Taokae Isan in the City: Desire of People, Community, and Rural Development

Abstract

The study reported in this article examined the migrant workers who moved from rural areas to work in Bangkok and the neighboring provinces and are capable of developing themselves to become wealthy entrepreneurs. In this article, they are thereafter referred to as Taokae (a big businessperson). The study drew on a qualitative research approach which collected the data at Taokae’s hometown village in a northeastern province and conducted follow-up interviews and observations of their businesses in Bangkok and the neighboring provinces. Using the concept of desire as applied by Kitiarsa (2014), the study found that Isan villagers are not different from other general people in that they are driven by their desire to elevate the quality of their life and social status. The participants who are successful Taokae have successful factors, namely supportive structural contexts, mechanism linkage between structure and actor, and exceptional personal attributes. The study also showed that individual-level desires are linked to community-level desires. This relationship can be observed from the examples of community development projects which important people use as opportunities for their own benefits. Meanwhile, the projects can contribute to the development of the community. This article argues that greater attention should be given to an approach that studies social groups as social actors, emphasizing dimensions of feeling, imagination, and experience. This research focus can lead to understanding the mindset of various social groups and the appropriate formulation of development policies.