| Author | Kung, Shiann-far |
| Call Number | AIT Thesis no. HS-86-13 |
| Subject(s) | Rural development--Thailand--Surat Thani
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| Note | A thesis submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science, School of Engineering and Technology |
| Publisher | Asian Institute of Technology |
| Abstract | Urban-rural relations has been a field of scholarly interest for very long time. The topic became a more and more important field of study since the 1960s when the development and modernization became an issue throughout the world and increasing efforts were made to improve the quality of human life. Various theories arose from different disciplines; yet most of the models were built on the studies of western developed countries. These theories and their consequent development strategies are facing challenges concerning their applicability to the developing countries, the debates even reaching to calls for shift in the whole development paradigm. The real problem is, however, the lack of sufficient evidence to establish the actual growth relation between the urban and rural sectors in the developing countries. This study is more concerned with the integration of some existing concepts and research methods, which might be able to overcome the common difficulties of lack of secondary data for advanced analytical techniques in the developing world, in order to elucidate the pattern of growth between an urban centre and its rural hinterland. Spatial patterns, commercial linkages, price and profit differentials, and innovation diffusion among settlements are the four main areas of research. Surat Thani City, proposed as one of the three growth centres in the Southern Thailand, and its related area of influence is the study area. Field surveys were mainly composed of a land us e and commercial activity survey, questionnaire interviews to shopowners, structured interviews concerning market functions, auxiliary unstructured interviews and trip recordings. A special feature in the land use survey is the use of the shophouse unit as means of measuring and the fact t hat all the settlements were studied without using existing large scale map . Nevertheless, the results were quite fruitful. Using the algorithm of scalogram analysis for centrality computation, a five-tier settlement system was established, together with t he linkages of the flow of goods and commodities , showing a highly concentrated spatial pattern in the region. Price and profit distribution suggest that the merchants in the larger towns gained more profit from trading while consumers in the lower order towns had to spend more for most of the goods and commodities of the same quality than their neighbours in the larger towns. Innovation diffusion largely coincided with the rank of the centre . Based on the study experiences, suggestions are mainly made concerning appropriate research techniques for further related studies. |
| Year | 1986 |
| School | School of Engineering and Technology (SET) |
| Department | Other Field of Studies (No Department) |
| Academic Program/FoS | Human Settlement (HS) |
| Chairperson(s) | Demaine, Harvey |
| Examination Committee(s) | Kammeier, Hans Detlef ;Weber, Karl E. ;Sibbing, Gerardus M. |
| Scholarship Donor(s) | The Government of the Republic of China |
| Degree | Thesis (M.Sc.) - Asian Institute of Technology, 1986 |