Publication Type
Journal Article
Book Title/Conference/Journal
Youth and Society
Year
9-2026
Abstract
The belief in meritocracy has been rising over the past few decades in developed countries. While many studies have focused on the belief in meritocracy, its distribution across groups and its effects, much less is known about how beliefs may change as individuals age and undergo major life transitions. Using linear growth models on three waves of panel data from a national youth survey in Singapore, we found that the major life transitions to adulthood – progressing through the education system (e.g., completing tertiary education), transiting from full-time studies to full-time work, getting married and becoming a parent – predicted only marginal intraindividual changes in meritocratic beliefs. Instead, linear growth models consistently pointed to strong starting beliefs amongst Singaporean youths which did not waver over time. These findings suggest that the belief in meritocracy is sticky once it is formed, which highlights the importance of how meritocratic discourse is framed in society.
Keywords
life transitions, meritocratic beliefs, youths, Singapore
Disciplines
Asian Studies | Family, Life Course, and Society
Subject(s)
Applied or Integration/Application Scholarship
ISSN/ISBN
0044-118X
Publisher
SAGE
DOI
10.1177/0044118X251393728
Additional URL
https://doi.org/10.1177/0044118X251393728
Version
acceptedVersion
Language
eng
Copyright Holder
Authors
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 International License.
Format
application/PDF
Citation
CHONG, Yen Kiat; TAN, Shin Bin; CHUA, Vincent; and CHEW, Han Ei.
The stickiness of meritocratic beliefs from adolescence to adulthood in Singapore. (2026). Youth and Society. 58, (6), 982.
Available at: https://ink.library.smu.edu.sg/oi_research/4