Feb 26, 2010
In firefighters we trust (but not property agents)
People whose jobs entail saving lives are most trusted, poll shows
By Tessa Wong
WHO would you trust more? A fireman, or a real estate agent?
Thought so.
So did 760 Singapore residents who took part in an online poll conducted
by Reader's Digest magazine on the most trusted professionals in the
country.
Conducted last October, the poll gave them two lists of 55 individuals
and 40 professions and asked them to rate their trustworthiness on a
scale of one to 10.
The results show that the people who are trusted most tend to have the
most vital job of all - saving lives. Hence, besides firefighters, jobs
in the medical industry dominate the top 10 places.
Doctors are second, surgeons fifth, paramedics seventh, followed by
nurses, pharmacists and dentists. Judges, teachers and pilots round out
the top 10. Not far behind are police officers in 11th place.
At the other end of the scale are those who deal with money, or wield
influence.
Real estate agents brought up the rear. Just ahead of them, at 39th,
were politicians. Financial planners were only slightly more to be
trusted, at 38th.
But Mr Jeff Foo, president of the Institute of Estate Agents, was stoic
about the results: 'I'm not surprised. It's partly due to our poor
reputation and also because we are not regulated, with no entry
requirements.'
That does not explain the politicians. With Singaporeans reputed to have
so much faith in the Government, why the poor showing?
Mr Michael Palmer, MP for Pasir Ris-Punggol GRC, said: 'From what I see
on the ground, I don't get a sense that people distrust us. Perhaps it's
because those surveyed responded not on trust but with their
disagreement with the Government and its policies.'
But perhaps there is no need for any chest-beating. In any survey of
this type, people tend to trust those they have to rely on most, said Ms
Dora Cheok, editor of Reader's Digest Asia.
Agreeing, organisational behaviour expert Donald Ferrin, an associate
professor at the Singapore Management University, said: 'Research has
shown that when you are dependent on someone, you have a defence
mechanism to want to trust someone, or it can make your life difficult.'
So it is only human, and probably why Singapore's top 10 is almost
identical to those from Malaysia and the Philippines.
Still, it does not take anything away from the quality of Singapore's
civil defence force and health-care professions, said Ms Cheok.
The three countries are among seven that participated in the first such
poll done by the magazine in Asia. In Singapore, those surveyed were at
least 20 years old, had at least secondary school education, and a
minimum annual household income of $49,500.
As for lawyers who are ranked 32nd, Mr Palmer - who is also a lawyer -
said the media could be to blame. 'The only time you see us mentioned in
the media is when a lawyer has been dishonest. Which is why we try to
stay out of the papers!'
And what of those whom he blamed for lawyers' poor showing? Journalists
were placed 30th in the list, ahead of hawkers, taxi-drivers and
bankers, but behind farmers, musicians and hairdressers.
The Straits Times
Feb 26, 2010
Chief Justice rated 'most trustworthy'
CHIEF Justice Chan Sek Keong is the most trustworthy person in
Singapore, suggests an online poll.
'He has done Singapore proud on the international stage,' said Ms Dora
Cheok, editor of Reader's Digest Asia, which asked 760 people to rank 55
selected individuals on how much they could be trusted.
Among the CJ's achievements: leading Singapore to win its case for Pedra
Branca in an international court, and becoming the first Asian judge to
receive the prestigious International Jurists Award last year.
As a profession, judges also did well, being the third most trusted out
of 40.
The High Court declined to comment on CJ Chan's ranking.
Ms Cheok said that individuals were chosen based on their popularity and
visibility in the media, though politicians were not among them.
In second place was wheelchair athlete William Tan, followed by
ambassador-at-large Tommy Koh and police commissioner Khoo Boon Hui.
National Neuroscience Institute director and newspaper columnist Lee Wei
Ling was placed fifth.
Other names in the top 10: Creative Technologies chief executive officer
Sim Wong Hoo, Singapore's Ambassador to the United States Chan Heng
Chee, author Catherine Lim and TV host Gurmit Singh.
So who was at the bottom?
Shock jock Glenn Ong, who aired his dirty laundry last year when he
announced on radio that he was separating from his wife, TV host Jamie
Yeo. She was not on the list.
The radio deejay told The Straits Times he was not fazed. 'I guess it's
in line with my image. I don't care because these people who voted don't
actually know me nor the other people on the list,' he said.
(With thanks to TODAY wwwtodayonline.com.sg)
These are 'Singapore's most trusted'
05:55 AM Feb 26, 2010
SINGAPORE - They may be rich and they are certainly famous, but do you
trust them?
Fame and trust do not go hand in hand, it seems, according to the
results of a poll conducted by Asian Reader's Digest.
Almost everyone would know who Taufik Batisah and Hady Mirza are, but
the two Singapore Idol winners bring up the rear in the list of 55 of
Singapore's most trusted people.
Taufik was placed 54th, and Hady tied with actress Fann Wong for 52nd
place in the magazine's first ever Trust Poll. They shared bottom
rankings with radio presenter Glenn Ong, who was No 55.
In contrast, actor and host Gurmit Singh was placed 10th.
"I would have thought entertainers like me, especially comedians, would
be the least trusted since we are always clowning around," Gurmit told
the magazine.
But he was clearly the exception to the rule, tying with entrepreneur
Olivia Lum, chief executive officer of Hyflux, in the top 10 placings.
The top spots were dominated by individuals who hold positions of
authority, with Chief Justice Chan Sek Keong as Singapore's most trusted
person.
But his ranking is not surprising, said the magazine, considering that
judges ranked as the third most trusted profession in the poll.
According to Dr Gillian Koh, a senior research fellow at the Institute
of Policy Studies: "In Singapore, there has been a consistent trend to
rank high court judges at the top of the socio-economic ladder,"
The poll was taken last October from a cross section of 760
Singaporeans, who were asked to rank the shortlisted individuals and
professions they had the most faith in. Politicans were omitted as "the
general elections have proven the country's leaders already rank highly
..." said the magazine.
The full results are published in the March issue of Asian Reader's
Digest.
With the exception of second place wheelchair athlete and charity
fundraiser Dr William Tan, the rest of the top five individuals are
closely associated to the high office they hold within local government
bodies.
"The results could be interpreted as a reflection of the public's trust
in the state," said Dr Terence Chong, a fellow at the Institute of
Southeast Asian Studies.
Or as the Asian Reader's Digest said: "To put it simply, we trust them
because of the roles they play."
A male respondent in his 40s said of Prof Chan Heng Chee, who is
Singapore's ambassador to the United States and who was placed sixth:
"She speaks with authority and has represented the country very
professionally."
The results also show that how well-known an individual is to the
general public does not matter when it comes to trust.
The respondents were allowed to select a "don't know" response when
given the individuals to rate. More than 25 per cent did not know who
the top five performers were, with CJ Chan scoring 28 per cent in "don't
know " responses, Dr Tan with 26 per cent and ambassador-at-large
Professor Tommy Koh with 28 per cent.
In contrast, four out of five individuals at the bottom of the list
scored below 15 per cent in the same category, indicating that more
people know who they are.
Besides Gurmit, writer Catherine Lim and Deirdre Moss, executive
director of the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA),
"softened" the tough nature of the top 10, showing that trust was also
given to those who come across as "honest, genuine and passionate about
their work", said Asian Reader's Digest.
Of Ms Lim, who was once criticised by then Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong
for her political comments, a female respondent in her 30s said: "Her
opinion is very direct and honest, and she is not easily intimidated."
The gathering of individuals in "non traditional" professions in the
lower ranks also reflect "Singaporeans' rather traditional view of how
one gains respect and trust", as Associate Professor Don Ferrin,
Organisational Behaviour and Human Resources, Singapore Management
University, put it.
Plastic surgeon Dr Woffles Wu and Dr Georgia Lee, a general practitioner
with special interest in aesthetics, were placed 47th and 50th
respectively, with comedian Mark Lee at No 48, Singapore Idol judge and
entertainer/composer Dick Lee at 42, actor and host Allan Wu at 43,
former footballers V Sundramoorthy (tying with Dr Lee) at 50, and David
Lee at 39.
Gurmit may have bucked the trend because he "has a very local and
lovable image" who has "shown himself to be genuine", said Associate
Professor Tan Hwee Hoon of the Lee Kong Chian School of Business at SMU.
On the other hand, Idols Taufik and Hady "have not achieved very much
since the time they won".
Assoc Prof Ferrin said this trend is different from what one would find
in the West, "where government and business leaders tend to be viewed
with greater scepticism, while entertainment figures can be very
respected and influential".
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