Is Singapore psychologically prepared for a terror attack?

Many travel out of Singapore, and some may have even experienced “some of this violence” overseas. These experiences have reinforced that the threat of terrorism is real, she said.

But awareness may not always translate to action. Ms Tan pointed to what psychologists call the intention and action gap as a possible explanation for the small proportion of people who reported the incidents during MHA’s social experiments.

They may have had the intention to report, but various psychological barriers could have stopped them from doing so, she said. One is the bystander effect, where they believe someone else will make the report, so there is no need for them to act.

Others may have questioned whether the threat was real and decided not to report it for fear of appearing nosy or being punished if it turned out to be a false alarm.

“All this eventually shapes the decision of whether people take action or not. This gap in the intention and action … is useful because then it guides us to know exactly what we need to do, perhaps to prompt people to take more action,” said Ms Tan.

Another challenge was misinformation and rumours about crises that spread quickly online, said Dr Diong.

This information can reach the public faster than authorities and agencies are able to respond. This means Home Team officers have to react and adapt quickly, attending to not just the real crisis on the ground but also the information gaps surrounding it.

The psychological consequences of such an attack can extend far beyond those physically involved.

“We also have to look into the emotions of people because people who are reading the news will also be affected. Which means that the help is no longer just confined to those who are affected by the incident, (but) those who have heard about the incident, and are indirectly being influenced as a result of the incident.

“That means that the type of psychological support following a crisis may need to be expanded,” said Dr Diong.