The objectives of this research were to: 1) study the demographic factors, attitudes of the family leaders towards the Sufficiency Economy Philosophy (SEP), participation in social activities of each family member, household-level SEP application, and the quality of life of the families living in the SEP model villages; and 2) develop the structural equation model showing how the demographic factors, attitudes of the family leaders towards the SEP, participation in social activities of each family member and household-level SEP application influence the quality of life of the families inhabiting in the SEP model villages. This research was a mixed methods study. To collect the quantitative data, 400 family leaders were selected as the samples, by which the sample size was 20 times the number of observed variables. The research applied the simple random sampling approach, collected the data by using questionnaires, and analyzed the data by structural equation modeling. In terms of the qualitative data, there were interviews with 17 key informants, who were the leaders of the SEP model villages selected by the purposive sampling approach. The findings showed: 1) the majority of the family leaders were aged between 31-45 years old, had received primary education, and earned 10,000 baht or less per month; 2) the participation in social activities of each family members was rated at moderate level, while the application of the SEP in the households was rated at high level, and the quality of life of each family was rated at moderate level; 3) the operated structural equation model conformed to the empirical evidence, since there were several strong linear relationships indicated by the correlation coefficient, including the participation in social events of the family members, attitudes of the family leaders towards the SEP, and the household-level SEP application, respectively. Most importantly, family members in each village should be encouraged to continuously practice and engage in community service, social development activities, and preserve their local cultures and traditions. Moreover, it was found that the Sufficiency Economy Philosophy directly led to a better quality of life for people. They had a good quality of life; they could happily earn a living, and could correctly predict the quality of life of families with an 81 percent accuracy. These research findings can be used as a model for the application of the Sufficiency Economy Philosophy in daily life, thus serving as significant basis for developing security and a better quality of life of families. Even though they are poor, with the sufficiency economy philosophy, people capable of practicing the it will put sustainably people in a better quality of life.

Credit : ภูสิทธ์ ภูคำชะโนด // บัณฑิต ผังนิรันดร์ // โกมล ไพศาล

https://so05.tci-thaijo.org/index.php/irdssru/article/view/233351