UNIVERSITY OF MAKATI

J. P. Rizal Ext. West Rembo, Makati City

HIGHER SCHOOL NG UMAK

RESEARCH PAPER

The Misconceptions Between Depression and Emotional Stress as perceived by

the students

In partial fulfillment of the requirements in

PRACTICAL RESEARCH 2

Submitted by:

12-23 HUMSS
Group 6
Aniciete, Carl Ivan
BTE MOHD SILAM, Nor Marisa
Leonin, Ma. Lorena
Masip, Frances Shania
Ocampo, April Jane

Submitted to:
Ms. Mary Joy A. Biazon
 UNIVERSITY OF MAKATI
J. P. Rizal Ext. West Rembo, Makati City
HIGHER SCHOOL NG UMAK

CHAPTER I

INTRODUCTION

Background of the Study

As we all know it is normal for the students to experience stress because of

their assignments, projects, extracurricular activities and other responsibilities to do.
Because of these pile of tasks to do. Students start to feel “stress” about it and there are
times that they label themselves “depressed”. Even though stress is one of the cause of
depression. It is still different from labelling yourself “depressed” without knowing the
proper information about it. The misconception of students when it comes to stress and
depression is one of the main reason why some people think that depression is just a
shallow issue in our society.

Stress is the feeling that you are under too much mental or emotional pressure.
It is triggered by something in your life happening that feels too much for you personally
to handle, regardless of whether others can or cannot. This might be a work
issue, dealing with relationship conflict, or debt problems. (Harley Therapy, 2015). In
other words, Stress is always present in our everyday life. It depends on us how we
would react on the stress that we encounter every day. It can either motivate us or lead
us into a negative way.
 UNIVERSITY OF MAKATI
J. P. Rizal Ext. West Rembo, Makati City
HIGHER SCHOOL NG UMAK

Depression is a serious issue that involves feeling low for several weeks or
longer, even for years in some cases. It can be triggered by one difficult experience, a
build up of things that become too much for you, or, often, seems to just arrive out of the
blue with no explanation. Depression is often based on old, repressed emotions that are
making their way to the surface. As such, it rarely responds to logic. You can’t just ‘fix it’,
or achieve or finish something that will make it go away. For example, if you moved to a
new village and started feeling low, it is unlikely moving again will completely sort your
depression. Because of its irrationality, depression can often feel out of control. You
might feel like you are acting like someone else altogether, unable to connect to people
around you (Harley Therapy, 2015). Depression is a serious matter that needs clinical
attention and when students label themselves “depressed” the meaning of depression
becomes shallow. Like for example some students posts pictures of them self-harming
and saying that they want to die because of their heartbreaks. People who saw those
posts don’t feel sympathy about it. They feel irritated and find it too shallow. And those
who feel depressed would be judged as well that they are just being dramatic because
of those students who tend to misconceptualized the meaning of Depression and
Emotional Stress.

According to Leivers (2017) defines the difference as “Depression is a

persistent sadness over a prolonged period of weeks or months and requires treatment,
while stress is the buildup of emotional and mental pressure.’ ‘While stress increases
the risk of mental illness such as depression, it is not classed as a mental illness itself”
and also according to Dr. Paschos (2017) ‘Depression is a clinical condition which has
some well-defined symptoms. ‘It’s a very common disorder affecting the whole
population to the point that it is ready to overtake as the first case of morbidity across
the world to cardiovascular issues. It is an illness’.
 UNIVERSITY OF MAKATI
J. P. Rizal Ext. West Rembo, Makati City
HIGHER SCHOOL NG UMAK

To avoid the necessary misconception. Students need to know the proper

information of Depression and Emotional Stress and so that the “depressed” persons
wouldn’t be judge by other people.

This study aims to know or assess the students perception and to let them
know the significance of knowing the difference between Emotional Stress and
Depression.

Review of Related Literature

This chapter presents different related studies recognized by experts which

shows significance or relations to the problem being investigated by the researchers.
The proponents believe that each literature will help them acquire deeper understanding
about the research topic being studied.

Presented in this chapter are synthesis of different studies or researches about

the difference between depression and stress which is the main topic of the
researchers. This study aims to raise awareness about these mental health problems
and to correct the common misconceptions between stress and depression as
perceived by the students.

Webb (2017) defined stress as a feeling of being too much emotional or being
under too much mental pressure that no one can longer cope. There are many factors
that can lead to stress, such as work, school or relationship problems. On the other
hand, depression is an enduring mood disorder. People can experience unhappiness
 UNIVERSITY OF MAKATI
J. P. Rizal Ext. West Rembo, Makati City
HIGHER SCHOOL NG UMAK

but depression is a long-term state of deep unhappiness than can last weeks, months or
even longer. It is a serious clinical condition.

Bruno (2009) clearly states that experiencing stress is good because it keeps
alertness, motivation and primed to respond to danger. As anyone who has faced a work
deadline or competed in a sport knows, stress mobilizes the body to respond, improving
performance. But too much stress or chronic stress may lead to major depression in
susceptible people. She also states that positive events, such as getting married or
beginning a new job, can be stressful and may lead to an episode of major depression.
According to study, 10% of people suffer from depression without the trigger of a stressful
event.

According to the study conducted by Dombeck, Mills and Reiss (2008)

byproducts of stress hormones can act as sedatives (chemical substances which cause
us to become calm or fatigued). When such hormone byproducts occur in large
amounts (which will happen under conditions of chronic stress), they may contribute to
a sustained feeling of low energy or depression. Habitual patterns of thought which
influence appraisal and increase the likelihood that a person will experience stress as
negative (such as low self-efficacy, or a conviction that you are incapable of managing
stress) can also increase the likelihood that a person will become depressed.

They stated that the term Major Depression is used to describe such periods of
extended, unremitting and profound depression. Symptoms of Major Depression may
include: sleep problems; fatigue; appetite changes; feelings of worthlessness, self-hate,
and guilt; an inability to concentrate or make decisions; agitation, restlessness, and
irritability; withdrawal from typical pleasurable activities; and feelings of hopelessness
and helplessness. Depression is also associated with an increase in suicidal thinking
 UNIVERSITY OF MAKATI
J. P. Rizal Ext. West Rembo, Makati City
HIGHER SCHOOL NG UMAK

and suicidal actions, and may make a person more vulnerable to developing other
mental disorders.

Synthesis

Depression and stress are two different mental health issues that are commonly
mistaken by people as the same. For example, in a given situation, someone might feel
pressured of different activities such as school works or office works deadline. He or she
can be stressed due to these factors but is not considered as depressed. Stress can be
avoided through self-discipline and by doing activities that can lighten someone's mood
or feelings. But when we are talking about depression, this is considered as a serious
clinical condition. It means that psychological help is needed. Someone who is suffering
from this mental health problem is advised to consult or seek professional help. The
process of treating depression may take time, months or years depending on the
patient's capability of coping up to his or her treatment. According to studies, someone
who suffers from a depression has high tendency of suicidal thinking and suicidal
actions. He or she is more vulnerable in developing other mental disorders if not taken
seriously.

The researchers will focused specifically on the perceptions of the students

between emotional stress (a type of stress) and depression. The proponents of this
study believe that students of this generation often see emotional stress as depression
that is why they simply use the term "depressed" even on simple situation that triggers
their stress. This study aims to raise awareness about these two mental health
problems and to know the reason why there are misconceptions about it.
 UNIVERSITY OF MAKATI
J. P. Rizal Ext. West Rembo, Makati City
HIGHER SCHOOL NG UMAK

Theoretical Framework

This study is supported by Cognitive Theories of Major Depression by Aaron

Beck in 2007. Cognitive theories rose to prominent in response to the early behaviorist’s
failure to take thoughts and feelings seriously. The cognitive movement did not reject
behavioral principles, however, rather, the idea behind the cognitive movement was to
integrate mental events in to the behavioral framework. It is considered to be “cognitive”
because they address mental events such as thinking and feeling. Cognitive behavioral
theorist’s suggest that depression results from maladaptive, faulty, or irrational
cognitions taking the form of distorted thoughts and judgments. Depressive cognitions
can result from a lack of experiences that would facilitate the development of adaptive
coping skills. Like Beck, Ellis noted the presence of information processing biases in
their cognitions, he noted that people with depression tend to ignore positive information
and pay extra attention to negative information. They also tend to engage in over
generalization. This happens when people assume that because a single isolated event
has turned out badly, that this means that all events will turn out badly (Ellis, 2018).
According to Leivers (2017) defines the difference as “depression is a persistent
sadness, over a prolonged of periods of weeks, or months, while stress, in the buildup
of emotional and mental pressure, “while stress increases the risk of mental illness, .
Such as depression,. It is not class a mental illness itself. “,and a laso according to Dr.
Paschos (2017). “Depression is a clinical condition which has some well defined
symptoms”.

Theory of Emotion by James Lange proposed their respective theories on the

correlation of stress and emotion, but they had a unified idea on this relationship-
emotions do not immediately succeed the perception of the stressor or the stressful
event, they become present after the body’s response to the stress.
 UNIVERSITY OF MAKATI
J. P. Rizal Ext. West Rembo, Makati City
HIGHER SCHOOL NG UMAK

Conceptual Framework

The Misconceptions between depression and Emotional

Stress as Perceived by the Students.

Independent: Dependent:
Students. Students Perception.

Definition of Students:
 About Stress and Depression
 According to their Knowledge

How do students know about the difference between

Emotional stressed and Depression?

Do they really know the difference between the two?

Based on the diagram above. Students are the independent variable, which consists of
randomly selected students. On the other hand, the perception will depend to students
who will be the participants. The researchers provided survey questionnaires to be
answered by the students who proved some knowledge about emotional stress and
depression. The students and the survey served as the intervening variables of the
study because it linked both the independent and dependent variables.
 UNIVERSITY OF MAKATI
J. P. Rizal Ext. West Rembo, Makati City
HIGHER SCHOOL NG UMAK

Research Questions

This research aims to give deeper understanding of the necessary information

about the difference between depression and emotional stress to students. This study
also aims mental health awareness and to know how many students have the wrong
idea about these two mental health issues. To satisfy the above objectives, the study
sought to find answers on the following research questions:

1. What are the differences between depression and emotional stress?

2. What are the common misconceptions between these two mental health issues?
3. What are the factors that contribute on experiencing depression and emotional
stress?
4. What are the possible solutions that can help in preventing depression and emotional
stress?

Significance of the Study

The findings of the study will redound to the society specifically to the students
(University of Makati) who misinterpret the meaning of depression and emotional stress,
Since there are many students who are emotionally drained and physically stress from
school works to home problems, In this study we clarify and differentiate the
understanding of the topic, Thus depression is a major depressive disorder and a
serious medical illness which may lead to a loss of interest of the things and activities
once enjoyed while emotional stress is a heavy feeling experienced from a physical or
several pain and an unsettled feeling which also may lead to depression ,So the
researcher of research (If it’s a group a study or activity) will have some researches and
investigations to prove that there are something different about the topic or the study we
 UNIVERSITY OF MAKATI
J. P. Rizal Ext. West Rembo, Makati City
HIGHER SCHOOL NG UMAK

focus about and try to help some students to derived something about this study and
clarify the real or true meaning of what they are feeling if it’s emotional stress or a major
depressive order or so called Depression

Scope and Limitation

The scope of this study was covered to all students all the students who are
enrolled and from University of Makati, The respondents were limited only to 100
maximum of persons or students, This study was focused on the students who have or
had experienced a major depressive order (depression) and students who also
experienced emotional stress, The study intends to assess causes, lifestyle, and health
problems experienced by every person or students, The researcher or researchers (if
it’s a group study) will go to various libraries such as University of Makati and conduct a
survey through giving a related questions to some persons or students.

Definition of Terms
This will provide a better understanding of what the terms truly implies in our
study. All the definitions below were enhanced by the researchers.

 Stress – is what people feel due to their tons of work to do that can be about
school, work, family, friends, and their environment.
 Emotional Stress – A type of stress that focuses on your emotions whether sad or
frustrated because of a lot of work to do.

 Depression – too much sadness and emptiness that you will start to isolate
yourself from other people. It also may require medical attention.

Chapter II
 UNIVERSITY OF MAKATI
J. P. Rizal Ext. West Rembo, Makati City
HIGHER SCHOOL NG UMAK

METHODOLOGY

Research Design

In order to gathered information that will describe the situation, the researcher
may use Quantitative research. Based on the description Quantitative research can be
defined as a process of inquiry examining an identified problem that is based on testing
a theory measured by numbers and analyzed with statistical techniques. Quantitative
research used in this study because the researcher wants to measure the possible
outcomes of people who is having depression and/or who is having just an emotional
stress.

Data collection

The study will be conducted in the form of face to face survey, which will be
treated as the primary data source. Surveys will be conducted to 100 plus respondents
who are a sample of Senior High School students from the University of Makati. Data
gathered from these surveys will then be the basis of the results and conclusion of this
dissertation.

Research Instrument
 UNIVERSITY OF MAKATI
J. P. Rizal Ext. West Rembo, Makati City
HIGHER SCHOOL NG UMAK

The researchers will use survey questionnaires through the use of close-ended
questions. This will limit the answers of the respondents to the given questions. Options
are provided on the questionnaire and will also use contingency questions that will
provide a particular response prior to the respondent. The first part of the survey
includes the personal information of the respondent to be filled up by them. These are
name, age, sex, grade level, section and school. The second part contains ten
questions to be answered by the respondents. These questions are close-ended and
choices are provided. These aims to determine the prior knowledge of the students
about depression and emotional stress. The survey questionnaire will be printed in
paper and will be distributed to the randomly selected respondents.

Data Analysis

Statistical analysis was performed on the sample people to measure the

understanding of population. Population sampling was applied in order to find out
statistical significance between severity of depression and coping with stress strategies.
We measure the data by conducting the survey questions; we used it to collect data for
us to understand and to be more focused on the topic. We gathered using random
sampling to select randomly. We conducted a survey to know the total number of
students who is having a misconception between depression and emotional stress at
University of Makati. The researcher will use survey questionnaires with open ended
questions to limit the respondents' answers and easily measure the total number of
students who are knowledgeable about the given topic.
References:
 UNIVERSITY OF MAKATI
J. P. Rizal Ext. West Rembo, Makati City
HIGHER SCHOOL NG UMAK

 Bruno, Karen (2009). "Stress and Depression". Retrieved from

https://www.webmd.com/depression/features/stress-depression#1

 Dombeck, Mark, Ph.D., Mills, Harry, Ph.D., and Reiss, Natalie, Ph.D. (2008, June
30). "Mental And Emotional Impact Of Stress ". Retrieved from
https://www.mentalhelp.net/articles/mental-and-emotional-impact-of-stress/

 Webb, James ( 2017, April 11) "What's the difference between employee stress
and depression?" Retrieved from https://www.cognacity.co.uk/whats-the-
difference-between-stress-and-depression/
 Morley, N. (2017, April 13). The difference between stress and depression and
warning signs to look out for. Retrieved July 29, 2018, from
https://metro.co.uk/2017/04/13/the-difference-between-stress-and-depression-
and-warning-signs-to-look-out-for-6573478/
 UNIVERSITY OF MAKATI
J. P. Rizal Ext. West Rembo, Makati City
HIGHER SCHOOL NG UMAK
 UNIVERSITY OF MAKATI
J. P. Rizal Ext. West Rembo, Makati City
HIGHER SCHOOL NG UMAK
 UNIVERSITY OF MAKATI
J. P. Rizal Ext. West Rembo, Makati City
HIGHER SCHOOL NG UMAK
 UNIVERSITY OF MAKATI
J. P. Rizal Ext. West Rembo, Makati City
HIGHER SCHOOL NG UMAK
 UNIVERSITY OF MAKATI
J. P. Rizal Ext. West Rembo, Makati City
HIGHER SCHOOL NG UMAK
 UNIVERSITY OF MAKATI
J. P. Rizal Ext. West Rembo, Makati City
HIGHER SCHOOL NG UMAK
 UNIVERSITY OF MAKATI
J. P. Rizal Ext. West Rembo, Makati City
HIGHER SCHOOL NG UMAK