Massey Documents by Type

Permanent URI for this communityhttps://mro.massey.ac.nz/handle/10179/294

Browse

Search Results

Now showing 1 - 10 of 16
  • Item
    Cultural process considerations in a mixed methods investigation of social enterprise performance in Vietnam.
    (Taylor and Francis Group, 2025-08-13) Nguyen T; Hodgetts D; Chamberlain K
    This article reflects on the mixed methodological process developed for our research into social enterprise performance in Vietnam. Previous research has focused on social enterprises in developed economies, with calls for further research into emerging economies. This article documents how research in emerging contexts such as Vietnam requires researchers to consider cultural processes that enable research to be more feasible and practicable. We present an exemplar for combining international and local knowledge regarding social enterprise performance in designing the research, accessing participants, generating quality information, and interpreting and applying findings. This article exemplifies utility in scholars bringing theories, methods, and insights from international research into responsive dialogue with knowledge systems and cultural practices in emerging contexts such as Vietnam.
  • Item
    Exploring mathematical wellbeing across cultures: insights from diverse students
    (Springer Nature, 2024-09-18) Hunter J; Hill JL
    Across many countries, including New Zealand, diverse groups including indigenous, migrant, and marginalised communities, are under-represented in mathematics, as evidenced by achievement disparities and disengagement from higher-level mathematics. Both research and policy have focused on developing equitable education outcomes for all students. A key aspect of this is wellbeing, including within mathematics classrooms, which includes identifying classroom environments that enable wellbeing. This study examines mathematical wellbeing (MWB) across different ethnicities and genders, with a case study focus on students from Pacific heritages. Analysing qualitative responses from over 12,000 diverse students revealed that positive relationships in the mathematics classroom were most commonly associated with students’ MWB. Accomplishment and cognitive factors, including mathematical accuracy, learning new things, and understanding, were also identified as important. Minor gender differences emerged, with female students emphasising mathematical understanding, accuracy, and relationships more than male students. The Pacific student case study highlighted the importance of both cognitive aspects (learning new things and understanding) and relationships (peer and teacher support), uncovering an alignment between cultural values and MWB. This study empirically confirms seven universal values supporting student MWB, previously identified in Australian and Chinese contexts, suggesting that teachers internationally may align pedagogical practices with these values to support most students’ MWB. However, the instrumental values serving these universal values appear culturally unique. This research contributes novel insights to the field by examining wellbeing with a subject-specific focus through student-generated responses, offering implications for developing more equitable and culturally inclusive mathematics classrooms.
  • Item
    Diverse Students’ Mathematical Wellbeing
    (Springer Nature, 2024-04-18) Hill JL; Hunter J
    Supporting student wellbeing in schools is increasingly becoming a global priority. However, research and initiatives primarily focus on general wellbeing rather than subject-specific experiences. Given the pervasive levels of mathematics anxiety, negative attitudes, and disengagement in mathematics education, we argue for a more contextualised wellbeing approach. We define ‘mathematical wellbeing’ (MWB) as the fulfilment of values whilst learning mathematics accompanied by positive feelings (e.g., enjoyment) and functioning (e.g., engagement) in the discipline. We report on 3073 New Zealand Year Three to Eight students’ responses to a survey measuring their fulfilment of seven MWB values: accomplishments, cognitions, engagement, meaning, perseverance, positive emotions, and relationships. Students’ MWB was highest for relationships and perseverance and lowest for engagement and positive emotions; MWB declined from Years Three to Eight; females often rated higher MWB than males; school sociodemographic status was mostly not significant, whilst engagement and positive emotions differed across ethnicities. Research implications include understanding target areas to improve diverse students’ experiences and wellbeing in mathematics education.
  • Item
    Enhancing health outcomes for Māori elders through an intergenerational cultural exchange and physical activity programme: a cross-sectional baseline study
    (Frontiers Media S.A., 2023-12-12) Oetzel JG; Zhang Y; Nock S; Meha P; Huriwaka H; Vercoe M; Tahu T; Urlich J; Warbrick R; Brown G; Keown S; Rewi P; Erueti B; Warbrick I; Jackson A-M; Perry T; Reddy R; Simpson ML; Cameron MP; Hokowhitu B; Rashedi V
    BACKGROUND: The study offers baseline data for a strengths-based approach emphasizing intergenerational cultural knowledge exchange and physical activity developed through a partnership with kaumātua (Māori elders) and kaumātua service providers. The study aims to identify the baseline characteristics, along with correlates of five key outcomes. METHODS: The study design is a cross-sectional survey. A total of 75 kaumātua from six providers completed two physical functioning tests and a survey that included dependent variables based in a holistic model of health: health-related quality of life (HRQOL), self-rated health, spirituality, life satisfaction, and loneliness. RESULTS: The findings indicate that there was good reliability and moderate scores on most variables. Specific correlates included the following: (a) HRQOL: emotional support (β = 0.31), and frequent interaction with a co-participant (β = 0.25); (b) self-rated health: frequency of moderate exercise (β = 0.32) and sense of purpose (β = 0.27); (c) spirituality: sense of purpose (β = 0.46), not needing additional help with daily tasks (β = 0.28), and level of confidence with cultural practices (β = 0.20); (d) life satisfaction: sense of purpose (β = 0.57), frequency of interaction with a co-participant (β = -0.30), emotional support (β = 0.25), and quality of relationship with a co-participant (β = 0.16); and (e) lower loneliness: emotional support (β = 0.27), enjoyment interacting with a co-participant (β = 0.25), sense of purpose (β = 0.24), not needing additional help with daily tasks (β = 0.28), and frequency of moderate exercise (β = 0.18). CONCLUSION: This study provides the baseline scores and correlates of important social and health outcomes for the He Huarahi Tautoko (Avenue of Support) programme, a strengths-based approach for enhancing cultural connection and physical activity.
  • Item
    Indigenous tourism in Australia, a development tool? : a research report presented in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Masters Degree in Development Studies at Massey University
    (Massey University, 1998) Penfold, Leysha Monica
    This research Report examines tourism and its potential role in the development of Australia's Indigenous peoples, namely Aborigines and Torres Straight Islanders. It begins by examining the current situation of the Indigenous people to establish that there is indeed a need for development. This is followed by a general examination of both tourism and development, and how the two might interact. The current state of Indigenous tourism, particularly cultural tourism, in Australia is then explored, with an emphasis on the role of Government and possible modes of Indigenous involvement. The next sections, which constitute the main thrust of this Report, examine: • barriers to Indigenous involvement in tourism, • the negative impacts of tourism involvement • the role of education and training in circumventing some of these problems It is hoped that this document can provide a counterpoint to the predominantly positive material which has been produced by the Australian Government and the tourism industry. Finally, this Report seeks to place Indigenous tourism in the wider context of economic and social developments, and changing Government policy. [Executive summary]
  • Item
    Leveraging the Samoan Mental Health Policy for Policy Development in Niue
    (Massey University, 2019) Corcoran, Dale; Stewart-Withers, Rochelle
    Mental health is a prevalent, but often ignored area of health. Mental illness can significantly impact the mentally unwell, their families, and the wider community, yet access to proper care can be hindered by availability, ignorance, discrimination, and stigma, and result in human rights violations. This is especially true in developing countries where services may be inadequate or non-existent. Mental health policies can alleviate this situation by improving and prioritising mental health services at a national level. Based on Samoa and Niue’s similarities in terms of their mental health context and the positive analysis and evaluation of the 2006 Samoan policy, this paper concludes that the work done in Samoa is a viable choice for Niue to leverage in their future policy work. Niue would benefit from developing their mental health policy based on the precepts of South-to-South Cooperation by collaborating and sharing knowledge with their neighbour Samoa.
  • Item
    Flaunting it on Facebook: Young adults, drinking cultures and the cult of celebrity
    (Massey University School of Psychology, 2014-03) Lyons, Antonia; McCreanor, Tim; Hutton, Fiona; Goodwin, Ian; Barnes, Helen Moewaka; Griffin, Christine; Kerryellen, Vroman; O’Carroll, Acushla Dee; Niland, Patricia; Samu, Lina
    Young adults in Aotearoa/New Zealand (NZ) regularly engage in heavy drinking episodes with groups of friends within a collective culture of intoxication to ‘have fun’ and ‘be sociable’. This population has also rapidly increased their use of new social networking technologies (e.g. mobile camera/ video phones; Facebook and YouTube) and are said to be obsessed with identity, image and celebrity. This research project explored the ways in which new technologies are being used by a range of young people (and others, including marketers) in drinking practices and drinking cultures in Aotearoa/NZ. It also explored how these technologies impact on young adults’ behaviours and identities, and how this varies across young adults of diverse ethnicities (Maori [indigenous people of NZ], Pasifika [people descended from the Pacific Islands] and Pakeha [people of European descent]), social classes and genders. We collected data from a large and diverse sample of young adults aged 18-25 years employing novel and innovative methodologies across three data collection stages. In total 141 participants took part in 34 friendship focus group discussions (12 Pakeha, 12 Maori and 10 Pasifika groups) while 23 young adults showed and discussed their Facebook pages during an individual interview that involved screencapture software and video recordings. Popular online material regarding drinking alcohol was also collected (via groups, interviews, and web searches), providing a database of 487 links to relevant material (including websites, apps, and games). Critical and in-depth qualitative analyses across these multimodal datasets were undertaken. Key findings demonstrated that social technologies play a crucial role in young adults’ drinking cultures and processes of identity construction. Consuming alcohol to a point of intoxication was a commonplace leisure-time activity for most of the young adult participants, and social network technologies were fully integrated into their drinking cultures. Facebook was employed by all participants and was used before, during and following drinking episodes. Uploading and sharing photos on Facebook was particularly central to young people’s drinking cultures and the ongoing creation of their identities. This involved a great deal of Facebook ‘work’ to ensure appropriate identity displays such as tagging (the addition of explanatory or identifying labels) and untagging photos. Being visible online was crucial for many young adults, and they put significant amounts of time and energy into updating and maintaining Facebook pages, particularly with material regarding drinking practices and events. However this was not consistent across the sample, and our findings revealed nuanced and complex ways in which people from different ethnicities, genders and social classes engaged with drinking cultures and new technologies in different ways, reflecting their positioning within the social structure. Pakeha shared their drinking practices online with relatively little reflection, while Pasifika and Maori participants were more likely to discuss avoiding online displays of drinking and demonstrated greater reflexive self-surveillance. Females spoke of being more aware of normative expectations around gender than males, and described particular forms of online identity displays (e.g. moderated intake, controlled selfdetermination). Participants from upper socio-economic groups expressed less concern than others about both drinking and posting material online. Celebrity culture was actively engaged with, in part at least, as a means of expressing what it is to be a young adult in contemporary society, and reinforcing the need for young people to engage in their own everyday practices of ‘celebritising’ themselves through drinking cultures online. Alcohol companies employed social media to market their products to young people in sophisticated ways that meant the campaigns and actions were rarely perceived as marketing. Online alcohol marketing initiatives were actively appropriated by young people and reproduced within their Facebook pages to present tastes and preferences, facilitate social interaction, construct identities, and more generally develop cultural capital. These commercial activities within the commercial platforms that constitute social networking systems contribute heavily to a general ‘culture of intoxication’ while simultaneously allowing young people to ‘create’ and ‘produce’ themselves online via the sharing of consumption ‘choices’, online interactions and activities.
  • Item
    An examination of kaizen drift in Japanese genba : implications for business in the anglosphere : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Business and Administration at Massey University, Manawatu, New Zealand
    (Massey University, 2013) Macpherson, Wayne Gordon
    In attempting to decode the industrial competitive success of Japan, researchers in the Anglosphere have predominantly identified with the highly visible tools and methods of the quality management philosophy of kaizen. However, due to data collection methodologies and significant cross-cultural limitations kaizen appears to have been largely misinterpreted and misunderstood. This ‘gap’ has resulted in literature riddled with deterministic models of mechanical methodologies promoted to pursue business excellence. Further, there has been a plethora of attempts at transplanting Japan-centric tools and techniques, with little – if any – regard for the country’s individual and indigenous social characteristics. To deepen understanding of kaizen a phenomenological study was conducted in middle-to-large sized industrial companies in Japan to investigate Japanese workers’ perspectives of kaizen. Two parallel and complementary philosophies of the pursuit of business excellence were identified. The Japanese thread explored how Japanese workers acknowledge and exercise kaizen; and, the Anglosphere thread examined how workers in the Anglosphere attempt to adopt and practise kaizen. In the Japanese context, society is identified as being highly bounded with little opportunity for individual creativity. Many Japanese industrial organisations, being active kaizen environments, channel worker creativity and expressions of individuality into bounded environments, or kaizen audiences, providing a counter-point to social and cultural requirements. In addition to Japanese-style management, this has resulted in the production of tangible kaizen tools and methods, as easily identified by Anglosphere researchers and practitioners. The primary contribution to knowledge this research presents is the development of understanding of the utility of the kaizen phenomenon. Kaizen in industrial settings in Japan is found to be both culturally bounded and contextually dependent, and far beyond continuous improvement; differences in the perceptions of older and younger workers are seen to exist as kaizen drifts across generational boundaries; active programmes are maintained to ensure that kaizen remains embedded in both the individual and the organisation; and, the simplistic diffusion of kaizen to Anglosphere organisations is observed to be an unlikely guarantee to sustainable business excellence over the longer term, as it has in Japan. This research reports that the only likely viable means to sustainably diffuse kaizen in Anglosphere domains is for business leaders to return to square one and instil an implicit, comprehensive understanding and appreciation of kaizen; and, acquire and develop recipient-organisation-centric tools and methods. Such a new approach could provide practitioners in the Anglosphere the means to adopt and sustain kaizen thinking and practice, and a gateway to sustainable competitive advantage.
  • Item
    Rangatahi oranga : family functioning, cultural orientation and depression among New Zealand adolescents : a thesis presented in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in Psychology at Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand
    (Massey University, 2011) Ketu-McKenzie, Miriama
    Mental health disparities between Maori and NZ European adolescents are well documented. Cultural-vulnerability theory posits that cultural dimensions may explain some of the difference in distress levels between different ethnic groups. The aim of this research was to explore the relationships between family functioning, cultural orientation and depression among NZ Maori and NZ European adolescents and examine whether cultural orientation - individualism and collectivism - would moderate the relationship between perceived family functioning and depression scores. Self-report data assessing individualism, collectivism, family functioning and depression were collected from 299 Maori and NZ European high school adolescents. Family dysfunction was found to positively correlate with depression scores for adolescents in both groups, however the relationship was stronger for adolescent males than females, and for NZ Europeans than Maori adolescents, and the relationship was strongest for Maori male adolescents specifically. The study's major findings were that collectivism had a moderating effect on the relationship between family functioning and depression for NZ European females only, and that for Maori male adolescents who were highly individualistic, family functioning accounted for 20% of the variance in depression scores. A further finding was that Maori adolescents displayed both highly individualistic and highly collectivistic tendencies, which indicates that there may be multiple culture-related pathways to depression for Maori youths. The findings suggest that Maori male adolescents may be more vulnerable to the deleterious effects of family dysfunction than Maori females, especially if they display tendencies towards individualism. The implications for these and other findings are discussed.
  • Item
    Social capital and cohesive urban communities : examining the impact of culture, religion and other lived experience on community development processes in informal and squatter settlements in Fiji : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Masters degree in Philosophy at Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand
    (Massey University, 2011) Yates, Kirkland Ronald
    Urbanisation of Pacific cities is causing substantial growth in squatter settlements, particularly in Fiji. This growth in squatter settlements is placing government resources under stress in terms of affordable housing solutions and extension of essential services on government capacities. Furthermore, unregulated urbanisation processes are leaving many squatter settlements living below the poverty line and placing settlers increasingly under survival pressures. Many have studied the various poverty and social dynamics affecting squatter settlements in Fiji as well as the government and non-government institutional responses to these situations. This thesis addresses how the urban poor in settlements marshal the necessary resources to organise inclusive and effectual communities that can influence public policy directions on issues that affect them. The assumption in this thesis considers that squatters face significant cultural and ideological barriers that either support or block their ability to function adequately in their challenging settings. Furthermore, this thesis explores the impacts of culture, religion and lived experiences on urban community development processes and how these experiences may affect the socio-economic well-being of community members. This research was based on primary data collection from a sample of eighteen householders across three contrasting squatter settlements in Suva, Fiji, during 2008. Householders were surveyed with application of a structured and internationally authenticated social capital-integrated questionnaire. The survey was used to investigate settlers‟ perceptions of the various organisational and social cohesion indicators in communities considered necessary to support community functioning. Of particular interest was the relative significance and importance of key social capital indicators. Social capital was seen as prerequisite for community development in a Fijian, Indo-Fijian and an integrated settlement. This thesis investigated how people might work together to sustain socially cohesive communities. The community organisational and interactive data indicators were analysed to compare the capacity assessment results and presented in a visual format to provide a „snapshot in time‟ of the status of community relations in the squatter settlements studied. It is contended that this approach could present a potential application for communities, government institutions and development practitioners to employ as an instrument to monitor the progress of community capacity development in future.