Poverty sensitization, disability simulation – this is why more and more workshops are using role-playing games to teach empathy

TEACHING EMPATHY CREATIVELY

Rather than learning an “abstract” concept of what living with poverty is like, DOT workshop participant Ms. Tyebally said trying out the perspective of someone living hand-to-mouth was much more effective in showing the stress. confronted with someone in financial trouble.

She noticed that other participants were more liberal about their spending at the beginning of the workshop, such as being willing to spend money on retraining courses or healthier groceries, before later hesitating to spend money because they realized how limited their resources were.

While employers may be aware of the limitations that people in financial difficulty face from reading articles or knowing workforce statistics, “it’s an incredibly different experience to say, ‘I’m going to take two to three hours off my take time, and I will be present,” said Ms. Tyebally.

“(This workshop) makes you think and resonate with an issue in a completely different way,” she added.

On why this method works in raising awareness about poverty, Ms Kua said the charity hopes to educate attendees on common misconceptions about poverty in Singapore by sharing insights into “high-stress” families with lower incomes.

Noting that the charity was aware of public feedback on similar poverty sensitization workshops in the past, Ms Kua said the charity draws the examples it uses from “real life scenarios” and aims to highlight the chronic effects of living with limited resources, albeit in a condensed form.

She highlighted that a majority of DOT’s clients live in one- and two-room HDB rental apartments, but face barriers such as limited access to resources and networks, and have lower educational qualifications, which hamper their ability to obtain higher-paying jobs to obstruct.

Thus, having an experiential workshop can encourage employers to redesign jobs to be more suitable for working hours while meeting their manpower needs, Ms Kua said.

Likewise, raising awareness in this way and learning to be empathetic toward others helps medical providers provide better healthcare, as professionals must interact with patients in complex ways.

Dr. Tanya Tierney, assistant dean of clinical communications at Nanyang Technological University (NTU) Lee Kong Chian School of Medicine, said: “For example, by exploring the stories of patients and doctors, students cultivate empathy for people in different situations.

“The rich discussions invite them to think about medical topics and the human experience in different ways and explore how they can respond.”

Associate Professor Devanand Anantham, director of the SingHealth Duke-NUS Medical Humanities, said that while the clinical practice of medicine will always be the priority, integrating art and music can improve observational and listening skills, making doctors “better diagnosticians”. .

He said such courses can also help medical professionals understand cultural and religious sensitivities.

Assistant Professor Michelle Chiang from NTU’s School of Humanities and its Medical Humanities Research Cluster added that such an understanding goes beyond creating an emotional bond between doctor and patient.

“It increases the ability to provide holistic care by providing healthcare professionals with multiple viewpoints to view the patient as a whole person, rather than just a sum of their symptoms,” said Assistant Professor Chiang.

Reflecting a similar goal of building empathy through real-world scenarios, a Tower Transit spokesperson told CNA TODAY that the transportation course aims to build a more inclusive public transportation experience by matching commuters to the needs of “vulnerable commuters” .

“We understand that many people want to help, but hesitate due to insecurity or fear of offending others. Our goal is to change that mindset and encourage more proactive support,” the spokesperson said.

The Tower Transit spokesperson said the case scenarios and course content were designed in collaboration with disability services and support organization SG Enable, the Singapore Association of the Visually Handicapped and Guide Dogs Singapore.

Because the course is taught by Tower Transit employees who are wheelchair users, they can share their personal experiences during the workshop.

Mr Kishon Chong, 32, Tower Transit’s senior customer experience and inclusivity officer and facilitator, said a workshop like this is a “good start”.

“Public awareness of disability is not very common and it is not something that is taught in our education system,” said Mr Chong, who is also a wheelchair user.

“By providing a more realistic space with experiential, real-world case scenarios, they (participants) can learn a lot and empathize.”

He added that Tower Transit plans to expand the course to include conditions such as dementia, intellectual disabilities and autism by 2025.

Tower Transit’s spokesperson said the course does not make participants “experts in disability.” Rather, the goal is to help them better understand commuters with different needs and equip them with the “empathy and confidence” to help someone in need while traveling on public transportation.

He added that an additional course has also been designed for people with mobility problems and disabilities to train their confidence in using public transport. This course includes route planning and practical sessions to practice boarding, driving and disembarking.