Public Participation in Local Community Development Based on the Philosophy of Sufficiency Economy in Khok Tum Subdistrict Municipality, Mueang Lopburi District, Lopburi Province

Abstract

     This research aims to: 1. study the level of public participation in local community development based on the Philosophy of Sufficiency Economy; and 2. compare the participation of people in community development based on the philosophy in Khok Tum Subdistrict Municipality, Mueang Lopburi District, Lopburi Province, categorized by personal and environmental factors. Data were collected from 395 individuals using a 22-item questionnaire with a reliability coefficient of 0.988, and percentage, mean, standard deviation, t-test, F-test, and Fisher's Least Significant Difference (LSD) method for pairwise comparisons were employed to analyze the data.

     The research results showed that: 1. the level of public participation in local community development based on the Philosophy of Sufficiency Economy was at a high level. Considering individual aspects, the participation levels ranked from highest to lowest as follows: gaining advantages from the Philosophy of Sufficiency Economy, an evaluation based on principles of the philosophy, an implementation of the philosophy, and decision-making based on the philosophy; 2. the comparison of the public participation in local community development based on the philosophy in Khok Tum Subdistrict Municipality, Mueang Lopburi District, Lopburi Province, showed statistically significant differences at the .05 level when categorized by ages and durations of residence in the community. However, no significant differences were found when categorized by gender, education level, occupation, and average monthly income.