Eight out of 10 Filipinos said they were very happy or fairly happy with their lives, the latest Social Weather Stations (SWS) survey revealed Sunday.
The 87 percent showing, however, was the lowest since 2014, the survey company said.
The survey, conducted from Dec. 16 to 19, 2018, showed 39 percent of respondents saying they were “very happy” and 48 percent saying they were “fairly happy.” Only 11 percent said they were “not very happy” and 2 percent said they were “not at all happy.”
Unhappiness was highest in Metro Manila at 17 percent, up from the previous 10 percent in December 2017. It was followed by Balance of Luzon at 14 percent up from 5 percent. The Visayas came third at 11 percent up from six percent, and Mindanao at 11 percent up from 4 percent.
“The resulting Happiness score of 8 percent is a seven-point decline from the record-high 94 percent in December 2017. This is the lowest in four years, since the 85 percent in December 2014,” the SWS said.
“On the other hand, the unhappiness score of 13 percent in December 2018 is the highest since the 15 percent in December 2014,” it added.
Happiness declined in all areas. Even though it suffered a 7-point drop, happiness was still highest in Mindanao from 96 percent in December 2017 to 89 percent in December 2018.
Happiness declined in all classes as well.
“It was highest in class ABC, at 91 percent, down from 93 percent in December 2017, followed by class D, or the masa, at 88 percent, down from 95 percent, and class E, at 79 percent, down from 90 percent,” the SWS said.
Unhappiness was highest in class E, at 21 percent, up from 10 percent in December 2017, followed by class D, at 12 percent, up from 5 percent, and class ABC, at 9 percent up from 7 percent,” it added.
Happiness was slightly higher among those who had a formal education, SWS said.
The reverse was true for unhappiness, which was highest among those that had not even graduated from elementary school.
Happiness was highest among Iglesia Ni Cristo members, at 96 percent, up from 93 percent in December 2017; followed by other Christian denominations, at 94 percent, up from 93%; Catholics, at 86 percent down from 94 percent, and Muslims, at 83 percent, down from 93 percent.
Asked how satisfied they are with the lives that they lead, 34 percent of respondents answered very
satisfied, 48 percent said they are fairly satisfied, 14 percent said they were not very satisfied, while 3 percent said they were not at all satisfied.
“The new satisfaction with life score of 82 percent is a 10-point decline from the record-high 92 percent in December 2017. This is the lowest in over four years, since the 79 percent in September 2014,” the SWS said.
“On the other hand, the dissatisfaction with life score of 18 percent in December 2018 is the highest since the 21 percent in September 2014,” it added.
The said survey, conducted from Dec. 16 to 19, 2018, used face-to-face interviews with 1,440 adults nationwide. It has sampling error margins of ±2.6 percent for national percentages, and ±5 percent each for Balance Luzon, Metro Manila, the Visayas, and Mindanao.
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