From Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (with edits from RLR)
The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) will begin its conduct of the 2021 Consumer Finance Survey (CFS) on 26 March 2022. The CFS is a triennial nationwide survey on the financial condition of Filipino households, specifically their assets, liabilities, income, and expenditure. The BSP has commissioned the services of RLR Research and Analysis, Inc. (RLR), an independent market research firm, to collect the necessary data on behalf of the BSP. The CFS data collection activities are scheduled to be completed by the end of October 2022.
The BSP is authorized to require from any person or institution any data, for statistical and policy development purposes under Section 23 of the BSP Charter (Republic Act (RA) No. 7653 as amended by RA No. 11211). The data collected will be handled with utmost confidentiality, following the pertinent Philippine laws, and the said data will not be made available to any person or entity outside of the BSP, whether public or private, except under order of the court or under such conditions as may be prescribed by the Monetary Board. The survey results, as with all BSP-released statistics, will be published in aggregate form to safeguard the identities of the respondents. For information about the BSP’s privacy policy, kindly visit https://www.bsp.gov.ph/Pages/AboutTheBank/BSPPrivacyPolicy.aspx.
The BSP encourages the selected families to participate in the said survey for a more accurate representation of the financial condition of consumers in the Philippines. The Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA), in support of this initiative, has likewise posted information about the conduct of the 2021 CFS on their website https://psa.gov.ph/content/psa-grants-clearance-conduct-2021-consumer-finance-survey.
“The election atmosphere is now shaping up, with only a year before the 2022 national elections. Our research looks into how the voting Filipino’s mind works when choosing those they want to elect into government”
The survey aims to uncover strategies Filipino voters use to reach their decisions on whom to vote for in the elections. This in turn can show potential trends in voter preference in the elections
5 Voter Decision Strategies
MEASURING VOTER DECISION STRATEGIES 1
45% or 20.5 million of Filipino voters rely on scant information, and do away with thorough consideration of alternatives when choosing candidates
MEASURING VOTER DECISION STRATEGIES 2
Approximately 16 million voters or 34% of the voting population are conscientious with regards to collecting information about candidates
MEASURING VOTER DECISION STRATEGIES 3
The survey also revealed that there is a 6th Category branded as Unpredictables. Unpredictables are approximately 10.3 million voters or 22% of the population that show no distinct pattern of decision-making. They tend to shift from one strategy to another without deliberate thought.
FAST & FRUGAL
FAST & FRUGAL
They are motivated primarily by efficiency, actively seeking only the most diagnostic information that will allow them to quickly make the correct choice. Information-seeking should be limited to the one or two most important/diagnostic criteria, but those few criteria should be evenhandedly applied to every alternative in the choice set. Shallow but comparable search.
MOSTLY INFLUENCED BY MEDIA NEWS; CAMPAIGN PLATFORM IS CONSIDERED; DRIVEN BY WHAT THEY NEED.
RATIONAL CHOICE
RATIONAL CHOICE
Actively gather as much information as one possibly can. Deep, comparable search involving careful weighing the positive & negative attributes associated with each alternative and balancing between the two.
THE IDEAL VOTER; INFLUENCED BY CREDIBLE MEDIA.
HEURISTIC-BASED
HEURISTIC-BASED
Limited information processors who are generally motivated to make good decisions, as easily as possible. Information search is generally quite limited to a single “satisfactory” alternative. They eliminate alternatives as soon as any negative information about them is encountered, thus usually resulting in noncomparable search across alternatives.
INFLUENCED BY STOCK KNOWLEDGE, WORD OF MOUTH, EASILY SWAYED BY FAKE NEWS
GUT
GUT
Strictly affective, usually unconscious, and involves no deliberate external search for information. No effort whatsoever to compare alternatives on anything other than how they make them “feel” or “going with your gut.
HARD CORE VOTERS or SWAY VOTERS INFLUENCED BY AFFINITY.
CONFIRMATORY
CONFIRMATORY
Party or personality identification is generally the “lens” through which political information is selectively perceived. Information search is more often passive than active. Selective gathering and learning a lot of information which is biased in favor of the party or candidate. Deep but shallow search of information.
TYPICAL POLITICAL PARTY OR ALLIANCESUPPORTER; GIVES MORE WEIGHT TO “PARTIDO” OR AFFILIATION WITH CANDIDATE.
“These results show the diverse methods Filipino voters employ when choosing a candidate. Understanding the mind-set of voters will be essential to see the trends in the upcoming polls”
PRESS RELEASE MAY 2021
ALMOST HALF OF FILIPINO VOTERS ARE BIASED DECISION MAKERS
45% or 20.5 million of Filipino voters rely on scant information, and do away with thorough consideration of alternatives when choosing candidates to cast their ballots for, a survey conducted by RLR Research & Analysis, Inc. (RLR) shows.
The research reveals that nearly half of the voting population considers word of mouth information, and party affiliations as relevant factors in picking a political candidate. Likewise, majority of voters will base their decisions on their gut-feel about a candidate come election time.
“The election atmosphere is now shaping up, with only a year before the 2022 national elections. Our research looks into how the voting Filipino’s mind works when choosing those they want to elect into government,” Joel Flores, RLR Polling and Social Team Head said.
Of the 20.5 million voters, 6.4 million are classified as Heuristic-based decision-makers by the study. The research firm depicts them as generally motivated to make good decisions and choosing to arrive at such a decision as easily as possible. They are quick to drop alternative candidates as soon as any negative news is heard about them. They are mostly influenced by what they know about their candidates and word of mouth. Heuristic-based decision makers are prone to being swayed by fake news.
Also according to the study, 5.9 million voters use confirmatory decision making. The research body describes confirmatory voters as those who value the personality and party affiliation of a candidate. Theirs is more of a passive way of information gathering and they are typically selective with the data they consume. Data which are often skewed towards their favored party or candidate.
Completing the 45% of biased decision-makers are the 8.2 million that are tagged by the study as gut decision-makers. These are voters who are not inclined to search for information about any candidate. They are less inclined to actively gather information about alternatives. Choices about candidates are made on the premise of how they make gut decision-makers feel, the study says.
The survey aims to uncover strategies Filipino voters use to reach their decisions on whom to vote for in the elections. This in turn can show potential trends in voter preference in the elections.
“We found that majority of voters depend on thinking strategies that help them arrive at their candidate of choice. We also found that respondents mentioned the following, among others, as factors affecting their choices: policy stands of candidates or their parties; past performance in office, particularly for re-electionists, characters of candidates, and social identifications and associations, particularly political alliances of candidates,” Flores said.
Meanwhile, the survey has also shown that approximately 16 million voters or 34% of the voting population are conscientious with regards to collecting information about candidates.
“This one-third of the population will responsibly spend time and effort to arrive at an informed decision. They can be described as ideal voters,” Flores said.
The poll shows that, 9.3 million can be classified as rational choice voters. These voters actively gather as much information about election candidates. They weigh the positive and negative attributes of each candidate and base their decision on balanced choices.
Rounding up the five thinking strategies are the fast and frugal decision makers, who comprise 6.7 million of the voting population. They are mostly motivated by efficiency, seeking information that will help them arrive at a correct choice quickly. Fast and frugal voters are typically influenced by what is on news media. They also consider the campaign platforms of candidates, and will likely choose a candidate that can provide what they particularly need.
“Yet, the survey also shows that there are still 10.3 million voters or 22% of the population that show no distinct pattern of decision-making. They tend to shift from one strategy to another without deliberate thought.” Flores said.
Survey respondents classified as “Unpredictables” by the study have likewise been noted to be more prevalent in the rural areas. They are considered as impulsive decision-makers resorting to the use of different thinking strategies for various scenarios.
Meanwhile, respondents situated in urban areas are noted to be more inclined to gather information about candidates.
“These results show the diverse methods Filipino voters employ when choosing a candidate. Understanding the mind-set of voters will be essential to see the trends in the upcoming polls,” Flores said.
The research firm conducted the survey fieldwork from February 25 to March 8, 2021 using face-to-face interviews. The study had 1,500 respondents nationwide composed of 300 respondents each from the National Capital Region, North and Central Luzon, South Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao. Likewise, all respondents are 18 years of age and above, registered voters, and with intention to vote in 2022. All eco-classes are represented in the study.
“This study opens a host of opportunities for finding out the behavior and needs of the voting population to be able address those needs,” Flores said.
About RLR Research & Analysis, Inc.
RLR Research & Analysis has been undertaking market research studies since 2013. The company’s research specialization lies in automotive, healthcare, and polling among other industries. Its studies and recommendations have been behind the market positioning of some of the most prominent brands, personalities, local and multinational corporations and organizations.
The company’s core services include: Market Research, Business Intelligence, Consulting, Data Management and Operations, Data Management and Analysis, Polling and Public Opinion, Consumer, Automotive and Social Research.
It is dedicated to providing its clients with ethical and best-in-class research, strictly adhering to the Code of Professional Ethics and Practices set forth by the Marketing and Opinion Research Society of the Philippines (MORES).
The RLR office is located 4F Kalayaan Center in Diliman, Quezon City and can be reached at (632) 7750-0944 (local 103). For inquiries, contact MR. JOEL FLORES (joel@rlrresearch.com) or MS. ABI QUIJANO (abi@rlrresearch.com).
The Metro Manila Covid-19 Opinion Survey showed that 88% of the MM residents were satisfied with President Rodrigo Duterte’s actions in combating the COVID-19 Pandemic. 59% of the residents being definitely satisfied, 29% somewhat satisfied, 4% somewhat dissatisfied, 3% definitely dissatisfied and 5% is not sure.The info-graphic below shows the satisfaction rating of Government Agencies for their response to the COVID-19 Pandemic among Metro Manila residents. The AFP (Armed Forces of the Philippines) scoring the highest rating at 90% followed by the PNP (Philippine National Police) at 88%, IATF at 74% (Inter-Agency Task Force on Emerging Infectious Diseases), DOH at 68% (Department of Health), DSWD at 59% (Department of Social Welfare and Development), and 45% for DOLE (Department of Labor and Employment).The info-graphic shows the satisfaction rating of Local Government Chiefs for their response to the COVID-19 Pandemic among Metro Manila residents. Among MM chiefs, Mayor Vico Sotto (Pasig) scored the highest satisfaction rating with 97%. He is followed by Mayor Marcy Teodoro (Marikina) at 95%, Mayor Ike Ponce (Pateros) at 94%, Mayor Isko Moreno (Manila) and Mayor Rex Gatchalian (Valenzuela) both at 92% and Mayor Menchie Abalos (Mandaluyong) at 90% to round up the first 6 highest satisfaction ratings.
Background of the Study
RLR Research & Analysis Inc. wanted to contribute toward assessing the national and local governments’ response to the COVID-19 pandemic by measuring the opinion of residents of Metro Manila, considered the epicenter of the pandemic, and informing the public as well as national and local leaders on public opinion on this administration’s efforts and policies. This survey is non-commissioned and the Company’s own contribution to fulfilling the information needs of citizens, government and community institutions, businesses, etc. We hope that the results of this study are helpful and useful in promoting good governance and responsiveness and a tool for our leaders to gauge how they are faring in addressing the needs and concerns of the people in these very trying times.
Sample Distribution and Error Margins
A total of 1,275 Metro Manila household heads were interviewed. Cities with over 300,000 households (based on 2015 NSO Survey of Households and Population) were allocated with a sample size of 100; cities with 100,000 to 300,000 households were allocated a sample of 75, while those with less than 100,000 with 60.
Fieldwork Period
Fieldwork was conducted from May 14 to June 2, 2020.
Sampling Methodology
The usual sampling that opinion surveys/market research employ was slightly modified to fit the quarantine situation during the conduct of this survey. However, all possible quality assurance measures were performed to ensure the validity of the survey.
In each city, sample barangays were selected via simple random sampling, i.e., barangays have equal chances of being selected.
In each sample barangay, the field interviewer who resides nearest to the sample barangay was tasked to recruit potential survey respondents by securing the household head’s mobile number and his/her agreement to participate in a telephone survey. An interval of 2 (i.e., every third household) was employed in area sampling.
Other measures taken to help achieve the target sample sizes:
Expansion of barangays – if the required quota of 5 respondents per barangay was not achieved, the interviewer recruited from adjacent barangays
Use of database – 2019 to 2020 respondents of previous surveys that used simple random sampling were utilized to reach the required sample size in specific cities.
Pre-survey Activities
The questionnaire was pre-tested to improve the questionnaire by checking the length of interview, ease of administration and if respondents can easily comprehend the questions.
Field interviewers tasked to recruit respondents on the ground were trained via video conference calls. A separate video conference call was conducted to brief the telephone interviewers on the questionnaire app.
To protect the field interviewers, they were required to wear masks and face shields together with using alcohol to clean their hands as often as possible while out on field. Additionally, they were instructed to always observe physical distancing, especially during recruitment.
Quality Control
20% of interviews were back-checked (i.e., called again by a back-checker to confirm that they were indeed interviewed and their location)
10% of interviewers were supervised via 3-way calls
Weighting Procedure
To yield representative figures at the regional level, census-based population weights were applied to the cities.
Respondents
Household heads from Metro Manila, 18 years and over across all socio-economic classes were interviewed via Computer-Assisted Telephone Interview (CATI).
Respondent Breakdown and Profile:
Executive Summary
In responding to the COVID-19 pandemic, President Duterte enjoys across-the-board high satisfaction ratings (88%) despite the challenges the national government is facing in addressing the people’s needs while trying to curb the spread of the contagion.
The military and police are also rated highly by 9 out of 10 Metro Manila residents.
Residents are more critical of their local chief executives. While practically all residents of Pasig City (97%) are satisfied with Mayor Vico Sotto’s efforts during the crisis, Quezon City and Las Piñas residents are not as satisfied with their mayors. In fact, 25% of Quezon City residents have not received any form of assistance from the city government at the time of the survey.
The main problem faced by Metro Manila residents during the quarantine period is source of income. A large majority (86%) of residents lost their source of income one way or another, may it be because of work stoppage, inability to report for work due to lack of transportation or small business are forced to shut down. The lower class D is hit hard by this problem.
One out of five (21%) of households do not have enough food for the following reasons: most were not prepared to be locked down, it has been difficult to go out and buy food supply, and the household has no income to buy food.
Apart from the government, the private sector also provided relief and assistance. Among the private companies, San Miguel Corp. was mentioned by 1 out of 5 (22%) as the company which helped Filipinos in coping with the crisis. This is followed by media networks GMA7 (20%) and ABS-CBN (16%).
Over half of Metro Manila households applied for the Social Amelioration Program (SAP) where they can receive PhP 8,000. Two out of 5 (39%) received their SAP as of survey period.
Although 9 out of ten (92%) of Metro Manilans think that the ECQ/MECQ had been effective in controlling the spread of the virus, it seems like Metro Manila residents have begun to relax as fear of being infected has decreased to 55% from data of Social Weather Stations May 4-10 survey where 93% are worried about getting sick of COVID-19.
Satisfaction Rating of the President by Demographics
Metro Manila households managed to cope as almost everyone was able to receive aid from their respective LGUs.
Caloocan City, Mandaluyong City and Pateros ameliorations mostly coming from the Local Government while Pasay City Barangays lead in giving out assistance.
Spontaneous Awareness of Private Companies that Helped During the ECQ/MECQ Period
Most households were able to apply for SAP and majority of them have already received their aid. Nearly all of the recipients received the full aid amount of Php 8,000.
