Poverty and meritocracy in Singapore
Singapore is recognised to be one of the wealthiest countries in the world. Despite priding itself to be an inclusive country in terms of wealth distribution, there is increasing class inequality. Particularly, there have been cases of individuals struggling to make ends meet. This study aims to und...
| Main Authors: | , , |
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| Format: | Final Year Project (FYP) |
| Language: | English |
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2018
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| Online Access: | http://hdl.handle.net/10356/73681 |
| _version_ | 1824454186861854720 |
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| author | Ang, Jonathan Choong Yew Chua, Joyce Hui Ping Zhang, Alethea Shimin |
| author2 | Teo You Yenn |
| author_facet | Teo You Yenn Ang, Jonathan Choong Yew Chua, Joyce Hui Ping Zhang, Alethea Shimin |
| author_sort | Ang, Jonathan Choong Yew |
| collection | NTU |
| description | Singapore is recognised to be one of the wealthiest countries in the world. Despite priding itself to be an inclusive country in terms of wealth distribution, there is increasing class inequality. Particularly, there have been cases of individuals struggling to make ends meet. This study aims to understand middle-class perceptions of ‘poverty’ and ‘the poor’. As a qualitative study, this research involved semi-structured interviews with thirty middle-class young adults in Singapore. The responses garnered reveal an undercurrent of meritocratic principles that seem to inform how they conceptualise ‘poverty’ and ‘the poor’. This is reflected in the emphasis on the importance of hard work and self-reliance, where one should not solely rely on government assistance. This paper draws upon these responses to discuss the implications of meritocracy as a value system and recommends some solutions to remedy the unintended consequences of implementing this system across all facets of life. |
| first_indexed | 2025-02-19T03:18:19Z |
| format | Final Year Project (FYP) |
| id | ntu-10356/73681 |
| institution | Nanyang Technological University |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2025-02-19T03:18:19Z |
| publishDate | 2018 |
| record_format | dspace |
| spelling | ntu-10356/736812019-12-10T11:04:14Z Poverty and meritocracy in Singapore Ang, Jonathan Choong Yew Chua, Joyce Hui Ping Zhang, Alethea Shimin Teo You Yenn School of Humanities and Social Sciences DRNTU::Social sciences::Sociology::Social stratification Singapore is recognised to be one of the wealthiest countries in the world. Despite priding itself to be an inclusive country in terms of wealth distribution, there is increasing class inequality. Particularly, there have been cases of individuals struggling to make ends meet. This study aims to understand middle-class perceptions of ‘poverty’ and ‘the poor’. As a qualitative study, this research involved semi-structured interviews with thirty middle-class young adults in Singapore. The responses garnered reveal an undercurrent of meritocratic principles that seem to inform how they conceptualise ‘poverty’ and ‘the poor’. This is reflected in the emphasis on the importance of hard work and self-reliance, where one should not solely rely on government assistance. This paper draws upon these responses to discuss the implications of meritocracy as a value system and recommends some solutions to remedy the unintended consequences of implementing this system across all facets of life. Bachelor of Arts 2018-04-03T05:46:04Z 2018-04-03T05:46:04Z 2018 Final Year Project (FYP) http://hdl.handle.net/10356/73681 en Nanyang Technological University 30 p. application/pdf |
| spellingShingle | DRNTU::Social sciences::Sociology::Social stratification Ang, Jonathan Choong Yew Chua, Joyce Hui Ping Zhang, Alethea Shimin Poverty and meritocracy in Singapore |
| title | Poverty and meritocracy in Singapore |
| title_full | Poverty and meritocracy in Singapore |
| title_fullStr | Poverty and meritocracy in Singapore |
| title_full_unstemmed | Poverty and meritocracy in Singapore |
| title_short | Poverty and meritocracy in Singapore |
| title_sort | poverty and meritocracy in singapore |
| topic | DRNTU::Social sciences::Sociology::Social stratification |
| url | http://hdl.handle.net/10356/73681 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT angjonathanchoongyew povertyandmeritocracyinsingapore AT chuajoycehuiping povertyandmeritocracyinsingapore AT zhangaletheashimin povertyandmeritocracyinsingapore |