[1] It is commonly defined as “the fear of losing,” and is directed at a person who behaves competitively to either attain their goal or to get ahead of others.
[6] Kiasu is also similar in etymology to another Singlish term: kiasi which literally translates to “fear of death”.
[9] Kiasu-positive tactics involve an individual using more effort to attain their goals, with the end reward justifying the means.
[10] Kiasu-negative tactics involve an individual gaining an advantage by putting others down, often harming themselves and others, with the end reward not justifying the means.
[20] According to Annetta Ayyavoo and Brendan Tennakoon, the emergence of kiasu behaviour among Singaporeans is likely due to the country being an immigrant nation.
Since immigrants typically lacked education and were of lower social classes, they had to be overtly competitive to earn a sufficient living.
[21] The word “kiasu” first emerged in the 1980s in its original form: “kian su”, and was used among men completing their compulsory national service.
In the 1990s, the term was mostly used to describe negative tactics, particularly due to the increasing local and international popularity of the character Mr. Kiasu, who was known for his exaggerated kiasuism.
For instance, the 1993 edition of the government's National Courtesy Campaign had the tagline “If we could only see ourselves sometimes”, in hope that the Singaporean population would make an effort to exhibit less kiasu behaviour.
[22] Furthermore, in a parliamentary debate in 1990, Lee Siew-Choh, a member of parliament, stated that he hoped that ministers would not fall ill with the “kiasu syndrome” which the government had been actively preaching against.
As a prize, Giant gave away free goods such as milo and canned drinks to Tampines residents.
[26] Kiasu also reached prominence in its international status when it entered the online version of the Oxford English Dictionary (OED) in March 2007.
[29] This means that in social situations where competition is required, Singaporeans would feel obliged to adopt a kiasu behaviour because they presume that everyone else would do so too.
[30] For example, the inflow of foreign talent into Singapore has convinced Singaporeans, collectively, of the need to be more competitive to be on top of their field of work.
[31] To match Singapore’s high quality of living, Singaporeans find themselves pressured to embrace kiasuism as a means to improve their studies, be eligible for benefits at their work, and have an ideal personal life.
[34] Other tactics include attempting to secure more and higher quality study materials and attending tuition, both of which can be seen as either positive or negative depending on intent.
For example, in 2014, the Singapore Department of Statistics found that almost S$1.1 billion was collectively spent on external tuition classes by parents every year to ensure that their children would fare better than other students.
[37] Kiasuism makes people idly stand in lines just because they want to fit into the status quo and not lose out in what they perceive as an opportunity.
Kiasu” comic book series published in the 1990s created by Johnny Lau and written by Yu Cheng and James Suresh.