Paper Title
Factors Influencing the Gratitude Value of International Return Migrants

Abstract
This article investigates the factors that influence the gratitude value of international return migrants. The quantitative methodology was used and was based on a cross-sectional design, with the analytical unit at the individual level. The sample included 500 international return migrants in the Northeast of Thailand, for those who had worked abroad for more than 6 months and, at the time of the study, had returned to stay at the place of origin for over 6 months but not over 7 years. Data were collected in Chaiyaphum province using the interview schedule validated by experts with a reliability of 0.913. Descriptive statistics and multiple regression analyses were conducted. The results showed that most of the international return migrants were male (60.4%) and had migrated to work abroad more than once. The last migration abroad of the majority was for a period of 4-6 years. Roughly two-thirds worked abroad in the industrial sector. Most migrated legally. More than 70.0% of return migrants adhere to high levels of gratitude values, particularly respect for elders and gratitude to household elders. The factors influencing the gratitude value of return migrants from international migration were: male migrants, age, number of years of education, legal migration, amount of the remittance, self-esteem, and household support. All of the independent variables could explain the variation of the gratitude value at 50.5% (R2=0.505). Keywords - Human Capital Accumulation, Self-esteem, Return Migration, Working Abroad