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Full-Text Articles in Asian Studies

Age And Ideology: The Emergence Of New Political Cleavages In Thailand’S 2566 (2023) Election, Napon Jatusripitak, Jacob Ricks Mar 2024

Age And Ideology: The Emergence Of New Political Cleavages In Thailand’S 2566 (2023) Election, Napon Jatusripitak, Jacob Ricks

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

The Move Forward Party’s victory in Thailand’s 14 May 2566 (2023 CE) election surprised most observers, defying widespread predictions of a Pheu Thai win. Departing from traditional vote-mobilization strategies, Move Forward’s campaign focused largely on social media and broad calls for political reform while eschewing the vote-canvassing networks and economic policy promises that had delivered victory after victory for Pheu Thai. Does Move Forward’s win indicate changes in Thai voting behaviour? Relying on data from an original survey collected the week before and the week after the election, as well as observations from fieldwork, we identify two political cleavages that …


Acceptance Of Communication Technology, Emotional Support And Subjective Well-Being For Chinese Older Adults Living Alone During Covid-19: A Moderated Mediation Model, Ze Ling Nai, Woan Shin Tan, William Tov Sep 2023

Acceptance Of Communication Technology, Emotional Support And Subjective Well-Being For Chinese Older Adults Living Alone During Covid-19: A Moderated Mediation Model, Ze Ling Nai, Woan Shin Tan, William Tov

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

Stringent social distancing measures implemented to control the spread of COVID-19 affected older adults living alone by limiting their social interaction beyond their households. During these restrictions, interactions beyond the household could be facilitated by communication technology (CT) such as voice calls, instant messages. Our study provides evidence on how CT acceptance could influence the emotional support and in turn, subjective well-being (SWB) of older adults living alone. We did a cross-sectional survey with 293 community-dwelling Chinese older adults. Participants were surveyed from September to November 2020 and had completed measures on CT acceptance (competency), emotional support, and SWB. PROCESS …


The Effects Of Ses, Social Support, And Resilience On Older Adults’ Well-Being During Covid-19: Evidence From Singapore, Mindy Eiko Tadai, Paulin Tay Straughan, Grace Cheong, Rachel Ngu Wen Yi, Yan Er Tan Feb 2023

The Effects Of Ses, Social Support, And Resilience On Older Adults’ Well-Being During Covid-19: Evidence From Singapore, Mindy Eiko Tadai, Paulin Tay Straughan, Grace Cheong, Rachel Ngu Wen Yi, Yan Er Tan

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

The COVID-19 pandemic has rendered visible many socioeconomic inequalities and the lengthy period of dis- ruption to everyday life had disproportionate effects on the most vulnerable groups in Singapore and across the world. Utilizing data from the Singapore Life Panel ® (SLP) collected in September 2021, this study examined a sample of 6667 older adults to assess the effects of socioeconomic status (SES) on well-being, and the mechanisms through which social support and resilience may mediate its influence. Overall, our results suggest significant direct and indirect effects of SES on well-being and provide evidence for the pivotal role that social …


The Persistence Of Ethnopopulist Support: The Case Of Rodrigo Duterte's Philippines, Dean C. Dulay, Allen Hicken, Ronald Holmes Jan 2023

The Persistence Of Ethnopopulist Support: The Case Of Rodrigo Duterte's Philippines, Dean C. Dulay, Allen Hicken, Ronald Holmes

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

The past few years have seen an emergence of populist leaders around the world, who have not only accrued but also maintained support despite rampant criticism, governance failures, and the ongoing COVID pandemic. The Philippines' Rodrigo Duterte is the best illustration of this trend, with approval ratings rarely dipping below 80 percent. What explains his high levels of robust public support? We argue that Duterte is an ethnopopulist who uses ethnic appeals in combination with insider vs. outsider rhetoric to garner and maintain public support. Moreover, we argue that ethnic affiliation is a main driver of support for Duterte, and …


Politically Speaking: Ethnic Language And Audience Opinion In Southeast Asia, Jacob I. Ricks Nov 2022

Politically Speaking: Ethnic Language And Audience Opinion In Southeast Asia, Jacob I. Ricks

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

Language is one of the quintessential markers of ethnicity. It allows co-ethnics to easily identify one another and underscores in-group and out-group boundaries. Recognizing this, politicians frequently employ ethnic tongues to enhance their political appeal. To what extent does this shape the opinions of their audiences? Utilizing a survey experiment, I test the impact of an ethnic tongue against that of the common political language among the Javanese in Indonesia, the Tagalog in the Philippines, and the Isan people in Thailand. The experiment demonstrates that the ethnic language has a significant impact in both Thailand and Indonesia, but there appears …


Visualizing Politics In Indonesia: The Design And Distribution Of Election Posters, Colm A. Fox Sep 2022

Visualizing Politics In Indonesia: The Design And Distribution Of Election Posters, Colm A. Fox

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

Where studies have shown that visuals are the primary means of political communication, research continues to focus largely on text-based information. To add to our understanding of visual-political communications, this article analyses Indonesian election posters since the 1950s. Drawing on historical materials and on a content analysis of 4,000 election posters, it asks why election posters have been designed and distributed in particular ways. Findings indicate that in the past, posters used singular, though powerful, social symbols to mobilize demographic groups behind political parties. However, contemporary posters are more visually complex and more candidate-centered, making arguments as to what the …


Media In A Time Of Crisis: Newspaper Coverage Of Covid-19 In East Asia;, Colm A. Fox Aug 2021

Media In A Time Of Crisis: Newspaper Coverage Of Covid-19 In East Asia;, Colm A. Fox

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

How have newspapers covered Covid-19 in Asia? To answer this question, I studied East Asian English-language newspapers published between January and July 2020. First, I measured the level of news media attention on Covid-19 among all reports. Second, I analyzed the tone and content of 330 editorials. I divided the analysis into two time periods: the initial crisis breakout period, when the number of infections was rising or high, and the crisis abatement period, when new infections declined to manageable levels. Findings show that although newspapers were slow to begin addressing the pandemic, their early editorials carried an alarming tone, …


Creative Placemaking In Singapore: A Critical Reflection, Su Fern Hoe Mar 2021

Creative Placemaking In Singapore: A Critical Reflection, Su Fern Hoe

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

All across the globe, there has been increasing recognition of the transformative power of creative placemaking to revive the economic and cultural life of cities. Singapore is no exception. Since 2008, the Singapore government has been engaged in a concerted effort to placemake Singapore into a culturally-vibrant cityscape with “heart and soul”. However, despite its increasing global popularity, what constitutes creative placemaking and its processes remain vague and tenuous. Notably, scant critical attention has also been paid on how Singapore has tried to adopt this global buzzword, and its impact on the localised dynamics of urban spaces and arts practices.


Mobilising Dissent In A Digital Age: The Curious Case Of Amos Yee, Orlando Woods May 2019

Mobilising Dissent In A Digital Age: The Curious Case Of Amos Yee, Orlando Woods

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

Political containers frame opinions. They play a formative role in establishing the terms ofinterpretation, in distinguishing between assent and dissent, and in determining the extent towhich dissent is publicly tolerated. Whilst it is by now widely acknowledged that the powerand influence of political containers has been relativised by interconnection, the effects ofmoving within and between containers – and thus mediating between different framings ofopinion – is undertheorised. Also, the enabling role of digital media in disseminating dissent,and in bringing about disproportionate reach and impact, remains understudied. Addressingthese lacunae, this paper explores the ways in which dissent can be reproduced, reframed, …


Is All Politics Local? Determinants Of Local And National Election Campaigns, Colm A. Fox May 2018

Is All Politics Local? Determinants Of Local And National Election Campaigns, Colm A. Fox

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

In recent decades election campaigns have shifted their focus from the local to the national level, increasingly featuring party leaders, labels, and national platforms. Despite this trend, there remains significant variation in the local/national orientation of campaigns across countries and parties. This article tests several propositions on why campaigns adopt a local or national orientation by analyzing a unique collection of more than 12,000 geocoded Thai election posters. Specialized software was used to measure the spatial proportions of visual and textual content on each poster. Using Thailand’s mixed electoral system to enable a controlled comparison of electoral rules, I demonstrate …


When Secular Universalism Meets Pluralism: Religious Schools And The Politics Of School-Based Management In Hong Kong, Junxi Qian, Lily Kong May 2018

When Secular Universalism Meets Pluralism: Religious Schools And The Politics Of School-Based Management In Hong Kong, Junxi Qian, Lily Kong

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

This article examines the politics of school-based management (SBM) in Hong Kong, with a specific focus on the conflicts between the state and three Christian churches (Catholic, Anglican, and Methodist) running state-funded religious schools. Although the state based its advocacy for SBM on neoliberally driven ideas of participation, transparency, and accountability, religious groups expressed worry about the loss of control over schools as an institution of value transmission anchored in religious beliefs. This article uses the SBM controversy as a case study to advance geographical debates on religious schools and argues that neoliberalism forms a necessary lens through which to …


Kiasu And Creativity In Singapore: An Empirical Test Of The Situated Dynamics Framework, Chi-Ying Cheng, Ying-Yi Hong Dec 2017

Kiasu And Creativity In Singapore: An Empirical Test Of The Situated Dynamics Framework, Chi-Ying Cheng, Ying-Yi Hong

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

This article investigates how Singaporeans' creativity is influenced by Kiasu, an indigenous construct corresponding to fear of losing out. We examine the impact of Kiasu on creativity, both as a personal value and a shared cultural norm in four studies. Study 1 showed that Singaporeans' Kiasu value endorsement predicts lower individual creativity. Study 2 demonstrated that this negative relationship is mediated by a self-regulatory focus on prevention. Study 3 further showed the impact of Kiasu as a personal value and a cultural norm by finding a significant three-way interaction effect of Kiasu prime, personal Kiasu value endorsement, and need for …


Inventing The ‘Authentic’ Self: American Television And Chinese Audiences In Global Beijing, Yang Gao Nov 2016

Inventing The ‘Authentic’ Self: American Television And Chinese Audiences In Global Beijing, Yang Gao

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

This article examines the ways educated urban Chinese youths engage American television fiction as part of their identity work. Drawing on theories of modern reflexive identity, and based on 29 interviews with US TV fans among university students in Beijing, I found these youths are drawn to this television primarily because they perceive the American way of life portrayed on it as more ‘authentic’. This perception of authenticity must be examined within the socio-cultural milieu these students inhabit. Specifically, torn between China’s ingrained collectivist culture and its recent neoliberal emphasis on the individual self, my respondents glean from US TV …


Cultural Differences And Switching Of In-Group Sharing Behavior Between An American (Facebook) And A Chinese (Renren) Social Networking Site, Lin Qiu, Han Lin, Angela K. Y. Leung Jan 2013

Cultural Differences And Switching Of In-Group Sharing Behavior Between An American (Facebook) And A Chinese (Renren) Social Networking Site, Lin Qiu, Han Lin, Angela K. Y. Leung

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

Prior research has documented cultural dimensions that broadly characterize between-culture variations in Western and East Asian societies and that bicultural individuals can flexibly change their behaviors in response to different cultural contexts. In this article, we studied cultural differences and behavioral switching in the context of the fast emerging, naturally occurring online social networking, using both self-report measures and content analyses of online activities on two highly popular platforms, Facebook and Renren (the “Facebook of China”). Results showed that while Renren and Facebook are two technically similar platforms, the Renren culture is perceived as more collectivistic than the Facebook culture. …


Chinese Culture In Western Shadow: Sichuan Shadow Puppetry, Margaret Chan Jan 2010

Chinese Culture In Western Shadow: Sichuan Shadow Puppetry, Margaret Chan

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

No abstract provided.


'A Hundred Flowers Bloom': The Re-Emergence Of The Chinese Press In Post-Suharto Indonesia, Chang Yau Hoon Jul 2006

'A Hundred Flowers Bloom': The Re-Emergence Of The Chinese Press In Post-Suharto Indonesia, Chang Yau Hoon

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

During the whole 32 years of Suharto’s regime (1966–98), Chinese publications and the use of Chinese language in public were officially banned in Indonesia. As a result, printed matter in Chinese characters that entered Indonesia was classified as ‘prohibited imports’ (Heryanto 1999: 327). This prohibition came to an end after the fall of Suharto, as part of the process of democratization and Reformasi. The post-Suharto era of Reformasi is thus celebrated for the dramatic revival of the freedom of the press and media in Indonesia and many previously banned as well as new publications have emerged since Suharto’s fall. The …


Defining (Multiple) Selves: Reflections On Fieldwork In Jakarta, Chang Yau Hoon Jan 2006

Defining (Multiple) Selves: Reflections On Fieldwork In Jakarta, Chang Yau Hoon

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

The 'Self' in late-modernity is never singular but multiplies across different discourses, practices and positions. It is constructed through difference. It is only through a relation to the 'Other' that the 'Self' can be defined. This paper endeavours to map the endless negotiations of my 'Self' as male Australian academic of Chinese descent, a Malaysian citizen, a Bruneian resident, and an Indonesian specialist, over a period of fieldwork in Jakarta in 2004. It discusses how I defined my multiple 'Selves' to different individuals and communities, how they in turn defined me, and how these constructions were always shifting. Depending on …


A Hundred Flowers Bloom: The Reemergence Of The Chinese Press In Post-Suharto Indonesia, Chang Yau Hoon Jan 2005

A Hundred Flowers Bloom: The Reemergence Of The Chinese Press In Post-Suharto Indonesia, Chang Yau Hoon

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

No abstract provided.


Revisiting The Asian Values Argument Used By Asian Political Leaders And Its Validity, Chang Yau Hoon Jan 2004

Revisiting The Asian Values Argument Used By Asian Political Leaders And Its Validity, Chang Yau Hoon

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

No abstract provided.


The Construction Of National Identity Through The Production Of Ritual And Spectacle: An Analysis Of National Day Parades In Singapore, Lily Kong, Brenda S. A. Yeoh Mar 1997

The Construction Of National Identity Through The Production Of Ritual And Spectacle: An Analysis Of National Day Parades In Singapore, Lily Kong, Brenda S. A. Yeoh

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

In this paper, we adopt the view that 'nation' and 'national identity' are social constructions, created to serve ideological ends. We discuss this in the specific empirical context of Singapore's National Day parades. By drawing on officially produced souvenir programmes and magazines, newspaper reports, and interviews with participants and spectators, we analyse the parades between 1965 and 1994, showing how, as an annual ritual and landscape spectacle, the parades succeed to a large extent in creating a sense of awe, wonderment and admiration. Discussion focuses on four aspects of the celebrations: the site of the parades, their display and theatricality, …