The Development of Online Community Model to Promote the Life Quality Level of the Elderly in Urban Society

Abstract

The research of the Study and Develop Online Communities to promote quality of life for the elderly in Urban Society is a research and development by integrating qualitative and quantitative methods. The objectives of the study are: 1) to study the problems and needs of the urban elderly in Nang Rong Municipality, Nang Rong District, Buriram Province. 2) to analyze and to design an online community to promote quality of life for the elderly in urban society of Nang Rong Municipality, Nang Rong District, Buriram Province and 3) to develop an online community model for promoting the quality of life of the urban elderly in Nang Rong municipality, Nang Rong District, Buriram Province.The population in this study were the elderly in Nang Rong municipal area, Nang Rong Subdistrict, Nang Rong District, Buriram Province (Young-old persons aged. 60 to 69) by using purposive sampling method and the chosen population were the retired teachers having experience in using online media, the senior school instructors, doctors, and senior welfare officers. The instruments used in this research were questionnaires for collecting quantitative data and interview, group discussion, lesson conclusion, and participant observation were the methods for collecting qualitative data. The statistics used to analyze data were the average and the standard deviation.For the result of the online life-quality promoting in the online model for the urban elderly, it was found that the elderly can post pictures, write blogs, send messages to the senior school instructors, doctors, and senior welfare officers, read press releases from the elderly welfare department, attend elderly school, read health articles, read community blogs, create polls and write a trading post in the online market. And the overall result of the online community performance and satisfaction to promote the quality of life of the elderly in the urban society from the local elderly, the senior school instructors, doctors, and senior welfare officers is a high level.