SOCIAL WELFARE SERVICE MANAGEMENT FOR THE ELDERLY IN RANGSIT CITY MUNICIPALITY, PATHUMTHANI PROVINCE

Abstract

This research aims to: 1) Study the level of social welfare service provision for the elderly, and 2) Compare the provision of social welfare services for the elderly in Rangsit City Municipality, Pathum Thani Province, based on personal factors. This is a quantitative research. The conceptual framework is based on the guidelines of the Department of Local Administration, Ministry of Interior (2005). The population consists of 8,503 elderly individuals residing in Rangsit City Municipality. The sample size of 382 people was calculated using Taro Yamane’s formula. The research instrument was a five-point Likert scale questionnaire. The statistics used for data analysis included frequency distribution, percentage, mean, standard deviation, t-test, and F-test.

The research findings revealed that: 1) The overall level of social welfare service provision for the elderly was at a high level. When considering each aspect from highest to lowest mean scores, all six aspects were found to be at a high level. These aspects are, in order: income (highest mean), followed by recreation, social services, social security, health and medical care, and housing (lowest mean). 2) The comparison of social welfare service provision for the elderly in Rangsit City Municipality, Pathum Thani Province, classified by personal factors, showed that elderly individuals with different gender, age, educational background, and occupation did not have significantly different opinions regarding the provision of social welfare services, at the 0.05 significance level.