What older people need in Singapore: A household budgets study
In this study, we conducted focus group discussions to ascertain how ordinary Singaporeans think about what constitutes basic needs in Singapore today, and to determine the household budgets necessary to meet these needs. We focused on four household types: (1) male, 65 years and older, living alone; (2) female, 65 years and older, living alone; (3) couple, 65 years old and older, living together; (4) male or female, 55-64 years old, living alone.
Participants put together household budgets that:
- Reflect the lived realities and ordinary habits of people living in contemporary Singapore.
- A general public can agree on as basic or minimum—it should be neither extravagant nor inadequate.
- Reflects some degree of diverse needs along ethnoracial and religious lines.
- Embodies the values and principles ordinary Singaporeans embody, as well as concrete and specific items that map onto those values and principles.
Reading Development 