According to the survey, which polled 1,605 people between 18 and 30 from April 3 to May 12, 52% believe the country is headed in the wrong direction, while 33% believe it is headed in the right direction.
Seventy-seven per cent of the respondents said their concerns revolve around the economy, particularly the high cost of living (41%) as well as the minimum income and salary issues (15%).
About 28% of the respondents believe the government should focus on reducing inflation, while another 15% believe it should focus on enhancing economic growth.
The respondents however remained mostly optimistic about the next year, with 47% of them saying they believe the economy will improve and 64% believing their individual household situations will improve.
According to the pollster, 84% believe they have a good quality of life.
When asked to compare themselves with their parents, 47% said they believe they have better living standards, while 38% believe they enjoy a better financial situation.
Nearly 43% believe they have better job security.
However, Merdeka Center noted perceived discrimination is on the rise. Around 58% of Chinese and Indian respondents believe their communities are being unfairly treated by the government and frequently discriminated against, from 43% previously in January 2023.
About 57% of the Chinese respondents and 62% of Indians surveyed said they believe their community is unfairly treated.
More than 73% of Malay respondents said they believe Bumiputera privileges should be maintained. Only 24% believe in equal treatment.
The percentage is higher in the east coast, where 75% of Malays believe in maintaining Bumiputera privileges. In the north, south and central regions, the figures are more balanced (51% in north, 44% in south and 47% in central).
In East Malaysia, only 33% believe in maintaining Bumiputera privileges.
Merdeka Center also noted that Malay respondents “seem to have lower trust in other ethnicities”, with 57% saying they trust the Chinese and 53% saying they trust Indians.
“Chinese trust Malays (92%) almost as much as they trust their own ethnicity (95%), but have less trust in Indians (83%).
“Indians trust Chinese (83%) more than Malays (79%),” the pollster said.