The development of community identity products inspired by the aesthetics of Hua Phee Talok Puppet in Tha Pla District, Uttaradit province

Abstract

            This research aimed to develop community identity products in the form of souvenirs inspired by the Hua Phi Talok (comic ghost mask), as part of a broader research project entitled "Phi Talok: Creative Aesthetics and the Symbolic Science of the People of Tha Pla District, Uttaradit Province", toward the development of community identity products to stimulate a circular community economy. A mixed methods research design was employed. Data collection was conducted through focus group interviews with 20 community knowledge holders possessing expertise in local history, focusing on the Phi Talok procession tradition, in order to inform the design direction for community identity souvenirs. The research instrument consisted of a satisfaction questionnaire, which was validated by three experts in art and souvenir product design to evaluate the Item-Objective Congruence Index (IOC). The target population was selected through purposive sampling, comprising 175 tourists and entrepreneurs, and 150 members of the general public, totaling 325 participants. The product range consisted of T-shirts, ceramic mugs, bottle opener magnets, and stickers. Descriptive statistics were applied, including mean, frequency, percentage, and standard deviation. The research findings revealed that, regarding the satisfaction survey of the target population, tourists and entrepreneurs reported overall satisfaction at a high level across all dimensions (x̄ = 4.04, S.D. = 0.73). When considered by dimension, the highest scores were recorded for functionality and durability (x̄ = 4.35, S.D. = 0.76), followed by aesthetic appearance and identity communication (x̄ = 4.34, S.D. = 0.73), innovation reflecting new creative thinking and improvement upon existing designs (x̄ = 4.23, S.D. = 0.74), and cultural value (x̄ = 4.23, S.D. = 0.68), respectively. For the general public group, overall satisfaction was also at a high level (x̄ = 4.40, S.D. = 0.70). When examined by dimension, both functional utility and community identity dimensions yielded high overall satisfaction scores of (x̄ = 4.30, S.D. = 0.76) and (x̄ = 4.50, S.D. = 0.64), respectively. At the item level, the product serving as a creative exemplar with distinctive identity, and overall satisfaction with the product in terms of community identity, were rated at the highest level (x̄ = 4.57, S.D. = 0.60) and (x̄ = 4.57, S.D. = 0.64), respectively.