Third Sector Organisation Governance in Thailand: Regulations and Perceptions

Living in a social group is an attribute of being human; social groups have to maintain their cohesion in some ways so that their members can stay alive (Beals and Hoijer, 1979). In modern societies, rules and regulations are used to shape the members’ conduct in a society. In democratic societies laws, in general, are administered and enforced by a group assigned by the people. Those abiding by the laws are watched and expected not to do what the laws forbid. Those enforcing the laws are also subject to follow the laws as well. In other words, they are required to be watched. To maintain equal power related to these two ‘watching’, which leads to societal equilibrium, some kind of mechanism is needed in the form of a checks and balance. Those who enforce laws or govern are expected to govern well, while those who are governed are expected to follow the laws. In the literature this checks and balance mechanism is commonly known as ‘governance’.