Psychological Capital Essays By David Chan 2015 2017

This book is the second collection of twenty-one essays by behavioural scientist Professor David Chan. The essays in the book first appeared in The Straits Times from March 2015 to September 2017. They discuss a wide range of topics including the different types of commitment to country, diversity and cohesion, people-centric policies and unintended consequences in policymaking, futures thinking, maladaptive cynicism and healthy scepticism, ambivalence from mixed feelings, terrorism, the psychology of power, separating sincere apologies from insincere ones, the impact of socio-political humour, and finding one's own meaning in life. A common theme that runs through these essays is developing "Psychological Capital" to build a strong society of individuals and communities — one that is able to pursue positive things but also able to handle shocks, failures and unmet expectations. This book goes beyond examining critical issues that matter to people, policymaking and nation building, and why they do, to focus on translating the "knowing what" and "knowing why" to "knowing how" and "knowing when." Endorsed by fifty leaders from different sectors, this book provides a powerful springboard for self-reflections, internal and public discussions, and individual and collective actions. Contents: Here's What Fifty Leaders From Different Sectors Said About This Book ...About the AuthorPrefaceGetting Better at Discussing Population IssuesThe Emotional Commitment that Mr Lee InspiredIf We Have No Differences, We Would Be In TroubleLets Talk About CommitmentPutting Singapore Above SelfThinking About the Future Now7 "PC" Ways to Make People-Centric PoliciesWhy It's Not Enough for Leaders to Just be CleverLearning to See Things From Another's PerspectiveFind Your Own Meaning in LifeLessons for Singapore From Schooling's WinElected Presidency Changes: It's Not Just About the PoliticsIn a Funk Over Trump?2016: A Year of Looking to the FutureThe Unbearable Weight of PowerWhat a Cobra Bounty Says About Unintended Policy ConsequencesSay You're Sorry: How to Suss Out an Insincere ApologyTo Tell or Not to Tell, That is the QuestionHow to Respond to Threats With More than Fight or FlightJokes About Politics: The Good, The Bad and The UglyBuild Psychological Capital Now for Strong Society Readership: Academics, undergraduate and graduates students, professionals interested in social and behavioural issues in Singapore; civil servants, NGOs; general public. Keywords: Psychological Capital;Public Policy;Self-Efficacy;Optimism;Hope;Resilience;Well-Being;Trust;Community;Commitment;Meaning;SingaporeReview: FROM NATIONAL LEADERS "David is an astute observer of Singapore society, and his essays provide timely insights into what it means to be Singaporean, now and in the future. In an increasingly complex world, the need to ensure a caring, confident and cohesive Singapore has become ever more important. This book takes an even-handed and constructive view to local and international issues, and urges us to come together to build trust and commitment towards one another as fellow Singaporeans, as one nation." Ms Grace Fu Minister for Culture, Community and Youth, Singapore "David has produced a thoughtful collection of essays that not only offers useful observations and perspectives on national issues, but invites us to consider the role we each can play towards building a stronger, more cohesive society. By analysing the complexities of public policy formulation and implementation, and sounding out ideas for b

This book is the third collection of essays by behavioural scientist Professor David Chan, most of which first appeared in The Straits Times. Endorsed by fifty leaders from different sectors, this book provides a powerful springboard for self-reflections, sense-making, internal and public discussions, and individual and collective actions. A common theme that runs through these essays may be described as 'Meaning Matters' which refers to the content and subject matter of the critical issues experienced by people and what it means to them. It is also about why the way that people think, feel and act as they make sense and meaning of their experiences should matter to individual well-being and societal progress in Singapore. This book goes beyond examining what critical issues mean or matter to people, policy making and nation building, and why they do, to focus on translating the 'what it means' and 'why it means' to 'how it means' and 'when it means'.

Most people can recall encounters, episodes and experiences involving disagreements over an issue. The more important the issue, the more it affects interpersonal relationships negatively when there is strong disagreement. Disagreements often generate negative thoughts, feelings and actions that significantly influence attitudes, decisions and behaviours. These dynamics in dealing with disagreement is part of our human psychology. If the underlying psychology is understood, this knowledge can facilitate personal and workplace relationships. It can also help address disagreements between policymakers and citizens or advocacy groups.Several questions have become more salient in recent years, particularly amid COVID-19 challenges, as Singapore society underwent significant changes that impact on the nature and level of attention given to the way we deal with disagreements. What factors should we pay more attention to when dealing with disagreements? What are the policy and societal contexts, and can we deal with disagreements in an ethical way? How are disagreements affected by people's social networks and social identities? What lessons can we learn from how we have dealt with disagreements? How do we approach disagreements better to effect positive changes?This book explores these and other issues about dealing with disagreements. The book is organised into four parts. Part 1 provides an overview of the issues involved in dealing with disagreements. Part 2 discusses issues of ethics and values in managing difficult situations. Part 3 analyses the relationships linking disagreements, social networks, diversity, and social identities. Part 4 addresses specific questions on dealing with disagreements in Singapore in terms of education, youths and inter-generational differences, the role and practice of the media, civil society advocacy and engagement, facts and signals in parliamentary debates and public discourse, dealing with feedback and viewpoints, political and public service leadership, and relationships between people and government.This book will provide new perspectives and possibilities on what it means to say 'dealing with disagreements', as we resolve problems and generate solutions to live a better life and build a stronger Singapore society.

The COVID-19 pandemic has caused, and will continue to cause, great disruptions to lives, livelihoods, ways of life, and quality of life. We will need to learn to live with the coronavirus for a long time, even as we combat the coronavirus crisis collectively and fight our own daily battles individually. This book examines Singapore's reaction and response to the coronavirus and draws lessons for crisis management, psychological preparedness, and adaptability.Consisting of 12 chapters, the book is organized into three parts. Part 1 elaborates on the context of the coronavirus crisis and discusses human reactions to the outbreak and the key adaptation challenges that people faced. Part 2 discusses Singapore's leadership and public responses, focusing on negative emotions, social responsibility, adoption of new technology for contact tracing, and the handling of the outbreak among migrant workers at the dormitories. Part 3 addresses issues of psychological preparedness amid the evolving COVID-19 situation, in terms of adapting to post-pandemic realities, enabling positive attitudes and experiences, building psychological capital, and learning to work together to emerge stronger and better from the coronavirus crisis.

Janet McLellan uses ten years of ethnographic fieldwork, including extensive interviews, to highlight the difficulties Cambodians have faced in Canada.

How can social cohesion be achieved in a meritocratic and multicultural global city-state? 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.

Work is all around us and permeates everything we do and everyday activities. Not all work is justified, not all work is properly designed, or evaluated accurately, or integrated. A systems model will make work more achievable through better management. Work is defined as a process of performing a defined task or activity, such as research, development, operations, maintenance, repair, assembly, production, and so on. Very little is written on how to design, evaluate, justify, and integrate work. Using a comprehensive systems approach, this book facilitates a better understanding of work for the purpose of making it more effective and rewarding.

This volume presents a new perspective on demographic transition, economic growth, and national development via exploration of the Third World economies. It provides a multidimensional approach to the close relationship between the concept of the chaos and complexity theory and provides a deliberate glance into the plight of policy formulation for demographic transition, economic growth, and development of Third World countries. The volume discusses the efficiency of good strategies and practices and their impact on business growth and economic growth, depending on the depth and diversity of infrastructure sector in particular and overall socioeconomic development in general. Economic Growth and Demographic Transition in Third World Nations: A Chaos and Complexity Theory Perspective covers a conglomeration of various aspects and issues related to the effect of demographic transition on socio-economic development in Third World countries, especially in the post-globalized era. It focuses on the applicability of the chaos and complexity theory in order to elicit transformational policies and aims to discuss and predict future projections of the new world of the economic growth policies.