Development of a kiasu construct

• Main Author: Tan, Jun Kiak
• Other Authors: School of Humanities and Social Sciences
• Format: Final Year Project
• Language: English
• Published: 2014
• Subjects: DRNTU::Social sciences::Psychology
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/10356/59651
• Institution: Nanyang Technological University

Kiasuism is a key defining characteristic of Singapore culture, but research on this topic is lacking. The few studies on kiasuism have not clearly defined the construct of kiasuism, hence this study was developed to explore the meaning of kiasuism to Singaporeans. Using ethnographic interviews with Singaporean undergraduates, this study focused on the reasons for being kiasu, emotional responses to kiasuism, and ways to judge kiasuism. Analysis of these domains reveal that kiasuism is a goal implementation construct, and is related to concepts such as observational learning, self-interest, and maximising. This study paves the way for a better measure of kiasuism to be developed, allowing more conclusive studies to be conducted on kiasuism and Singaporeans.