A Social Weather Stations (SWS) survey found that 28 percent of Filipinos said their quality of life was “better” than 12 months ago, 30 percent said it got “worse,” and 41 percent said it remained the same.

The results of the nationwide survey conducted from Sept. 28 to Oct. 1 were released on Nov. 25.

SWS used the term “gainers” for those who believe their quality of life got better, “losers” for those who think their quality of life worsened, and “unchanged” for those who said it stayed the same.

The latest figures translate into a net gainers score of -2 (percentage of gainers minus percentage of losers), which is classified by SWS as “fair” (-9 to zero).

“The September 2023 net gainer score was 13 points below the very high +11 in June 2023. It was the lowest since the -2 in June 2022,” SWS said.

Net gainers score decreases in all areas

SWS noted that declines in all areas contributed to the 13-point drop in the national net gainer score between June 2023 and September 2023.

Compared to June 2023, net gainers fell from “very high” to “fair” in Metro Manila (from +18 to -9); from “very high” to “high” in Balance Luzon (+13 to +3); “very high” to “fair” in the Visayas (from +10 to -7); and from “high” to “fair” in Mindanao (from +2 to -4).

Score decreases among all respondents with different educational attainments

SWS also noted that compared to June 2023, net gainers fell from “excellent” to “high” among college graduates, down by 16 points from +25 to +9.

It also fell from “very high” to “high” among junior high school graduates, down by 14 points from +17 to +3; from “fair” to “mediocre” among elementary graduates, down by nine points from -1 to -10; and from “high” to “mediocre” among non-elementary graduates, down by 16 points from +1 to -15.

The following are the classifications of net gainers scores: “Excellent” is applied to scores at +20 and above; “Very High” to scores between +10 and +19; “High” to scores between +1 and +9; “Fair” to scores between –9 and zero; “Mediocre” to scores between –19 and –10; “Low” to scores between –29 and –20; “Very Low” to scores between –39 and –30; “Extremely Low” to scores at –49 to –40; and “Catastrophic” to scores –50 and below.