Liberal traditions generally endorse the idea that people should be free to do what they want as long as they do not harm others. On the other hand, conservative traditions are broadly inclined towards stability. 

Like any society, there are a host of different attitudes and dispositions in Singapore. Attitudes may also differ depending on the issue or topic in question.  

Where do Singaporeans stand, and might it be accurate to categorise Singaporeans’ attitudes as “liberal” or “conservative”? 

“We-first” and “society above self”  

Historically and traditionally, Singapore has been a communitarian society which prioritises the interests of the wider community over individual interests. In the seminal the 1991 White Paper on Shared Values which sought to articulate Singapore’s “national ideology”, one of the shared values identified was “nation before community and society above self”.  

More recently in August this year, Prime Minister (PM) Lawrence Wong emphasised that Singapore must be a “We-First” society in order to keep the country going. He added, “if everyone only thinks about ‘me’, and puts ‘me’ ahead of ‘we’, then we are finished. Society will fray, and things will fall apart.” 

However, there are some aspects of Singapore’s culture which have emphasised the importance of individuals.  

One example is in the economic sphere, where there is a strong emphasis on meritocracy. Before he took the helm as Prime Minister from 2004 to 2024, Lee Hsien Loong said:  

“We do not believe in the communist ethic: to each according to his need; from each according to his contribution. We believe that people will perform best when they are rewarded according to their contribution and when they compete furiously against others in order to do well. That is the individualistic strand in our national ethos.” 

This emphasis on merit and competition resembles “classical liberalism” or “laissez-faire conservatism” discussed in our earlier article, though only to a certain extent because the Singapore government remains highly involved in the local economy.  

Circumstances matter  

There have always been tensions between more individualistic and communitarian attitudes, and there were signs that society was heading more towards individualism.  

In 2019, a study conducted by the Institute of Policy Studies (IPS) found that 41% of respondents leaned in favour of valuing individual rights, which around double the number of respondents who favoured the idea of “sacrificing individual rights for the good of the community” (20.6%). The authors of the study remarked that “fewer are now convinced by the logic of sacrificing individual rights for community interests”. 

However, the COVID-19 pandemic seemed to have moderated these attitudes, as governments around the world – including Singapore – imposed various curbs on individual freedoms in an effort to protect public health.  

A 2021 study by the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies (RSIS) found “a very high level of willingness” to at least partially continue with mitigation measures such as wearing masks, social distancing, and mandatory health checks. The researchers observed that “the vast majority of respondents felt that sacrifices to their personal mobility, working life, and privacy were worth making for a combination of their personal and wider communal well-being” 

Similarly, in a 2022 IPS study reflecting on lessons learnt from the pandemic, the top four (out of 10) lessons that respondents chose was that “citizens should be socially responsible such as by wearing masks, having good hygiene, observing rules and taking vaccinations”. 

Sex and marriage  

“By and large, Singapore is a traditional society, with conservative social values,” said former PM Lee Hsien Loong in 2022. Most Singaporeans believe that “marriage should be between a man and a woman, children should be born and raised within such families, [and] the traditional family should form the basic building block of our society”.  

This is still true, as recent surveys show. Social conservatism remains the majority, where just over half of Singapore residents in 2024 considered gay sex and gay marriage to be wrong, even as the August 2025 IPS study noted that views on these topics “liberalised significantly” over the past decade. 

A bigger majority of locals tend to favour stability and preservation of the status quo (known as “status quo conservatism”).  

In Cultivate SG’s 2024 “Marriage, Family and Social Discourse” (MFSD) survey, we found overwhelming support for the definition of marriage as a man-woman union and the traditional family unit (around 78%). Our MFSD survey also found that high numbers – 8 in 10 respondents (82%) – agreed that it was good to keep sex within marriage.  

(For a closer look at attitudes towards marriage, please refer to our earlier article “Wrong or Not: A nuanced look at attitudes towards marriage definition”, where we looked at findings from the IPS survey and our “Marriage, Family and Social Discourse” survey.) 

Mixed perspectives, civil conversation  

As a multi-racial and multi-religious society, there are diverse perspectives on a wide range of issues. All of us have different ideas about what is best for society, and certainly wish to see society move in what we believe to be a positive direction.  

As a society which prioritises social stability and harmony, this means two things.  

Firstly, it is important to respect differences in views, and not try to force one’s ideas or opinions on others (e.g. by engaging in harassment or cancel culture). This is basic tolerance and respect for other people, including their right to have and express their own beliefs and values. It is encapsulated in Evelyn Beatrice Hall’s quote in The Friends of Voltaire: “I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it.” 

Secondly, changes in societal attitudes are possible, but this must come incrementally and gradually. On the topic of attempts to change social norms, President Tharman Shanmugaratnam said during his campaign trail that it is better for the country to “make haste slowly” because “you never know what comes the day after”. This applies to change in any direction, whether these may be characterised as “conservative”, “liberal” or something else.  

On that note, we would emphasise that the above concepts of “liberal” or “conservative” are only used for the purposes of analysis, from a philosophical or motivational perspective. In dialogues, we often find it unhelpful to label or dismiss people as “liberal” or “conservative”; instead, one should engage meaningfully with their views and perspectives. 

A deeper question  

This raises a deeper question: Are there certain social norms that should not be changed? 

To quote then-PM Lee in a 2007 speech:  

On issues of moral values with consequences to the wider society, first we should also decide what is right for ourselves, but secondly, before we are carried away by what other societies do, I think it is wiser for us to observe the impact of radical departures from the traditional norms on early movers. These are changes which have very long lead times before the impact works through, before you see whether it is wise or unwise. Is this positive? Does it help you to adapt better? Does it lead to a more successful, happier, more harmonious society? 

These considerations certainly apply across a wide range of topics covered in the IPS survey, including marriage, divorce, single parenthood, same-sex parenthood, surrogacy and assisted reproduction technology. Each of these involve important ethical considerations, issues of resource allocation and societal priorities that deserve more careful examination.