Happily ever after? : undergraduates' views on "the Singaporean fairytale" and family formation

• Main Author: Thung, Evon
• Other Authors: Sun Hsiao-Li Shirley
• Format: Final Year Project
• Language: English
• Published: 2014
• Subjects: DRNTU::Social sciences::Sociology::Family, marriage and women
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/10356/55778
• Institution: Nanyang Technological University

In Singapore, there is a history of campaigns used to inculcate certain attitudes and beliefs in Singaporeans. My research aims to examine the receptiveness of undergraduates towards “The Singaporean Fairytale” a pronatalist campaign which adopts the non-traditional approach by disseminating fertility information through short and familiar fairytales. Correspondingly, it will be useful to explore the views undergraduates hold towards marriage and parenthood as well as their level of awareness on fertility issues. Existing studies have shown that despite strong parental aspirations among young individuals, they have underestimated the impact which age has on fertility as well as overestimated the success rate of Assisted Reproductive Technologies. Overall, the findings based on semi-structured interviews with twenty respondents highlighted that Singaporean undergraduates possess a basic level of understanding on fertility issues and are desirous towards marriage and parenthood. They acknowledge the merits of the campaign though the decoding process differed between women and men.