Title: Competition and culture: the macroeconomic realities of critical thinking competencies for Thailand 4.0 and the ASEAN Economic Community

Authors: Christopher Mark Crawford

Addresses: Payap University, Mae Khao Campus, Chiang Mai 50000, Thailand

Abstract: There is an international consensus that the global economy demands workers who possess creativity with excellent critical thinking and problem solving skills (NEA, 2018). Thailand's present educational system does not produce graduates adequately equipped for the knowledge economy. This paper will explore how competition from the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) could potentially motivate a uniquely Thai cultural reformation of the Kingdom's ossified educational system. Theoretical framework analysis and textual analysis of the findings of Hofstede (2011) and the Globe Project (n.d.) on national culture and Roger's (2003) work on adoption of innovation contrasted with Nguyen-Phuong-Mai's (2017) holistic and dynamic neuroscience-based model of cultural adaptation will be utilised to understand how change transpires in a Thai cultural context. A major finding of this study is that Thai cultural response to major crises is rooted in practicality. The implications of this research will give educational policy makers within the Kingdom an outside perspective on the various resources within their own culture for reform.

Keywords: Thai culture; macroeconomics; Thailand 4.0; 21st century education; comparative education; education reform; 4 C's; adoption of innovation; epigenetics; neuroplasticity; change; ASEAN; ASEAN Economic Community; AEC.

DOI: 10.1504/IJLC.2019.105647

International Journal of Learning and Change, 2019 Vol.11 No.4, pp.361 - 378

Received: 16 Jul 2018
Accepted: 26 Nov 2018
Published online: 06 Mar 2020 *

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