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Mātauranga māori in mental health care : breaking down barriers for better outcomes : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in Psychology at Massey University, Albany, New Zealand
(Massey University, 2025) Wetere, Ariel
This thesis explores how mental health clinicians in Aotearoa New Zealand engage with Mātauranga Māori in their everyday practice, and what enables or constrains its meaningful integration within mainstream mental health services. Despite policy commitments to equity and cultural safety, Māori continue to face disproportionate rates of mental distress and limited access to culturally grounded care. While the importance of Mātauranga Māori is increasingly acknowledged, its application in clinical settings remains inconsistent and often marginalised. This research uses a qualitative, interpretive methodology to draw on in-depth interviews with eight Māori and non-Māori clinicians working across diverse roles and services. Thematic analysis, guided by Braun and Clarke (2022), identified key themes related to relational practice, systemic barriers, Māori leadership, clinical workarounds, and structural reform. Findings highlight the centrality of whakawhanaungatanga as an essential clinical practice, not an optional cultural addition. Participants described institutional constraints such as time pressures, under resourcing, and the dominance of Western clinical paradigms. Māori clinicians reported carrying the burden of cultural leadership without adequate recognition or support. Despite these challenges, practitioners demonstrated resilience and innovation, finding ways to uphold Mātauranga Māori in their work. This study contributes to the literature on Indigenous mental health and offers practical recommendations for embedding cultural values into service delivery, training, and system design. It calls for a shift beyond symbolic inclusion towards genuine power-sharing and accountability, in line with Te Tiriti o Waitangi. For mental health services to deliver equitable outcomes, Māori knowledge, leadership, and healing practices must be centred, not sidelined.
Unlocking science : morphology in the intermediate years : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Education in Teaching and Learning at Massey University, Aotearoa New Zealand
(Massey University, 2025) Harwood, Lisa Wendy
This study investigates how intermediate teachers in Aotearoa New Zealand currently teach scientific texts and their understanding of morphology as a strategy to support vocabulary acquisition. Morphological awareness, the ability to consciously analyse and use meaningful word parts, has been linked to vocabulary growth and comprehension. However, its role in science instruction remains underexplored. To gain an understanding of this problem, semi-structured interviews with four intermediate and science teachers were analysed using reflexive thematic analysis. The five themes that emerged include the following: 1. Gaps in discipline-specific vocabulary limit students’ ability to express scientific understanding 2. Science vocabulary instruction is informal, variable, and lacks system-wide consistency 3. Teachers show limited understanding of morphology and use it only incidentally 4. Teachers want practical, science-aligned morphology instruction with clear examples and support 5. Structural constraints and disciplinary perceptions limit literacy integration in science. Findings indicate that while participants value vocabulary instruction to support comprehension, they lack systematic strategies to embed morphology into their classroom instruction. Drawing on analysis of participant interviews and existing research, a framework is proposed that integrates student routines and teacher professional development to reduce cognitive barriers and promote equitable access to the language of science. This study demonstrates how morphology can be embedded to strengthen both literacy and science learning within Aotearoa New Zealand’s intermediate-level classrooms.
‘A bed should be a haven’ : using poetry workshops to understand sleep in later life : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Health Science (Psychology) in College of Health at Massey University, Auckland, New Zealand
(Massey University, 2025) Knowles, Georgia Jessie
Sleep quality reportedly declines with ageing and sleep disorders increasingly impact wellbeing. Discourses of health promotion, such as those disseminated in the media, play a role in shaping perceptions and practices of sleep across the lifespan. However, such messaging is often negative, contradictory, and sensationalised. This project examined older people’s experiences of sleep, understandings of sleep health messaging, and provided a platform for sharing sleep-related experiences through poetry. Three sessions were conducted with 41 older people across Wellington (75% female, mean age 81 years). The sessions included focus groups on sleep and media messaging, followed by poetry workshops. Participants were invited to explore sleep in older age by writing poetry on their ‘best sleep’ and what a bed ‘should be’. Transcripts and poems were analysed using thematic analysis in three sections considering the shared understandings generated in the group discussion, the participants’ interpretations and negotiations of contemporary media messaging about sleep, and the deeper experiential insights expressed through their poetry. Participants discussed their subjective experiences of sleep for physical, emotional, and mental restoration, amongst the many challenges of sleep-in later life. They spoke of their resistance to confronting, fearful, and condescending sleep-related media messages, and their hesitance to trust, accept, and engage with them. Poems produced an idealised version of sleep, with the place and security of sleep as key features, alongside their perceptions of sleep beyond its physiological functions. Together, themes provided an alternative representation of sleep-in later life as more positive and nuanced. Findings advance understandings of how older people consume, interpret, and respond to media messages on sleep. Using creative methods, this work provided opportunities for sharing experiences, beliefs, and practices in relation to sleep in later life. These iii findings highlight the need for future research that examines sleep in later life across more diverse cultural, socioeconomic, and health contexts, including older adults living with chronic illness or sleep disorders, in order to deepen understanding of how ageing, embodiment, and social environments shape sleep experiences.
Effect of rearing of calves (cow vs artificial) on the dam’s milk production : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science in Agricultural Science, Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand
(Massey University, 2025) Dhanushe, Himal
New Zealand has a unique dairy production system characterised by pasture-based feeding and highly seasonal calving, with most calves born in spring and artificially reared. However, rearing calves on cows is an alternative to improve the growth rate of calves. Little research has compared artificial and dam-suckling rearing, and its influence on milk yield and composition in lactating dairy cows remains unclear. Therefore, this study aimed to assess the effect of cow-rearing of calves on dams' milk production over an entire lactation period in a seasonal pasture-based, once-a-day milking herd in New Zealand. Thirty-nine cows (Jersey, Holstein-Friesian, and their crossbreeds) were assigned to either natural suckling (Cow, n = 20) or artificial rearing (Shed, n = 19) groups at calving. Cows in the Shed group had their calves removed within 36 hours of birth and had no contact with dams thereafter. Dams in the Cow group remained with their calves at all times except during milking, until weaning at a mean of 68 ± 15 days, reduced over three days. All cows were managed as a group on pasture and were milked once-a-day for their entire lactation. Daily meter milk data were collected until December, and monthly herd-test records were obtained throughout the season. During the pre-weaning phase, the Cow group recorded 489 kg lower milk yield, 33 kg less fat, 23 kg less protein, and 56 kg less milk solids than the Shed group (p < 0.0001). These differences correspond to the expected milk intake of calves (6–8 litres/day) directly from their dams under unrestricted suckling. Milk fat concentration differed between pre- and post weaning phases, and a significant Treatment x Phase interaction indicated a greater increase in fat concentration following weaning in cows rearing calves, while no within-phase treatment differences were observed. Cumulative milk yield, component yields, and concentrations were not significantly different between treatments post-weaning. Total lactation yields of milk, fat, protein, and milk solids were also not statistically different between groups. The Cow group exhibited a slightly later peak and greater lactation-curve persistency, although this did not translate into differences in overall season production. Extended cow–calf contact reduced saleable milk yield only during the pre-weaning period, reflecting milk diverted to calf growth rather than an actual drop in production and did not compromise overall lactation performance in this OAD, pasture-based system. Further research should quantify the actual milk suckled by calves, the long-term effects on udder health, reproductive performance, and whole-season milk solids output across successive lactations and assess calf growth and other on-farm implications to evaluate the potential benefits and trade-offs of rearing strategies within commercial pasture-based dairy systems.
Emerging Pacific drug economies : perspectives from community voices : a thesis submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Masters of Public Health, Massey University
(Massey University, 2025) Meni, Taumaoe Andrea
This thesis explores the intersection between Pacific communities and emerging illicit drug economies in Aotearoa, New Zealand. Illicit drug economies around the world often share similar structural features, most notably their reliance on the engagement of marginalised and socio-economically disadvantaged communities. While there is limited published research on the specific nature of the illicit drug economy in Aotearoa, New Zealand, emerging evidence suggests that Pacific communities possess both historical and contemporary characteristics common to those involved in drug economies elsewhere. The aim of this project is therefore to explore how illicit drug economies are perceived, navigated, and experienced within Pacific communities in Aotearoa. Grounded in Pacific research methodologies – Talanoa and Fonua – and informed by a thematic analysis, this project drew on interviews with six community members identifying either as elders or young adults of Samoan and Tongan descent. The interviews were structured to investigate three core areas central to answering the project aims: community awareness and knowledge of drug economies; the contextual drivers that sustain illicit activities; and the socio economic and cultural ramifications of engagement. Findings showed that participants held a pragmatic awareness of emerging drug ecosystems, rooted in Pacific community identity and collective values that foster high-trust environments. Historical economic marginalisation, limited employment and social opportunities, and urgent survival needs were identified as key drivers’ motivating Pacific community engagement in these drug economies. Participants described the complex balance between the perceived benefits of engagement – such as access to resources – and the significant legal risks and social costs involved. The research illustrates that Pacific communities fill a role in the existing national drug economy of Aotearoa that is filled by communities in other countries with similar histories of structural and social exclusion and with local social networks. The combination of these two factors extends existing literature on illicit markets by applying models such as the “Hubs and Haven” model to Pacific contexts. While the study provides culturally grounded insights, limitations include a small and geographically specific sample and the ethical and practical constraints of accessing individuals directly involved in illicit activities. Future research should examine long term impacts, assess community interventions, and explore the structural inequalities across Pacific diaspora contexts. These findings have implications for both policy and practice, advocating for interventions that are culturally responsive, community-led, and should address the root socio-economic conditions that sustain illicit economies.