Soap Opera Studies: A Survey of Research Projects about Television Drama in Thailand (2002-2021)

Abstract

This research project aims to conduct a survey of academic research projects about television drama in Thailand from 2002 to 2021. This documentary analysis of 98 postgraduate theses from Chulalongkorn University and Thammasat University reveals that the research topics include sender/encoder analysis, message/textual analysis, channel analysis, receiver/decoder analysis and contextual analysis of soap opera communication.
This review of the body of knowledge about Thai soap opera studies also indicates that all the selected postgraduate theses regard television drama as mass entertainment. Nevertheless, approaches to the studies of this fictional programme vary according to how each research project defines soap serials in 3 different ways: (1) the studies of media impact of television drama; (2) the studies of television drama industry; and (3) the studies of television drama as cultural and ideological sphere. Notably, these different definitions significantly make an impact upon how to design research into soap opera studies, namely identifying a statement of problems, adopting conceptual and theoretical framework, conducting research methodology, analysing and sythesising the body of knowledge.