Staff

Co-Directors

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Associate Professor Eddie Tong
Co-Director

(65) 6516 3654

psytmwe@nus.edu.sg

Eddie M. W. Tong attained his Ph.D. in Psychology from the University of Michigan on 2006 and is an Associate Professor in the Department of Psychology, National University of Singapore (NUS). He has received numerous teaching awards including being in NUS’s Honour Roll of the Annual Teaching Excellent Award. His main area of expertise is emotion, with special focus on positive emotions and appraisal theories. He also examines religion processes. He publishes widely in key journals in Emotion Science, Social Psychology, Personality Psychology, Health Psychology, and Cognitive Science. He was awarded the Rising Star in Psychology by the Association for Psychology Science in 2011. He is an Associate Editor of Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, and has been on the editorial board of four other journals including Emotion.

Read more about A/P Eddie's research interest and publications here.

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<b>A/P Irene Y.H. Ng</b> <br>Principal Investigator, IWP,<br> Associate Professor, <br> Department of Social Work, and<br> Steering Committee Chair, <br> Social Service Research Centre, NUS

Associate Professor Irene Ng
Co-Director

(65) 6516 6050

swknyhi@nus.edu.sg

Irene Y.H. Ng is an Associate Professor of Social Work and Co-Director of the Social Service Research Centre in the National University of Singapore. She holds a joint Ph.D. in Social Work and Economics from the University of Michigan. Her research areas include poverty and inequality, intergenerational mobility, and social welfare policy. Her current research projects include a study of in-work poverty among the young; social safety nets in East Asia; and the development of universal digital access.

Read more about A/P Irene's research interest and publications here.

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Full-Time Staff

Dr Seah Lay Hoon

Dr Seah Lay Hoon
Deputy Director & Senior Research Fellow

(65) 6601 7282

lhseah@nus.edu.sg

Lay Hoon Seah joins SSR as a Senior Research Fellow. She received her postgraduate diploma from the National Institute of Education (NIE) and her masters and doctorate in education from the University of Melbourne, Australia. She has previously worked in a number of research centers including the Centre for Research in Pedagogy and Practice and the Learning Science Lab in NIE, the International Centre for Classroom Research in University of Melbourne as well as the Hasselblad Graduate School of Molecular Science Education at the University of Gothenburg, Sweden. Her research work entails the use of qualitative methods and analysis such as interviews, ethnographic observations, researcher-participant collaborative inquiry, thematic analysis, discourse analysis and applied linguistic analysis.

Journal Articles:

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Xu Jianbin

Dr Xu Jianbin
Research Fellow

(65) 6601 6057

jianbin@nus.edu.sg

Xu Jianbin is a Research Fellow at the Social Service Research Centre. He holds a PhD in Social Work from the National University of Singapore. His research interests include exploring the role of spirituality in ageing and examining the application of mindfulness, narrative therapy, and existential therapy in the social work context.

Journal Articles:

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Yeo Geck Hong

Dr Yeo Geck Hong
Research Fellow

(65) 6601 5757 

geckhong@nus.edu.sg

GeckHong Yeo received her Ph.D. in Educational Psychology from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Her research program centers on the role of social contexts in adolescents’ development of psychological well-being. Informed by a contextually-rooted developmental model, her research emphasizes the role of contextual factors and the mechanism of change in psychological adjustment. The practical significance of attending to multiple layers of the social context is that it offers numerous points of possible intervention. The translational nature of her research program involves community collaborations to generate and translate research findings into practices and policies. She received the 2021 Society for Research on Child Development Small Grant for Early Career Scholars to examine the implementation and clinical effectiveness of digital peer support, and the developmental change linking peer support and adolescents’ psychological well-being, that considers the social conditions of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Journal Articles:

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Ms Fadiah Johari

Ms Nurul Fadiah Binti Johari
Research Associate

(65) 6601 7283

fasnuru@nus.edu.sg

Nurul Fadiah is a Research Associate at the Social Service Research Centre. She obtained her Master of Arts degree in Malay Studies from the National University of Singapore. Her research interests include the interplay of power and ideology in the construction of dominant narratives on socio-economic issues, as well as the intersection of socio-economic class, ethnicity and gender in the shaping of policies and their impact on marginalised communities.

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<b>Mr Tan Zhi Han</b><br>Research Associate,<br>Social Service Research Centre,<br>National University of Singapore

Mr Tan Zhi Han
Research Associate

(65) 6601 5211

tanzh@nus.edu.sg

Tan Zhi Han joined SSR as a data analyst for the “In-work Poverty and Challenges of Getting By Among the Young” project. He recently graduated from the National University of Singapore with a Master in Public Policy and a Bachelor of Social Sciences (Hons) in Sociology. His research interests include inequalities in education and income, precarious work, and emerging social welfare models.

Journal Articles:

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Mr Asher Goh

Mr Goh Mingyuan Asher
Research Assistant

(65) 6601 6331

fasgohm@nus.edu.sg

Goh Mingyuan Asher graduated with a Bachelor of Arts, Sociology at NTU. Before joining SSR, Asher was a research assistant at the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy, where he was involved in research related to public rental housing and youth risks in Singapore. Asher’s research interests lie in social policy, poverty and inequality. He was previously involved in the “Evaluation of Social Services Offices” research project and is now involved in the "In-work Poverty and Challenges of Getting By Among the Young" project.

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Ms Evelyn Kok

Ms Evelyn Kok
Research Assistant

(65) 6601 5509

evelyn.kok@nus.edu.sg

Evelyn Kok graduated with a Bachelor of Social Sciences (Honours) in Economics from the National University of Singapore, where she also minored in philosophy and political science. For her undergraduate thesis, she explored the effect of information on Singaporeans’ views on inequality and policy preferences by designing and conducting a randomised survey experiment. Her research interests include social inequality and labour economics, as well as how economics, philosophy, and politics come together to inform public policy. She is currently involved in the “In-Work Poverty and the Challenges of Getting by among the Young” project.

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Ms Sandy Chen

Ms Sandy Chen
Senior Executive

(65) 6601 7284

sandyc@nus.edu.sg

Sandy is a Senior Executive in Marketing and Corporate Communications at the Social Service Research Centre, where she leads the marketing initiatives and key communications campaigns. Her role involves overseeing the Centre's branding, social media, event planning, media relations, design and video editing, and more. She is also on the research project "In-work Poverty and Challenges of Getting By Among the Young", where she manages a mobile application with the team, and contributes in design and writing in news commentaries, reports, and presentations. Prior to joining SSR, she had 4+ years of marketing experience in the private sector, before she made the switch to realise her career goals of increasing conversation around social issues that have an important impact in society. 

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Ms Jess Tan Aiwen
Management Assistant Officer

(65) 6601 5019

fastaj@nus.edu.sg

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Ms Rose Yong
Manager

(65) 6601 4910

roseyong@nus.edu.sg

Rose Yong graduated with a Bachelor of Accountancy (Honours) from NTU Nanyang Business School. Rose started her accountancy career in the public sector before she transitioned to administrative work in the education industry. Prior to joining SSR, Rose worked in NTU as a Centre Manager.

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Ms Chan Sze Qian

Ms Chan Sze Qian
Project Manager

(65) 6601 5060

fascsq@nus.edu.sg

Chan Sze Qian joins SSR as a project coordinator for Enhancing Positive Outcomes in Youth Offenders and the Community (EPYC) research project. Before joining SSR, Sze Qian worked at National Computer Systems as a support officer in project coordination and taxonomy operations for SkillsFuture Singapore (National Movement Project). With her involvement in taxonomy research on occupation roles, she has been trained on RAISEC Holland Coding for individual personality career mapping.

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Ms Lee Si Hui

Ms Lee Si Hui
Research Assistant

faslees@nus.edu.sg

Lee Si Hui graduated from the University of Liverpool (UoL), a partnered university of Singapore Institute of Technology, with a Bachelor of Arts (Honours) in Criminology and Security. Her research interests lies in social conflict, youth delinquency and victimology. She is currently involved in the Enhancing Positive Outcomes in Youth and the Community (EYPC) research project.

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Ms Ho Sze Lei Valerie

Ms Ho Sze Lei, Valerie
Research Assistant

fashslv@nus.edu.sg

Valerie graduated from James Cook University with a Bachelor's in Psychological Science and a Bachelor's in Communication from the University at Buffalo. She is pursuing her Master's degree in Social Science at the Singapore University of Social Science. She is passionate about working with youths and her research interest lies in society and human behaviors. She is currently a research assistant in the Enhancing Positive Outcomes in Youth and the Community (EPYC) project. 

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Ms Yasmine Lee Hwee Cher

Ms Yasmine Lee Hwee Cher
Research Assistant

yaslhc98@nus.edu.sg

Yasmine graduated with a Bachelor of Psychological Science from the University of Wollongong (Australia) and currently holds a graduate certificate in counselling with Monash University (Australia). She is interested in the well-being and mental health of youths and families and has worked with youths through sports and wellness. Her passion lies in youth mental health, familial and couples' relationships, domestic violence, among others. Yasmine is a research assistant in the Enhancing Positive Outcomes in Youth and the Community (EPYC) research project.

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Ms Ishvareya Pathmanaban

Ms Ishvareya Pathmanaban
Research Assistant

ish.97@nus.edu.sg

Ishvareya graduated with a Bachelor of Social Sciences (Geography) from the National University of Singapore (NUS). She is interested in the mental health and well-being of youth. She is passionate about understanding youth behaviour, and enhancing their lives and hopes to work with them in the future. Ishvareya is a research assistant in the Enhancing Positive Outcomes in Youth and Community (EPYC) research project. 

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Nandika

Ms Nandika
Research Assistant

nandika@nus.edu.sg

Nandika graduated with a Bachelor of Psychological Science from the University of Wollongong (Australia). She is interested in the mental health of youth and children of all ages and has mentored youth from all walks of life since 2018. Her passion lies in youth mental health, familial relationships, domestic violence, among others. Nandika is a research assistant in the Enhancing Positive Outcomes in Youth and the Community (EPYC) research project.

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Ms Nadira Binte Mohd Iesham

Ms Nadira
Research Assistant

fasnmi@nus.edu.sg

Nadira graduated with a Bachelor of Arts (Honours) Criminology and Security from University of Liverpool, a partnered University with Singapore Institute of Technology (SIT). She is interested in youths-at-risk and juvenile delinquency. Nadira is currently a research assistant in the Enhancing Positive Outcomes in Youth and the Community (EPYC) research project in SSR.

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Ms Liyana Amirah Amir 
Research Assistant

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Heng Shi Qing Jayla

Ms Jayla Heng Shi Qing
Research Assistant

jayla.sg@nus.edu.sg

Jayla graduated with a Bachelor of Social Science (Honours) in Psychology with a minor in Philosophy from the National University of Singapore (NUS).  Her research interest lies in child and adolescent development, and in offender behaviors and rehabilitation. Jayla is currently a research assistant in the Enhancing Positive Outcomes in Youth and the Community (EPYC) research project in SSR.

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Imrenjeet

Ms Imrenjeet Kaur Pendhar
Research Assistant

imren@nus.edu.sg

Imren was awarded her Bachelor of Arts in Sociology (2.1 Honours) from the University of Leeds. Her research interests include : migrant experiences and lifecourses, crime and inequality, the climate crisis and displacement as well as global terrorism and politics. She has organised and conducted classes with refugees in Leeds under Student Action for Refugees. Her dissertation topic focused on international student experiences during the Covid-19 pandemic which consisted of qualitative data collection through interviews and thematic analysis. Her research experiences include:
Peer reviewer for the Leeds Human Rights Journal:
https://issuu.com/leedshumanrightsjournal/docs/hrj_2021_final
Research assistant for Dr Bronwen Swinnerton's project: Learning analytics and student success in which Imren designed the focus group protocol, conducted focus groups and analysis of the qualitative study: https://teachingexcellence.leeds.ac.uk/research/student-research-experience-placements/learning-analytics-and-student-success/

She is currently with the longitudinal study-  Enhancing Positive Outcomes in Youth and Community project, where she is supporting fieldwork as well as quantitative analyses.

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Adjunct and Courtesy Staff

Dr Neo Yu Wei

Dr Neo Yu Wei
Adjunct Senior Research Fellow

neoyuwei@nus.edu.sg

Neo Yu Wei is an adjunct Senior Research Fellow at the Social Service Research Centre. She obtained her doctorate in public policy at the Australian National University, with a thesis on social inclusion policies and children in Australia. Her research interests include understanding how low-income individuals and families meet their basic needs, as well as how they experience public and social services. She has employed different qualitative methods in her past and current research projects, including focus group discussions, participant-observations, in-depth interviews and research methods with children.

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Dr Ong Qiyan

Dr Ong Qiyan
Adjunct Senior Research Fellow

qyong@nus.edu.sg

Ong Qiyan is an Adjunct Senior Research Fellow at the Social Service Research Centre. She specializes in using behavioral and applied economics to study individual decision-making and the effects and performances of different policy designs. Her research spans a range of behavioral domains. Her recent research includes studies on cognitive reasons for debt in low-income households, performance of transnational marriage support programs and social service office models, as well as performance of different types of incentives on motivating prosocial behavior.

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Dr Adam Oei

Dr Adam Oei
Adjunct Research Fellow

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Adam Oei is a research specialist at the Ministry of Social and Family Development (MSF). He is currently involved in two longitudinal studies investigating the long term outcomes of children in out of home care and youth offenders. He is a cognitive psychologist by training and has keen interests in cognition and neuroplasticity across the lifespan. In line with these interests, he has examined the impact of video game play as well as bilingualism on cognitive skills in young adults and elderly adults.

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Dr Li Dong Dong

Dr Li Dong Dong
Adjunct Research Fellow

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Li Dong Dong, Ph.D., is a senior research specialist in the Centre for Research on Rehabilitation and Protection, Ministry of Social and Family Development, Singapore. Her research involves the study of child protection issues and youth offender rehabilitation, such as the predictors and outcomes of involvement in child protection service; effects of childhood maltreatment and the cycle of violence. She also studied media effects on child development, for example, the relationship between violent digital games and children and adolescents’ aggressive behaviours. She uses mainly quantitative data and relies on statistical modelling to test relevant research hypotheses.

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Dr Liu Mengru

Dr Liu Mengru
Adjunct Research Fellow

mengru@nus.edu.sg

Liu Mengru is an Adjunct Research Fellow at the Social Service Research Centre. She obtained her PhD in Psychology from Nanyang Technological University. Her research interests lie in understanding why people follow social norms as well as why people perform certain behaviors. She is currently involved in the Enhancing Positive Outcomes in Youth and the Community (EPYC) research project.

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Dr Rosaleen Ow
Editor, SSR Snippet

(65) 6516 6051

swkv139@nus.edu.sg

Rosaleen Ow is on a part-time appointment as Senior Lecturer with the Department of Social Work, National University of Singapore. She has a Ph.D. in Social Work from the National University of Singapore in 1991. Rosaleen was formerly Head of the Department of Social Work, NUS, from 2008 – 2015 and retired from a full-time teaching appointment after her sabbatical leave in 2016. In addition to classroom teaching and some specific administrative tasks, she now supervises graduate thesis from Honours to Ph.D.. Currently, she is also engaged in co-editing two publications (‘Mental Health and Social Work’ by Springer, and, ‘Social Work in Asia: State Programmes and Professional Identities’ by Taylor and Francis). Her research work includes cross-cultural social work practice such as cultural factors in care-giving of persons with mental illness among Vietnamese and Chinese migrants in Australia and the Malay community in Singapore; the spiritual well-being, depression and end of life despair in elderly persons with terminal cancer with healthcare professionals, and a commissioned national study on the impact of divorce on families. Most of her journal and book publications can be found in Research Gate and ORCID.

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