A Study On Social Capital In Singapore

[Erminia Scharnberg]

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Objective: To examine how neighborhood-based cognitive and structural social capital are associated with individual quality of life among a sample of community-dwelling older adults in Singapore. Method: Using survey data from 981 older adults (aged 55 years and above) in nine residential neighborhoods, multilevel models simultaneously estimated the effects of independent variables at the individual and neighborhood levels on quality of life (CASP-12). Results: Social cohesion (β = 1.39, p p Discussion: The results suggest that place-based or neighborhood social capital may be important for older person's well-being. It identifies the contribution of structural (associational membership) and cognitive (social cohesion) social capital to the well-being of community-dwelling older adults in Singapore.

Meritocracy poses a paradox: On one hand, it integrates individuals through frameworks of equal treatment, equal justice and opportunity regardless of race, language or religion. On the other hand, individuals are then segregating through academic sorting, they are rewarded based on credentials and performance which also results in elite identification and bonding. After a generation, without mitigation action, social stratification can result. Distinctive circles differentiating social elites from non-elites, the professional classes from non-professional classes emerge.

The remedy the authors propose is network diversity which is the organic forming of ties across class and other social boundaries built on deliberate policies, programmes and platforms designed to facilitate that. This social mixing, forged in social infrastructure such as schools, workplaces, and voluntary associations pays off by producing the collective goods of national identity and trust. This hypothesis has been tested in the case of Singapore society and the empirical results from the research on the power of network diversity and bridging social capital are found in this volume.

An insightful read for scholars and practitioners in public policy and social network analysis looking to understand the challenges faced by and the experiences that have emerged from the case of Singapore with its multicultural and cosmopolitan setting.

Drew SHIH was a former Research Assistant at the Institute of Policy Studies, and holds a Bachelor of Arts (Honours) in Global Studies from the National University of Singapore. His work at the Institute spanned across the areas of social capital, social inclusion and public finance. He is now an urban planner.

Background: Young gay, bisexual, and other men who have sex with men (YMSM) are especially vulnerable to the risks associated with sexualized substance use, or 'chemsex'. Engaging in chemsex established as a major risk factor for Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) acquisition, and is thus a public health issue of increasing urgency. This paper attempts to explore the association between measures of social capital and patterns of sexualized substance use among a sample of YMSM in Singapore.

Methods: Results of this study were derived from baseline data of the Pink Carpet Y Cohort Study in Singapore, comprising a sample of 570 HIV-negative YMSM aged 18 to 25 years old. Latent class analysis was employed to identify classes with similar patterns of sexualized substance use, and multinomial logistic regression was employed to examine associations between class membership and proxy measures of social capital, including age of sexual debut, bonding and bridging social capital, connectedness to the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community, and outness.

Conclusions: Varying measures of social capital such as an earlier age of exposure to sexual networks may predispose YMSM to greater opportunities for sexualized substance use. Future interventions should target YMSM who become sexually active at an earlier age to reduce the risks associated with sexualized substance use.

Methods: This international population-based study used cross-sectional survey data from the World Health Organization's Study on global AGEing and adult health (SAGE), a study of adults aged 50 years or older in China, Ghana, India, the Russian Federation, and South Africa from 2007 through 2010 (N = 29 528). Associations between neighborhood-based social capital indicators (trust in neighbors, perceived neighborhood safety, and community participation) and cognitive function were examined using ordinary least squares regressions and random-effects meta-analyses.

Discussion: Different indicators of neighborhood-based social capital, which are well-established protective resources for cognitive function, may have varied relationships with cognitive function cross-nationally. This finding provides a better understanding of the mechanisms by which neighborhood social capital may contribute to better cognitive function in LMICs than high-income countries, potentially due to differences in neighborhood environments, health systems, and availability of public resources.

In recent years, the microfinance industry has received a substantial amount of cross-border funding from both public and private sources. This funding reflects the increasing interest in microfinance as part of a more general trend towards socially responsible investments. In order to be able to secure sustained interest from these investors, it is important that the microfinance industry can show evidence of its contribution to reducing poverty at the bottom of the pyramid. For this, it is crucial to understand under what conditions microfinance institutions (MFIs) are able to reduce poverty. This paper contributes to this discussion by investigating the relationship between the extent to which social capital formation is facilitated within different societies and the financial and social performance of MFIs. This focus on social capital formation is important, because in many cases MFIs use group loans with joint liability to incentivize asset-poor borrowers to substitute the lack of physical collateral by their social capital. Hence, the success of a large part of the loan relationship between MFIs and their borrowers depends on the social capital those borrowers can bring into the contract. We carry out a cross-country analysis on a dataset containing 100 countries and identify different social dimensions as proxies for how easy social capital can be developed in different countries. We hypothesize that microfinance is more successful, both in terms of their financial and social aims, in societies that are more conducive to the development of social capital. Our empirical results support our hypothesis.

In recent years, however, microfinance industry has become subject of increasing criticism. In fact, some even go as far as claiming that the industry is currently facing an ethical crisis (Hudon 2011). This crisis was triggered by a number of events, starting in 2007 with the critical attention the Mexican MFI Compartamos received when it was found out that its financial success was at least partly based on interest rates in excess of 100 % their clients had to pay (Lewis 2008). Also in 2007, an authoritative impact study was published, showing that microcredit does not contribute to improving the living conditions of the poor (Banerjee et al. 2013). This study was followed by several other impact studies showing little evidence that microcredit has a positive impact on poverty reduction.Footnote 1 And finally, in 2010, MFIs in India were accused of using exploitative lending techniques and using forceful loan recovery practices, leading to the suicide of several Indian MFI clients (Biswas 2010; Mader 2013).

Notwithstanding the criticism microfinance has received, the sector still obtains a substantial amount of cross-border funding.Footnote 2 The largest part of this funding is from public sources (e.g., multilateral institutions, governmental donors, etc.), but private funding from commercial banks, pension funds insurance companies, private equity firms, etc. has been growing and has actually grown at a faster rate than that of public funders during recent years (El-Zoghbi et al. 2011).Footnote 3 This growth reflects the increasing interest in microfinance as part of a more general trend towards socially responsible investments (SRI). These investments, combining investors' financial objectives with concerns about environmental, social, and governance issues, have become increasingly popular around the world.

In order to be able to secure sustained interest from these investors, it is important that MFIs can show evidence of their contribution to reducing poverty at the bottom of the pyramid. For this, it is crucial to understand under what conditions MFIs are able to contribute to poverty reduction (i.e., their business model is socially sustainable) and when they can reach this for the longer term (i.e., their business model is financially sustainable). In this respect, MFIs are often characterized as hybrid institutions (Battilana and Dorado 2010; Morduch 1999). The current study can be seen in this light as we contribute to the literature on the determinants of the financial and social performance of MFIs.

From its start in the 1970s, a large part of the microcredit offered to the poor has been characterized by innovative lending methodologies implemented by MFIs in order to increase the probability of repayment of loans. In many cases, these MFIs use the so-called group loans with joint liability to incentivize asset-poor borrowers to substitute the lack of physical collateral by their social capital. Hence, the success of a large part of the relationship between MFIs and their borrowers depends on the social capital those borrowers can bring into the contract.

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