By Joyce Ann L. Rocamora/Philippine News Agency
MANILA — Nearly half of Filipinos are “very happy” with life as shown in a survey by the Social Weather Stations (SWS) for the first quarter of 2019.
To the question, “If you were to consider your life, in general, these days, how happy or unhappy would you say you are on the whole?”, a total of 44 percent said they are “very happy”, 49 percent answered “fairly happy”, 7 percent are “not very happy”, while 1 percent answered “not at all happy.”
According to SWS, there is a five-point increase in Filipinos who are “very happy” with life compared to the 39 percent three months prior.
The polling firm attributed this rise to the increases of points in almost all parts of the Philippines — 14 points up in Metro Manila, 12 in the Visayas, seven in Mindanao, combined with a one-point decline in Balance Luzon.
“The proportion of ‘very happy’ was highest in Mindanao at 58 percent (up from 51 percent in December 2018), followed by the Visayas at 57 percent (up from 45 percent), Metro Manila at 43 percent (up from 29 percent), and Balance Luzon at 32 percent (down from 33 percent),” it said.
The SWS also noted that the March 2019 “very happy” figures in all education levels are higher compared to December 2018.
The “very happy” status is also especially high among Muslims at 66 percent against 38 percent in December 2018, followed by other Christian denominations at 50 percent, Catholics at 42 percent, and Iglesia ni Cristo members at 39 percent.
The SWS poll was done from March 28 to 31, using face-to-face interviews of 1,440 adults (18 years old and above) nationwide. The samples are set at 360 each in Balance Luzon, Metro Manila, the Visayas, and Mindanao.
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