THE PROMOTING FACTORS FOR CO-EXISTENCE WITH THE FOREIGN WORKERS : A CASE STUDY OF THAIS IN PATHUM THANI PROVINCE

Abstract

This research was aimed at studying the promoting factors for co-existence with foreign workers as perceived by Thai people in Pathum Thani province. Data were collected from a sample of 400 Thai people in Pathum Thani province. The research instrument was a rating-scale questionnaire. Descriptive statistics employed for data analysis were the frequency, mean, percentage, and standard deviation; while inferential statistics employed for hypothesis testing were the t-test and one-way ANOVA. The findings revealed that the majority of respondents in the sample were females, with upper secondary/vocational education level, being between 31 - 45 years old, with labor for hire/self-employed occupations, with monthly income of not more than 15,000 baht, and residing in Pathum Thani province for more than 20 years. There were 10 promoting factors for co-existence with foreign workers all of which were rated at the high level. The first three factors which had highest rating means were (1) religion factor, (2) behavioral and adaptation factor, and (3) social and cultural interdependence factor. Hypothesis testing results showed that Thai people in Pathum Thani province with different educational levels, ages, occupations, incomes, and durations of residing in Pathum Thani province significantly differed in their opinions toward at least one promoting factors for co-existence with foreign workers at the .05 level of statistical significance.