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Articles 1 - 26 of 26
Full-Text Articles in Social Psychology
Profiles Of Activity Engagement And Depression Trajectories As Covid-19 Restrictions Were Relaxed, Jonathan L. Chia, Andree Hartanto, William Tov
Profiles Of Activity Engagement And Depression Trajectories As Covid-19 Restrictions Were Relaxed, Jonathan L. Chia, Andree Hartanto, William Tov
Research Collection School of Social Sciences
Given elevated depression rates since the onset of the pandemic and potential downstream implications, this research examined the association between activity engagement and depression among middle-aged and older adults postlockdown. This study aimed to (a) identify activity engagement profiles among middle-aged and older adults, (b) understand factors associated with profile memberships, and (c) compare depression trajectories across profiles as COVID-19 restrictions eased over 16 months in Singapore. This longitudinal study involved 6,568 middle-aged and older adults. Latent growth analysis was first conducted to obtain estimates of depression trajectories for each individual. Latent profile analysis was then conducted to identify different …
A Causal Discovery Exploration Of Determinants Of Social Isolation, Barry Nuqoba, Kenneth Choo, Yi Wen Tan, William Tov
A Causal Discovery Exploration Of Determinants Of Social Isolation, Barry Nuqoba, Kenneth Choo, Yi Wen Tan, William Tov
ROSA Research Briefs
In this report, we explore the potential causes of social isolation among older adults in Singapore using causal discovery. We found an inferred causal relationship between perceived helpfulness and social isolation, where older adults who perceived themselves as helpful were less likely to perceive themselves as socially isolated. Our study also found that perceived isolation and loneliness may be distinct concepts among older adults in Singapore, with loneliness being more likely to precede social isolation. Policy recommendations include promoting a sense of helpfulness through programs such as volunteering to reduce social isolation.
Project Silverlight: Community Based And Participant-Led Initiatives To Increase Civic Engagement Among Older Adults, Paulin T. Straughan, William Tov, Wensi Lim, Rachel Ngu, Yan Er Tan, Mindy Eiko Tadai
Project Silverlight: Community Based And Participant-Led Initiatives To Increase Civic Engagement Among Older Adults, Paulin T. Straughan, William Tov, Wensi Lim, Rachel Ngu, Yan Er Tan, Mindy Eiko Tadai
ROSA Research Briefs
Project Silverlight was a year-long project aimed at redefining social engagement and participation of older adults in the community. In this report, we share our findings from the project and key recommendations to community partners who are looking to adopt a similar model of participant-led programs. Our study found that by engaging student volunteers as a key partner in this initiative, participants showed a significant improvement in their perceptions of youth, and that participants derived a great sense of satisfaction from being involved in the curation of their activities.
Monoracials’ Perceptions Of Biracials In Singapore, Sheila Xi Rui Wee, Chi-Ying Cheng
Monoracials’ Perceptions Of Biracials In Singapore, Sheila Xi Rui Wee, Chi-Ying Cheng
Research Collection School of Social Sciences
Objectives: Drawing on social identity theory, present research examined the effects of overlapping racial membership on monoracials’ categorization of biracials as in-/out-group members, as well as its impact on monoracials’ social perceptions of biracials in Singapore. Within Singapore, it is hypothesized that biracials who share racial membership with monoracials would be rated more as monoracials’ racial in-group and be evaluated more positively. Furthermore, monoracials’ positive perceptions of biracials with (vs. without) shared racial membership would be less influenced by biracials’ confrontation of racial prejudice. Method: Studies 1 (N = 242) and 2 (N = 153) sampled Chinese Singaporeans to assess …
Cross-Cultural Differences In Supportive Responses To Positive Event Disclosure, Lester Sim, Ka I. Ip, Esra Ascigil, Robin S. Edelstein
Cross-Cultural Differences In Supportive Responses To Positive Event Disclosure, Lester Sim, Ka I. Ip, Esra Ascigil, Robin S. Edelstein
Research Collection School of Social Sciences
Perceived reactions to sharing of good news (capitalization), can have important implications for romantic relationships. Typically, when European Americans perceive that their partners respond in an active constructive (versus passive and/or destructive,) manner, they tend to perceive their partners as more responsive and report higher relationship quality. However, cross-cultural differences in norms can influence peoples’ preference for different capitalization responses and whether different capitalization responses convey partner responsiveness. In a combined sample of European Americans, East, and South Asians (N = 915), we investigated whether links among capitalization responses, perceived partner responsiveness, and relationship quality differed by culture. People who …
Covid-19 Stress And Cognitive Failures In Daily Life: A Multilevel Examination Of Within- And Between-Persons Patterns, Nadyanna Binte Mohamed Majeed, K Tennakoon Appuhamillage Sandeeshwara Kasturiratna, Ming Yao Li, Jonathan L. Chia, Verity Y. Q. Lua, Andree Hartanto
Covid-19 Stress And Cognitive Failures In Daily Life: A Multilevel Examination Of Within- And Between-Persons Patterns, Nadyanna Binte Mohamed Majeed, K Tennakoon Appuhamillage Sandeeshwara Kasturiratna, Ming Yao Li, Jonathan L. Chia, Verity Y. Q. Lua, Andree Hartanto
Research Collection School of Social Sciences
The COVID-19 pandemic has claimed an extremely high number of lives worldwide, causing widespread panic and stress. The current research examined whether COVID-19 stress was associated with everyday cognitive failures, using data from a seven-day daily diary study of 253 young adults in Singapore. Multilevel modeling revealed that COVID-19 stress was significantly associated with cognitive failures even after adjusting for demographic factors, both at the within-person and between-persons levels. Specifically, individuals experienced more cognitive failures on days they experienced more COVID-19 stress (as compared to their own average levels of COVID-19 stress), and individuals who experienced more COVID-19 stress overall …
Important To Me And My Society: How Culture Influences The Roles Of Personal Values And Perceived Group Values In Environmental Engagements Via Collectivistic Orientation, Tengjiao Huang, Angela K. Y. Leung, Kimin Eom, Kam Pong Tam
Important To Me And My Society: How Culture Influences The Roles Of Personal Values And Perceived Group Values In Environmental Engagements Via Collectivistic Orientation, Tengjiao Huang, Angela K. Y. Leung, Kimin Eom, Kam Pong Tam
Research Collection School of Social Sciences
Despite extensive works examining the influence of personal values on environmental engagements, scarce research has examined the influence of group values that are perceived as important in the society. To address this lacuna and recent calls for more cross-cultural environmental research, we investigated whether and how culture, via collectivistic orientation, influences the roles of personal values and perceived group values, namely egoistic and biospheric values, in motivating environmental engagements in a Western (the U.S.; N = 469) and an Asian (Singapore; N = 410) country. To highlight a few findings, the study showed that personal values and perceived group values …
Burnout Isn’T Just Exhaustion: Workers Can Also Feel Cynical Or Inadequate, Tina Li Yi Ng, Andree Hartanto
Burnout Isn’T Just Exhaustion: Workers Can Also Feel Cynical Or Inadequate, Tina Li Yi Ng, Andree Hartanto
Research Collection School of Social Sciences
Employers, take note: There’s more to burnout which corporate wellness initiatives alone cannot solve, say SMU researchers. The huge wave of resignations spurred by the pandemic has forced companies to confront burnout, implementing “burnout breaks” to curb the loss of productivity that comes with working too much. Though initiatives like “mental health weeks” are widely appreciated, they merely scratch the surface and do not solve the issue. To truly put out the flames of burnout, a precise diagnosis of the problem is critical. This is especially true in Singapore, the world’s most fatigued country where one in two workers feels …
Teachers Who Complain About Burnout Are Not Bad Teachers, Bek Wuay Tang, Jacinth Jia Xin Tan
Teachers Who Complain About Burnout Are Not Bad Teachers, Bek Wuay Tang, Jacinth Jia Xin Tan
Research Collection School of Social Sciences
Psychology tells us it’s natural but wrong to assume teachers aren’t coping well with stress due to their own inability to manage time or be tough, say SMU’s Tang Bek Wuay and Jacinth Tan. A worrying spotlight was recently shone on burnout among teachers. In a Ministry of Education (MOE) engagement survey conducted in June, three in 10 teachers said they could not cope with stress at work.
Cultural Influences On Exercise Type And Body Confidence In Women, Skye Sakashita, Desiree Crevecoeur-Macphail
Cultural Influences On Exercise Type And Body Confidence In Women, Skye Sakashita, Desiree Crevecoeur-Macphail
Student Scholar Symposium Abstracts and Posters
This study examined cultural influences on exercise habits and body confidence in women, specifically between ethnic minority and white women. Past research has indicated that Asian women often feel more cultural pressure than their White counterparts. This study wanted to examine further and see if an individual’s parent being an immigrant differs in amount of cultural pressure. Another aspect that this survey examined is motivation for exercise. Past research found that women who felt greater dissatisfaction with their physical appearance were more likely to list factors such as appearance or weight as their reasoning for exercise rather than for health …
The Psychosocial Well-Being Of Older Adults In Covid-19 And The 'New Normal', Micah Tan, Paulin T. Straughan, William Tov, Grace Cheong, Wensi Lim
The Psychosocial Well-Being Of Older Adults In Covid-19 And The 'New Normal', Micah Tan, Paulin T. Straughan, William Tov, Grace Cheong, Wensi Lim
ROSA Research Briefs
Early research into COVID-19 has focused predominantly on the immediate and direct physical health effects of the pandemic, as compared to the wider, indirect effects of the pandemic on general well-being brought about by the various measures put in place to contain the virus. In terms of policies, focus has also been placed largely on containment and broad based policies for the entire population. As experts increasingly recognize that the pandemic will be a protracted event (The Straits Times, 2021), however, there is a need for stakeholders to place greater emphasis on the indirect effects of COVID-19 that will likely …
Dealing With Covid-19 And Emerging Stronger From It, David Chan
Dealing With Covid-19 And Emerging Stronger From It, David Chan
Research Collection School of Social Sciences
Whether it is reacting to news on COVID-19 cases, following safe management rules, adapting to changes at work, assessing leadership and public responses to the coronavirus crisis, or navigating post-pandemic realities, it is all part of understanding how humans think, feel, and behave, says SMU Professor David Chan.
Do Private Household Transfers To The Elderly Respond To Public Pension Benefits? Evidence From Rural China, Plamen Nikolov, Alan Adelman
Do Private Household Transfers To The Elderly Respond To Public Pension Benefits? Evidence From Rural China, Plamen Nikolov, Alan Adelman
Economics Faculty Scholarship
Aging populations in developing countries have spurred the introduction of public pension programs to preserve the standard of living for the elderly. The often-overlooked mechanism of intergenerational transfers, however, can dampen these intended policy effects, as adult children who make income contributions to their parents could adjust their behavior in response to changes in their parents’ income. Exploiting a unique policy intervention in China, we examine using a difference-in-difference-in-differences (DDD) approach how a new pension program impacts inter vivos transfers. We show that pension benefits lower the propensity of adult children to transfer income to elderly parents in the context …
East Asian Low Marriage And Birth Rates: The Role Of Life History Strategy, Culture, And Social Status Affordance, Jose Yong, Norman P. Li, Peter K. Jonason, Yi Wen Tan
East Asian Low Marriage And Birth Rates: The Role Of Life History Strategy, Culture, And Social Status Affordance, Jose Yong, Norman P. Li, Peter K. Jonason, Yi Wen Tan
Research Collection School of Social Sciences
Although economic development is broadly associated with low fertility, countries with a predominantly East Asian cultural population exhibit the lowest fertility rates in the developed world. This study (N = 243) examined social status affordance (SSA) as a novel factor underlying cultural variations in marriage and childbearing attitudes. Drawing from a life history perspective, we argue that SSA reflects the availability and ease of attaining social status from the environment, which then influences people's reproductive motivations. We found that strong competition for prestigious jobs in developed East Asian countries, which is hypothesized to be an outcome of their collectivistic nature …
Accepting Differences For An Inclusive Society, Singapore Management University
Accepting Differences For An Inclusive Society, Singapore Management University
Perspectives@SMU
Everyone has a role in upholding values and having tough conversations to build inclusion
Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale: A Charismatic Authority And His Ideology, John P. Cibotti
Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale: A Charismatic Authority And His Ideology, John P. Cibotti
FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations
Sikh leader Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale’s militant and masculinist discourses were embraced by Punjabi Sikhs because of his presence as a charismatic authority, a concept first developed by sociologist Max Weber to understand the conditions surrounding and personal qualities of a figure which attracts followers. The rebellion he led in Punjab resulted from his radical exploitation of issues concerning the Sikh community. Religion was wielded as a tool, legitimizing Sikh violence as commanded by the Gurus. Radical interpretations of Sikh scripture and folklore were initially preached to rural, less educated crowds. While his sermons brought out their frustrations with the government, …
Too Materialistic To Get Married And Have Children?, Norman P. Li, Amy J. Y. Lim, Ming-Hong Tsai, Jiaqing O
Too Materialistic To Get Married And Have Children?, Norman P. Li, Amy J. Y. Lim, Ming-Hong Tsai, Jiaqing O
Research Collection School of Social Sciences
We developed new materials to induce a luxury mindset and activate materialistic values, and examined materialism’s relationship to attitudes toward marriage and having children in Singapore. Path analyses indicated that materialistic values led to more negative attitudes toward marriage, which led to more negative attitudes toward children, which in turn led to a decreased number of children desired. Results across two studies highlight, at the individual level, the tradeoff between materialistic values and attitudes toward marriage and procreation and suggest that a consideration of psychological variables such as materialistic values may allow for a better understanding of larger-scale socioeconomic issues …
Parenting Behaviors, Adolescent Depressive Symptoms, And Problem Behavior: The Role Of Self-Esteem And School Adjustment Difficulties Among Chinese Adolescents, Cixin Wang, Yan Ruth Xia, Wenzhen Li, Stephan M. Wilson, Kevin Bush, Gary Peterson
Parenting Behaviors, Adolescent Depressive Symptoms, And Problem Behavior: The Role Of Self-Esteem And School Adjustment Difficulties Among Chinese Adolescents, Cixin Wang, Yan Ruth Xia, Wenzhen Li, Stephan M. Wilson, Kevin Bush, Gary Peterson
Department of Child, Youth, and Family Studies: Faculty Publications
Cross-sectional data from 589 Chinese adolescents were used to investigate whether parenting behaviors are directly or indirectly (through self-esteem and school adjustment difficulties) associated with adolescent depressive symptoms and problem behavior. Structural equation modeling results showed that school adjustment difficulties fully mediated the relations between two parenting behaviors (parental punitiveness and paternal monitoring) and adolescent problem behavior and partially mediated the relation between maternal monitoring and adolescent problem behavior. Adolescent self-esteem partially mediated the relations between maternal punitiveness and adolescent depressive symptoms and fully mediated the relations between parental support and adolescent depressive symptoms. Parental love withdrawal was not significantly …
Unpacking East-West Differences In The Extent Of Self-Enhancement From The Perspective Of Face Versus Dignity Cultures, Hae In Lee, Angela K. Y. Leung, Young-Hoon Kim
Unpacking East-West Differences In The Extent Of Self-Enhancement From The Perspective Of Face Versus Dignity Cultures, Hae In Lee, Angela K. Y. Leung, Young-Hoon Kim
Research Collection School of Social Sciences
The question of whether or not the need for self-enhancement is culturally universal has been a controversial issue in cultural psychology. Though there have been numerous studies arguing that East Asians also have the need for self-enhancement, the controversy remained. We contend that the field is ready to see a cohesive theory that integrates and explains when and why East Asians do and do not manifest their need for self-enhancement. In this paper, we provide the theoretical logics of and rationales behind face and dignity cultures as the new theoretical proxies that integrate and explain East Asians' self-enhancing behaviors, supplementing …
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
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. …
Quick And Dirty: Some Psychosocial Costs Associated With The Dark Triad In Three Countries, Peter K. Jonason, Norman P. Li, Anna Z. Czarna
Quick And Dirty: Some Psychosocial Costs Associated With The Dark Triad In Three Countries, Peter K. Jonason, Norman P. Li, Anna Z. Czarna
Research Collection School of Social Sciences
The current study provides the first examination of the relationship between life history indicators and the Dark Triad traits in an international sample drawn from the U.S. (n = 264), Singapore (n = 185), and Poland (n = 177). In all three samples, the Dark Triad traits were associated with psychosocial costs, although there were more links in the Singaporean and Polish samples than in the American sample. In the U.S., the quality of one’s romantic relationships and psychopathy were negatively correlated. Narcissism was higher in the Polish and American samples than in the Singaporean sample. Men scored higher than …
Going Beyond The Multicultural Experience-Creativity Link: The Mediating Role Of Emotions, Chi-Ying Cheng, Angela K. Y. Leung, Tsung-Yu Wu
Going Beyond The Multicultural Experience-Creativity Link: The Mediating Role Of Emotions, Chi-Ying Cheng, Angela K. Y. Leung, Tsung-Yu Wu
Research Collection School of Social Sciences
This research examines the mediating role of emotions implicated in the multicultural experience—creativity link. We propose that when individuals are dealing with apparent cultural contradictions upon encountering two cultures simultaneously, mentally juxtaposing dissonant cultural stimuli could lower positive affect or increase negative affect, which could in turn induce a deeper level of cognitive processing of cultural discrepancies and inspire creativity. Two studies compared dual cultural exposure versus single cultural exposure among bicultural Singaporeans (Study 1) and compared self-relevant (jointly presenting local and foreign cultures) versus self-irrelevant (jointly presenting foreign cultures only) dual cultural exposure among monocultural Taiwanese (Study 2). As …
The Incompatibility Of Materialism And The Desire For Children: Psychological Insights Into The Fertility Discrepancy Among Modern Countries, Norman P. Li, Lily Patel, Daniel Balliet, William Tov, Christie N. Scollon
The Incompatibility Of Materialism And The Desire For Children: Psychological Insights Into The Fertility Discrepancy Among Modern Countries, Norman P. Li, Lily Patel, Daniel Balliet, William Tov, Christie N. Scollon
Research Collection School of Social Sciences
We examined factors related to attitudes toward marriage and the importance of having children in both the US and Singapore. Path analysis indicated that life dissatisfaction leads to materialism, and both of these factors lead to favorable attitudes toward marriage, which leads to greater desire for children. Further analysis indicated this model"We examined factors related to attitudes toward marriage and the importance of having children in both the US and Singapore. Path analysis indicated that life dissatisfaction leads to materialism, and both of these factors lead to favorable attitudes toward marriage, which leads to greater desire for children. Further analysis …
Chinese Parents’ Perspectives On Adolescent Sexuality Education, Wenli Liu, Kali S. Van Campen, Carolyn P. Edwards, Stephen T. Russell
Chinese Parents’ Perspectives On Adolescent Sexuality Education, Wenli Liu, Kali S. Van Campen, Carolyn P. Edwards, Stephen T. Russell
Department of Child, Youth, and Family Studies: Faculty Publications
There is growing interest in China to understand how young people learn about sexuality, but there are few existing studies about the role of parents as sex educators of their children. This study surveyed 694 Chinese parents of adolescents in three cities about their knowledge, attitudes, and practices regarding sexuality education for their children. The majority supported sexuality education, yet few parents had provided it. High-income parents had more favorable sexual attitudes and, in turn, were more likely to educate children about sexuality. The findings provide insight into parents’ role in adolescents’ sexual behavior and can be useful to sexuality …
Mate Preferences In The Us And Singapore: A Cross-Cultural Test Of The Mate Preference Priority Model, Norman P. Li, Katherine A. Valentine, Lily Patel
Mate Preferences In The Us And Singapore: A Cross-Cultural Test Of The Mate Preference Priority Model, Norman P. Li, Katherine A. Valentine, Lily Patel
Research Collection School of Social Sciences
Sex differences have been found in mate preferences across several decades. Especially for long-term partners, men tend to value physical attractiveness and women tend to value social status. However, the sexes both value various other traits even more highly. Such findings thus diminish the importance of the sex differences and challenge the theoretical importance that evolutionary psychologists place on physical attractiveness and social status. Using a budget allocation methodology to examine mate preferences in both the US and Singapore, we found not only the usual sex differences, but also evidence that men prioritize physical attractiveness and women prioritize social status …
Linguistic Gender Is Related To Psychological Gender: The Case Of Chinese Characters, Yuk-Yue Tong, Chi-Yue Chiu, Ho-Ying Fu
Linguistic Gender Is Related To Psychological Gender: The Case Of Chinese Characters, Yuk-Yue Tong, Chi-Yue Chiu, Ho-Ying Fu
Research Collection School of Social Sciences
Past research (Ervin, 1972; Konishi, 1993) suggests that a noun's linguistic gender is not just an arbitrary, semantically-empty linguistic category. Rather it may connote masculine or feminine properties, and thus can subtly influence responses to the noun and its referent. The present study extended this research by exploring how gendered radicals of nonsense Chinese characters might affect the characters' connotations. The results showed that when an unfamiliar Chinese character is encountered, meaning interpretation can be affected by the meaning of the radicals. Moreover, since gendered Chinese radicals are linked to share representations of psychological gender, such as representation may then …