PERCEPTION OF TEENAGERS TOWARDS COLORISM

IN THE PHILIPPINES

A Thesis Presented to the Faculty of the

Senior High School Department
University of Cebu ⎼ Main
Cebu City

In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for

the Grade 11 Senior High School Students of
Second Semester S.Y. 2020- 2021
In Practical Research 1

RAINELYN G. SUNGAHID
ADRIANNE JOHN G. CAMUS
AELAINE JHESS C. DUMDUM
JOHLIA BAYON-ON
AUDRICH FAITH E. BELIGOLO
WRYLL L. CABAÑAS
KATRINA P. DENOLAN
JULBERT REGIS
HANNA REY R. TAMPOS

STEM- 7A
2021
 TABLE OF CONTENTS

Approval Sheet

Acknowledgement

Dedication

Abstract

CHAPTER 1 THE PROBLEM AND ITS SCOPE

INTRODUCTION

Rationale of the Study

Theoretical Background

Review of Related Literature

THE PROBLEM

Statement of the Problem

Significance of the Study

Scope and Limitations

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

Research Design

Research Locale

Research Informants
 Research Instrument

Research Procedure

Data Gathering

Data Analysis

DEFINITION OF TERMS

2 PRESENTATION, ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATION OF DATA

3 SUMMARY, FINDINGS, CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Summary of Findings

Conclusion

Recommendations

REFERENCES

APPENDICES

A Transmittal Letter

B Consent Form

C Research Instrument

D Location Map

CURRICULUM VITAE
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CHAPTER I

THE PROBLEM AND ITS SCOPE

INTRODUCTION

Rationale of the Study

"I was bullied here because of my dark skin, and I felt like I could never escape

the hurtful comments of others." -shared (Jackson, 2018), a Filipino-American TV

actress, when she lived in the Philippines. This situation defines colorism as how

Filipinos discriminate against each other. Colorism is racism or bigotry directed against

people with dark skin tones, usually by people of similar ethnic or racial backgrounds

(Washington, 2018). It is a societal ill felt in many places worldwide, mainly in Latin

America, East and Southeast Asia, the Caribbean, and Africa, and it even reached the

Philippines. A study conducted by (Gabriel, 2007) states that colorism is a manifestation

of the psychological damage caused by centuries of enslavement which created social

hierarchies based on skin color that maintain an invisible presence in our psyches.

Nowadays, having light skin is an obsession in the Philippines. In a society where

the natural skin color is typically brown, white-skin ideology's saturation marginalizes

Filipinos into thinking that there is only one kind of beauty: white. It is because of our

mass media that promote notions that valorize white skin tones, such as advertisements. 3

out of 5 people have encountered prejudice because of their skin color from fellow

Filipinos, making them feel insecure about their appearance and motivating them to
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whiten their skin (Villanueva, 2019). The rapid increase of Korean culture is also why

Filipinos whiten their skin. It's because they idolize well-known Koreans.

Although researchers have been studying colorism for years, most studies have

focused on adults as their respondents. For instance, in marriageable age (Nagar, 2018),

conclude that in both men and women, skin color can overshadow characteristics such as

physical attractiveness and general competency. Similar studies also conducted that

adults' perception towards colorism differs to their race as some of them thought of the

advantages their race may obtain (Leary, 2018). Previous research concluded that the

perception of colorism to different age groups differ on what race they have and their

thoughts on how these might affect their state of living. Given the previous research, this

research aims to study teenagers' perception of colorism. According to (Cerda, 2017),

technology influenced teenagers to have different opinions than their parents.

The overarching aim of this study is to learn about teenagers' attitudes toward

colorism in our country. This research also looks at the actions, perceptions, and attitudes

of adolescents who are colorist against darker-skinned individuals. Furthermore, this

study will help improve our understanding in a significant way throughout acquiring

knowledge. We aim to provide the discriminated group of individuals with proper

acknowledgment and reach out to the public to show equality is what we citizens need.
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Theoretical Background

This study is anchored on the Theory of Planned Behavior by Icek Ajzen (1985)

and Social Dominance Theory by Jim Sidanius and Felicia Pratto (1999).

The Theory of Planned Behavior's (TPB) influence remains essential and relevant

when dealing with colorism because, at one level of analysis, they increase our

understanding of many different behaviors. TPB suggests that the key proximal

determinant of action/behavior is one's behavioral intention to engage in that behavior.

The theory of planned behavior is meant to help explain and predict people's intentions

and behavior. Nevertheless, the theory can serve as a useful framework for designing

effective behavior change interventions (Conner, 2020). Planned Behavior Control (PBC)

is usually tapped by items assessing perceived confidence that you can engage in the

behavior and that performing the behavior is up to you (Ajzen, 2002a; Conner & Sparks,

2015).

Assume that a young Filipino student has darker skin than the rest of the class,

and one of their classmates seems to dislike this student. Hence, the classmate's behavior

starts to change when encountering this student and begins spreading negative rumors

about them, causing the other classmates to change their behavior to the student as well.

The theory is related to the study because they increase our understanding of many
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different behaviors at one level of analysis. It brings the thought that being prejudiced

and discriminating can be situated with colorism.

The influence of Social Dominance Theory (SDT) is relevant and is essential in

tackling colorism. Social Dominance Theory presents it as a product of a person if they

belong to a particular group. It is the group's perception of them and how they view them

as people in the categories of hierarchies. There are three categories of hierarchies

identified by social dominance theory, age, gender, and arbitrary set (Pennsylvania State

University, 2015). The arbitrary set would include those based on race or ethnicity

(Thompson, 1999).

Suppose a student with a black beauty is a candidate in their school's Miss

Intrams. All of the contestants except her were fair-skinned, and she started to feel

uncomfortable by the way the other contestants looked at the young contestant. In the

perception of other candidates, the black-skinned lady wouldn't win in the contest due to

the skin color that the candidate had. This theory relates to the study because it suggests

that everyone in our society should be a member of a community with a hierarchy and act

in ways that protect that hierarchy, particularly if their group has positive social value.

Ultimately, these theories focus on the dark-skinned individuals' connection

between his or her behavior. The Theory of Planned Behavior is the individual's

perception of the extent of control over the behavior's execution. The Social Dominance

Theory suggests that you should act in ways that protect the hierarchy.
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REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE AND STUDIES

The review of the literature for this study focuses on the perception of teenagers

of colorism, its perceived effects, and how they address colorism. It will also discuss how

colorism started in the Philippines.

Related Literature

Spanish colonizers may have associated dark-skinned Filipinos with poor

peasants, while those with lighter skin, being mixed-race Filipinos, are in the upper class,

leading to the preference for white beauty. Aside from Spain, the Philippines was

colonized by the United States and Japan, who were also fair or pale-skinned people

(Madarang, 2018). Filipino modern culture continues to idolize public figures who meet

colonial beauty expectations. The skin-lightening industry takes advantage of this

fascination by creating and marketing items aimed at Filipinos who are self-conscious

about their tanned and darker skin (Casillan, 2020).

Teenagers have a lot of perceptions about colorism. One of which is they are

aware that light-skinned females are more preferable to dark-skinned females (Maxwell

et al., 2016). The idea that people with lighter skin were more attractive was the most
 6

common trend in all focus groups and interviews. Colorism expresses itself in several

ways, including the view of darker skin as visually unattractive and lighter skin as

physically pleasing (Hall, 2017). In reality, light-skinned people of the same race or

ethnicity earn more income, complete more years of education, live in better

communities, and marry higher-status people than darker-skinned people (Rondilla and

Spickard 2007).

The perceived effects of colorism are also shown to impact one's education, job

prospects, socioeconomic status, general life chances, and diverse effects on genders.

Colorism may be a sort of intra-group discrimination and biases supported by one's skin

tone. Analysis of the results revealed an indirect correlation between complexion

satisfaction and negative repetitive thoughts, but not significant. Overall, dark-skinned

males showed rock bottom self-worth levels and increased self-worth levels for both

genders who self-identify as dark-skinned (Nwagwu, 2019).

McGee et al. (2016) offer suggestions for increasing colorism awareness and

training in teacher education programs. All educators can make some immediate

strategies to address this situation. Good interactions and discussions with role models,

according to Monroe (2013), are important approaches for students struggling with

colorism. Recognizing colorism as a distinct source of common adolescent issues like

depression or self-destructive behaviors can be more effective than addressing these

issues in a generalized manner.

Related Studies
 7

According to the study of Doubeni, E. (2017), her participants believed that

lighter-skinned women have more independence and privilege to travel between spaces

than darker-skinned women. Additionally, they illuminated that more negative

stereotypes were placed on people with darker skin tones. Participants express that

darker-skinned blacks are seen as not as smart, thugs, and are less attractive. However,

they believed that some form of colorism would benefit the Black community and other

members of society about the issues and effects of colorism.

An international study conducted by Maxwell et al. (2016) showed that teenagers

know people prefer light-skinned females. The wish for having lighter skin to be

favorable is evident in female darker-skinned teenagers, lowering their self-esteem and

having to adjust to what the majority of men want. The music they take in has great

influences on them thinking this way.

A qualitative study conducted by Tekei, F. (2020) states that color bleaching is

one of the ideas to address colorism. The popularity of this practice can be seen as a

coping method that deals with enhancing one's self-esteem by approaching a dominant

social ideal. A high degree of self-efficacy tended to shield self-esteem from colorist

values.
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THE PROBLEM

Statement of the Problem

The study aims to determine the perceptions of teenagers towards Colorism in the

Philippines during the second semester of the school year 2020-2021.

1) What are the perceptions of the teenagers towards colorism in the Philippines?

2) What are the perceived effects of colorism among teenagers?

3) Based on the result, what are the perceived actions to address colorism in the

Philippines?

Significance of the Study

The study will focus on the perception of teenagers from Cebu City to colorism.

Results from the study will benefit the following:

Students will benefit from this study because this will help reduce feelings of

high-level psychological distress by presenting ideas and suggestions on how to address

 9

colorism and help them create a coping and dealing strategy toward colorism in certain

circumstances.

Teachers will benefit from this study as an output of the study will serve as a

piece of information to teachers to help their students understand and deal with colorism.

Legislators will benefit from this study because it will raise awareness of the

prevalence of color discrimination and will encourage them to take stronger and firm

steps to eliminate color prejudice.

Researchers will benefit from this study because it will form enlightenment that

helps us better learn the concepts of colorism and give some suggestions on avoiding

being discriminated against by others or avoiding discriminating against others.

The study may help future researchers get a head start in a study regarding

positive or negative perceptions towards colorism. This study can help as a future

reference if they will conduct a study that involves colorism.

Scope and Delimitation

The study will focus on the perceptions of teenagers from the University of Cebu

- Main Campus, Senior High School Department, to colorism. The research sample will

be composed of 3-10 respondents - teenagers aged 13-19 will qualify for the

characteristics we need. Teens that did not fit in the age range will be excluded. The
 10

primary data gathering method that we will be using is an interview for the teens'

perceptions of colorism. We will ask questions that bring the teens' perceptions of

colorism, the perceived effects of colorism, and their suggestions to address colorism.

Other pieces of information that will not relate to the study will be eliminated. The study

will be conducted during the second semester of the school year 2020-2021.

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

This chapter consists of the research design, locale, informants and, to what

instruments will be used, and the steps or procedures in conducting the study.

Research Design

The study used is phenomenological design to explore the perception of

Teenagers' Colorism in the Philippines. Phenomenology begins with an event or

circumstance. Phenomenology studies the consequences and conclusions of an event

through participants' narration in either a single occurrence or a shared situation.

"Phenomenologists differentiate between manifestations (human experiences or

appearances) and noumena (what things actually are)" (Willis, 2007, p. 53).

Research Locale

The study will be conducted via Google Meet. Google meet offers a video-

chatting service and one-on-one communication with your friends and colleagues. It's

also for use by businesses and other organizations during their discussions. The

application aims to help people connect through two-way and multi-way communication.
 11

It allows you to chat through the text box and gives you the ability to enter meetings

through your browser or an application found on iOS and Android devices.

The study will also be conducted via Facebook Messenger for those informants

who can't do video chatting due to some problems. Facebook messenger offers a Free

Mode that you can start chatting with other people with zero data. It provides

communication, texting, calling, and video chatting through the app. It connects you to

your family and friends easier. It aims to make communication easier across the globe

and help you connect with each other without personally meeting one another.

Research Informants

The study will purposely select teenagers to be interviewed with the number of 3-

10 informants. The researchers will interview these selected teenagers through virtual

interviews. The criteria for choosing the informants must fulfill the following conditions:

1. A student studying in the University of Cebu- Main Campus.

2. Must be 13-19 years old.

3. The participant must be living in Cebu City, Philippines.

The study will use the judgmental sampling procedure in choosing the informants.

According to Tehran (2017), in judgmental sampling, the investigator selects the subjects.

The researcher has specific characteristics for their sample, and they judge the sample to

be suitable for representing the population.

Research Instruments
 12

The study will utilize a researcher guide questionnaire as a principal for gathering

data. It consists of 3 questions about their perceptions toward colorism, its perceived

effects, and how they address colorism. The researcher guide questionnaire has two

versions, English and Cebuano translation, to accommodate those informants who can't

understand English very well and explain further what they want to say.

Data Gathering Procedure

1. The researchers will ask the Research II instructor, Mr. Jade Kelly Liwanagan, for

permission to conduct a study.

2. After the approval, the researchers will deliver the researcher-made questions to

the informants to substantiate the data‘s validity through a virtual interview.

3. The researchers will do the interviewing in two days. On the first day, researchers

will interview the first five informants, and on the second day, will be the four

informants.

4. After the interview, the researchers will thank the informants, and the researchers

will be able to answer the study's statement of the problem based on the

informants' response.
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DEFINITION OF TERMS

The key terms in the study give the following operational definitions.

Colorism is the prejudice in which people with lighter skin are given preferential

treatment over darker-skinned individuals.

Perceived Effects are the effects based on the observation of respondents.

Perception is the judgment/ observation of the respondents resulting from the

awareness of their environment.

Social Dominance Theory refers to situations in which an individual or group

controls or dictates others' behavior.

Teenagers are the respondents who are between 13 and 19 years old.

Theory of Planned Behavior is the individual's perception of the extent of

control over the behavior's execution.

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