Well-Being of the Elderly
Total Page：16
File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb
Public Housing in Singapore: Social Well-Being of HDB Communities HDB Sample Household Survey 2013 Published by Housing & Development Board HDB Hub 480 Lorong 6 Toa Payoh Singapore 310480 Research Team Goh Li Ping (Team Leader) William Lim Teong Wee Tan Hui Fang Wu Juan Juan Tan Tze Hui Clara Wong Lee Hua Lim E-Farn Fiona Lee Yiling Esther Chua Jia Ping Sangeetha d/o Panearselvan Amy Wong Jin Ying Phay Huai Yu Nur Asykin Ramli Wendy Li Xin Yvonne Tan Ci En Choo Kit Hoong Advisor: Dr Chong Fook Loong Raymond Toh Chun Parng Research Advisory Panel: Professor Aline Wong Associate Professor Tan Ern Ser Dr Lai Ah Eng Dr Kang Soon Hock Associate Professor Pow Choon Piew Dr Kevin Tan Siah Yeow Assistant Professor Chang Jiat Hwee Published Dec 2014 All information is correct at the time of printing. © 2014 Housing & Development Board. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means. Produced by HDB Research and Planning Group ISBN 978-981-09-3829-1 Printed by Oxford Graphic Printers Pte Ltd 11 Kaki Bukit Road 1 #02-06/07/08 Eunos Technolink Singapore 415939 Tel: 6748 3898 Fax: 6747 5668 www.oxfordgraphic.com.sg PUBLIC HOUSING IN SINGAPORE: Social Well-Being of HDB Communities HDB Sample Household Survey 2013 FOREWORD HDB homes have evolved over the years, from basic flats catering to simple, everyday needs, to homes that meet higher aspirational desires for quality living. Over the last 54 years, since its formation, HDB has made the transformation of public housing its key focus. In the process, the changes have impacted on the physical and social landscape of Singapore. More importantly, they have shaped the way residents live, work and play. In our endeavour to positively impact the lives of our residents, we carry out surveys to find out what HDB residents like, or do not like, so that we can make changes and improvements, and plan our future designs and policies around them. The large-scale Sample Household Surveys (SHS) conducted every five years are an important platform for HDB to gather residents’ views and feedback. HDB has completed ten SHSs, with the first survey carried out in 1968, and the latest in 2013. This latest survey covered 7,800 households living in all 23 HDB towns and three estates. High-rise, high-density living in Singapore is liveable and a way of life. Findings from SHS 2013 survey show that residents are satisfied with their flat and the convenient access to estate facilities within their neighbourhood. Findings also show that family ties remained strong with frequent visits and strong familial support between parents and married children. Residents feel a greater sense of belonging and are proud to be part of their communities. These are just some of the interesting insights from the survey. The salient findings are published in the following two monographs: i) Public Housing in Singapore: Residents' Profile, Housing Satisfaction and Preferences; and ii) Public Housing in Singapore: Social Well-Being of HDB Communities. We deeply appreciate the cooperation, time and feedback given by residents. Their responses, observations and comments will go a long way in helping HDB provide better homes and towns for all. Dr. Cheong Koon Hean Chief Executive Officer Housing & Development Board i Contents Page FOREWORD i CONTENTS iii LIST OF TABLES v LIST OF CHARTS ix KEY INDICATORS xiv GLOSSARY OF TERMS AND DEFINITIONS xxi CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION 1.1 Background 3 1.2 Objectives 4 1.3 Sampling Design 4 1.4 Outline of Monograph 5 SOCIAL WELL-BEING OF HDB COMMUNITIES 9 CHAPTER 2 COMMUNITY BONDING 13 2.1 Neighbourly Relations 14 2.2 Sense of Attachment & National Pride 29 2.3 Community Engagement 35 2.4 Summary of Findings 39 CHAPTER 3 FAMILY TIES 45 3.1 Physical Living Arrangement 47 3.2 Social Living Arrangement 51 3.3 Depth of Interaction 53 3.4 Forms and Extent of Family Support 59 3.5 Well-Being and Family Life 65 3.6 Impact of Proximity on Frequency of Visits, Familial Support 66 and Sense of Closeness 3.7 Ideal Elderly Living Arrangement and Caregiving 71 for Elderly Parents 3.8 Summary of Findings 73 iii Contents Page CHAPTER 4 WELL-BEING OF THE ELDERLY 77 4.1 Personal Aspects 79 4.1.1 Financial Well-Being 4.1.2 Perceived Level of Health 4.2 Social Aspects 91 4.2.1 Family Ties 4.2.2 Community Bonding 4.3 Housing Aspects 114 4.3.1 Satisfaction with Physical Living Environment 4.3.2 Satisfaction and Usage of Estate Facilities 4.3.3 Residential Mobility and Housing Aspirations 4.4 Summary of Findings 131 CONCLUSION 137 iv List of Tables Page Table 2.1 Frequency of Neighbourly Interaction ...................................................................16 Table 2.2 Neighbourly Interaction by Ethnic Group ............................................................17 Table 2.3 Neighbourly Interaction by Type of Block ..........................................................18 Table 2.4 Reasons for Not Interacting with Neighbours .................................................19 of Other Ethnic Groups and/or Nationalities Table 2.5 Types of Help Received/Provided ............................................................................20 Table 2.6 Received Help from/Provided Help to Neighbours ....................................21 by Attributes Table 2.7 Tolerance Level for Types of Nuisances Faced by Year .....................23 Table 2.8 Whether Residents Did Anything with Nuisances Faced .....................25 by Attributes Table 2.9 Places where Neighbours Meet for Interaction by Year ........................26 Table 2.10 Types of Shared Experience/Memory ...................................................................27 Table 2.11 Face-to-Face Interaction with Social Network by Age Group ..........29 Table 2.12 Virtual Mode of Interaction with Social Network by Age Group ......29 Table 2.13 Sense of Belonging by Length of Residence ..................................................31 Table 2.14 Intensity of Sense of Belonging by Age Group .............................................31 Table 2.15 Sense of Community Score by Year ......................................................................32 Table 2.16 Sense of Community Scores by Attributes .......................................................33 Table 2.17 Sense of Pride towards Community by Attributes ......................................34 Table 2.18 Reasons for Not Participating in Community Activities ..........................37 Table 2.19 Community Participation over Past 12 Months by Attributes ............37 Table 2.20 Contribution of Services for Benefit of Community .....................................38 by Age Group Table 2.21 Whether Contributed Services and Reasons for Not ...............................39 Contributing/Not Willing to Contribute Table 3.1 Age Distribution of Younger Married Residents ...........................................47 and Older Residents Table 3.2 Present and Preferred Physical Living Arrangements ............................48 of Younger Married Residents vis-à-vis their Parents by Year Table 3.3 Present Physical Living Arrangement ...................................................................49 of Younger Married Residents vis-à-vis their Parents by Resident Life-Cycle Stage Table 3.4 Preferred Physical Living Arrangement ...............................................................49 of Younger Married Residents vis-à-vis their Parents by Resident Life-Cycle Stage Table 3.5 Present and Preferred Physical Living Arrangements .............................51 of Older Residents with Married Children vis-à-vis their Married Children by Year v List of Tables Page Table 3.6 Present and Preferred Social Living Arrangements ...................................52 of Younger Married Residents by Year Table 3.7 Present and Preferred Social Living Arrangements ...................................53 of Older Residents with Married Children by Year Table 3.8 Frequency of Visits between Younger Married Residents ..................54 and their Parents by Year Table 3.9 Frequency of Visits between Older Residents ...............................................54 and their Married Children by Year Table 3.10 Frequency of Visits between Younger Married Residents ..................55 and their Parents by Attributes Table 3.11 Frequency of Visits between Older Residents ...............................................55 and their Married Children by Flat Type Table 3.12 Modes of Interaction with Family Members Not Living Together ....57 Table 3.13 Childcare Arrangements of Younger Married Residents ......................58 with Children Aged Twelve Years and Below by Year Table 3.14 Proximity of Grandparents’ Home to Married Children by Year .....58 Table 3.15 Regular Financial Support from Younger Married Residents ...........60 to Parents by Year Table 3.16 Regular Financial Support from Younger Married Residents ...........60 to Parents by Attributes Table 3.17 Amount Contributed to Parents from Younger Married .........................61 Residents by Attributes Table 3.18 Regular Financial Support Received by Older Residents ...................61 with Married Children by Year Table 3.19 Regular Financial Support Received by Older Residents ...................62 with Married Children by Attributes Table 3.20 Amount of Financial Support Received by Older Residents .............62 with Married Children by Attributes Table 3.21 Person/Source Paying for Medical Bills ...............................................................63 Table 3.22 Younger