and the place of human
beings within it. Put simply, grand narratives construct
accounts of human society and progress.122
In The Postmodern Condition, Lyotard identifies two
main forms of grand narratives: speculation and
emancipation. The former, the speculative grand narrative,
charts progress through the development of knowledge as
individual ideas and discoveries build towards a systematic
whole that reveals the truth of human existence under the
auspices of a particular metanarrative: for the speculative
grand narrative,123
True knowledge . . . is comprised of reported
statements [that] are incorporated into a
metanarrative of a subject that guarantees
their legitimacy.124
In other words, the speculative grand narrative charts
the development of knowledge about the self and of the
world towards a systematic truth, with its principles and
Malpas, The Postmodern, p. 36
Ibid., p. 37
122
Ibid.
123
Ibid.
124
Lyotard, The Postmodern Condition: A Report on
Knowledge, p. 35.
120
121

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methodologies. Modernism champions this kind of

grandnarrative, epistemologically (rationalism, empiricism,
idealism) and ontologically (being and becoming).
The grand narrative of emancipation sees the
development of knowledge as driving human freedom as it
emancipates from mysticism and dogma through
education.125 Knowledge, for Lyotard, is no longer the
subject, but in the service of the subject.126 The point here
is that the development of knowledge is seen as a tool to
improve the human condition, help people to understand
their place in the world and emancipate them from prejudice,
oppression and ignorance. By tying together all of the
different narratives and metanarratives that make up a
culture, assigning values to them and giving them a goal,
modernitys grand narratives present an idea of the
development of knowledge as a progress towards universal
enlightenment and freedom.127 Knowledge is in the service
of the subject, not the subject in the service of knowledge.
Modernism values the subject, the individual who is capable
of freeing himself from the bonds of his culture and biases,
put on the glasses of reason, in order to have a more
objective view of himself and the world.
However, with the advent of postmodernity, the
status and nature of knowledge have changed. The recent
changes in the political, economic, and religious institutions
drive modernity and its grand narratives out of the way. The
project of modernity, he argues, has not been forsaken or
forgotten, but destroyed, liquidated.128 The loss of
overarching grand narratives and their ideas of progress
mean that the structures that legitimize knowledge, the
Malpas, The Postmodern, p. 38.
Lyotard, The Postmodern Condition: A Report on
Knowledge, p. 36
127
Malpas, ThePostmodern, p. 38.
128
Lyotard, The Postmodern Explained, p. 18.
125
126

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metanarratives, also begin to lose their power and stability.129

This leads to Lyotards most often cited argument: I define
postmodern as incredulity toward metanarratives.130 By this he
means that the standard that organizes knowledge and
systematizes truth which differentiates the legitimate from the
illegitimate, the true from the false, in each discipline, and
guides the development of thought is no longer as persuasive
as it was in the past. It was not as convincing, as reliable, and
as absolute as it was before.
The notion of the general breakdown of consensus in
the postmodern world dealt a serious consequence on
humankind in general. If the grand narratives of modernity
are premised upon the development towards truth and
justice, their obsolescence marks a condition in which
pragmatism takes over from ethics and the calculation of
efficiency and profit takes over as the driving force of
action.131 For so long, people have relied on the grand
narratives for truth and meaning. Postmodernism, however,
argues that no grand narrative can explain everything in a
constant manner. Thus people are left with disturbing
questions whose answers remain distant. The future becomes
dreary and unsure. Can they still know and be sure about
themselves and the world? How can they communicate their
knowledge of the truth in a world beset by relativism,
consumerism, pragmatism and pluralism? These are but some
beleaguering questions that haunt the postmodern individual
today.
4. Postmodernism and Culture
After having laid out the tenets of the postmodern
world, it would now be best to describe how these
Malpas, The Postmodern, p. 38
Lyotard, The Postmodern Condition, p. xxiv.
131
Malpas, The Postmodern, p. 40.
129
130

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characteristics affect human beings. The main ideas of

postmodernity challenge not just how people see the world
individually but also collectively. This part now explores how
postmodernism impacted the classical metanarrative of
culture.
Being and becoming human in time and space
requires specificity.132 This specificity accounts for the
diversity of the way people live. In fact, diversity and plurality
are two basic and unchangeable characteristics of life.
Humans exist but this existence is marred by different
worldviews, beliefs, practices, rituals and interpretations of
reality. There is really no one general way of living life. Hence
diversity presupposes a diversity of a world feel, a diversity of
culture. Through such a specific way of feeling, thinking and
behaving, people participate in life; through culture, people
live life.133
It is through culture that humans make the world
intelligible for them. Culture offers the individual with metalinguistical structures to make sense of reality. It is a set of
basic disposition towards reality and meanings which people
create, and which create people, as members of society.134
Culture supplies humans with interpretations of experienced
reality. Hence peoples interpretations of their experiences are
somehow culturally defined interpretations.
Culture is what may be regarded as a general
disposition towards life and what happens in life.135 It
provides human beings the most basic necessities to sustain
life. Moreover, it gives people opportunities to enhance life
itself. Without exaggeration, culture defines humans. Without
culture, no human civilization would survive. The effect of
Jose De Mesa, Why Theology is Never Far from Home
(Manila: De La Salle University Press, 2003), p. 13.
133
Ibid.
134
Ibid., p. 14.
135
Ibid., p. 20.
132

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culture to humans is so invasive that culture becomes second

nature to them. When we look at lifes realities, we are
confronted with culturally defined realities. This means that
our experiences are cultural experiences.136
Although to a great extent conditioned by their
culture, humans are not mere recipients of it. On the
contrary, they are active agents in the creation of culture.
There is an ongoing dialogue or interaction between people
and their culture, each influencing the other. People
continuously actualize and give shape to their culture, at the
same time, they are actualized and shaped by this culture. 137
On one hand, culture affects humans. On the other hand,
human actions affect culture.
Cultural traditions, however, are subject to change.
They are in the process of being recreated time and time
again. Cultural tradition and any tradition for that matter are
not static. The progress gained yesterday is the tradition we
claim today. And tomorrows tradition will be what we have
managed to advance culturally today.138 This leads us to the
question: How does postmodernism affect culture? Or better
yet, did postmodernism change culture?
Postmodernism rejects the traditional assumption of
culture. Conventional concept of culture is that it is a
preexisting social-ordering force that is transmitted
externally to members of a cultural group who in turn
passively internalize it.139 Human beings are seen a passive
recipients of culture who in turn shapes who they will be and
what role they will play in the society. It is focused on the
idea of culture as that which integrates the various
Ibid., p. 16.
Ibid., p. 15.
138
Ibid., p. 22.
139
John Franke, Reforming Theology: Toward a Postmodern
Reformed Dogmatics(Biblical Theological Seminary, Hatfield,
PA), p. 25.
136
137

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institutional expressions of social life and binds the individual

to society.140 However postmodernists clamor for the
recognition of the participation of people in cultural
formation. Rather than exercising determinative power over
people, culture is conceived as the outcome and product of
social interaction. 141Hence human beings are active agents of
culture.
Postmodernists
enunciate
the
fact
that
postmodernity affects not simply how we think about the
world, but how we actually experience it.142 Postmodernism
offers fresh insights and understanding with regard to how
people look at the world they live. It also challenges timeless
ideas that for so long have justified the need for stability and
consistency.
As the current trend of the world, postmodernisms
penchant for relativism acknowledges that each culture is
unique. It points to the reality that no culture has the right to
impose upon another culture its vision and ideas. What is
meaningful in one culture may be irrelevant to the other
culture. It recognizes the fact that each culture is as important
as the other cultures. The standards of right and wrong, of
truth and falsity, of beauty and aesthetics depend upon the
culture. Hence universal standards that need to be followed
are irrelevant and sometimes not congenial to peoples most
cherished beliefs exemplified in their culture.
The discovery of plurality of culture and the
acknowledgment of cultural diversity bring with it an
awareness that each cultural group strongly tends to view
reality in its own way.143 The connection between culture
and people is so intimate that when praises or insults are
Ibid., p. 25.
Ibid., p. 25.
142
Vanhoozer, The Cambridge Companion to Postmodern
Theology, p. 14.
143
De Mesa, Why Theology is Never Far from Home, p. 5.
140
141

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given to the culture, people feel appreciated or insulted.

Though all people share the same humanity and the same
Earth and undergo the same processes of birth, illness, old
age and ultimately death, this humanity is perceived in
different forms and dimensions. Hence with the diversity of
cultures, there is necessarily a plurality of standards.144
There is no one culture for the whole of humankind.
Postmodernism pays respect to what each culture has to
offer. It is also hostile to dominant cultures that impose upon
others their truth-claims and their vision of good and evil.
Postmodernism sees that one culture or one individuals
view and expression of morality is just as relevant and correct
as the next cultures expression of morality.145
The age of Modernity is so much characterized by
imperialism and colonial expansion. As these colonizers from
the West conquer land after land, so did perpetuation of their
own culture transpired. Indeed there is no greater way of
colonization than to colonize the very core of peoples
existence, their culture. These colonizers emphasize the need
to follow a culture that is foreign even alienating to the locals.
They brand their culture as superior while the locals culture,
inferior. Western civilization then was considered as the
epitome of all cultures which serve as the norm for other
cultures not just to follow but to imitate.
The Brazilian educator Paulo Freire says that in
times of oppression, the oppressed over a period of time
unconsciously internalize the oppressors attitudes towards
them.146As a result even when the oppressor is no longer
around, he is in a real sense even more present because he is
Ibid., p. 4.
Anthony Turner, Teaching Postmodern People
Theological Truth (North Carolina, April 2009), pp. 17-18.
146
Paulo Freire, Pedagogy of the Oppressed, trans. Myra
Ramos (New York: Continuum, 1970), pp. 49-51.
144
145

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in them, in their psychological selves.147 Thus some cultures

bear a stigma of inferiority and inadequacy in relation to the
other great cultures of the past and present.
Colonization during the modern and modernizing
period of the West was clearly not in sympathy to cultural
realties other than the Western European one.148 The
Western cultures used power and coercion to subjugate
cultures they consider inferior. This power-play not only was
used for domination but also was a tool for the proliferation
of truth-claims from the Western world. Postmodernism tries
to liberate the stigma in the culture brought about by
colonization. It reminds people to revitalize their culture and
take pride in their indigenous way of life. Postmodernism
then advocates a process of healing. It promotes a greater
appreciation of the local culture and to speak of ones culture
in its own right.
Postmodernism also is antagonistic to the grand
metanarratives exported from the west. For so long, these
metanarratives have set the standard for peoples truth claims.
Whatever does not coincide with these grand narratives and
that which falls outside our conceptual systems is thus
deemed irrational or scientific.149 Big stories which
supposedly explain everything that happens in society,
postmodernists argue, just cannot explain everything.
Marxism, Capitalism, Feminism, Rationalism, Science and
even religious claims are to be deconstructed since they
perpetuate meanings that are not in harmony with beliefs held
dear by people.
Thou shalt not believe in absolutes.150 This
summarizes the postmodern imperative of decentering.
De Mesa, Why Theology is Never Far from Home, p. 58.
Ibid., p. 65.
149
Vanhoozer, The Cambridge Companion to Postmodern
Theology, p. 16.
150
Ibid., p. 15.
147
148

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Lyotard not only finds it impossible to believe in

metanarratives but accuses metanarratives of being crimes
against humanity.151After all, these metanarratives provide
meaningS which some people cannot relate to.
Culture, in lieu of metanarratives, must pay attention
to local world views and indigenous way of living life.
Grassroots narratives must be taken into consideration since
they also provide an explanation for things. Postmodernists
call for a motion for the return of the oppressed and the
acceptance of the other. Levinas contends that ones first
responsibility is to let the other be than to cast the other in
ones own image.152
Culture is not passively received by individuals. On
the contrary, as postmodernism would argue, they play a
major role in the construction of cultural meaning. Thus,
postmodern ideas encourage humans to revitalize their
culture, to bear the stigma from colonial experience and to
recognize and embrace the other.
5. Faith, Revelation and Postmodernism
One expression of culture that has suffered
tremendous repercussions brought about by postmodernism
is faith and revelation. The next part will now explore the
changes as to how faith and revelation are viewed within the
background of postmodernity.
Faith was construed as the intellectual assent to the
eternal truths revealed by God. Faith was the rational way of
knowing and agreeing to the eternal truths about God. And
revelation was the communication of these eternal truths to
people by God for the purpose of their salvation.153
Ibid.
Ibid., p. 16.
153
De Mesa, Why Theology is Never Far from Home, p. 7.
151
152

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These revealed eternal truths were considered as

absolute and universal. Time and place did not matter,
except for reasons of pedagogy.154 They transcend history
and are considered unchangeable and immutable. Revelation
was a onetime affair that ended with the death of the last
disciple. Everything has been revealed and the duty now is to
reproduce this very structure of revelation to places where it
did not exist. Unity and uniformity were considered vital in
the promulgation of these eternal truths. The closer the
form of the Church was in a given locality in its structure and
ways to that of Rome, the more faithful it was in being
Church.155
However, the advent of postmodernism recognizes
the relativity of absolute and eternal truths. Postmodernism
would seem to be rather clearly in favor of relativism, in as far
as it is capable of clarity, and hostile to the idea of unique,
exclusive, objective, external or transcendent truth. Truth is
elusive, polymorphous, inward, subjective and perhaps a
few further things as well.156 There is no such a thing as
eternal truth since each truth is culturally conditioned and
may vary from person to person and from culture to culture.
The point is that the great philosophical traditions of the past,
the great universal moral laws, and the objectivity of the
Church when it comes to doctrines and dogmas are not to be
taken as general and unchanging truths. The pursuit of
objectivity in most cases is spurious and most of the time
oppressive. The modern world would say that 1 plus 1 equals
2, the sun is the center of the solar system, and water boils at

Ibid. p. 7.
Ibid., p. 9.
156
Ernest Gellner, Postmodernism, Reason and Religion
(London: Routledge, 1992), p. 24.
154
155

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100 degrees Celsius. Postmoderns do not think that way.

Nothing is certain except that nothing is certain.157
Uniformity is also jeopardized by the different
expressions of faith each culture has. Roman Catholicism, for
the longest time, has been understood as the only expression
of faith. The Churchs use of Latin as her official language
presupposed its desire for homogeny. Because Latin is a
dead language, the words do not change, their meanings and
their interpretations are always uniform.158 However,
postmodernism upholds that Roman Catholicism is just one
among the many expressions of faith. Its use of Latin not
only alienates people but also makes the faith
incomprehensible. If faith must flourish in this postmodern
time, it must take roots in the culture. Faith must be
presented with tools, methods, and expressions coming from
the culture itself where the faith is presented.
The mark of the postmodern condition is a move
away from the authority of universal science, philosophy, and
religion towards local and grassroots ideas. Postmodernity
cuts metanarratives down to size and sees them for what
they are: mere narratives.159For the longest time, it is
believed that religiosity developed by the laity in consonance
with their indigenous culture was presumed inferior, if not
superstitious, when compared to the official belief espoused
by the clergy.160 This is not anymore the case since
postmodernism pays attention to local expressions of faith
and even encourages grassroots theology.
Robert Wilkin, The Gospel According to Evangelical
Postmodernism in Journal of the Grace Evangelical Society, 2007, p. 3.
158
Bishop Louis Morrow, My Catholic Faith (Manila:
The Catholic Truth Society, 1941), p. 299
159
Vanhoozer, The Cambridge Companion to Postmodern
Theology, p. 10.
160
De Mesa, Why Theology is Never Far from Home,
p. 9.
157

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It should be noted that postmodernism also presents

possibilities that are beneficial to the faith and to the Church
in general. It has challenged modernitys smug confidence in
reason. The collapse of this false metanarrative provides an
opportunity to communicate the true narrative that finds its
origin in the person and work of Jesus Christ.
Postmodernism, therefore, represents new challenges as well
as new opportunities for Christian reflection and praxis.
Christians are called to be true witnesses of the good news
with the time they have been given.
Postmodernism is never a mortal enemy. It is a
reminder that people are not truly tabula rasa. It reminds
people that culture and language play a crucial role in the
formation of meaning and interpretation and ultimately of
faith and revelation. It is a reminder that people have varying
interpretations of the world. Therefore our relationship to
the postmodern world must be one of communication, not
compromise. 161 In doing theology, humans must approach
other culture in a spirit of genuine dialogue and mutual
respect.
Postmodernist rejects rationalism and empirical
methodology. With truth under assault, knowledge being
unknowable, and reality being questioned, postmoderns focus
on human experience. It follows then that a theology that
stems from peoples immediate experience is of utmost
importance. Culture then plays a crucial role in faith
reflection. Postmodernism challenges our theology to
reengage in old dialogues, to review past arguments to make
sure we do not settle for hashed out arguments, without first
engaging with our minds and rationale. It shows us that

Ed Stetzer, Planting New Churches In A Postmodern

Age (Nashville: Broadman and Holman Publishers, 2003), p.
118.
161

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theology is not exhaustive and there still remains much that

we are to wrestle.162
The ideas of postmodernism inevitably challenge
most religious principles. The universal church is challenged
by pluralism, the absolute truth is contradicted by relativism,
God-given essence is deconstructed by discourses, criterion
for knowledge is not faith and reason but power, and
consumerism and pragmatism have taken over spiritual
matters. Admittedly, the church as a grand narrative that has
the exclusive ownership of the absolute truth has ceased to
exist. This is the reason why we can and should be
reforming how we teach and communicate the truth of God;
we must raise new questions about theology, service and love
that are fitting for our world and time.163
6. Postmodernism in Critique
Postmodernism has indeed proven itself beneficial to
the world at large. As an intellectual and social movement,
postmodernism posed questions on reality and its manifold
representations. Its suspicious stance against the main tenets
of modernism paved the way for a more comprehensible and
legitimate understanding of the world, peoples identity and
their truth-claims. It re-evaluated the modernist project and at
the same time rediscovered what it means to be human in the
context of this ever-changing world.
Postmodernism has cast a shadow of doubt on the
efficacy and almost infallibility of human reason espoused by
modern standards. Although the world has seen so much
progress during the modern era, the utopian society this era
162

22.

Turner, Teaching Postmodern People Theological Truth, p.

Doug Pagitt, Reimagining Spiritual Formation: A Week

in the Life of an Experiential Church (El Cajon, CA: Emergentys
Books, 2004), p. 39.
163

192

promised never materialized. Instead, the world has seen how

modernity and its dependence on reason reaped negative
effects. Modernists became disillusioned as military increase
brought world wars, failed development policies led to class
oppression and colonialism, economic idealism resulted in
communism and the Cold War, and our best science created
nuclear weapons and the threat of global devastation.164 The
damaging effects of modernism forced thinkers to question
the existing worldviews and meta-narratives. The study argues
therefore that postmodernism came about because
modernism failed to reach its promise of a better life but has
caused suffering, alienation and exploitation to the multitudes
of people.
Postmodernism holds that seeking a unified truth is
absurd. This being the case, postmodernists advocate
relativism at its core. Every meta-narrative at work during the
modern period is fictitiously socially constructed hence
cannot be trusted. Postmoderns are skeptical of any and all
claims to an authoritative comprehensive worldview, absolute
truth about reality, and an overarching purpose to the human
story.165 At the heart of postmodernity is the call to embrace
what is local. It urges people to seek ideas at the grassroots
level. Hence it frees individual from dominant and oftentimes
oppressive institutions and ideas. It has a heart for those who
are oppressed, the unheard and the misunderstood members
of the community.
However, the paradigm shift brought by
postmodernism is not all positive. It also brought with it
serious problems and difficulties. Though postmodern
thoughts can be treated as the demand of the time, these are
Retrieved from
http://www.allaboutworldview.org/postmodernismcritique.htm/on October 25, 2015
165
Ibid.
164

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not beyond criticism.166 The following are the criticisms that

this paper holds against the tenets of the postmodern world.
First, the researcher argues that postmodernism is not
something easily defined. If it is easily defined, it is not
postmodernism at all. Commonality and obedience to format
are the least concerns of postmodernists. Hence, be it in
literature, culture, politics and philosophy, it is free play.
Echoing the cry of postmodernists, it is anything goes. Even
the characteristics cited in this paper are not sufficient to
explain this phenomenon. The identity of postmodernism is
not having an identity at all.
Second, the paper sees that the most successful
impact of postmodernism is to challenge the reigning ideas
and structures of the modern period. Through the method
they call deconstruction; it has challenged the meta-narratives
and has proven that these are not objective. They are biased
and they fail to give a total picture of reality. However, this
paper argues that getting rid of such social structures is not
that simple. In fact, it would produce more harm than good.
People basically need structures to live better lives. Instead of
eradicating structures, the most logical thing to do is to fix
them. In addition, in every discourse, humans create
constructs. Following the postmodern thinking, the truth
formed in this discourse will be subjected to deconstruction.
There is a lot of movement in the postmodern world as it is
characterized by a never ending cycle of construction and
deconstruction. How do people get out of this cycle? How
will people know that what they have constructed already is
the totality of truth? Can people still paint the full picture of
the truth if what they can see is just part and parcel of truth
because of its cycle of construction and deconstruction?
Dewan Mahboob Hossain and M. M. Shariful
Karim, Postmodernism: Issues and Problems, Vol., 2. No., 2
(Bangladesh, May 2013), p. 179.
166

194

Third, the research shows that postmodernism

adheres to the assumption that there are many truths. Hence
ultimate relativism is one of the most important
characteristics of this period. Truth is not something that
transcends the human condition. It is actually part of the
human condition. When the human condition changes, so is
truth. However, the paper holds that the claim that there is
no universal truth is an indirect acceptance of the existence of
at least one universal truth. Postmodernisms attitude towards
meta-narratives is already a meta-narrative.
Fourth, decentering, as one key feature of
postmodernism, aims to draw out perspectives from all sides.
Postmodernism abhors any idea of center since to adhere to a
center would be to monopolize truth. All voices, ideas, and
perspectives must be heard. Postmodernism would pride
itself with its acknowledgment of the little narratives.
However, the paper argues that if all the narratives and
perspectives would be heard, consequently conflict and
disagreements will follow. To avoid such conflicts,
postmodern people would establish criteria to be followed
not only to form a consensus but to make sense of a
collective reality. Decentering is pragmatic and even helpful.
The world rejoices over such principle. Yet postmodernists
must accept the need for universal ideas.
Fifth, as truth depends on the individual, then it
follows that postmodernism places high value on
individualism and subjectivism. This is a far cry from the
previous epochs of history which have always viewed people
collectively. Postmodernism considers the individual and his
identity. However, as decentering comes into play, the
question of who the individual is and what constitutes his
identity remains unsolved. Previous ideas of the self are
subjected to scrutiny as they are considered metanarratives.
Although postmodernism values the individual and his
identity, it has added confusion to the notion of the basic self.
In addition, individualism might fuel hatred, division and

195

prejudice as it hinders people from discovering their common

horizons. It might hinder people from discovering what is
common. To stress too much on individualism would be an
obstacle towards mutual dialogue, inter-contextual discourse
and consensus building. The paper contends that
postmodernism discourages people to see reality from the
point-of-view of the other.
Sixth, postmodernism also contends that everything is
perspectival. Following its relativistic notion, only
interpretations exist and such interpretations vary from
person to person and from one culture to another. However,
situations like poverty, malnutrition or even the birth of a
new born baby might touch something in people that they
share with other members of the human race which
transcends the situation and is beyond cultural biases. Can
this universal interpretation of joy or sorrow be considered
still relative?
Modernism was a move away from the supernatural
world to the human world. Reason not faith became the
ultimate criterion of truth. Postmodernism follows this kind
of transition as well. However, it was a move away from
reason to very much anywhere. Meta-narratives are
scrutinized making them unstable and decentered. The
annihilation of these meta-narratives would mean that truth
can be acquired from all sides. With this decentering comes
confusion for the postmodern individual who is deprived of a
fixed and stable point to where he can start viewing reality.
With all these changes, will the individual be ever sure of his
knowledge about the world? His knowledge might have been
otherwise.
Postmodernism has certainly far reaching effects on
the life of an individual. Although it provided new
perspectives and fresher insights, it has made the future more
uncertain. Will it be able to fulfill the promise of a better life
that modernism failed to reach? Or should it serve as a lens to
identify and improve on modernisms shortcomings? Anyway

196

fixing modernism rather than doing away with it is more

plausible.
7. Summary

The breadth and depth of this paper cover

postmodernism and its underlying principles. The paper starts
with the contextualization of postmodernism. It includes an
exposition on the nature of postmodernism using Lyotards
ideas. It also consists of a discussion of modernism and the
shift from supernatural to rationalistic thinking. Modern
principles are also cited which postmodern thinkers addressed
and criticized. To further discuss the postmodern ideas,
postmodern scholars are included. Some works on
postmodernism by main thinkers of this period like
Nietzsche, Foucault, Derrida, and Ricoeur are cited to further
elucidate the nature of postmodernity. Then the main tenets
of postmodernism such as relativism and absolute truth,
discourse and social construction, subjectivity and metanarratives are discussed at great length. To cap off the paper,
the effects of postmodernism on culture and faith are
identified to show that this period has impacted every aspect
of an individuals life. In addition, a critique of
postmodernism has been added to show postmodern
strengths and weakness. This critique is included to identify
possible solutions to the problems cited especially in the area
of culture and faith-expressions.
8. Conclusion

Postmodernism is the current trend of the world. Its

effect is far-reaching and all-embracing. It has affected all
aspects of the individual as it questions established criteria for
truth, meaning and reality. The main contentions of
postmodernism are not only reactions against modern ideas
of objectivity and universality. They also put underlying

197

motives and agenda of hegemonies into the forefront.

Although much progress in terms of technology, social
sciences and politics are evident, it is by no means an
affirmation of progress in the moral and spiritual realms.
Widespread poverty, structures of oppression and inequality
are still very much in existence despite all the deconstruction
happening. Morality and faith appear to be aspects that
progress forgets in this postmodern era. It seems there are
some universal aspects that postmodern ideals cannot
overturn. Yet despite these inconsistencies, postmodernism
certainly has a lot to offer to the world. It forces people to
rethink, re-evaluate and re-discover some principles that
would be beneficial to them as they trod in this postmodern
world.
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