Handsome poor no match to ugly rich

Philippine Daily Inquirer MANILA, Philippines—Well, that’s that for romance. In choosing a lifetime partner, more than half of Filipinos (51 percent) prefer someone who is “ugly but rich” to someone who is “good-looking but poor” (46 percent), according to a survey by the Social Weather Stations (SWS) . But the results of the Fourth Quarter 2010 survey released Friday also showed that more Filipino men than women believe that love, and not money, conquers all. Among Filipino men, 52 percent will choose someonegood-looking but poor, and 46 percent, someone rich but ugly . On the other hand, more Filipino women are inclined to choose a life partner who is rich but ugly (57 percent) to someone who is good-looking but poor (41 percent). The survey also showed that more than half of Filipinos, or 55 percent, are “very happy” with their love life, while 34 percent say it “could be happier.” Those who profess to have “no love life” account for 11 percent. 1,200 respondents The survey, conducted on Nov. 27-30, 2010, asked 1,200 adults nationwide: “If you were to choose one of the following two persons to be your lifetime partner, who would you pick: A person who is ugly but rich, or a person who is good-looking but poor?” Among men, majorities of those 55 years old and above (60 percent), 45 to 54 years (54 percent), and 18 to 24 years or the youth (56 percent) will choose someone who is good-looking but poor rather than someone rich but ugly. On the other hand, 53 percent of men aged 25 to 34 are more inclined to choose someone who is rich but ugly than someone good-looking but poor. Middle-aged men, or those 34 to 44 years old, are divided: 50 percent will prefer someone ugly but rich, while 49 percent will choose one who is good-looking but poor. Among women, preference for a life partner who is ugly but rich is high across all age groups, the SWS noted. The preference is highest among women who are 18 to 24 years old (71 percent). The percentage decreases as age increases: 61 percent among those 25 to 34 years old, 57 percent among those 35 to 44 years old, 51 percent among those 45 to 54 years old, and 50 percent among those 55 and above. By region, class By area, 55 percent in both Metro Manila and in Luzon outside Metro Manila will choose someone ugly but rich for a life partner, while 56 percent in Mindanao will choose someone good-looking but poor. Those from the Visayas are divided, with 50 percent saying they prefer someone ugly but rich, and 49 percent, someone good-looking but poor. By class, more than half of those from classes ABC (57 percent) and class D (52 percent) will prefer someone ugly but rich. About half or 51 percent of class E will choose someone good-looking but poor. The respondents were also asked to describe their love life in the following terms: “no love life,” “could be happier,” or “very happy.” More Filipinos are happy with their love life in 2010 (55 percent) than when SWS last asked the question in 2004 (46 percent). The question was first asked in 2002, with 58 percent professing happiness in their love life. On the other hand, those who say their love life “could be happier” declined to 34 percent in 2010, from 44 percent in 2004. In 2002, 32 percent said their love life “could be happier.” The number of those who say they have “no love life” hardly changed at 11 percent. Marriage a plus Married people have a happier love life, with 64 percent saying they are “very happy” as compared to 43 percent among those with a live-in partner, and 33 percent among those single. More than half of those with live-in partners (55 percent) say their love life “could be happier” as compared to 36 percent among those married, and 21 percent among those single. Curiously, more than four in 10 single persons (45 percent) say they have “no love life.” There are more single females (53 percent) than single males (38 percent) who say they have “no love life.” By age, only two of five (44 percent) of the youth (aged 18 to 24) are “very happy” with their love life, lower compared than most of the older people who claim to be “very happy” with their love life: 53 percent among those 25 to 34, 60 percent among those 35 to 44, 52 percent among those 45 to 54 and 59 percent among those 55 and above. Among the youth, one of four (26 percent) say they have no love life, higher than the older age groups. By area, about seven in 10 of those from Mindanao (71 percent) and Visayas (67 percent) say their love life is “very happy,” as compared to 57 percent in Metro Manila and 40 percent in the balance of Luzon. Nearly five in 10, or 48 percent, of those in the balance of Luzon say their love life “could be happier,” as compared to 29 percent in Metro Manila, 22 percent in the Visayas and 21 percent in Mindanao. Noncommissioned items The survey used face-to-face interviews, and has an error margin of plus-minus 3 percentage points for national percentages. The survey questions on happiness with love life and preference for lifetime partners are noncommissioned items, the SWS said. Lawrence de Guzman, Inquirer Research Source: Philippine Daily Inquirer