Publication Date : 28 December 2023
Author: Kamonwan Roengsumran
For further details on the article, visit the journal at
https://so03.tci-thaijo.org/index.php/sduhs/article/view/274235
Abstract
Resource transactions occur within Mon migrant worker networks through the sharing of different kinds of support. However, the flow of resources can be influenced by a range of factors that promote or impede the capacity of members of migrant networks to transfer resources. This paper examines the factors influencing the process of resource transfers among co-ethnic migrant worker networks in the
context of Samut Sakhon Province, Thailand. This study was conducted from December 2021 to April 2022 in Amphoe Meaung (Samut Sakhon’s capital district), Samut Sakhon Province. Samut Sakhon Province was selected as the study site due to an existence of supportive networks of co-ethnic migrant workers providing financial and social support to their close ties and organizational ties. A large number of Mon migrant workers (see also Baonerd, 2007a: 9; Baonerd, 2007b:5) and many Thai- Mon people with Thai ID cards which embrace shared ethnic identity and characteristics represent the co-ethnic Mon migrant worker networks— the scope of this study. This study applies a mixed- method approach, using the
quantitative research method for finding the frequency of migrant workers’ characteristics and behaviours of resource transfers and the qualitative research methods with interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA). Through the snowball technique, in- depth interviews were conducted with six Myanmar migrant workers (Mon ethnicity), and semi-structured interviews were conducted with five non-migrant community leaders or employees of Mon groups to gain insights into the factors influencing resource transfers in Samut Sakhon Province. Online surveys were also conducted randomly with a wide range of 94 respondents living in several communities in Samut Sakhon Province to enable validation of qualitative
data collected for this study. Data about factors affecting the transfer of resourceswere collected by using the online survey method. The use of qualitative research methods led to rich data to support these points. This study’s findings demonstrates that factors promoting the flow of resources included social and cultural circumstances (e.g., the COVID- 19 pandemic, collective cultural values), roles and
leadership within the group, socialization, and internet and social media. Factors hindering the flow of resources included the COVID-19 pandemic restrictions, and regulations and controlling systems, power relations within co-ethnic migrant networks resulting from migrants’ limited access to resources and opportunities. An acknowledgement about factors promoting and impeding resource transfer can
prevent obstacles of the resource flows, while maintaining and increasing the flow of resources within Mon migrant worker networks in methods that fully benefit migrant workers.