Elderly Population in Singapore: Understanding Social, Physical and Financial Needs

Abstract

Who are Singapore's low-income elderly? What makes some resilient in the face of multiple challenges? What are their social needs that might be filled by additional interventions via civil society or government programmes? These are some of the questions this publication tries to understand. It does so not by surveying the elderly, but via intensive interviews with 100 residents of one low-income neighbourhood in Singapore. Whereas surveys can help gather generalisable data, interviews can help us see the 'story behind the story,' illuminating potential causal connections and providing hints regarding possible effective ways to intercede. We followed this up with a series of small-group conversations with our participants, as well as 'social conversations' with representatives of Singapore's leading civil society organisations. From this we discovered important insights about social isolation, financial deprivation and physical challenges amongst participating elderly. We have already started to apply these tentative conclusions to work with our VWO partner and other engaged parties. This puts 'action' into our research – the proactive use of research results to make a change and co-create tangible improvements.