SWS December 8-16, 2017 Survey: Expectation of Happy Christmas Highest in 14 years at 77%; All-time High 81% Say It Is Better to Give than to Receive

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1 23 December 2017, page 1 of Malingap St., Sikatuna Village, Quezon City Website: Tel: , Fax: SWS December 8-16, 2017 Survey: Expectation of Happy Christmas Highest in 14 years at 77%; All-time High 81% Say It Is Better to Give than to Receive Social Weather Stations About three in four (77%) of adult Filipinos expect a happy Christmas, while 5% expect it to be sad and 18% are neither happy nor sad, according to the Fourth Quarter 2017 Social Weather Survey, fielded on December 8-16, The 77% who are expecting a happy Christmas is the highest since 2003, matching the secondhighest 77% who expected a happy Christmas in The December 2017 Survey also found four in five (81%) adults saying it is better to give gifts this Christmas season, while 19% say it is better to receive. Expectations of a Happy Christmas Further Improves in 2017 Expectations of happy Christmas further improves to 77% in 2017, up from 73% in 2016 [Chart 1, Table 1]. SWS first surveyed people's expectation of a happy Christmas in 2002, when it scored an alltime high of 82%. It went to 77% in 2003 before settling to 60s levels from 2004 to 2013, ranging from 62% to 69%. It returned to 70s levels in 2014, and has steadily improved since, starting with 71% in 71% in 2014, 72% in 2015, and 73% in 2016, and improving to 77% in Expectations of a sad Christmas remained unchanged at 5% in Nevertheless, the 5% in both 2016 and 2017 are still the lowest recorded since the 4% in In 2002 and 2003, only 3%-4% reported having a sad Christmas, and then increased to 10% in From 2005 to 2010, sadness with Christmas fluctuated at 7%-10% level. Expectation of sad Christmas reached all-time high 11% in 2011, but declined to single-digit levels again starting in % Say It is Better to Give Gifts The 81% in 2017 who say it is better to give rather than receive Christmas gifts is the highestrecorded since SWS started asking the question in 2006 [Chart 2]. The percentages of those who say it is better to give increased to 81% in 2017, up by six points from 75% in pr SWR 2017-IV Happiness in Christmas (Special Report).docx

2 23 December 2017, page 2 of 10 The sense of giving was 75% in 2006, when the question was first asked, and again in It slightly improved to 77% in 2015 before slightly declining to 75% in Expectations of Happy Christmas Still Highest in Mindanao, Lowest in NCR Expectations of happy Christmas are still higher in areas outside the National Capital Region (NCR). In 2017, expectations of happy Christmas is 84% in Mindanao, followed by in Visayas and 75% in Balance Luzon. In 9 out of 16 surveys since 2002, expectations of happy Christmas have been higher in Mindanao than in other areas. By comparison, only 69% in NCR are happy this Christmas [Chart 3]. Compared to 2016, expectations of happy Christmas improved in Mindanao, Visayas and NCR, but hardly changed in Balance Luzon. Expectations of happy Christmas further improved in Mindanao, up from 78% in 2015 to 84% in 2017, the third-highest after 89% in 2002 and 87% in In Visayas, expectations of happy Christmas rebounded to in 2017, after a decline to 74% in 2016 from 77% in In Balance Luzon, the 75% expectations of happy Christmas in 2017 is about the same as the 74% in In NCR, expectations of happy Christmas recovered in 2017, up by three points to 69%, rebounding after a three-point decline to 66% in 2016 from 69% in Except in 2012, expectations of happy Christmas have been relatively lower in NCR than in the provincial areas. Better to Give Christmas Gifts All-time High in Balance Luzon and Visayas The percentages of those who say it is better to give Christmas gifts are higher in NCR (85%), Balance Luzon (84%) and Visayas (83%) than in Mindanao (69%) [Chart 4]. Compared to 2016, the sense of giving increased in Visayas and Mindanao, and slightly rose in NCR and Balance Luzon. In Visayas, those who say it is better to give Christmas gifts increased to all-time high 83% in 2017, up from 72% in In Mindanao, those who say it is better to give Christmas gifts rebounded to 69% in 2017, after a decline to 63% in 2016 from 70% in 2015.

3 23 December 2017, page 3 of 10 In Balance Luzon, the 84% who say it is better to give Christmas gifts is two points above the 82% in both 2016 and 2015, and an all-time high for this area. In NCR, the 85% who say it is better to give Christmas gifts is at least four points above the 81% in 2016 and in Expectations of Happy Christmas Higher Among Classes D and E The percentages of those who expect a happy 2016 Christmas are higher among masa class D (78%) and very poor class E (75%) than among middle-to-upper classes ABC (71%) [Chart 5]. Among class D, expectations of happy Christmas improved to 78% in 2017, up by five points from 73% in The 78% in 2017 matches the second-highest recorded 78% in An all-time high 82% expected a happy Christmas in Among class E, expectations of happy Christmas improved in 2017, up by three points to 75% from 72% in both 2015 and The 75% in 2017 matches the second-highest 75% in An alltime high 82% expected a happy Christmas in By contrast, expectations of a happy Christmas declined among classes ABC in It went down by 15 points, from all-time high 86% in 2016 to 71% in Except for two years, expectations of happy Christmas have been usually higher among classes ABC than those from lower classes. Expectations of Happy Christmas High Across Age Group Expectations of a happy Christmas is high across age group. It is particularly higher among the 18 to 44 year olds among the youth aged 18-24, 79% among the year olds, and 81% among the year olds. It is 73% among the year olds and 76% among those 55 years old and above [Chart 6]. Except in 2007, 2011, and 2012, the youth are usually happier at Christmas than older adults. Expectations of happy Christmas among the year olds remained at in Expectations of happy Christmas improved among the year olds, up by four points from 75% in 2016 to 79% in It also improved among the year olds, up by nine points from 72% in 2016 to 81% in Expectations of happy Christmas hardly changed among the 45-54, moving to 73% in 2017 from 72% in Among those 55 years old and above, expectations of a happy Christmas improved by four points in 2017, at 76%, up by four points from 72% in 2016.

4 23 December 2017, page 4 of 10 Better to Give Christmas Gifts Highest Among Classes ABC Preference for giving Christmas gifts tends to be higher among the upper classes than the lower classes: it is highest at 95% among classes ABC, followed by 81% among class D, and 78% among class E [Chart 7]. The December 2017 survey found all-time high percentages of those who prefer Christmas giftgiving in all classes. Among classes ABC, the percentage of it is better to give Christmas gifts increased by 14 points, up from 81% in 2016 to all-time high 95% in It slightly increased among class D, up by 4 points from 77% in 2016 to an all-time high 81% in Among class E, it increased by 11 points, up from 67% in 2016 to an all-time high 78% in Better to Give Christmas Gifts High Across Age Groups Preference for giving Christmas gifts is high across age groups. The percentages of those who say it is better to give Christmas gifts are as follows: 84% among the youth aged 18-24, 77% among the year olds, 84% among the year olds, 84% among the year olds, and 78% among those 55 years old and above [Chart 8]. Compared to 2016, preference for giving Christmas gifts slightly increased among the older age groups of 45 years old and above. Among the 45-54, it increased by nine points, up from 75% in 2016 to 84% in Among the 55 years old and above, it increased by five points, up from 73% in 2016 to 78% in The percentages of those who say it is better to give Christmas gifts hardly changed among the younger 18-24, and year olds. Survey Background The December 2017 Social Weather Survey was conducted from December 8-16, 2017 using face-to-face interviews of 1,200 adults (18 years old and above) nationwide: 300 each in Metro Manila, Balance Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao (sampling error margins of ±3% for national percentages, and ±6% each for Metro Manila, Balance Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao). The area estimates were weighted by Philippine Statistics Authority medium-population projections for 2017 to obtain the national estimates.

5 23 December 2017, page 5 of 10 The Social Weather Survey items on happiness and giving on Christmas are non-commissioned. They are included on SWS's own initiative and released as a public service. The exact survey questions are as follows: Intro: Pag-usapan naman po natin ang darating na pasko at bagong taon [Let us now talk about this coming christmas and new year]. 1) Sa pangkalahatan, masasabi po ba ninyo na ang inyong Pasko ngayong taon ay magiging (READ OUT: MASAYA; MALUNGKOT; HINDI MASAYA AT HINDI RIN MALUNGKOT)? [On the whole, would you say that your Christmas this year will be (READ OUT: Happy; Sad; Not happy and not sad)?] 2) Sa inyong opinyon, mas mabuti po bang magbigay o tumanggap ng regalo ngayon darating na pasko? (ONE ANSWER ONLY: MAS MABUTING MAGBIGAY; MAS MABUTING TUMANGGAP) [In your opinion, is it better to give or to receive this coming Christmas? (ONE ANSWER ONLY: It is better to give; It is better to receive)]. SWS employs its own staff for questionnaire design, sampling, fieldwork, data-processing, and analysis, and does not outsource any of its survey operations. #

6 23 December 2017, page 6 of 10 Chart 1 EXPECTATIONS OF A HAPPY CHRISTMAS, PHILIPPINES, Happy 77% 20% Neither Happy nor Sad 18% Sad 5% 0% Sa pangkalahatan, masasabi po ba ninyo na ang inyong Pasko ngayong taon ay magiging (MASAYA, MALUNGKOT, HINDI MASAYA AT HINDI RIN MALUNGKOT )? [On the whole, would you say that your Christmas this year will be (READ OUT)?] 1 Table 1 ON THE WHOLE, WOULD YOU SAY THAT YOUR CHRISTMAS THIS YEAR WILL BE HAPPY, SAD, OR NEITHER HAPPY NOR SAD? PHILIPPINES, Happy Sad Neither % 3% 15% Sa pangkalahatan, masasabi po ba ninyo na ang inyong Pasko ngayong taon ay magiging (MASAYA, MALUNGKOT, HINDI MASAYA AT HINDI RIN MALUNGKOT )? [On the whole, would you say that your Christmas this year will be (READ OUT)?] 2

7 23 December 2017, page 7 of 10 Chart 2 IS IT BETTER TO GIVE OR TO RECEIVE THIS COMING CHRISTMAS? PHILIPPINES, It is better to receive It is better to give 20% 0% Sa inyong opinyon, mas mabuti po bang magbigay o tumanggap ng regalo ngayon darating na pasko? (ONE ANSWER ONLY) [In your opinion, is it better to give or to receive this coming Christmas?] 3 Chart 3 % EXPECTING A HAPPY CHRISTMAS, BY AREA, % 70% Mindanao, 84% Visayas, Bal. Luzon, 75% NCR, 69% 50% Sa pangkalahatan, masasabi po ba ninyo na ang inyong Pasko ngayong taon ay magiging (MASAYA, MALUNGKOT, HINDI MASAYA AT HINDI RIN MALUNGKOT )? [On the whole, would you say that your Christmas this year will be (READ OUT)?] 4

8 23 December 2017, page 8 of 10 Chart 4 % SAYING IT IS BETTER TO GIVE, BY AREA, % 0% NCR Bal. Luzon Visayas Mindanao Sa inyong opinyon, mas mabuti po bang magbigay o tumanggap ng regalo ngayon darating na pasko? (ONE ANSWER ONLY) [In your opinion, is it better to give or to receive this coming Christmas?] 5 Chart 5 % EXPECTING A HAPPY CHRISTMAS, BY CLASS, % Class D, 78% Class E, 75% 70% Classes ABC, 71% 50% Sa pangkalahatan, masasabi po ba ninyo na ang inyong Pasko ngayong taon ay magiging (MASAYA, MALUNGKOT, HINDI MASAYA AT HINDI RIN MALUNGKOT )? [On the whole, would you say that your Christmas this year will be (READ OUT)?] 6

9 23 December 2017, page 9 of 10 Chart 6 % EXPECTING A HAPPY CHRISTMAS, BY AGE GROUP, % 70% 35-44, 81% 18-24, 25-34, 79% 55 & above, 76% 45-54, 73% 50% Sa pangkalahatan, masasabi po ba ninyo na ang inyong Pasko ngayong taon ay magiging (MASAYA, MALUNGKOT, HINDI MASAYA AT HINDI RIN MALUNGKOT )? [On the whole, would you say that your Christmas this year will be (READ OUT)?] 7 Chart 7 % SAYING IT IS BETTER TO GIVE, BY CLASS, % 0% Classes ABC Class D Class E Sa inyong opinyon, mas mabuti po bang magbigay o tumanggap ng regalo ngayon darating na pasko? (ONE ANSWER ONLY) [In your opinion, is it better to give or to receive this coming Christmas?] 8

10 23 December 2017, page 10 of 10 Chart 8 % SAYING IT IS BETTER TO GIVE, BY AGE GROUP, % 0% & ABOVE Sa inyong opinyon, mas mabuti po bang magbigay o tumanggap ng regalo ngayon darating na pasko? (ONE ANSWER ONLY) [In your opinion, is it better to give or to receive this coming Christmas?] 9 ##