THE EFFECTIVENESS OF INTEGRATED BUDDHIST CULTURAL ENVIRONMENT MANAGEMENT OF PHICHIT OLD TOWN COMMUNITY MUEANG PHICHIT DISTRICT PHICHIT PROVINCE

Abstract

The purposes of this article were 1) study the state of cultural environmental management in the old town community of Phichit; 2) develop a Buddhist-integrated cultural environmental management process in the old town community of Phichit; and 3) evaluate the effectiveness of Buddhist-integrated cultural environmental management in the old town community of Phichit. This is a mixed-methods research, consisting of quantitative research collecting data from a population of 5,824 people in the old town community of Phichit, with a sample of 365 people selected using simple random sampling, and qualitative research, selecting 11 key informants using purposive sampling. Data were analyzed using mean, standard deviation, and content analysis. The research instruments were questionnaires and interviews.

         The findings were as follows: 1. The state of cultural environmental management in the old town community of Phichit, as surveyed, revealed that...

The findings revealed that: (1) the cultural environment of the Phichit old town community comprised both tangible and intangible elements. Tangible cultural resources included ancient communities and cities, two historical parks, five museums and royal palaces, five historic community districts, twenty-eight temples, abandoned temples and religious sites, and one archaeological site with an ancient kiln. Intangible cultural heritage included the literary drama, Krai Thong. Overall, public opinions toward cultural environmental management were at a high level ( =3.81, S.D. = 0.86), while the perception of problems and obstacles received the lowest mean score ( = 3.59, S.D. = 0.86). (2) The development of the Buddhist-integrated cultural environmental management process indicated that community members understood the application of Buddhist principles in environmental management and emphasized the importance of community participation at all stages of the management process. (3) The evaluation of effectiveness showed that both quantitative and qualitative outcomes were at a high level ( = 3.81, S.D. = 0.86). The highest mean score indicated that the management process positively benefited the community ( =4.17, S.D. = 0.83), whereas the lowest score related to the effectiveness of the Buddhist-integrated management approach ( = 3.59, S.D. = 0.86). Qualitative findings further indicated that the management process contributed to income generation from cultural tourism, increased community satisfaction, and suggested the establishment of systematic indicators that promote greater community participation.