The Sources of Happiness Among Filipino Adolescents

Abstract

This study entitled "The Sources of Happiness among Filipino Adolescents" aimed to determine the general level of happiness and its sources among selected senior students from a public high school (C. Arellano High School) and a private high school (Espiritu Santo Catholic School). The domains studied are as follows: happiness, internal factor (self-perception), external circumstances (social relations, finances and school environment) and sociodemographic information (age and sex). Results from a survey and a focus group discussion indicate a moderate level of happiness for students from both high schools. There was no significant difference in the levels of happiness between students from the public high school and private high school with a significance value of 0.22 at alpha .05. Family was ranked first as the ultimate source of happiness. A small portion of the sample (28%) felt satisfaction with the current state of their lives while the rest 72% identified factors that would increase their level of happiness. There was a slight difference in the said factors for the public high school students as compared to the private high school students. While most of the former perceived an increase in the number of friendships to enhance happiness, the latter stressed having an intact family and financial resources. Elimination of poverty was considered by students from the private high school to increase their levels of happiness while those from the public high school answered getting rid of their enemies.