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Only half of Filipino families expected a “happy” Christmas this year, a record low, according to the latest Social Weather Station (SWS) survey conducted on the coronavirus pandemic.
The survey, conducted from November 21 to 25, is the first to be conducted through face-to-face interviews since the start of the pandemic.
It found that 50 percent of those surveyed expected their Christmas to be a happy occasion, up from 79 percent in 2019.
SWS said the percentage “is 12 points below the previous record low of 62 percent in 2013, 2006 and 2005.”
82 percent, a historical record, was in 2002.
“It was 77 percent in 2003 before settling [the] Level 60 from 2004 to 2013, ranging from 62 percent to 69 percent. It steadily improved from 71 percent in 2014 to 79 percent in 2019 before dropping to 50 percent in 2020, ”said SWS.
This year’s survey showed that 15 percent expected Christmas to be sad, which also surpassed the previous record of 11 percent in 2011.
“The expectation for a sad Christmas was typically in the single digits, ranging from 2 to 9 percent. It was only in 2004, 2009, 2011 and 2020 that it reached double digits, between 10 and 15 percent, ”said SWS.
Meanwhile, 33 percent said they expected the day to be neither happy nor sad, which also broke the previous record of 29 percent in 2006, the pollster added.
Respondents were asked for the first time about their plans to celebrate Christmas.
Fifty-five percent responded “prepare Christmas Eve with the family from home only” and 49 percent said “go to church or attend religious services.”
The other answers were “prepare Christmas Eve with relatives from other homes”, 11 percent; “Give gifts to family and friends,” 11 percent; and “send Christmas greetings online or by text message,” 10 percent.
Single-digit percentages obtained the following responses: visiting family and friends, placing ornaments such as lanterns and Christmas trees, sending Christmas greetings through letters or greeting cards, letting children visit their godparents, and visiting tourist sites that are open.
The remaining 5 percent did nothing, while the 2 percent had no response.
SWS found that 48 percent of responding families rated themselves poor, 36 percent near-poor, and 16 percent non-poor.
“The percentage of those who expect a sad Christmas is higher among poor families (18 percent) than among families bordering poverty (13 percent) and non-poor (12 percent),” he said.
“It is also higher among food-poor families (19 percent) than among borderline food-poor families (13 percent) and non-food poor families (13 percent),” he added.
The SWS interviewed 1,500 adults 18 years of age or older nationwide and had sampling error margins of ± 2.5 percent for national percentages, ± 4 percent for Balance Luzon, and ± 6 percent for Metro Manila. Visayas and Mindanao.
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