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    The role of interpersonal relationships in supply chain integration : a thesis by publications presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Logistics and Supply Chain Management at Massey University, Albany, New Zealand
    (Massey University, 2018) Wang, Bill
    Purpose –This research aims to explore the role of inter-personal relationships within a supply chain integration context. Firstly, it proposes a conceptual model addressing the interrelationships between interpersonal relationships, inter-organizational relationships, and supply chain integration. Secondly, it investigates the influence of interpersonal relationships on supply chain integration. Lastly, it examines how interpersonal relationships influence interorganizational relationships to enable supply chain integration. Methodology/approach – Based on a comprehensive literature review, the study first proposes a series of propositions and establishes a conceptual framework to illustrate the relationship between interpersonal relationships, inter-organizational relationships, and supply chain integration. Then, the study applies an exploratory/investigational approach of multiple case studies and empirically examines how interpersonal relationships affect inter-organizational relationships and supply chain integration. Findings – The study proposes that interpersonal relationships can indirectly and positively influence supply chain integration, mediated by inter-organizational relationships. Personal affection acts as a relationship initiator, and personal credibility serves as a gatekeeper while personal communication works as a facilitator and plays more important roles than personal affection and credibility. Also, interpersonal relationships can initiate and enhance interorganizational relationships to enable supply chain integration. In the formative stage of supply chain integration, personal affection and credibility play key roles, whereas personal communication becomes more significant during the operational stage. Originality/value – The study advances supply chain integration literature by extending the focus from that of firm level to the level of individuals, and introduces interpersonal relationship dimensions to explore inner mechanisms of supply chain integration. It demonstrates that interpersonal relationships are able to initiate and motivate firm level integration, which modifies the presumption that firm level relationships are predominantly established first in Western cultural contexts. It also sheds light on applying theoretical lenses in supply chain integration. It extends social exchange theory from relationships between parties that are on the same level to different levels of interpersonal and inter-organizational relationships. Meanwhile, it applies resource dependency theory by addressing how interpersonal relationships influence dependence levels on supply chain partners to form firm level relationships. Furthermore, it extends resource orchestration theory by suggesting that inter-organizational relationships and interpersonal relationships can be orchestrated to achieve supply chain integration capabilities. Implications –The study provides insights for practitioners who have limited "hard” firm level resources. Managers should be aware of the significance and characteristics of interpersonal relationships, and decide when and how to deploy both interpersonal and interorganizational relationships as resources during the integration process. In the formative stage, managers should utilise boundary spanners with good personal credibility. More physical contact with counter-partners should be encouraged to foster personal affection, thus initiating the formation of inter-organizational relationships. In the operational stage, personal communication should be strengthened to facilitate the supply chain integration process. On the other hand, managers should mitigate the conflict between primary business interests and subordinate interpersonal friendships.
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    S.A.C.R.E.D : is there a mystery in learning? : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Education (Adult Education), Massey University
    (Massey University, 2006) Wood, Margaret
    Relationships are at the core of life for all human beings. Learning is also core to our development as people. So is there a connection between relationships and learning that needs to be acknowledged and understood in the learning experience for adult educators? This study combined the use of Grounded Theory with Photo Elicitation Interviewing, and Interactive Drawing. The power of placing the camera in the hands of the participants allowed the subsequent interviews using grounded theory methodology to be driven by interviewees. The use of grounded theory allowed the emergence of potential connection between relationships and learning. The use of interactive drawing fostered the encouragement of spontaneous creative expression and self-motivated learning for the third interview which confirmed the emerging theory. Angela, Justine, Coral, Gina and I. Participants gave permission for first name to be used in this thesis, except Angela which is a pseudonym. were the five participants of the study who came from diverse backgrounds of formal and informal learning. They participated in the process through telling their stories using photo elicitation and subsequent interviews where they made discoveries about the connection between relationships and learning. Six theoretical categories emerged from the coding data. These were synergy, authenticity, connectedness, reflection, empowerment and discovery. These were grouped together under the acronym of S.A.C.R.E.D. Each letter indicates a group that emerged in the coding process which had properties that were innate in the learning process. From this study there emerged a theory that there is a connection between relationship and learning. The depth of this relationship was mystical; it spoke of a communion that was S.A.C.R.E.D. in the adult learning process.
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    (Mis)communication in couples : positioning as a site of conflict : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science in Psychology at Massey University
    (Massey University, 2005) Davis, Julia
    Mis)communication between people in couple relationships often results in arguments. Psychological research on this phenomenon has often relied on essentialist accounts of gender, offering little room for social or personal change. This study has used feminist poststructuralist theory to investigate the discourses that constitute couple relationships and enable (mis)communications in the form of arguments. From my reading of this theory and my experience of couple relationships I formulated three research questions: What discourses may be identified in young adults' talk about their couple relationships? How do these discourses specify the various obligations and entitlements of Boyfriends and Girlfriends? How are young adults' positions within these discourses implicated in their accounts of arguments? The transcripts of semi-structured interviews with young adults talking about their couple relationships provided the texts for analysis. I conducted interviews with six men and six women aged between 22 and 30. Four themes emerged from participants' talk: division of labour, relationship work, spending time, and arguments. I used analytic resources from Parker's (1992) and Baxter's (2003) interpretations of poststructuralist discourse analysis to identify five discourses that constitute these thematics. I have named these discourses egalitarian, traditional, togetherness, reciprocity, and men-need-space. Analyses address the ways in which these discourses position boyfriends and girlfriends. The implications of contradictory positioning for enabling arguments are discussed.
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    Friendship patterns, desire for change and satisfaction : thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science at Massey University
    (Massey University, 1994) Guy, Alan
    The aim of the present study was to investigate friendship patterns and change within these over the past twelve years. A replication of an earlier friendship study conducted using a New Zealand sample was undertaken. Additional information was gathered relating to satisfaction with elements of friendship and desire for change in friendships. Few changes in variables relating to friendship patterns were expected. Being in a relationship was expected to reduce the numbers of friends possessed especially in cross-sex friendships. Both men and women were expected to value women more in areas of emotional support, discussing personal problems and therapeutic value in friendship. Men and women were expected to rate greater satisfaction with women in areas of assistance and emotional support. Men were expected to desire greater increases in friendship numbers and conversation intimacy than women. A sample of 64 male and 78 female Massey University Psychology students volunteered as participants. Comparisons were made between the present study's findings and those of earlier work, noting changes in males friendships. Most friendship patterns were found to be largely unchanged. predictions about valuing friendship were supported. Satisfaction data indicated that women rate themselves more satisfied in same-sex friendships than men. Men rated themselves as more satisfied in opposite-sex friendships than women. No significant sex-differences were noted for desire for change in friendship. However both sexes would like more friends of each type, and greater personal conversation in friendship. Results are discussed with reference to change in friendship patterns and traditional male sex-roles.
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    Discovery, a case study on the New Zealand lifeskills and study skills programme for adolescents, and its contribution to adolescent development : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Education at Massey University
    (Massey University, 2000) McGachie, Catherine Ellen
    This case study examined Discovery, a lifeskills and study skills programme for adolescents, and it's contribution to adolescent development. The Discovery programme was introduced in New Zealand in 1991 through the Global Youth Foundation. Developmental perspectives in adolescence suggest certain tasks and skills need to be achieved in order to reach adulthood. These skills are developed from the maturational demands, and the psychological and social adjustments the teenager needs to make in order to resolve their identity crisis (Erikson, 1968) and achieve their own identity. A review of international educational programmes suggested some of these needs were addressed. A case study on the Discovery programme probed into the programme's development, content and structure. Responses to Discovery from previous participants were also investigated. This study then focused on the 22nd Discovery programme in New Zealand and its contribution to teenage development. This involved an exploration into Discovery's contribution to lifeskills, study skills, coping with challenges and limiting or preventing depression in the adolescent years. The Lifeskills and Study Skills questionnaire (LASS) was developed to examine these aspects. Parent-Adolescent communication was also measured to understand what changes may have taken place between two weeks prior to Discovery and two months after the last day of the programme. The Parent-Adolescent Communication Scale by Barnes and Olson (1982) was used to determine this. The resulting trends in this research showed Discovery positively influenced the participants' development by providing a number of skills which were consistent with developmental perspectives of adolescence. Sections of Discovery were highlighted as important for an adolescent's growth and development and participant changes were since attributed to Discovery. This study showed that Parent-Adolescent communication improved for both the majority of teenagers and their parents. Intrafamily communication also enhanced for more than half the families. Sections of Discovery could also be highlighted as beneficial for coping with challenges and the prevention or limitation of depression in the adolescent years. Overall, Discovery provided the skills and knowledge appropriate for the development of an adolescent. The seven day programme provided the forum for an initiation into adulthood similar to many "rites of passage" formalities. This study highlighted the skills required for adolescents in the New Zealand context and the confirmation of the developmental tasks outlined in Newman and Newman's (1995) "early adolescence". Recommendations from this research strongly supports the need for further research into educational programmes for teenagers. It is also recommended that the Discovery programme continues to be made available to New Zealand teenagers.
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    Moving beyond nutrients : nurturing young people's social health and school connectedness through food : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Health Promotion at Massey University, Wellington, New Zealand
    (Massey University, 2015) Neely, Eva Maree
    Social health is emerging as an important component of health in the 21st century. Food plays a central role in social health on a daily basis, and contributes to the overall quality of life. Despite being deeply intertwined with social life; food practices and social health are rarely researched in health promotion. Young people are often a focus in food studies, yet less often is their social health within this realm explored. A comprehensive settings-based health promotion approach, as a promising strategy for addressing future health challenges, embraces an ecological and holistic perspective by acknowledging the interconnectedness between people and their environments; with schools being key sites for promoting young people’s health. This thesis integrates these perspectives and frames food practices as important for social health by investigating the ways in which food practices foster school connectedness in young people. A critical ethnographic methodology was used to explore in depth everyday food practices within a school setting. One year of fieldwork was carried out in an all-girls secondary school in New Zealand, and included participant observation and interviews as key data collection techniques. This approach gave insight into the habitual, everyday food practices within the school, and allowed the observation and attendance of school food events throughout the year, thereby incorporating seasonal variability and celebratory customs. The participants included 16 to18-year-old students and their teachers. The thesis highlights that food practices play a vital role in social health, and are tacit but important vehicles for young people’s social relationships. The findings show that food rituals enable young people to establish, maintain, and strengthen peer relationships in everyday interactions. The findings also suggest that food practices foster young people’s school connectedness. Food practices in class- or school-bound structures contribute to school connectedness through enabling people to see their common humanity, creating an informal environment, encouraging sharing, enabling inclusive participation, demonstrating sacrifice of time and effort, and allowing people to experience diversity. The results show how food practices can influence social health in a single setting, and suggest how the existing health-promoting schools framework can utilise food practices for social health gains. The findings support the value of a whole-school approach to health by highlighting the interconnectedness and synergies that may arise from a holistic approach in settings-based health promotion. Overall this research suggests that focusing on social health aligns with health promotion goals and values, and indicates that deliberate health promotion activities related to food have the potential to contribute to social health dimensions. This thesis makes practical and theoretical advances in health promotion. Theoretically the thesis provides evidence for the benefits of viewing food practices through a social lens that extends how food is traditionally researched in health promotion, and proposes a way forward for holistic nutrition promotion. Social health, it is argued, forms a valid independent component of health alongside mental and physical health that is worthy of exploring in food studies. The research also contributes to health promotion practice by systematically exploring the potential for settings-based approaches and offering insight into food practices within a key setting for youth health promotion. This thesis provides an important contribution for understanding the mechanisms by which school food practices may contribute to school connectedness as a protective factor for young people’s overall health and educational achievement.
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    Trauma, relational trust and the effects on the midwife : a thesis presented in fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy, School of Health and Social Sciences, Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand
    (Massey University, 2011) Calvert, Irene
    This qualitative thesis uses a method of narrative research to explore the effects of a traumatic practice experience on the 16 midwives interviewed for this project. It is an investigation of relationships at play influenced by power games and their consequences creating conflict. The issues of partnership and autonomous midwifery practice are the key drivers that make New Zealand midwives more likely to be blamed and their competence in practice challenged. Partnership negates domination for collaboration and as a result challenges the beliefs of the dominant groups of medicine and management. Midwives questioned why when they had coped with similar situations in the past was this incident ‘the straw that broke the camels back’. The investigation uncovers that the trauma experienced was prolonged due to a breakdown of relational trust in organisations, management, colleagues, women and self. The breach of trust altered the meaning of the traumatic event for the midwives which impacted on their personal and professional identities creating biographical disruption and exacerbating the initial stress reaction. Loss of personal and professional identities elicited grief which in most cases was disenfranchised and therefore not supported. Grief associated with maternal death was supported. As a result of the increase of emotional stress some of the midwives suffered illness such as anxiety, post traumatic stress disorder and chronic back pain implying that the aetiology of the disease could be emotions. These illnesses experienced by the midwives contributed to workforce attrition. Midwifery has an oral history whereby relationships are built and experiences shared, making narrative research an ideal method for this personal topic. The analysis of the study data draws upon the narrative concepts of Margaret Somers (1994), Arthur Frank (2005) and Davis and Harre (1990) and Bourdieu (1982) theory of economic practice to facilitate an understanding of the effects of these traumatic practice experiences for the midwife participants. Midwives in New Zealand are legally required to provide care to childbearing women using a partnership model of care based on trust and mutual respect (MCNZ,2004). Consideration was given to the influence of the model on the effects experienced by the midwives. Substantive chapters explore the effects of biographical disruption, grief, support, violence in the workplace, destroyed relationships and disrupted lives, trust and dysfunctional organisations. In the text gathered from this study I have developed two theoretical models; one explains how the trauma is exacerbated rather than supported; the other outlines the effects of the trauma. The study adds to the literature by providing evidence that biographical disruption occurring as a result of a traumatic practice experience can lead to a chronic illness. My research has addressed gaps in midwifery, biographical disruption, grief, workplace violence and trauma literature.
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    "Servant leadership on the couch" : a psychoanalytic interpretation of informal work group relations : a dissertation presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in Management at Massey University (Manawatu), New Zealand
    (Massey University, 2012) Lantu, Donald Crestofel
    Servant leadership, the subject of this study, captured my attention because of its recent popularity within the popular press and business consultant circles. While servant leadership has become one of the most appealing leadership philosophies in those communities, this has not been the case in other communities (e.g. executives and leadership scholars). For the latter, the idea of servant leadership seems to be too narrow, impractical, and idealistic. Another issue of concern is that there is only little empirical support has been published in peer-reviewed journals, which most of them appear to be lacked of well-designed research methodology to explore and study the complexity of servant leadership. This study explores the organizational phenomenon of servant leadership and utilizes a psychoanalytic frame of thinking and the substance of informal leadership and relationships in search of a richer explanation and better understanding of servant leadership. Psychoanalytically informed interviews of a small group of workers who operate in a New Zealand branch of a multinational cleaning service provider elicited quality stories which provided access to delve more deeply into the dynamics of servant leadership as it is enacted and experienced by the leader and subordinates in their informal work system. Psychoanalytic concepts (e.g. idealization, identification, transference, projection, ego-ideal) and Gabriel‘s (2000) poetic tropes (e.g. attribution of motive, attribution of causal connections, attribution of fixed qualities, and attribution of providential significance) are employed as the main interpretive frame to analyze the collected stories and narratives – viewed as manifest materials of unconscious organizational processes. Servant leadership is found not to be an idealistic form of leadership, but rather a by-product of the leader and subordinates‘ mutual idealization aimed to protect and maintain their narcissistic identities. In their idealization, subordinates see the leader as the symbolic mother, who echoes their wishes and desires in a way that provide each of them a healthy sense of self-esteem that could help them deal with the difficulties and hardship triggered by male managers – viewed as the symbolic father of the workplace. As a by-product of subordinates‘ idealization of the leader, subordinates establish a symbolic family-group, wherein relationships and leadership are informal. This informal system shares many similarities with many features of servant leadership, such as personal and close relationships, caring, community building, shared decision making and leadership, and the principle of ‗primus inter pares‘ – first among equals (Greenleaf, 2002). The leader‘s idealization of subordinates is also a way to confirm her narcissistic identity that drives her to engage in serving behaviours where she seeks subordinates‘ love and admiration. Such mutual idealization, as with idealization in other relationships, brings with it potential benefits, but also potential drawbacks for the leader, subordinates, and the organization. In dealing with the threat of a subordinate‘s betrayal, the servant leader longs for intervention from a Divine figure as her final resort of defence. The servant leader‘s idealization of subordinates and of a Divine figure, in addition to leader-subordinate symbolic mother-child relationships within their symbolic family group, may function as the important elements distinguishing servant leadership from other theories of leadership.
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    Paradox of perception : the role of the second chair second violin in a symphony orchestra : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Management in Management at Massey University, Manawatu campus, New Zealand
    (Massey University, 2010) Gilling, David Francis
    The objective of this research thesis is to add to our understanding of work practices in the symphony orchestra and, in particular, to explore the functioning of the hierarchy which exists among the musicians of the orchestra (Koivunen, 2003; Marotto, Roos & Victor, 2007) As the literature regarding the orchestral organization is concerned primarily with relations between conductors and orchestras and, further, with the offstage implications of these interactions (Koivunen, 2003), I have focused instead on the onstage relationships among musicians that occur in the course of rehearsal, concert, and recording activity. In order to investigate these relations, I have undertaken a critical and reflexive study of the role of sub-principal (second chair) second violin in a full-time, fully professional symphony orchestra. In so doing I sought to interrogate my own experience through an autoethnographic methodology which is grounded in the phenomenology of Merleau-Ponty (2002) and draws on the sensemaking ideas of Weick (1995, 2001). The picture that emerged from this research was one of an embodied musician engaging in empathetic interaction with colleagues; this interaction is, I argue, based on sensemaking activity which occurs in a kinaesthetic loop that, while underpinned by creative empathy among musicians, draws on and is generated by auditory, visual and physical information virtually simultaneously. Which of these elements takes precedence was found in this study to be linked to the nature of the activity being undertaken.
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    Informal relationships in the workplace : associations with job satisfaction, organisational commitment and turnover intentions
    (Massey University, 2005) Lopes Morrison, Rachel
    The aim of this thesis was to develop and test a theoretical model of fiendships in the workplace. Friendships within organisations may have a profound effect on an employee's experience of work, potentially either hindering or facilitating organisational functioning, yet friendships have seldom been studied in an organisational context. The association between friendships at work and organisational outcomes such as job satisfaction, organisational commitment and turnover intentions were investigated in three studies, assessing support for a theoretical model. In the first study, employees of a large Auckland hospital Waitemata District Health Board, Auckland (NZ) (n = 124) were surveyed using a written questionnaire. Results indicated that cohesiveness and opportunities for friendship were related to increased job satisfaction, leading to increased organisational commitment and decreased turnover intentions. The actual prevalence of friendships was primarily related to decreased turnover intentions. Overall there was good support for the proposed model. The need for further research to ascertain the generalisability of the findings was highlighted. A second study was conducted using an Internet based questionnaire, accessed both from within New Zealand and worldwide. A diverse sample of employees responded (n = 412). The analysis (structural equation modelling) indicated further support for most aspects of the model, suggesting that the findings are generalisable and the model is robust. The model of workplace relationships was cross-validated in a third study, confirming linkages between friendships at work and organisational outcomes. The model was then tested for intergroup invariance. The model was invariant across groups reporting differing needs for affiliation, autonomy and achievement, but non-invariant across groups occupying relatively less or more interdependent jobs. Results suggest that the interdependence of individuals' jobs affects the salience of work friendships more than respondents' subjective need. Overall, the research suggests that the presence of workplace friendships has a significant effect on several workplace variables, with the effect of friendships being more salient for individuals in interdependent work roles. The implications of the research findings are potentially far reaching. Not only do workplace friendships improve employees' experiences of work, but they also have the potential to affect the financial "bottom line" through factors such as enhanced organisational commitment, job satisfaction and reduced intentions to leave.