UCSI poll: Six in 10 Malaysians want better emotional well-being in 2023, two-thirds had 'good year' in 2022

Soo Wern Jun

30 December 2022 at 12:03 am·2-min read

KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 30 — A survey conducted by UCSI Poll Research Centre said today it found that 60 per cent of Malaysians polled have wished for a better emotional life in 2023.

The survey’s result also showed that 67 per cent out of 1,717 respondents said they had a good year in 2022 — compared to 24 per cent who had an excellent year, while 9 per cent said they had a terrible year.

“Some Malaysians likely had a terrible year because of all the unavoidable tragedy that transpired in Malaysia that year.

“Extreme flooding for instance, caused widespread destruction and loss of life,” said the research centre linked to UCSI University.

The survey also found that about 35 per cent of the respondents said they are looking forward to 2023, 56 per cent are in a somewhat stable emotional state, and 9 per cent are worried about the year ahead.

“These worries could be caused by the news of International Monetary Fund (IMF) which predicted global inflation to stay elevated at 6.5 per cent in year 2023 compared to 8.8 per cent in 2022,” the research centre said.

Another area the research centre polled was anticipations for 2023.

Respondents were given six options to choose from, which included ways to improve their physical lives, their emotional lives, their careers, their spiritual lives, and important relationships in their lives.

The findings of the survey indicate that 60 per cent of respondents want to enhance their emotional life, 54 per cent want to enhance their physical life, and 52 per cent wish to have meaningful relationships in life.

“The last question on the survey is directed toward determining whether the respondents believe that the year 2023 will be better over the year before.

“Seventy-five per cent of those who participated in the survey had positive expectations for the upcoming year, 13 per cent are unsure of what lies ahead in 2023, and 12 per cent are certain that 2023 will be better over 2022,” the research said.

The survey was conducted starting between December 21 and 26 this year. Respondents range from 18 to 30 years old (67 per cent), 31 to 40 years old (22 per cent), 41 to 50 years old (6 per cent) and 50 years old and above (5 per cent).