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    The evolution of public administration and conflict in a post-conflict state : history’s role in Fiji’s political trajectory : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Management at Massey University, Albany, New Zealand
    (Massey University, 2024-04-16) Loga, Patricia Savukiono-I-Tuikabara
    Violent geo-political conflicts are on the rise across the globe and most of the countries that experience these conflicts are developing nations like Fiji (Fund for Peace, 2022). Countries that are prone to conflict are classified as fragile States. In the aftermath of a conflict, the public sector is under immense pressure to restabilise the nation and normalise service provision to citizens. Understanding the behaviour of conflict and public administration in a post-conflict State is key for nation rebuilding because it gives an insight into the levers and impediments for crisis management. Although studies have explored crisis management in post-conflict States (Kaplan, 2008), little is known about the role that historical institutions play in the evolution and continuity of conflict and public administration. To address this gap, this thesis used the path dependency theory to explain how policy actions and decisions established a continuous cycle of conflict. Using institutionalism and resilience, this research described why public administration remained fragile despite showing signs of evolution in Fiji’s political trajectory. Based on the findings, it is suggested that policy actors in Fiji consider the following embedded ideologies in their policy making process: race-based politics, intertwined traditional and political roles, adversarial approaches to the protection of interests and segmented economic structures. Fiji is locked into a path of conflict and resilience is restrained by institutionalised processes; an understanding of historical structures that hinder progress can help policy actors create effective public policies. The first significant finding argued that conflict is pathdependent because Fiji was subjected to indirect rule when it was under colonial rule and that the short time taken for the nation to transition from a colony to an independent State created a lack of readiness for self-government. Public administration stability in Fiji was hindered by the co-existence of institutionalism and resilience. It was found that resilience thinking was stifled by institutionalised ideologies that had become embedded in the public administration system. This research made two key contributions: developed a theoretical understanding of public administration and conflict using the path-dependency, institutionalism, and resilience theories. The lessons learned to contribute to policy knowledge on crisis management and nation rebuilding in developing countries like Fiji. This research was conducted using archival research, which was collected from Archives New Zealand and the National Archives of Fiji. Archival research and document analysis complemented the path-dependency, institutionalism, and resilience theories, which involve a descriptive analysis of how past policy decisions affect the behaviour of institutions. In total, 3,270 documents from the years 1858 to 1992 were retrieved and analysed via document analysis and theoretical thematic analysis. Using archival research to study Fiji’s political history aided the identification of themes that explained how and when conflict became path dependent, and why public administration institutions were fragile. The findings from this thesis are contextual and Fiji is a small island developing State so it would be difficult to generalise or replicate. To add to the knowledge of conflict analysis, and nation rebuilding, future research could explore other post-conflict States or former colonies to find out if conflict is path-dependent and which factors create fragility in a public administration. The co-existence of institutionalism and resilience also has room for further development. There is an opportunity to explore the behaviour of these two theoretical frameworks in public administration. A deeper understanding of the push and pull effects of institutionalism and resilience has the potential to improve public sector reform and policy transfer processes.
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    Government, ODA and sustainable development : their linkages and the case of Vietnam : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Phylosophy [i.e. Philosophy] in Development Studies at Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand
    (Massey University, 2002) Nguyen, Duc Minh
    Sustainable development, the role of government, and ODA are three major concerns in Development Studies. Sustainable development is an interest that has recently emerged but has become quickly and widely accepted in the field as a desirable vision for the future of humankind. It affects the rationale and redefines the responsibilities of both government and ODA. Government has two interrelated roles in development: a sovereign regulator and a powerful developmental actor. ODA is a means through which governments and external agencies interact in the development field. This present thesis articulates an integrated perspective to sustainable development and applies it to discuss major issues of government, ODA, and especially their developmental roles. The aim of this thesis is to contribute to the debate on the role of government in making ODA work for sustainable development. Its arguments and recommendations are confined to the case of Vietnam – an aid recipient country in transition. In general, it is found that the donor and recipient governments play very important roles in making ODA work for sustainable development due to three reasons. First, they are essential for sustainable development as both necessary and irreplaceable regulator and powerful developmental actors. Second, ODA is not automatically, but is potentially, helpful for sustainable development. Last but not least, the governments have decisive roles in affecting the volume, scope, scale, and effectiveness of ODA resources and activities. In the particular case of Vietnam, the role of the government in the ODA - sustainable development link is momentous because it is presently the major force that overwhelmingly influences the direction and controls significant shares of resources and activities of development (in comparison with the private sector) in the country. For ODA to work for sustainable development in Vietnam, the key recommendations are that, firstly, the government needs to improve its administrative ability, especially its ability in ODA management, and maintain its national independence in making development decisions on behalf of the people. At the same time, the government needs to put sustainable development as the goal for all of its development planning and intervention activities in order to establish the foundation for cooperating with the donor community, integrating ODA resources into the country's total resources for sustainable development and facilitating ODA to best supplement the sustainable development process of Vietnam. Last but not least, the government has to act more carefully and effectively in utilizing ODA resources to intervene into the society and the economy in order to ensure all the productive potential is released and all the latent possibilities of all components of the economy and the society are developed in a sustainable manner.
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    Public sector managers of human services : their challenges and strategies : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Social Work at Massey University, Manawatu, New Zealand
    (Massey University, 2016) Parker-van Eck, Kirsten
    Middle managers of human services in the public sector have a unique role that allows them to be part of the lives of clients and their families by implementing the strategic vision of political leaders. The expectations of middle managers can be complex and contradictory and therefore challenging. This research identifies the challenges middle managers of human services in the public sector encounter and the strategies that they have developed to deal with these. The support that senior managers in public sector organisations can offer to their middle managers in this process is also discussed. The study is qualitative and placed in a post-modernist position and social constructive perspective. Data is collected through the use of semi-structured interviews and examined using an interpretative thematic approach. The analysis identified a range of challenges for middle managers in the public sector and strategies these managers use to deal with them. Interestingly a number of identified challenges are also identified as a strategy depending on the support middle managers receive from the senior managers in their organisation. The findings identify that a strong strategic vision needs to be in place in public sector organisations to develop clear roles and responsibilities for middle managers with allocated resources. Middle managers need access to training, supervision and networking to deal with additional challenges such as changes in funding and information management. Recommendations are made to public sector organisations to support the development of effective strategies to deal with the challenges identified by their middle managers. Recommendations are made to middle managers in the public sector to prioritise and advocate for their own needs and requirements is they do for their clients and their staff. This research will support both senior and middle managers in public sector organisations in finding strategies to support middle managers to fulfil their role effectively.
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    The practice of evaluative reasoning in the Aotearoa New Zealand public sector : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy at Massey University, Wellington, New Zealand
    (Massey University, 2016) Nunns, Heather
    This study argues that sound evaluative reasoning, defined as “the systematic means for arriving at evaluative conclusions . . . the principles that support inferences drawn by evaluators” (Fournier, 1995, p.1), is an essential element of evaluation quality. As such, evaluative reasoning is a lens through which to consider how to improve the quality of evaluations undertaken or commissioned by the Aotearoa New Zealand public sector. The argument is grounded in the theory of evaluation derived from western philosophy, specifically, informal logic. This theory underpins the conceptualisation and design of this study examining how evaluative reasoning is understood and practised by professionals who undertake public sector evaluation in Aotearoa New Zealand. A multiple method research design is used to generate diverse understandings of the topic and offer opportunities for abductive thinking. The methods used are Q methodology, meta-evaluation, and key informant interviews with local and international evaluation experts. The findings from this study point to three ways in which evaluative reasoning has an impact on the quality of evaluation. It increases the robustness of the reasoning chain from value claim to evaluative conclusion/judgment; underpins the professional competencies required of evaluation practitioners; and reinforces the ethical dimensions of evaluation practice in a public sector context. Lastly, two abductively-derived conjectures point evaluators toward diverse ways of knowing in their reasoning from evaluative claim to evaluative conclusion/judgment. Amplifying the work of previous theorists, it is suggested that expert intuition and abductive inference provide further paths of evaluative knowing in addition to inductive logic and probative inference.
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    Learner success in eLearning : room for improvement-- but how? : an analysis of the problem of retention and completion in an online programme : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Education in Adult Education at Massey University
    (Massey University, 2006) Roberts, Christine
    Lack of time to work on their online programme was a more significant barrier for students on an online programme than problems such as cost, access to a computer, computer difficulties, childcare or other family responsibilities, or lack of employer support. A 2004 online survey of 77 students of the online Public Sector Knowledge programme, at Change Training, Wellington, followed up by telephone interviews and a focus group session, showed that 92% of students gave 'lack of time' as the critical factor making it hard to study online, and that even when they had dedicated time to do it, work-based tasks and colleagues took priority over working on their online programme. Findings also showed that allied to the time issue was the evidence that for the majority of students their goal for the programme was not to complete assessments, but to get what they wanted from the learning materials. Without the need to gain the qualification for personal or work reasons, most students chose to bypass the time-consuming summative assessments that constitute a 'completion' and effectively 'drop out'.
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    Unbridled optimism : public choice, the public service and electoral law reform : a thesis submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in Social Policy
    (Massey University, 1996) Shaw, Richard Hugh
    This thesis addresses issues that are likely to be confronted by the public service in New Zealand as a result of the advent of electoral law reform. During the decade since 1984 the institutional arrangements that circumscribe the activities of the core public sector have undergone a process of considerable change. The proposition extended in this research is that the structural configuration that has emerged out of the process of public sector reform will face a number of significant challenges in the emerging political environment. In the context of a milieu shaped by the imperatives of proportional representation, two particular characteristics of the contemporary public service may prove problematic. Specifically, the nature of the statutory interface between responsible ministers and the chief executives of government organisations may, in conjunction with an 'atomised' core public sector, function so as to compromise both the impartiality of public servants and the ability of an administration to develop and implement policy in a strategically consistent fashion. The extent to which such difficulties are likely to occur will be the result of the convergence of a series of variables, including the calibre of political leadership provided by future Prime Ministers, and the nature of the advice and guidance provided to public servants in the new climate. Perhaps most significant of all, however, will be the precise configuration of future parliaments returned under the new electoral system. The fusion of the legislative and executive arms of government under New Zealand's constitutional arrangements means that patterns of legislative representation influence the formation of governments; in the future, those patterns may exercise a more direct influence upon the environment within which the public service operates than has historically been the case in New Zealand.
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    Evaluation of the efficiency and effectiveness of the regional procurement service depots in the Philippines : a case of region 1 : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master in Public Policy at Massey University, Albany, New Zealand
    (Massey University, 2008) Vicente, Ria S.
    The focus of this research is to examine the efficiency and effectiveness of recent procurement reform done by the Government of the Philippines, particularly the centralized procurement system for common-use supplies, materials, and equipment. The centralized procurement system is adopted with the intent of taking advantage of the savings inherent to bulk purchasing, streamlining procurement procedures, and reducing opportunities for corruption in the procurement of the abovementioned items. By legislative authority under Republic Act No. 9184, the centralized procurement system was made mandatory among all government agencies, government owned and controlled corporations and local government units in the purchase of their supplies, materials and equipment requirements. With the introduction of tighter budget and the stronger pressure for good governance, the contributions of procurement policy and institutions of procurements to the achievement of good governance and potential relation to development has been gaining global recognition. Given the association of procurement to the way public money is spent, the issue on corruption is also central to this research. There has been a growing recognition of the relationship between corruption and development – the more corrupt a country is, the more underdeveloped it becomes. With the daunting task of battling against corruption, the country’s strategy is to direct its efforts in combating corruption in specific areas, like public procurement. This thesis demonstrates that the centralized procurement system offers a significant reduction in processing times in the conduct of procurement. Additionally, it offers opportunities for savings generation with the cheaper prices of goods and the reduction of administrative cost associated with procurement. More over, it provides a procurement framework where opportunities for administrative corruption are reduced. This leads to the conclusion that the centralized procurement system is efficient in that it reduces administrative processing time and concomitant costs. This, in the long run, will benefit the procuring entities and ultimately the tax payers. However, the emphasis placed on achieving administrative savings is at the expense of other measures of effectiveness such as quality of goods being supplied and the quality of services being extended to client agencies. Moreover, the lack of effective inventory and control system may pave the way to greater waste. Without an effective inventory and control system as well as an improved quality control system, the centralized procurement system that works faster and cheaper may not be better after all.