CHANGING PERCEPTIONS OF CHILDHOOD AMONG THE SINGAPOREAN CHINESE

Abstract

This Academic Exercise examines childhood as a social construct. Focusing on the theme of child discipline, this paper traces the changes in childhood patterns among the Singaporean Chinese. In addition to adopting an historical perspective to study these changes, an indepth interview of fifteen Chinese families (couples and their children) was also done. Results showed that there is greater parental involvement in childhood today than in the put. In terms of discipline style, reasoning is now often used when compared to childhood of the put. The modern Singaporean child is a consumer of advertised toys, education and clothing. Activities within the family are child-defined (such as more family outings are organized now) and marked by a more equitable treatment of the children of both sexes. Given the limitation of the sample size, this study is not representative of the general population. The sample for the present study was drawn from the average income families. Changes in childhood in the upper- and lower-income families may indicate interesting variations that can be explained by the variable of class. This is a fertile area of research.