Participatory action research: Thai-style health tourism in a well-being city at Chae Son hot springs, Mueang Pan District, Lampang Province

Abstract

The Chae Son Hot Springs serves as a health tourism destination that connects cultural ways of life to sustainable development. This participatory action research aimed to study the social capital context and community potential as a Thai-style health tourism destination, and to develop a Thai-style health tourism service model in the Chae Son Hot Springs area to serve as a prototype for future utilization. The methodology employs participatory action research integrated with the King's Philosophy approach following the process of understanding, accessing, and developing. Data collection followed qualitative research methodology within the framework of participatory action research. The purposive key informants consisted of 30 participants, including community leaders, core community members, village committees, village health volunteers, hot springs occupational groups, sub-district administrative organizations, park officials, and various fund representatives. Research instruments included secondary data record forms, brainstorming session guidelines, participatory observation forms, and field notes, all validated by three experts. Data were analyzed using content analysis. The findings revealed that: 1) The social capital context and community potential encompass three dimensions: natural environmental capital distinguished by natural hot springs, cultural capital of diverse ethnic folk wisdom, and strong community economic capital of occupational groups and homestay management; 2) The developed tourism service model comprises four components: integrated tourism route and map management, health tourism identity creation, community-based tourism management through health wisdom transmission, and development of tourism activities and health products. As recommendations, the Subdistrict Administrative Organization and village committees should establish a comprehensive master plan for Thai-style health tourism and foster collaboration with external agencies to ensure sustainable health tourism development.