Last updated: 24 August 2003
PLU Attitudes Survey 2000
Significance of the survey
This is the first time, as far as the organisers are aware, that a community-based
survey with questions related
to gay issues has been conducted with the broad population in Singapore, and for
general publication. It is an
important threshold, providing a
sense of where Singaporeans stand with respect to such issues. It also serves as
a baseline for future studies.
Not being a fully funded survey, the sample could not be rigorously controlled,
the way one might expect if it had been done by a professional survey company.
Such surveys, however, are quite rare in Singapore. Many newspapers, e.g. the Straits
Times, use "random" telephone surveys, contacting a list of people
they know, phone-in polls and interactive surveys through their websites as
surrogate barometers of public opinion. This survey is of a similar kind, providing
not so much a fully
representative picture of Singaporeans' views, but an indication of what those
views may well be.
Nonetheless, the survey included questions, about race, age, sex and
educational level, by which one could check how representative the findings
were.
|
Racial cross-section
The sample in the streetside survey matched
Singapore's ethnic profile very well, with 76.9% Chinese, 14.3% Malays and
5.2% Indians.
The on-line survey sample was also close to
the profile of Singaporeans, except that there were somewhat fewer Malays.
This could be due to a lower rate of internet connectedness in that
community.
Equal sex ratio
The on-line survey had a nearly
equal mix of male and female participants -- 51.7% were male. The
streetside sample was also quite well balanced in sex ratio, with 55.4%
males.
Government statistics 1998 (www.singstat.gov.sg), reported that 49.8% of
Singapore residents aged 15 and above were male.
|
|
Respondents by race |
S'pore |
| |
Streetside |
Internet |
Stats [1] |
| Chinese |
76.9 |
78.8 |
77.0 |
| Malay |
14.3 |
6.3 |
14.0 |
| Indian |
5.2 |
7.9 |
7.6 |
| Eurasian |
1.6 |
3.3 |
[2] |
| Others |
1.6 |
2.9 |
1.4 |
| Total |
99.6 |
99.2 |
100.0 |
| no answer |
0.4 |
0.8 |
|
[1] from www.singstat.gov.sg,
data for 1998
[2] included within "others"
|
|
Respondents by age |
| |
Streetside |
Internet |
| 16-20 |
20.7 |
12.1 |
| 21-24 |
20.7 |
28.8 |
| 25-29 |
23.1 |
20.8 |
| 30-39 |
18.3 |
23.8 |
| 40 & above |
17.1 |
14.6 |
| Total |
100.0 |
99.2 |
|
Singapore population |
| |
Govt statistics 1998 |
| 15-19 |
8.5 |
| 20-24 |
8.9 |
| 25-29 |
10.9 |
| 30-39 |
24.9 |
| 40
& above |
46.8 |
| Total |
100.0 |
|
Age & education
Age-group-wise, however, the twenty-somethings
were more represented among the respondents than other adults. 43.8% of
streetside respondents and 49.6% of internet respondents were between 21 and 29
years old.
Furthermore, a majority of respondents (66.9% and 93.8%
respectively) had polytechnic, college or university education. This has to be
seen against government statistics (1998) which report that 28.4% of the 25-39
age group graduated from polytechnics or universities.
What this suggests is that the opinions uncovered
by this survey tended to reflect those of the educated strata of our society, and of the upcoming generation of
Singaporeans.
Moreover, the internet version of the survey was publicised partly
through civil society groups [see Survey Method],
who may be the more politically-aware segments of our society, although we
have taken care not to combine the results from the streetside and internet
modes.
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Leading indicator of social opinion
To the extent that the
views of the more politically-aware tend to filter
down over time to the general population, together with the heavier
representation of the younger and better-educated adults among the participants,
the findings here can be seen as an indicator to the way Singapore social
opinion is likely to evolve in the years ahead.
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