SHAPING PUBLIC OPINION: AN ANALYSIS ON THE EFFECTIVENESS OF PUBLIC OPINION SURVERYS IN INFLUENCING VOTERS' POLITICAL PREFERENCES IN THE CITY OF LUCENA

this study aimed to analyze the effectiveness of public opinion surveys in influencing voters' political preferences in the five vote-rich barangays of Lucena City. It specifically seeks to determine the respondents' level of familiarity with public opinion surveys in terms of survey and polling companies and data presentation; the respondents' views and attitudes towards public opinion surveys in terms of survey and polling companies and data presentation: the respondents' views and attitudes towards public opinion surveys; their perception of the level of effectiveness of public opinion surveys in influencing voters' political preferences in terms of source or medium used, and methods and strategies; the perceived impacts of public opinion surveys on voters' political preferences. Using the descriptive survey method, 150 registered voters from five (5) selected barangays of Lucena City were chosen depending on their age groups and specific criteria. The research questionnaire was administered online using various online applications to gather data relevant to the study. Frquency, percentage, and weighted mean were used as statistical treatments. Results and finding revealed that most of the respondents are very familiar with Pulse Asia Survey, and Social Weather Station (SWS) results presented on social media are also very familiar. In terms of views and attitudes, the majority of the respondents consider the results of public opinion surveys as highly effective and more convincing when survey companies have the utmost credibility and professionalism. In addition, respondents viewed it as highly effective if it is easy to understand the survey result because they are presented in a simple manner and language. Lastly, the majority of the respondents encourage some voters not to rely on survey results.