Financial Well-Being and Psychological Distress Among Non-Teaching Personnel in a Philippine Private Higher Education Institution: A Correlational Study
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.69569/jip.2026.470Keywords:
Financial well-being, Higher education, Non-teaching personnel, Philippines, Psychological distressAbstract
This study examined the levels of financial well-being and psychological distress and tested their association among non-teaching personnel in a Philippine private higher education institution. Using a cross-sectional correlational design, 37 personnel from an eligible population of 202 completed the eight-item InCharge Financial Distress/Financial Well-Being Scale (IFDFW) and the 10-item Kessler Psychological Distress Scale (K10). The IFDFW and K10 demonstrated high internal consistency (α = 0.91 and 0.95, respectively). Participants reported average financial well-being (M = 5.22, SD = 1.92), while the mean K10 score was 21.16 (SD = 8.72), at the upper boundary of the moderate-distress band. Thirteen participants (35.14%) scored in the combined high or very-high distress ranges. Financial well-being was moderately and negatively associated with psychological distress, ρ(35) = −.45, p = .005, bootstrap 95% CI [−.69, −.14]. The findings indicate that lower perceived financial well-being co-occurred with greater nonspecific psychological distress in this sample, but the cross-sectional design does not establish causality. Institutions may consider voluntary financial-wellness and mental-health support while larger, multi-institution studies examine the association more precisely.
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