Report on findings from household needs study

• Main Authors: STRAUGHAN, Paulin T., MATHEWS, Mathew
• Format: text
• Language: English
• Published: Institutional Knowledge at Singapore Management University 2024
• Subjects: Household needs; Singapore; Living Standards Approach; affordability; Asian Studies; Civic and Community Engagement; Family, Life Course, and Society; Gerontology
• Online Access: https://ink.library.smu.edu.sg/rosa_reports/25; https://ink.library.smu.edu.sg/context/rosa_reports/article/1024/viewcontent/Report_on_findings_from_Household_Needs_Study.pdf
• Institution: Singapore Management University

The Household Needs Study (HNS) aimed to capture public perspectives on essential items and activities that are deemed necessary for a normal life in Singapore and to understand the extent to which Singaporeans are able to access these items and activities. To do so, the study adopted the Living Standards Approach (Saunders, Naidoo & Wong, 2022), which purports that individuals experience relative deprivation and/or social exclusion if they do not have access to items and activities that are deemed to be essential by society. In this study, a survey was conducted with a nationally representative sample of around 4,000 respondents to seek their opinions on what, out of a list of 51 items and activities, were essential for a normal life in Singapore. To understand if there were any groups potentially experiencing relative deprivation or social exclusion, respondents were also polled on whether they were able to access and afford these items and activities. The list of 51 items and activities was informed by (a) literature review of similar research conducted internationally, (b) the investigators’ previous study using the Living Standards Approach in 2009/20101, and (c) a series of Focus Group Discussions (FGDs) on items/activities that participants considered essential across various domains (e.g. household appliances, furniture, social activities). Ninety individuals, who were from different income groups and included social service practitioners, participated in the FGDs.