The Application of Buddhist Principles to Enhance The Role of Local Politicians in Promoting Careers Based on The Philosophy of Sufficiency Economy in Huai Mai Subdistrict, Song District, Phrae Province

Abstract

This study aims to study (1) the level of roles of local politicians in terms of occupations according to the philosophy of sufficiency economy in Huai Mai Subdistrict, (2) the relationship between the Four Virtues conductive to benefits in the present and the roles of local politicians in terms of occupations according to the philosophy of sufficiency economy in Huai Mai Subdistrict, and (3) guidelines for applying the Four Virtues conductive to benefits in the present to enhance the roles of local politicians in terms of occupations according to the philosophy of sufficiency economy in Huai Mai Subdistrict, Song District, Phrae Province. This research employs a mixed-methods approach as follows: (1) The quantitative research utilized a questionnaire with established reliability to collect data from a sample population of 374 individuals. Data analysis was conducted by calculating frequency, percentage, mean, standard deviation, and Pearson correlation coefficient; and (2) The qualitative research involved in-depth interviews with 10 key informants, analyzing the data through content analysis. The study's findings revealed that 1) the level of roles of local politicians in terms of occupations according to the philosophy of sufficiency economy in Huai Mai Subdistrict, based on the Four Virtues conductive to benefits in the present, was overall at a high level, and the roles of local politicians in terms of occupations according to the philosophy of sufficiency economy in Huai Mai Subdistrict were also overall at a high level; 2) the relationship between the Four Virtues conductive to benefits in the present and the roles of local politicians in terms of occupations according to the philosophy of sufficiency economy in Huai Mai Subdistrict was found to be positively correlated at a high level with statistical significance at the 0.01 level; and 3) guidelines for applying Buddhist principles to enhance the roles of local politicians in terms of occupations according to the philosophy of sufficiency economy in Huai Mai Subdistrict included: (1) local politicians should be responsible for their duties, (2) local politicians should have a vision for community management, (3) local politicians should possess the ability to manage local affairs, and (4) local politicians should achieve happiness according to their earned resources.