Last updated: 24 August 2003
PLU Attitudes Survey 2000

Survey method

This survey was conducted through two modes: through a printed questionnaire distributed by survey-takers in shopping centres and street-side; and through a web-based form. Both modes contained exactly the same questions [see Survey questionnaire], although the layout was slightly different to suit the medium.

 
Printed Questionnaire Mode
(also known as "streetside", for short)

The printed questionnaire was available in two versions: bilingual English-Chinese, and bilingual English-Malay. The survey-takers used their judgement and generally gave the English-Chinese version of the questionnaire to participants who appeared to be Chinese, and the English-Malay version to non-Chinese.

There were 13 survey-takers involved in the exercise, all volunteers. They were a mix of gay and straight, male and female. In the briefing, they were advised to be conscious of their own possible bias in choosing whom to approach. It was recommended to them to use an objective method, such as approaching every 4th person, whoever he/she may be.

The results show that they were successful in getting respondents of all racial groups. In fact, the racial mix of the respondents matched the racial mix of Singapore [See Significance of the survey]. They also obtained a rough balance of male and female respondents.

However, survey-takers reported that even when approached, older adults were less willing to participate than younger adults. There is, as a consequence, a heavier representation in the results of younger adults. 

The survey-takers made an effort to go to various parts of Singapore, and at different times. They worked the downtown areas such as the business district, Bras Basah complex (well-known for Chinese bookshops), and Orchard Road; but they also went out to the surburbs, such as Bishan, Clementi and Tiong Bahru. There were, in addition, a number of responses collected from Boon Lay, a working-class area.

When passers-by agreed to participate in the survey, they were asked to self-complete the questionnaire and return it to the survey-takers. It was felt, at the survey design stage, that this was the more appropriate method, rather than to ask questions orally, given the subject matter of the survey

Survey Locations
Number and % of responses
collected from each location

  No. %
Tiong Bahru 61 24.3
Orchard Rd 36 14.3
CBD 34 13.5
Bras Basah Cmplx 29 11.6
Holland Village 26 10.4
Clementi 14 5.6
Bishan & Jnc 8 14 5.6
Boon Lay & Jur Pt 13 5.2
Other places 14 5.6
Location not stated 10 4.0
Total 251 100.0

The printed questionnaire ("streetside") survey commenced on Monday 24 April 2000, and ended on Sunday 7 May 2000. A total of 278 responses were collected. Of these, 27 responses were discarded for the following reasons:

  1.  from participants who ticked "under 16" with respect to their age;
  2.  from participants who did not answer the question about their age;
  3.  from participants who were neither Singapore citizens nor Permanent Residents;
  4.  from respondents who did not answer the citizenship question.

This left a net total of 251 valid responses, which formed the base for analysis.

 
Web-based Mode
(also known as "internet method", for short)

The same questions were put onto interactive forms, hosted on Singnet. There were three versions, in English, Chinese and Malay. From any given language version of the form, one could switch to other languages just by clicking a tab. However, all responses received came in via the English form. No one used the Chinese or Malay form to submit answers.

The request to participate in the on-line survey was initially spread through a number of newsgroups and email lists. These included Sintercom, Soc Culture Singapore, The Working Committee, Think Centre, and a Buddhist group. In addition, it was notified to other individuals whom the organisers had email addresses of. As people were asked to pass on the message, responses could possibly be coming in from people quite far removed from the original contacts, in the latter half of the survey period.

We took special care to notify only Singapore groups and Singapore contacts. We also specifically avoided mentioning the survey in any gay or lesbian group. This was to minimise the risk of a disproportionate number of responses coming from gay persons.

The responses that came in were anonymous. We did not collect email addresses or any names through the web-based form.

Looking at the pattern of results, they nonetheless looked genuine. The racial distribution of the respondents matched the racial distribution of Singaporeans, with the exception that Malays were under-represented. This was understandable as there is reason to believe (from socio-economic profile) that internet penetration into the Malay community was less than other communities. There was also a nearly equal mix of males and females. 

As expected from an electronic medium, the age profile of the on-line respondents was centred on adults in their twenties with some in their thirties.

The web-based survey was on-line from Saturday 29 April 2000 to Monday 8 May 2000. A total of 258 responses were collected. Of these, 18 responses were discarded for the following reasons:

  1. from participants who ticked "under 16" with respect to their age;
  2. from participants who did not answer the question about their age;
  3. from participants who were neither Singapore citizens nor Permanent Residents;
  4. from respondents who did not answer the citizenship question.

This left a net total of 240 valid responses, which formed the base for analysis.

 
The total number of responses received from both modes was 536. Forty five were discarded for reasons stated above. There were a net 491 valid responses available for analysis. However, streetside and internet responses are analysed separately.
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