Medals and meddlers - how selective application of Confucianism by the masses constrains professional sports in Singapore

• Main Author: Lee, James Yi Da
• Other Authors: Christopher Holman
• Format: Final Year Project
• Language: English
• Published: 2019
• Subjects: DRNTU::Social sciences::Sociology
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/10356/76695
• Institution: Nanyang Technological University

This paper hypothesizes that selective application of Confucianism by the masses constrains professional sports in Singapore. Drawing from a wide range of literature, comparisons will be made between the behaviours and attitudes of the Singaporean masses, and Confucian texts to identify aspects of Confucian philosophy being selectively applied and to determine if the effects of these applications of Confucianism indeed constrain professional sports. It is oft reported that Singapore’s professional sports scene is underperforming. This is cause for concern as professional sport is a significant source of soft power which is vital to Singapore, a small country seeking to punch above its weight in international politics. While various factors such a as lack of funding and local talent have already been cited, this paper seeks to offer a different perspective in the matter through exploring the relationship between the masses’ brand of Confucianism and professional sports in Singapore.