The image and status of engineers in Singapore

• Main Authors: Lai, May May Ling, Tan, Sio Hoon, Yeong, Shirley Wei Ling
• Other Authors: Ong Kai Seong
• Format: Final Year Project
• Language: English
• Published: 2015
• Subjects: DRNTU::Business::Marketing
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/10356/62984
• Institution: Nanyang Technological University

Recent publications have sparked off much interest about the status and public image of various occupations in Singapore. The general public's perception of the image and status of the engineering profession varies. Thus, this study serves to assess the image and status of engineers in Singapore and also to investigate the reasons behind the perceived image. The findings of this study revealed that engineers ranked third in terms of social status among five other professions, with doctors being first, lawyers second, architects fourth and accountants fifth. Engineers are perceived by the general public to be down-to-earth and articulate. Contrary to popular belief, engineers are not deemed as boring, conservative, insensitive and shy. However, the general public generally perceived the engineers to be rigid, unromatic and at the same time lacking in dress sense and social skills. Both the general public and the engineers themselves however perceived the work of an engineer to be favourable. Core recommendations are derived from the results of the survey. The recommendations are made to upkeep and improve the image and status of engineers. They are targeted towards four relevant bodies, namely the government, The Institution Of Engineers Singapore, universities and polytechnics and the engineers themselves. To achieve the objectives of the study, a survey research was conducted using occupation groups as a basis for segmenting the respondents. The demographic characteristics of the respondents were examined against their perceptions towards the subject in question. The data collected was analysed using various statistical tests such as categorical data analysis (cross-tabulations and contingency tables), T -test and ANOVA. Some limitations of this study were also highlighted together with suggestions to facilitate future research.