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Item “If I don’t do it, who will?” : a qualitative exploration of women’s everyday experiences of rest : a thesis presented in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in Psychology at Massey University, Manawatū, New Zealand(Massey University, 2025) Hanna, AmandaRest is fundamental to health, overall wellbeing, and longevity. Yet in contemporary western society, moments of replenishing rest are increasingly rare. For women – whose lives are shaped by colonized, gendered power relations within late-capitalist, patriarchal systems and accelerating social worlds – rest is especially constrained. Despite its importance for our health and wellbeing, apart from ‘burnout’ research, there is very little published literature on how these dynamic social systems impact women’s everyday experiences of rest and the availability of time. Through feminist standpoint theory, relational-process ontology and critical narrative analysis, this project aims to explore the systemic oppression that continues to shape women’s lives, and how it impacts our ability to experience feeling rested. This foundation encouraged emergent sense-making and co-theorizing of what rest means for women today. Using snowball sampling through trusted intermediaries, I spoke with six self-identifying women over the age of 30 living in Te Matau-a-Māui, Aotearoa. Through open, organically unfolding conversations, we explored what rest means to them today, the barriers to meaningful rest, and what becoming rested could mean in today’s world. The findings suggest that deeply embedded societal demands, expectations, and gendered norms and power dynamics continue to replicate and reinforce a dominant narrative that positions women as limitless caregivers – responsible for holding everything together while also being crucial contributors to the household through paid employment. Throughout our conversations, the women shared stories of their exhaustion and (un)rest, suggesting that the impacts of a late-capitalist society and systemically embedded gender norms are increasingly putting pressure on and exhausting women, greatly impacting our ability to have time for ourselves and experience feeling rested. Understanding dominant narratives of women’s rest enables us to generate narratives of resistance and reimagine rest as an embodied experience that is vital for us all to live well.Item Rethinking female representation in superhero(ine) media through audiences’ digital engagement : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Media Studies at Massey University, Manawatū, New Zealand(Massey University, 2024-09) de Meneses, Bruna MariaIn recent years, debates about gender and feminism have become more easily accessible due to digital platforms such as social media. These debates often intertwine with films and television series that attempt to present characters and stories in consonance with claims for better representation. Superhero(ine) live action films and television are one example of this, with the representation of gender in this media becoming a topic of online discussion. But how are audiences engaging with these representations and this online discussion? In this study I undertook qualitative research with two groups of fans of the superhero genre from Brazil and New Zealand, using a combination of methods: digital diaries, interviews, and focus groups. Through this research, I sought to understand more about their experiences with such texts, and how they interpret them. I argue that the participants’ engagement with superhero(ine) media and related online discussion leads to questioning, critiquing, and learning about gender representation and feminism. This starts with superhero(ine) media, but exceeds it, reaching participants’ own life experiences. In this sense, the online culture surrounding superhero(ine) media acts as a form of digital feminism, providing a platform for consciousness-raising. This digital feminism has a transnational dimension, whilst also being inflected slightly differently by the national contexts in which the participants are situated, including their experiences of the COVID-19 pandemic. Simultaneously, any consciousness-raising comes with the caveat that the participants cannot completely escape the neoliberal logics and postfeminist sensibility underpinning the production and promotion of superhero(ine) media.Item On the battlefield : exploring gendered experiences of being Infantry in the New Zealand Army : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirement for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Defence and Security Studies at Massey University, Manawatu, New Zealand(Massey University, 2024-09-25) Brosnan, AmyPrompted by the question ‘why aren’t there more women in combat trades?’, this research reaches beyond this to ask about the broader gendered context of the Infantry. Bringing in the experiences of both men and women, this thesis contributes a more nuanced understanding of the gendered issues at play by identifying what factors enable or inhibit success. As such, this thesis seeks to address a gap in knowledge that currently exists with respect to the experiences of men and women working together within a hypermasculine gender integrated combat-focused unit. It does so through the conduct of a qualitative study of soldiers enlisted in the Royal New Zealand Infantry Regiment (RNZIR) of the New Zealand Army (NZ Army). As this thesis will reveal, the production of ‘war-fighters’ is not an accidental or inevitable process. Infantry soldiers are socialised into certain ways of thinking and doing, and it is the performance of institutionalised habits, traditions and behaviours that makes an individual Infantry. The production of a war fighter is, therefore, a purposeful process of creating a particular type of Infantry soldier that is deemed to be most effective on the battlefield. What also becomes apparent in the course of this research, however, is that ‘success’ within Infantry is a complex concept; one which is underpinned by a specific gender performance, and which requires negotiation of a number of factors that extend beyond the professional realms of the ‘actual job’. Notwithstanding the need to produce ‘war-fighters’ this thesis argues that the way in which Infantry soldiers are produced within the NZ Army perpetuates a very specific masculine gendered ideology within the RNZIR. This ideology is based on both assumptions and understandings (and also misunderstandings) of gender, coupled with a battlefield narrative that inhibits the possibility of contesting the ‘status quo’. This thesis will illustrate that while some of the participants thrive within this context, others do not. Indeed, the gendered ideology which supports ‘the way things are done around here’ inhibits the participation (and retention) of many men and women, including men and women who exhibit the same qualities and attributes that are claimed to be necessary for Infantry success on the modern, or future, battlefield.Item (Re)mapping women’s cosmology : transformative potentia of women’s stories : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Clinical Psychology at Massey University, Whanganui-a-tara/Wellington, Aotearoa/New Zealand(Massey University, 2023-06-30) Wass, TheaBinary difference is deeply rooted within the heart of European philosophy and underpins contemporary understandings of sexual difference. Forces of power relations circulate to uphold binary categories of gender that conflates man with the universal, upholding a single model of male subjectivity and inscribing meaning onto the bodies of women. In this research, I have engaged with a narrative approach to map a cosmology of ten women’s stories, connecting women’s bodies and experiences to the flow of forces that shape their lives through a complex assemblage of cultural practices. Thinking with Rosie Braidotti I have endeavoured to sketch a cartography of the multiple embedded, embodied and affective social positions constituted by forces operational in, and immanent to the production and circulation of knowledge about sexual difference. Relational ethics in feminist standpoint inquiry enabled me to attend to relational processes which contributed to the co-articulation of these stories, and to open out towards the multiple possibilities available outside established hierarchical categories of gendered subjectivities. Through this process, light is cast on the material conditions in which forces come to inscribe and inhabit women’s bodies as flows of power capable of both “entrapment (potestas) and as empowerment (potentia)” (Braidotti, 2019). This research resists phallogocentric notions of the universal by re-orienting towards the affirmative potential of women’s bodies made available through interconnectedness and ethical transformation in processes of becoming. By paying attention to the situated and affirmatively encompassing differences within and between women, bodies can be understood as a site of resistance and transformation.Item Kia rauka I te tūranga memeitaki no te iti tangata ānuanua o te Kuki Airani = Towards attaining holistic wellbeing for the Rainbow community of the Cook Islands : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master in International Development, Massey University, New Zealand(Massey University, 2024) Wichman, Valentino (Valery) Tefa'atauKia Orana and welcome to this scholarly exploration of Tūranga Memeitaki, or Wellbeing, within the Ānuanua, or Rainbow, Community of the Cook Islands, guided by the principles of Akapapa’anga (genealogies) and Kai Vānanga (elevated conversations). This thesis is a deliberate endeavor to shed light on the experiences of a unique and often marginalized community. It aims to address the question of what is Tūranga Memeitaki for the Ānuanua community? Grounded in the Akapapa'anga methodology, which delves into the intricate web of relationships and connections among individuals and groups, this research employs Māori genealogical analysis to unearth the nuanced dimensions of Tūranga Memeitaki within the Ānuanua community. By drawing upon family trees, oral traditions, historical records, and diverse information sources, this approach offers a comprehensive understanding of the community's wellbeing dynamics. To navigate the sensitive nature of discussions and the subject matter concerning the Ānuanua community, a novel method known as Kai Vānanga Vatavata has been developed. Inspired by other Pacific approaches, this method has been customized to accommodate the specific needs and concerns of marginalized communities, ensuring respectful and culturally appropriate data collection and interpretation. Throughout the enquiry, the Kai Vānanga Vatavata method has undergone continuous refinement to optimize its efficacy in capturing the diverse perspectives and experiences within the Ānuanua community. Given the distinct challenges faced by LGBTQ+ communities worldwide, a nuanced understanding of Tūranga Memeitaki for the Ānuanua community holds significant implications for addressing these challenges effectively. The research methodology incorporated interviews, focus groups, and literature analysis to explore the multifaceted dimensions of wellbeing and its impact on holistic human experience. By engaging directly with members of the Ānuanua community, this study aims to amplify their voices, illuminate their narratives, and contribute to the development of tailored policy solutions and research recommendations aimed at enhancing their overall wellbeing. The principal outcomes derived from the Kai Vānanga Vatavata highlight the imperative of conducting research that is culturally relevant and led by Ānuanua for Ānuanua. It underscores the urgency of ceasing the compartmentalization or 'othering' of the Ānuanua community, recognizing resilience and beyond both within this community and more broadly, and transitioning from a focus on wellbeing to an emphasis on wholebeing.Item Cock rings, masturbation sleeves, and pulsating vibrators : contesting and reproducing heteronormativity via sex toy parties in Aotearoa New Zealand : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in Sociology at Massey University, Manawatū, New Zealand(Massey University, 2024) Smith, JanellePure Romance is a US-based sex product retailer that operates commercial sex toy parties in four countries, including my hometown and research site, Palmerston North, Aotearoa New Zealand. This thesis critically examines and analyses Pure Romance’s female-only parties, product catalogue and website-based promotions, and female party attendees’ narrative responses to these. This was done to address the question of whether female-only sex toy parties reproduce or contest heteronormative and androcentric sexual scripts and discourses. My thesis analyses the company's promotion of lotions, potions, and sex toys using a theoretical framework comprising critical discourse analysis, sexual script theory, and vital materialism. Based on the promotional framing and agentic capacities of these products, a spectrum of conflicting and sometimes complementary sexual scripts and discourses is discovered. These overtly, and most prominently, reproduce the hegemony of heteronormative and androcentric sexual discourses through the equally conservative sexual scripts of the company promotions, facilitator narratives, and the narrative responses of party participants. However, this conservative reproduction was also significantly ameliorated by other, albeit less prominent, sexual scripts, which overtly promoted female masturbatory self-pleasure. Indeed, some female-centric scripts directly contested the phallocentric and/or penetrative ideals of heteronormative and androcentric sex by promoting clitoral-focused sexual activities. Furthermore, other scripts latently promoted homosexuality, both female and male, through the omission of any articulated rejection or contestation of such sexual practices. Overt contestation of hetero-and androcentric discursive values would involve the promotion of female solo masturbation/same-sex relationships as the preferred or idealised alternative, or indeed the primary and most celebrated goal of heterosexual encounters. However, evidence of this was lacking.Item No laughing matter : what the experiences of women working in the Aotearoa-New Zealand comedy industry can tell us about male-dominated, unregulated workplaces : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Clinical Psychology at Massey University, Albany, New Zealand(Massey University, 2023) Davies, BridgetWith the international development of the #MeToo movement, a similar moment occurred in the Aotearoa-New Zealand (A-NZ) comedy industry. Women shared their experiences of harassment in the industry, and a Working Group emerged with the aim of making the A-NZ comedy industry safer and more inclusive. Drawing upon the existing literature about #MeToo and the challenges women face in male-dominated and unregulated industries, this study aimed to understand women’s experiences in an industry where these factors intersect. The study was based on interviews with 15 women working in the A-NZ comedy industry. A feminist phenomenological thematic analysis of these interviews provided insight into these women's experiences and meaning-making. Three superordinate themes were produced from this analysis. The first, ‘comedy requires negotiating a male-as-norm world’, discussed women's challenges in this male-dominated industry. These included being made to feel that women do not belong in the industry, being judged as a woman rather than on merit, and often feeling isolated as a woman. The second theme, ‘feeling unsafe in an unregulated space,’ discussed how the informal nature of the comedy industry creates additional challenges when combined with comedy being male-dominated. These challenges included women reporting feeling unsafe and unable to speak up. Finally, in the theme, ‘experiencing Aotearoa-New Zealand comedy’s #MeToo moment’, participants reflected on the positive changes they have observed since the initial #MeToo discussions and the challenges of implementing formal solutions in an informal space. These findings align with existing research and demonstrate the importance of the #MeToo moment for women working in the comedy industry and the factors reducing its chance of leading to significant change. Supporting this conclusion, the thesis finishes with a reflection on the specific context in which the study was undertaken, including the implications of a recent decision for the Working Group to stop accepting complaints and what this means for women comedians currently working in Aotearoa-New Zealand.Item A study of the socio-political, caste and class factors in waste picking in Bangladesh : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Social Work at Massey University, Albany, Auckland, New Zealand(Massey University, 2023-12-01) Khan, Sajedul IslamThis project investigates the lived experiences of women tokai (waste pickers) of Dhaka City, Bangladesh. In particular this project seeks to understand their experiences of the South Asian Muslim caste system, cultural stigma, the male-dominated waste labour market, the division of labour, power relationships and gender influences of contemporary waste management. The aim of this project is to investigate the ways that power and waste picking rights unevenly display in urban settings by exploring the lived experiences of tokai communities. It explores the continuing influence of the male marriage privilege system (the rights of males to enter into multiple marriages) that maintains oppression and social uncertainties among tokai. This project also considers how both occupational health risks and tokai resilience contribute to advocacy, and to the way they organize their work. It also proposes a sustainable social policy at this critical moment of change in Bangladeshi urban waste governance. Finally, the project explores social and policy constraints on the self-efficacy of the tokai, and government strategies to address their structurally disadvantaged position within the society. To explore these issues, the thesis takes the position that informal waste picking is regarded as either a garbage citizenship right (from social justice point of view), or a way structural inequality is imposed on marginalised communities. This project uses an Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA) with a social constructionist theory drawing on online semi-structured interviews (n=21) with tokai, and with key informants’ interviews(n=4) in Dhaka City between 2020-2021. Online interviews were conducted due to Covid-19 pandemic and travel restriction, and with help from local NGO workers and a team of volunteers who recruited participants, provided the information sheets to them and obtained voluntary consent from each participant. Prior to recruiting, this project obtained full ethics approval from Massey University, New Zealand. This project argues that current local city government and their waste management rules and regulations continually perpetuate discrimination, oppression, and inequalities among tokai. Key findings of the project highlight the dynamics of power, garbage citizenship rights, violence by intimate partners, job insecurity and discrimination in key services such as education, housing, and access to health care services which are hidden and under-researched, and in marginalized tokai who are supposed to be invisible in the waste management system. Yet the system could not function without them. This project makes an important contribution toward theorising marginalised informal waste picking work by highlighting tokai intersectional insights, perceptions on the benefits and challenges of informal work in a moment of change in the urban space. It creates a framework to enhance decision making and to support radical measures and strategies to create social justice. The thesis develops a framework that aids the understanding of structural inequalities with a view to guiding the development of governmental and public policies related to waste management, and occupational health safety. This project proposes developing appropriate interventions and social benefits (tokai projects-scholarship) to support these communities in urban space and contemporary waste governance. One of the important contributions of this project is identifying the invisible Muslim caste and class hierarchy and male dominated labour force in Bangladesh which have existed since the era of British colonization. Methodologically, it demonstrates how to conduct qualitative research in socio-political, institutional influences and religious conservative society, even in a pandemic environment. Based on the findings of this project, it is clear that Bangladesh need a system that creates better networks and connections between local government and tokai communities in order to recognise the importance of informal waste picking. Theoretically the project makes meaning of the life stories of tokai which provide the foundation for garbage citizenship. It proposes that local government must evolve its behaviours, attitudes, rules, and regulations in order to initiate a suitable social waste policy that provides equal rights, equal protections, and urban services for everyone.Item Gender, assemble : the social construction of gender, audience perception, and the Marvel Cinematic Universe : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in Sociology at Massey University, Albany, New Zealand(Massey University, 2022) Walker, PeterFilm and media have long been a domain in which patriarchal systems of power and control have flourished. This is particularly true in the superhero genre, where exaggerated bodies and fantastical abilities have long enabled men to take charge and save the world, while women have been relegated to being the over-sexualised damsels in distress. In the digital age, mediatisation has introduced a changing landscape to the social construction of gender with more convenient audience access to film and media converging with the rise of the serialised transmedia entity, of which the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) is the largest and most successful. While considerable analysis of MCU content has occurred there has yet to be substantive work examining the audience’s views of gender represented in this world, which is surprising given the long and dedicated relationship they develop with it. This research examines audience perception of gender through its representation in the MCU and how this influences individual gender understandings and constructions. I used a novel, multi-method, weekend long 'MCU camp' research design to best reflect the issues and values embedded in social constructionism. Group discussions, video diaries, poster analysis, along with other creative and social activities were used to explore how committed fans make sense of gender representation in this superhero world and how this impacted their own gender constructions. The research reveals that avid MCU fans grapple with a fictional world dominated by male superheroes monopolising the spotlight, while consigning women to supporting roles, and ultimately reinforcing patriarchal power and control. Sustained and committed parasocial relationships are simultaneously at the core of the audience’s passion for this universe and a source of tension regarding the way gender is represented. While there is some evidence that the portrayal of gender in the MCU is changing there are opportunities for Marvel to lean into its more progressive existing source material, and further investigation into the influence and role of parasocial relationships is recommended.Item Precarious entanglements : exploring the everyday lives of women working as street vendors in Bengaluru marketplaces : a thesis completed in partial fulfilment of a Master of Arts in Social Anthropology, Massey University(Massey University, 2021) Chan, RebeccaThis research explores the precarious everyday lives of women working as street vendors in Bengaluru marketplaces. In August 2015, I travelled to Bengaluru, India where I spent time hanging out in marketplaces around the city and had informal conversations with approximately fifty women working as vendors. I initially went to Bengaluru to ask them about the provision of toilets and sanitation in their workspaces, however, while they faced a number of issues with provision, the women were deeply embedded in a struggle over public spaces for vending and were experiencing constant evictions. This was a more immediate and serious issue, as it directly jeopardised their ability to vend, and earn a livelihood to support themselves and their families. In response to what was revealed in the fieldwork, this research broadened to look at the provision of public space for vending and the impact a lack of safe and secure spaces has on the daily life of women vendors working in a rapidly urbanising environment. Importantly, the conversations showed that the women in my study did not have the option of challenging the evictions or access to support that would enable them to advocate for more secure spaces. Consequently, the women made several compromises including working long hours, taking on large amounts of debt and vending in spaces that impacted their health and wellbeing, while maintaining daily routines and caring for multiple family members. To understand the experiences of the women, I have positioned this work within contemporary anthropology on precarity and everyday life, specifically the work of Veena Das (2006), Clara Han (2012), Bhrigupati Singh (2014) and Kathleen Millar (2018). Their ideas created a framework which enabled me to understand and comment on precarity in relation to how it is experienced by the women in my study, focusing on how they live through a varying forms and fluctuations of precarity in daily life. This places the women at the center of thought but also highlights how the economic, political and social systems they are embedded within impacts their capacity to endure. Sharing the conversations with the women, alongside my observations of their context, draws attention to the small realities of everyday life as a woman working as a vendor. While these are often stories of hardship and adversity, they are also accounts of everyday life, and show how the women work to keep life functioning and continue working, even when faced with immensely difficult challenges, revealing precarity in its rawest form – embedded within the small actions and compromises in everyday life.