Nearly half of Filipino consumers reject the traditional narrative of Filipino resilience as rising living costs and financial pressures push households to borrow for basic needs and cut back on leisure, according to a study by communications agencies Organic Intelligence and GUGMA PR.
The study, “Pinoy, Kaya Pa Ba? Dissecting Filipino Resilience,” found that 48% of respondents rejected the romanticized notion of Filipino resilience, while 46% had taken out a loan in the past one to two months. Of the total respondents, 42% borrowed to cover essential expenses.
The findings point to mounting financial and emotional strain among Filipino consumers, with 45% saying inflation had left them emotionally and behaviorally drained to the point of losing the drive to get ahead.
“The data shows consumers don’t want emotional validation right now. They want brands to be on their side through tangible relief,” GUGMA PR Chief Storyteller Gibby Gorres said on Friday.
“If your campaign is just praising their grit without offering actual value, you are going to sound completely tone-deaf,” he added.
The study also found that 44% of respondents lacked enough savings to cover three months without work, despite 69% maintaining an optimistic financial outlook.
The rejection of the resilience narrative was more pronounced among younger respondents, reaching 64% among those aged 18 to 24. By region, the figure stood at 59% in Mindanao and 56% in the Visayas, compared with 38% in Metro Manila.
The findings were based on a 15-minute online survey of 800 Filipinos aged 18 to 65 from urban areas nationwide in May 2026. The study used demographic weighting but noted that its findings may not fully reflect rural Filipinos and people with limited internet access.
During the study’s launch in Quezon City, Organic Intelligence Director for Development Communication and Communication Design Jason Ligot said institutions should stop placing the burden of coping with economic hardship on households.
“For duty bearers and public institutions, messaging can no longer shift the burden of survival onto the public. Celebrating resilience has to be replaced with demonstrating accountability, showing responsiveness and communicating the concrete actions being taken to ease the burden,” Mr. Ligot said.
“Dignity-first communication means acknowledging that extreme resilience is often a forced response to institutional failure,” he added.
The study found that financial pressures were also forcing consumers to reduce spending on leisure and other discretionary activities. Some 81% said they were attending fewer concerts and live shows, 78% were traveling internationally less, and 75% were going to cinemas less often. Meanwhile, 68% reported dining out less frequently.
About 23% of respondents said they were willing to give up anything if doing so would help them survive.
For consumers, tangible financial relief was more important than emotional messaging from brands. A price freeze was the most frequently cited measure that would make consumers feel a brand was on their side, at 27%, followed by smaller retail pack sizes at 16%, free shipping at 14%, promotional bundles at 12% and loyalty rewards for essential goods at 11%.
Only 35% of respondents were confident the Philippine government could shield them from the effects of the conflict in the Middle East, while 28% felt supported by the government amid the crisis.
Despite the pressures, the study recorded a national Resilience Index score of 82 out of 100. However, its authors cautioned that the high score should not be taken as evidence that households are thriving, as resilience may reflect the need to adapt to persistent hardship.
The study recommended addressing the structural causes of household vulnerability, investing in accessible public spaces, improving financial literacy and encouraging businesses to provide more responsive support to the communities they serve.
It argued that resilience should not be used as a substitute for institutional support, emphasizing the need to improve the conditions that allow Filipinos to recover from economic shocks rather than simply endure them. — Kaizzer Angela Marie V. Manuba