This study investigated the application of power and dependency theories to situations in a developing country. Group power theories were incorporated into the conventional dyadic power of the marketing channel. The Sino-Thai rice export community in Thailand was selected as the study unit and the study was divided into three parts. The first part was a descriptive study of procurement managers' and rice brokers' uses of power to control default of verbal agreements and to resolve disputes over the loose grain grading method employed in the Thai rice market. The Sino-Thai group established the norms of responsibility and willingness to compromise needed for the transactions among its members. The group also withholds trade services from those who refuse to follow the norms. The group, however, had limited ability to detect the behavior of all its members. High-status and alliance members had better opportunities to gain the group's attention and use it as their power source to control others' default intention. In addition to the group's power sources, an individual's power sources were also employed. When an irresolvable default occurred, an individual would initially sanction his counterpart with his own power bases; and then, through appeal, the group's power sources.