Pacific and Pasifika Theses

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The theses listed in this collection were all completed at Massey University in a range of different departments and institutes. They have been included in this collection if the topic is strongly related to Pasifika/the Pacific.

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End date: 1999Has files: Yes

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    A study of non-commercial dairy farming systems in the Western Division of Fiji : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master in Agricultural Science in Farm Management at Massey University, New Zealand
    (Massey University, 1992) Richardson, Fiona J
    The purpose of this study was to describe the smallholder dairy system(s) in the Western Division of Viti Levu. the largest island of Fiji. The role and contribution of non-commercial dairy cows to the income, nutrition and cultural well-being of Indian families in these systems was assessed. In common with such dairy systems elsewhere in the developing world there is a dearth of available information on the non-commercial dairy sector of Fiji. A Farming Systems Research (FSR) approach provided the framework for the field survey which was carried out in the Western Division of Fiji over an eight week period from February to March 1991. Nineteen farmers selected at random were interviewed for this study. These farmers together owned a total of 36 non- commercial dairy cows. Information was obtained from these farmers on their farming resources and operations and in particular, on the roles, production and reproductive performance of their cows. Using data from these farms and other limited secondary data which was available, a whole farm budget for a typical farm in the survey area was prepared, identifying the revenue and costs of commercial and subsistence crop enterprises and the two-cow system. For the 'typical' farm, the total net revenue from the combined crop enterprises (commercial and subsistence) was F$5433/year. with sugar cane providing the main source of income from the farm. The imputed net value of production from the two-cow system was estimated to be about 38% of the net crop revenue. Per capita consumption for Indian farm families of fat and protein from liquid milk were estimated to be 11,6kg and 10.5kg per year, respectively. Survey results show that liquid milk is a significant source of protein to these families. Farmers reported that if a cow was not owned a reduction in the nutritional welfare, health and income of the family would most likely occur. Longitudinal field studies in these smallholder farming systems are recommended to allow the essential dynamics of the livestock enterprises and the relationships between these enterprises, the cropping systems and the farmers' families to be established.. It is concluded from the field studies that non-commercial dairy cows make a significant contribution to the nutrition and economic and cultural well being of the families which keep them. and that these cows are maintained and produce using resources of low opportunity cost to the farm family. Key words: smallholder dairy systems. Farming Systems Research. Fiji agriculture, tropical dairy production.
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    Selection for teaching in Tonga and Palmerston North, New Zealand : a paper presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Education at Massey University
    (Massey University, 1986) Tongatio, Lesieli Pelesikoti
    Teacher education in the Kingdom of Tonga has undergone many changes within the last two years. New directions in teacher development have included the introduction of a three-year diploma course for training primary and secondary teachers. This paper examines teacher selection processes used in Tonga in comparison with those used in Palmerston North. Section One introduces the paper by stating the concerns and the need for the study. A brief profile of Tonga Teachers' College and Palmerston North Teachers' College is presented. The research questions and the limitations of the study are stated. Section Two discusses the researcher's preparations for the research and describes her use of selected relevant literature on teacher selection and the techniques of questionnaire and interview. A brief note on the use of qualitative research methods is followed by a discussion of data gathering activities. In Section Three, the writer examines teacher selection processes used in Tonga by presenting responses to questionnaire and personal interviews as answers to the research questions. The same is done for Palmerston North Teachers' College in Section Four. Section Five presents the writer's discussion of each area investigated by means of the research questions. Following is a brief summary of the writer's conclusions to the study. The writer concluded that teacher selection processes in Tonga were not highly organised or structured, not extensive and not systematically conducted in comparison to selection processes used by Palmerston North Teachers' College. Tongan selection panelists were not well prepared and their functions not clearly identified or defined. Secondary students lacked adequate preparations before the selection interview and all sectors involved with teacher selection lacked co-ordination and clearly examined and stated criteria. Selection of teacher trainees in Tonga could benefit by co-operation between the various church education services and government to conduct a national selection programme whereby use of recruitment officers, vocational guidance counsellors and careers advisors would ensure that the best possible potential trainees are selected for teacher education; and, that this process should be highly organised, structured, extensive and systematically conducted. The section ends with a summary of the researcher's recommendations and final comments.
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    A study of a development scheme in a Polynesian community : the citrus replanting scheme on Atiu, Cook Islands : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in Geography at Massey University
    (Massey University, 1970) Menzies, Brian John
    Economic development is usually considered to be increasing levels of output per capita and in the past programmes aimed at improving economic conditions in undeveloped and underdeveloped nations have been formulated on this basic premise. However, recent experience has shown this to be a somewhat narrow definition, and economic development is increasingly being viewed as being but part of a broad process of social development involving basic changes in the underlying value systems of communities. Rising levels of output and income per capita show increases in productivity and wealth, but in many instances a prerequisite for attaining this or an outcome of it is change in social values. Therefore it is essential development be seen in its broadest context, as merely one element in the processes of social change and social evolution of man. Economic change cannot be divorced from other spheres of life as any alteration in this has ramifications elsewhere in the social system. Life in any culture is multidimensional in nature. The ability to perceive this is essential for development programmes in order that any social discordance and possible cultural lag associated with development be minimised. [From Preface]
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    New Zealand aid and the development of class in Tonga : an analysis of the banana rehabilitation scheme : a thesis submitted in partial fulfilment of the degree of Master of Arts, Department of Sociology, Massey University
    (Massey University, 1988) Needs, Andrew P
    This thesis examines the bilateral aid relationship between New Zealand and Tonga. Its central purpose is to examine the impact aid is having in transforming Tongan society. This involves a critique of both development theory and of New Zealand government aid principles. The understanding of development and the application of aid by the New Zealand Ministry of Foreign Affairs remains greatly influenced by the modernisation school of thought, which essentially blames certain supposed attributes of Third World peoples for their lack of development. Dependency theorists challenged this view, claiming that Third World poverty was a direct result of First World exploitation through the unequal exchange of commodities. This has had some influence on the use of aid as a developmental tool, but has failed to supercede modernisation theory as the dominant ideology. The theory of articulation of modes of production transcends the problems of both modernisation and dependency schools. Its main thrust is that the capitalist (First World) mode of production does not immediately dominate the non-capitalist (Third World) mode but rather interacts with it. Such a conception takes cognisance of the influence of indigenous modes in creating new social formations. This is demonstrated through an analysis of the New Zealand financed Banana Rehabilitation Scheme of Tonga. In order to understand the effect of New Zealand funded aid projects in Tonga, the Banana Rehabilitation Scheme, the largest project funded at present, was used as a case study. The research method demanded a fieldwork component which entailed three months in Tonga in order to collect both historical and archival data only available there. The main fieldwork component was a series of interviews with a cross section of scheme members and other significant actors related to the scheme. This study of the Banana Rehabilitation Scheme shows that the redistributive aims Of New Zealand aid have been undermined by a greater concern with productivity. Emphasis upon the latter has meant that the project has been reoriented in favour of giving greater assistance to those who can produce bananas most easily, those who already had access to land, capital and labour. This category of growers is as much a product of the indigenous social structure of Tonga as of forces impinging from outside. Although through the banana scheme large amounts of money are being pumped into the Tongan economy, its redistributive effects are minimal. The structure of the scheme is such that many of the major benefits accrue to the already advantaged.
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    From the outside looking in : identity in selected Fijian short stories written in English : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements of a Master of Arts at Massey University
    (Massey University, 1999) Tuvuki, Sandra Dawn
    Construction of colonial identities in Fiji were built upon the premise of British superiority and difference from others, as they were in other parts of the colonised world. Colonial discourse regularly employed stereotypes to reduce other communities into simple and therefore controllable concepts. Fiji's post-colonial voices have had to write their ways out of these reduced roles and clear a space for representations of life in Fiji that differ from earlier elucidations. The body of writing which began to emerge in the 1960s is represented here by a selection of short stories by a number of authors writing from and about Fiji. The main focus here is on the ways identities which emerge from these stories pull the texts together into a definable body of writing, despite the diversity of writing positions, and despite some gender-based distinctions highlighted by Arlene Griffen and Shiasta Shameem. It is concluded that identities are more difficult to negotiate when outside opinions or forces are powerful. This observation is discussed in relation to the movement of characters from innocence to experience, the affect of progress on communities and individuals, the representation of women in the texts, and the position of individuals who travel to or from Fiji or who are descendants of migrants.
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    The functions of public examinations in a multi-cultural society : a theoretical exploration with special reference to Fiji : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in Education at Massey University
    (Massey University, 1973) Singh, Gurmit
    Too often public examinations are left entirely in the hands of test constructors and statisticians. The wide ranging considerations related to examinations call for a change in this trend. Perhaps, those responsible for examining ought to regard themselves less as statisticians and test constructors and more as educationists. There is all the more reason for this in Fiji in light of the fact that it is a multi-cultural society. The thesis is essentially a theoretical exploration into the major functions of public examinations in Fiji. The whole exercise is based on the maxim that examinations form an integral part of the educative process and on the contention that the behaviour elicited before, during and after an examination from candidates is heavily influenced by their past experiences, nourished within the restraints and limits of their cultural milieu. By way of introduction, general problems in education in multi-cultural societies are traced and the language-problem dealt with in depth to highlight the complexities of such problems. After a brief look at the composition of the Fiji Society and its education system, the major public examinations are described. Then, the stated functions, purposes and effects of examinations are reviewed and some implications drawn. From the literature reviewed it is clear that examinations need to be validated against the declared and agreed upon educational aims. In the Fiji context, a search for some validating criteria is also discussed. In order to explore the interaction between the public examinations and aims of education attention is focussed upon the specific cultural values and educational aspirations of the three dominant cultural groups in Fiji, viz., Fijians, Indians and Europeans. Examination problems in Fiji, arising from an importation of foreign examinations and the multi-cultural set-up, become the theme for discussion in the final sections of the thesis. The relationship between the long-term effects of both, examinations and a number of socio-political ideologies – integration, assimilation, pluralism – is then outlined. Pluralism proves attractive as a base for decision-making regarding examinations in Fiji. It is likely that in order to solve tomorrow's problems here, allowances for existing differences in expressions and life-styles will help. It is suggested that examinations in Fiji can be assigned a re-vitalizing role in the educational system if they are, inter alia, multi-modal and accommodate 'originality' and diversity of values, expressions and the like. With almost a complete dearth of research information on various aspects of education in Fiji, this exploration ends with a note on the necessity for research in the area of examinations.
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    An econometric analysis of the determinants of growth in the Kingdom of Tonga, 1970-1998 : a research thesis submitted in partial requirement for the degree of Master of Applied and International Economics at Massey University
    (Massey University, 1999) Faletau, Siosaia Tupou
    The importance of determining the factors that contribute to economic growth is vital in the case of Tonga because of the benefits and advantages it provides for the people and their future development. The main objective of this study is to analyse and investigate empirically the macroeconomic factors that promote economic growth and development in Tonga. Economic theories and various studies have presented the variables that may affect growth. These include investment (domestic and foreign), labour force, exports and imports, fiscal policies, tourism receipts, private remittances, foreign aid and its various components. Foreign resources such as aid and private remittances play an important role in the development of small island economies and Tonga's heavy reliance on these factors may also explain their contribution to growth. The study uses a neoclassical production function to examine the relationships between economic growth in Tonga and the proposed determinants listed above. The cointegration method of Auto-Regressive Distributed Lag is utilised in the analysis. The empirical evidence indicates that factors making a positive contribution to economic growth in Tonga are the growth in exports, tourism receipts, openness to trade, government consumption expenditure, bilateral aid, grant aid and imports. The loan aid, multilateral aid, technical co-operation grants and private remittances, while significant in most cases, show a decline over time. Natural disasters and external market shocks have a strong adverse effect on Tonga's growth rate. The issue of macroeconomic management is stressed in this study as the key role to be played by the government in order for the available resources to be allocated to the productive sectors of the economy. This can be undertaken through setting stable macroeconomic environment, introducing and maintaining growth-oriented policies and structural reforms in some of the key sectors of the economy. Research should be concentrated on high value niche products and promoting technological development to support the diversification in the export and tourism sectors. Measures should also be adopted to monitor the effectiveness of utilising foreign aid projects, as current aid flows show a decline.
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    Biogeochemical studies on some nickel accumulating plants from New Zealand and New Caledonian serpentine areas : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science in Chemistry at Massey University
    (Massey University, 1974) Lee, Julian
    Serpentine areas in New Zealand and New Caledonia are described. A study was made of soil factors controlling the distribution of five species from a serpentine flora in the Dun Mountain area, South Island, New Zealand. Samples of soil were taken from sites of each of the species, and each sample was analysed for calcium, chromium, cobalt, copper, magnesium, manganese, nickel, potassium and zinc. On the basis of the species growing on them, the soil samples were divided into five groups: group 1, Pimelea suteri; group 2, Myosotis monroi; group 3, Lebe odora; group 4, Cassinia vauvilliersii; group 5, Leptospermum scoparium. Discriminant analysis was used to characterise each group of soils on the basis of chemical composition. The results showed that the two endemic plants (P. suteri and M. monroi) were much more commonly found in localities of highest magnesium concentration. These two species were strongly differentiated by the potassium and copper levels in their soils. No strong elemental discrimination was found among the non-endemic species. Correlation coefficients were calculated for the relationships between pairs of elements and highly-significant correlations (P 0.001) are reported. A nickel accumulating species from New Caledonia, Homalium kanaliense is compared with the New Zealand nickel accumulator, Pimelea suteri. The very high accumulation of nickel in the New Caledonian species, presents interesting questions in plant physiology. Purification of nickel complexes from an aqueous extract of B. kanaliense leaves was achieved and preliminary identification methods employed. None of the nickel was associated with amino acids and the present evidence suggested possible complexing of the nickel to simple carboxyllic sugars.
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    The ecology of the kākerōri (Rarotonga flycatcher) Pomarea dimidiata, with special reference to fledged young : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science in Ecology at Massey University
    (Massey University, 1993) Sanders, Kerry H.
    The Kakerori (Pomarea dimidiata) is a small flycatcher, endemic to Rarotonga in the Cook Islands. In August 1991 the total world population was estimated at 47 individuals, an increase of 14 birds from the previous year. Kakerori live in the forest canopy of small valleys in the steep, mountainous interior. This study concentrated on the ecology of young birds and factors affecting the breeding success (the number of fledged young produced) of pairs. Young birds remain in the parental territory for up to four months after fledging, where they are commonly found high in the leafy canopy (mean = 25.7m n=36). After parental care has ceased, young birds move to the high, exposed ridges up to 100m from their natal territories (mean = 87m n=14), and remain on average, 2.4m (n=14) from the ground. Successful Kakerori territories (those that have produced fledged young) have a relatively lowered canopy (10.3m) and few ferns (28.3%), with many juvenile trees (38.3%) and shrubs (33.4%) making up the shrub layer. These juvenile trees may ensure a continued closed canopy. Successful territories also have few, large trees (mean total basal area = 7.39m2) and a higher level of moss (16.5%) which may encourage larger populations of insects as well as providing possible nest sites for Kakerori. Unsuccessful territories (those that produced no fledged young) have many, immature trees (mean total basal area = 3.21 m2) and little moss (8.1%). In general, insect numbers varied little between successful and unsuccessful territories, however during February 1991 successful territories had a large percentage of flies (40.4% n=23) compared to unsuccessful (8.3% n=2). During February when adults are feeding newly fledged young, a greater availability of insects may positively affect breeding success. Poison baits for rats have been laid in the study area since 1988 and the number of fledged young found has increased from one in 1987/1988 to 14 in 1990/1991. The most effective method of conserving the Kakerori may be to continue indefinitely the rat-baiting campaign throughout the study area and neighbouring valleys. This would depend entirely on the availability of funds and committed personnel.
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    Ecological and phytochemical studies on nickel accumulating plants from the Pacific Basin region : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science in Chemistry at Massey University
    (Massey University, 1979) Kersten, William J
    The distribution of species and genera contained in the floras of the Pacific Basin region is discussed. The outstanding feature of these floras is the high degree of specific endemism. A survey of the 53 species of Flacourtiaceae known in New Caledonia was successful in identifying a tital of 19 nickel hyperaccumulating species. The seven previously recorded in the Homalium genus were re-identified using fresh material and a further ten were located in the Xylosma genus with one in each of Casearia and Lasiochlamys. A similar survey of the Phyllanthus revealed a further ten hyperaccululating species out of the 51 studied. It was also possible to characterise and identify a number of species from their nickel and/or cobalt contents. This was particularly true for the taxonomically-difficult section Heteroglochidion. It appears that many nickel accululating plants are exclusive to ultrabasic substrates and as well as being able to tolerate high concentrations of the non-essential heavy metals they are also able to withstand extremely low levels of the essential elements. Pot trials showed that a strong relationship existed between soil and leaf nickel concentrations in Psychotria douarrei. Elemental concentrations were determined in several specimens of Rinorea bengalensis growing over a wide variety of substrates throughout the Pacific Basin region. It appears that soil conditions determine the extent to which an element is accumulated. Statistical considerations suggested a dependency on the organic constituents in the plant for the translocation of nickel. The nature of nickel complexes in several hyperaccumulating plants was investigated using gel filtration, ion exchange chromatroraphy, high pressure liquid chromatography and gas-liquid chromatography - mass spectrometry. Aquo, citrate and malate complexes of nickel were identified. Gel-filtration, electrophoretic and spectrophotometric comparisons with synthetic compounds suggested a 1:1 nickel/organic acid ratio exists in vivo. All species studied contained aquo and citrate complexes, but Psychotria douarrei and Phyllanthus serpentinus also have a large portion of their nickel bound in a malate complex. Possible factors determining the formation of a particular nickel complex are considered as is a possible pathway for the translocation of such a complex within the plant.