Social Support and Community Building, Assignment, Singapore

Social Support and Community Building

What is social support?

 Emotional support: offering empathy, care, love, and trust which can help an individual feel valued and understood.

 Instrumental support: providing tangible help, such as financial help, transportation, or help with daily tasks. 

Informational support: offering advice, guidance, or information that can help someone solve a problem or make decisions.

 Appraisal support: giving feedback that helps someone understand and evaluate their situation, often providing perspective or boosting self-esteem. 

Why is social support so important: reduces stress, helps with coping and promotes a sense of belonging and security. 

Social support is always present.

 Question of extent.

 Assumed in the past but has grown in prominence in policy articulation.

Social support policies and programs have evolved.

What pressing social issues Singapore will need to confront in the future?

– The benchmark has moved upwards in terms of expectations; Qs of who pays and for who and for what become discussion points

 –  Resources both globally and domestically have reduced; sustainability becomes a main concern (by sustainability we mean infrastructure, finance, manpower, and know-how)

 –  Planning for continuity is much harder

 – Governing (within whatever domains) continues to be challenging

 – How are these reflected in social issues?

•  Possible emerging social issues :
•  Arising from climate change : food production and scarcity will impact SGP; changes in weather; logistics; transportation 
•  Social issues: basic level of living (continuous debate on what is sufficient) 
•  Social issues: relationships ( change in form and substance arising from social media and new technologies); while online communities can provide support, they can also lead to superficial connections, cyberbullying, and the spread of misinformation, which may negatively affect individuals’ perception and receipt of social support. 
•  Social issues: workplace support – lack of support and/or stress and burnout and decreased job satisfaction. Especially important for caregivers who may need more flexibility or resources. 
•  Social Issues: social isolation; mental wellness.  
• Social issues: access to support system and social networks.

What is community building?

– Fostering connections, relationships, and a sense of belonging among members of a group or area

 – Creating and strengthening social ties and networks to improve the well-being of a community and encourage collective action towards common goals.

 – Can occur in various contexts, eg neighborhoods, workplaces, schools, or online platforms. 

Signs of community building?

– Social networks – interactions among community members to build relationships, trust, and mutual support.

 – Inclusion and diversity – regardless of background, abilities and means can participate and contribute

 – Forms of participation – as participant; as organiser and convenor; as volunteers; decision making; as collaborator

 – Identity – local, ethnic background; culture

 – Collective action – empowering the community to work together towards common goals such as improving local services, improving environment (History of Residents Committees in SGP)

 – ABCD approach

• Ethics and other issues re community engagement in various areas of social support, e.g. when to intervene / stay away, how are such decisions made etc. 
•  Public assistance calibration 
•  Housing priority 
•  How to moderate in community development 
•  Way forward : reading people’s aspirations and creating opportunities to meet those aspirations 
•  Social work interventions – when to intervene; when to pull back  
• Policies is one thing; how to execute is an art

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