September 23, 2022

In ‘Singapore youth: In defence of “strawberries”’ (The Straits Times, September 2022), Dr Chew Han Ei (NUS Institute of Policy Studies) and Assistant Professor Vincent Chua (NUS Department of Sociology and Anthropology) shared their preliminary findings about Singapore’s youths based on a six-year study by the NUS Institute of Policy Studies and the National Youth Council.

Many Singapore youths emerged from the COVID-19 pandemic with resilience. Although 54% of the study participants reported a negative impact of the pandemic on their lives, many managed to overcome the difficult time with a positive mindset. After the pandemic, 61% participants agreed that they could deal with whatever comes their way, which is even higher than the pre-pandemic level of 60%. Despite disruption of personal plans, many young people have taken the opportunity to pick up new skills and figure out clearer life goals.  Moreover, participants also reported a stronger sense of belonging to Singapore after the pandemic.

Drawing insights from the study, the researchers suggest strategies the Fourth Generation (4G) leaders can employ to strengthen Singapore’s social compact with young people. While the vast majority of the participants trust the government at least to some extent, only 24% of them believe that the government trusts the young generation to a large or very large extent. Trust of the government can be further strengthened by the government’s reciprocal trust of young people. This requires leaders to listen to young Singaporeans’ underlying needs attentively and respond to them actively. Imposing outdated notions of success on their initiatives will not demonstrate trust. Rather, it is the giving of autonomy and accountability to the young generation that will cultivate trust.

Read the article in The Straits Times here: https://www.straitstimes.com/opinion/singapore-youth-in-defence-of-strawberries