The Usual Place Podcast
Why do people in Singapore need to be told not to groom themselves on the MRT train?
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In this episode, we work through how to behave on public transport.
DeeperDive is a beta AI feature. Refer to full articles for the facts.
A new SMRT campaign, has made it clear what’s acceptable, and what’s not, when travelling on the train.
Among the no-go behaviours? Clipping toenails and applying make-up.
In this episode of the podcast, I chat with Elysia Tan, a clinical psychologist, and Shila Naidu, a trauma therapist, about why some people behave this way on public transport.
We discuss how the public and the private space has been blurred with time, and why Singapore operates on a “shame-based society”.
Highlights (click/tap above):
4:08 Why have we not learnt from decades of courtesy campaigns?
9:54 Why don’t people realise they are irritating others?
14:29 Are these behaviours a reflection of a stressed society?
18:08 How did we become a “shame-based” society?
21:59 Commuters with mental health issues
24:41 Should we confront people on the train?
28:24 No PDA, no nose picking and distance please!
Host: Natasha Ann Zachariah (natashaz@sph.com.sg)
Read Natasha’s articles: https://str.sg/iSXm
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Filmed by: Studio+65
Edited by: Eden Soh, Amirul Karim & Natasha Liew
Executive producer: Danson Cheong
Editorial producer: Elizabeth Law
Channel: https://str.sg/5nfm
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YouTube: https://str.sg/theusualplacepodcast
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