More Filipinos see improved quality of life this year

TWO OUT of five Filipinos expect their quality of life to improve in the next 12 months, the highest turnout in the last three decades, the results of the latest Social Weather Stations (SWS) survey showed.

The Fourth Quarter 2015 Social Weather Survey report, conducted from Dec. 5 to 8 and results of which were first published in BusinessWorld newspaper, also showed that a record-high number of Filipinos expressed optimism on the economy this year.

Out of 1,200 respondents aged 18 and up nationwide, 45 percent said they were optimistic about changes in their quality of life in 2016, while 5 percent said otherwise.

The latest figure yielded a personal optimism net (optimists minus pessimists) score of “very high” +40, the highest since SWS conducted the same survey in April 1984.

The SWS poll, which had a margin-of-error of plus-or-minus 3 percent, also found that 39 percent of respondents expected the economy to be better this year, while 8 percent said it would be worse, to yield a net score of “very high” +30 (correctly rounded), the same score gained in November 2010 which were both the highest since 1998.

Asked about changes in their quality of life over past 12 months, 31 percent claimed their lives had improved (gainers) while 27 percent said their lives worsened (losers), resulting in a net score of +5. It was statistically unchanged from +4 net score (29 percent gainers and 25 percent losers) in September.

By region, net personal optimism rose in the rest of Luzon (+42 from +33), the Visayas (+32 from +25), Mindanao (+41 from +34) and Metro Manila (+43 from +40).

Net personal optimism among socioeconomic groups also improved among Classes D (+40 from +31) and E (+42 from +35) but declined among ABC (+34 from +41).

Net economic optimism also went up in Metro Manila (+26 from +19), with double-digit improvements in the Visayas (+24 from +7), the rest of Luzon (+32 from +19) and Mindanao (+36 from +25).

An improved economic optimism was also recorded among Classes D (+31 from +17) and E (+34 from +25) except in ABC (+13 from +16).

Meanwhile, net gainers increased in Mindanao (+7 from +3), the rest of Luzon (+8 from +7), declined in the Visayas (-5 from -1) and unchanged in Metro Manila (+2). It also went up among Class E (+11 from +4), declined among ABC (+7 from +18) and retained among D (+3).

For net personal optimism, the SWS considers a rating of +30 and above as “very high”; +20 to +29 as “high”; +10 to +19 as “fair”; +1 to +9 as “mediocre”; 0 to -9 as “low”; and -10 and below as “very low.”

For net economic optimism, a score of +10 and above is considered “very high”; +1 to +9 “high”; 0 to -9 “fair”; -10 to -19 “mediocre”; -20 to -29 “low”; and -30 and below “very low.” Inquirer Research