44% see better life in next 12 months – SWS

MANILA, Philippines — About four in 10 Filipinos expect their quality of life to improve in the next 12 months, according to a recent survey conducted by Social Weather Stations (SWS).

Results of the March 21 to 25 survey released yesterday found 44 percent of the respondents expecting their quality of life to improve, similar to the 44 percent obtained in the December 2023 survey.

Seven percent said it will worsen, up from five percent, while another 44 percent said it will stay the same.

Although optimism remained the same from the previous survey, the slight increase in pessimism resulted in a lower net optimism score of +37.

The “net personal optimism” score is obtained by subtracting those who said their lives will worsen from those who said their lives will improve within the year.

The latest net optimism score is the lowest under the Marcos administration, although it is still classified as “very high” by SWS, similar to the +39 obtained in the December 2023 poll.

Across areas, net personal optimism was highest among those in balance Luzon at +44 (from +40), followed by those in Metro Manila at +42 (from +47), Mindanao at +32 (from +43) and the Visayas at +24 (from +27).

Meanwhile, net personal optimism was highest among college graduates at +44 (from +38), followed by high school graduates at +43 (from +45), elementary graduates at +32 (from +36) and non-elementary graduates at +19 (from +24).

The 2024 first quarter social weather report had 1,500 adult respondents and a margin of error of +/- 2.5 percent for national percentages.