Rossarin Soottipong Gray

Strength and stress: Positive and negative impacts on caregivers for older adults in Thailand

To understand the experiences of caregivers with older people living in Thailand, particularly as related to quality of life and stress management.

Happiness in Thailand

This chapter discusses the happiness of people in Thailand using data mainly from two surveys: Social and Cultural Situation and Mental Health Survey and Well-Being Indicators Survey. Six domains of happiness are explored: demography, economics, family, health, moral living, self-esteem, and perceived quality of neighborhood. The most important domains affecting happiness are broken down by age, gender and occupation. Theravada Buddhism, which is the religion of most Thai people, was found to be an important factor influencing happiness in the economic and moral living domains.

Religiosity, the Practices of Religions, and the Perception of Older People Among Muslims and Buddhists in Thailand:

We examined the effects of religiosity and the practices of religions among the Buddhists and Muslims aged 20 to 79 in Thailand on maintaining positive attitudes toward older people. Factor and multiple regression analyses are applied, using data from the 2011 National Survey on Conditions of Society and Culture. The measures of perception of older people are Social Value and Personal Value. Religiosity is measured by the self-assessment of religious strictness and one’s own practices according to the religious principles. Among Buddhists, the practices are measured by the frequency of praying, Takbat, Pancha Sila, and meditation. For Muslims, the practices are measured by the frequency of doing Salat, observing Saum, and giving Zakat. We found that religiosity and some practices of religions have positive effects on the perception of the value of older people. In addition, social policy for a smooth transition to an aging society should be considered alongside this religious mechanism.