Nearly half of urban Filipino consumers surveyed reject the romanticized notion of “Filipino resilience” as rising borrowing and inflation fatigue deepen household financial strain, a new study found.
The “Pinoy, Kaya Pa Ba? Dissecting Filipino Resilience” study by Organic Intelligence and GUGMA PR found that 48% of respondents rejected the idea of resilience as an expectation to keep enduring hardship, even as Filipinos continued to register a high capacity to cope with adversity.
The survey found that 46% of respondents took out a loan in the previous one to two months. Of the total sample, 42% reported borrowing for essentials rather than discretionary spending.
Borrowing was highest among respondents aged 35 to 54, at 54% to 56%, while 50% of respondents in Mindanao and 49% in the Visayas reported taking out loans during the period.
The financial pressure contrasted with an overall Resilience Index score of 82 out of 100 among respondents, based on confidence, social support, adaptability and purpose.
Respondents in Mindanao scored 86, while those aged 45 to 54 scored 87. The youngest group, aged 18 to 24, posted a score of 77.
The study said the pattern suggested that resilience was strongest among some of the groups facing greater pressure, raising questions over whether the trait reflected strength or adaptation under strain.
It also found that 45% of respondents were behaviorally and emotionally drained by inflation to the point of losing the drive to get ahead.
The share rose to 56% in the Visayas and 59% in Mindanao, compared with 38% in Metro Manila.
Forty-four percent also said they did not have enough savings to survive three months without work. Among Class D respondents, the figure rose to 50%.
During the study’s launch in Quezon City, Organic Intelligence Director for Development Communication and Communication Design Jason Ligot said institutions should no longer place the burden of survival on the public.
“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,” Ligot said.
“Dignity-first communication means acknowledging that extreme resilience is often a forced response to institutional failure,” he added.
Rejection of the romanticized resilience narrative was strongest among respondents aged 18 to 24, at 64%.
The figure was 59% in Mindanao and 38% in Metro Manila.
The study stressed that Filipinos had not lost their ability to cope. It found that confidence, adaptability, social support and purpose remained strong, but that the celebratory narrative built around endurance was losing support.
GUGMA PR Chief Storyteller Gibby Gorres said the findings showed that messages praising resilience were increasingly disconnected from consumers’ economic conditions.
“Filipinos are tired of being told how strong they are while they struggle to pay for basic goods,” Gorres said.
“It’s time to retire the heroic Pinoy endurance trope immediately. The data shows consumers don’t want emotional validation right now. They want brands to be on their side through tangible relief. If your campaign is just praising their grit without offering actual value, you are going to sound completely tone-deaf, Gorres added.
The survey also found that 23% of respondents were willing to give up anything if necessary to survive, including family treats, dining out, data load, self-care and small hobbies.
Confidence in government support was also limited.
While 62% believed economic hardship linked to the 2026 Middle East conflict would be temporary, only 35% were confident the Philippine government could shield them from its effects. Twenty-eight percent said they felt supported by the government amid the crisis.
The study was based on a 15-minute online survey of 800 urban Filipinos aged 18 to 65 from socioeconomic classes ABCD conducted in May 2026.
Researchers said the findings reflected digitally accessible urban consumers and should not be interpreted as representative of the entire Philippine population, particularly rural communities and people with limited or no internet access.
