Reference : H-1-4-10

Name of creator(s) : Lucien and Jane Hanks

Scope and content : A pyramidal patronage system exists throughout much of Southeast Asia, in which the power of the leader to attract acolytes depends on individual relationships. Politicians gain acolytes through deals they make in return for co-operation. An acolyte of one leader may in turn become a leader of his own personal group. In the hill tracts of northern Thailand, bureaucratic uniformity has been largely absent, despite directives from the provincial capitals and Bangkok. As a result, each district has generally followed its own course, merely taking care to keep the higher authorities on board. Social solidarity runs along hierarchic lines rather than in the typically layered group of equals. The poor seek protection from the well-placed, while the wealthy grow richer by investing in people rather than by amassing impersonal wealth. The entourage system thus appears as the cardinal principle for understanding social behavior.

Extent and medium : Typescript