Singapore Jobs and Identity: Bridging Divides Through Dialogue, Finds IPS Study

SINGAPORE: A pilot study released by the Institute of Policy Studies (IPS) on Tuesday (Jan 20) found that while Singaporeans and foreigners have little common ground on issues such as jobs, education and multiculturalism, structured discussions helped reduce some of these differences. In collaboration with government feedback unit REACH, IPS conducted a pilot consensus conference on local-foreign integration in Changi Simei and East Coast GRC last year. Twenty-four residents of various residency statuses – 16 Singapore citizens, three permanent residents and five non-resident foreigners – participated in four full-day sessions to discuss contested issues such as employment, education and community. According to IPS, the residents exchanged views and worked towards shared positions during the sessions. IPS policy lab research fellow Nicholas Thomas said the pilot drew on a 2024 survey where 37.5 per cent of respondents expected anger towards certain communities if immigration issues were poorly handled, while 35.5 per cent foresaw a weakened sense of identity. “These were really the anchors for why we wanted to do (this) and bring people, based on those surveys, into the room to see if we can actually find consensus,” he said. Citing research on social capital, Mr Thomas noted that government policy can address resource allocation concerns related to immigration, but it cannot manufacture mutual understanding and trust. “These require a different kind of intervention where people have to listen to one another, reason together and see if they can find common ground.” From the pilot, researchers recommended recognising local-foreign integration as a distinct pillar of Singapore’s multiculturalism and expanding the initiative to other constituencies and contested issues. They also called for stronger public communications. Participants felt that official messaging tends to highlight foreigners’ contributions – such as skills and investments – while overlooking citizens’ roles, including tax payments and National Service. “This asymmetry of perception was experienced as a signal that citizens’ contributions were taken for granted,” said Mr Thomas. Participants also expressed discomfort with what they saw as “framings of dependency” in policy language. For instance, some felt that the design of certain grants portrayed citizens as passive recipients of government generosity, rather than active stakeholders. COMMON GROUND AND STICKING POINTS Out of 67 statements generated during the pilot, the group reached unanimous consensus on 23. Statements on community life saw the highest agreement, with participants agreeing with 77.8 per cent of statements on norms of mutual respect and reciprocal effort in everyday interactions. In contrast, jobs and education were seen as “zero-sum” issues, with consensus achieved on only 22.2 per cent and 25 per cent of statements in those areas, respectively. Agreement was possible when certain conditions were specified – for example, that Singaporeans should be prioritised for jobs if they meet required competencies, though merit-based hiring should remain the norm. Education-related statements that did not reach consensus included tighter caps on local and private education providers, and a proposal to lower the school fee gap for PRs to retain talent. As for multiculturalism, participants came to a consensus on only one statement: “Singapore residents should accept and understand people of different nationalities without losing who we are, and foreigners must respect the host country.” Statements such as “Singapore must remain open with evolving criteria to immigration to continue its economic growth” and “Singapore is a multicultural nation and we are learning to welcome all without fear or prejudice” did not find common ground. Following the sessions, participants co-authored a residents’ report. A voluntary working group of seven Singaporeans and three foreigners was formed to develop a community integration initiative. IPS reported that 95.8 per cent of participants described the experience as positive, 91.6 per cent found it meaningful and 87.5 per cent said it was empowering. A NEED FOR CIVIC INFRASTRUCTURE IPS researchers noted that while Singapore has long invested in infrastructure to foster cohesion among its founding communities – Chinese, Malay, Indian, Eurasian and others – the local-foreign dimension now warrants similar attention. This could involve expanding the role of current institutions or establishing new civic bodies to address identity questions that cannot be resolved by policy adjustments alone. On public messaging, researchers said better communication could affirm citizens as stakeholders and ensure that relevant information is easily accessible on official platforms. They added that the pilot showed how structured deliberation can surface shared concerns and generate collaborative action, and recommended extending the approach to other constituencies and polarising issues. FRIENDSHIP DIVERSITY LINKED TO TRUST In a related study, IPS’ Social Lab surveyed 3,713 people from October to November 2025 on the diversity of their friendships. Respondents were asked to describe up to five of their close or online friends by gender, ethnicity, age, nationality, education level and housing type. The results showed that individuals with more diverse social networks reported higher trust in neighbours and other Singaporeans, said Dr Mathew Mathews, who heads the lab. Those from minority groups tended to have more diverse friends: 88.7 per cent of Chinese respondents said all their close friends were of the same ethnicity, compared with 62.6 per cent of Malays and 50.8 per cent of Indians. This reflects a majority-minority dynamic, said Dr Mathews. “It does seem to be intuitive that if you are a minority individual, you have more opportunities or more reasons you are in situations where you do have other people of different backgrounds.” Diverse networks were also associated with a stronger sense of belonging, civic participation and social cohesion. For example, individuals with more diverse friendships were more likely to feel accepted by others. They were also more likely to report stronger emotional attachment to Singapore, said Dr Mathews. While acknowledging that the correlation does not prove causation, Dr Mathews said: “It could be that because you felt very strongly entrenched in this space, you’re more likely to want to build that kind of friendship. “But I think theoretically it’s the other way very often because of certain kinds of interactions and that willingness to build, there is an ultimate result in that.”