Thursday, 17 May 2012
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Government Analytics
Singapore to mine citizen sentiment online
The Singapore government is looking at using social media Business Analytics tools to get a better understanding of how Singaporeans feel about its policies.
The tools will enable public services to be better tailored to individuals by “listening” to views expressed in social media, explained Professor Neo Boon Siong of the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy, National University of Singapore.
The software, developed by IBM, trawls social media for key words or phrases, which can be defined as positive or negative, to identify current and emerging trends in public sentiment.
“The government has collected information on citizen sentiment in the past, but citizens tend to respond in an artificial way through traditional channels,” said Neo.
The system could mark a shift in how the Singapore government deals with citizen feedback, from computing quantitative customer satisfaction scores to use citizen views and ideas to customise design and delivery, he noted.
“The government has tended to be rational and pragmatic - to listen to reason, but ignore feelings. Now there are tools that can go beyond seeking feedback to get citizens involved in initiating reviews and redesigning policies.”
Investment in Business Analytics was named as part of Singapore’s S$1.1 billion (US$800 million) ICT procurement plan, announced in May 2010.
Singapore’s next e-government masterplan for 2011-2015 is themed ‘Collaborative Government’, with a focus on co-design and co-delivery of citizen services.
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3 Comments
On 23 November 2010 Lydia Ng wrote:
In Singapore as elsewhere, the media is taking shape as an interconnected system so any analytics must account for both news and social media and must track the linkages between the two. Case in point: negative YOG broadcasts on blogs/facebook, picking up from official news broadcasts, generated at least as much of, and in some cases, many times more, the 'social sharing' of those news broadcasts themselves. Sentiment isn't sufficient. The government is defintiely moving in the right direction here. Glad that they are listening.
On 25 November 2010 riya wrote:
Hi Lydia,
I am conducting a research to find the most comprehensive, adaptive
and insightful “one- stop solution” services for media monitoring in
the industry today. I found this article on the fisheye blog very
informative (link to
http://blog.fisheyeanalytics.com/2010/08/redefining-importance-for-pr-at-story.html)
I also recently come across a Fisheye corporate report which included
analytics on the “social impact” I think this is new to the industry
and I would like to know more. Please contact me at
On 21 December 2010 CN wrote:
Hi,
The government has been listening all the while… its just publicizing it now.
Theres actually a whole division dedicated to such monitoring :)