Current and future studies on participatory communication in Thailand

Abstract

     Participatory communication is the core communication of the third paradigm (the multiplicity paradigm) of development. This paradigm focuses on people-centeredness in response to problem solving and the needs of people in different societies. Participatory communication has seen widespread usage over more than three decades. However, there is no standard rule nor are there specific media for implementation. This study intended to find out usage and the less studied issues on participatory communication in existing research in Thailand from 1993 to 2012 for future research. It was found that most research emphasized the areas of communication strategies, types and degrees of participation, and factors affecting people participation. The results also showed that participatory communication has rarely been found in the study of new media. Therefore, understanding how using participatory communication with new media remains a challenge in Thai research.