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    Transformational leadership and organizational citizenship behavior: new mediating roles for trustworthiness and trust in team leaders
    (Springer Nature, 2024-08-19) Lee MCC; Lin M-H; Srinivasan PM; Carr SC
    This study investigates the pivotal role of trust in bridging the effects of transformational leadership on organizational citizenship behavior (OCB). The study was conducted using a multilevel longitudinal approach with 276 employees in 71 teams from private medium-sized organizations in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Transformational leadership was found to be positively related to: (1) three facets of trustworthiness (ability, benevolence, and integrity); (2) trust in the leader; and (3) OCB. All three facets of trustworthiness mediated the relationship between transformational leadership and trust in leaders. In addition, trust in the leader mediated only the relationship between the benevolence facet of trustworthiness and OCB. As OCB is inherently benevolent, these findings not only are consistent with the principle of compatibility, but they also contribute to theorizing about ‘how’ trust plays an important role in the influence of transformational leadership on employees.
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    The United Nations (UN) Card, Identity, and Negotiations of Health among Rohingya Refugees
    (MDPI (Basel, Switzerland), 2023-02-15) Rahman MM; Dutta MJ; Plaza Del Pino FJ; Ugarte-Gurruxaga MI
    Being persecuted and expelled from Myanmar, Rohingya refugees are now distributed throughout the world. The Southeast Asian nation of Malaysia has been a preferred destination for Rohingyas fleeing Myanmar's state-sponsored genocide and more recently in a bid to change their fates from the refugee camps in Bangladesh. Refugees are one of the most vulnerable groups in Malaysia and often face dire circumstances, in which their health and wellbeing are compromised. Amidst a plethora of structural challenges, Rohingya refugees try to claim some of their rights with the aid of the UN card (UNHCR ID cards) in Malaysia. Guided by the culture-centered approach (CCA), this study examined the perspectives and experiences of healthcare among Rohingya refugees while living in Malaysia, now resettled in Aotearoa, New Zealand. The participants' narratives showed that the UN card not only materialized their refugee status in Malaysia but also offered them a way of living in a world where documents anchor the materiality of health.
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    Investigating aspects of paternalistic leadership within the job demands–resources model
    (Cambridge University Press, 2023-01-09) Lee M; Kee YJ; Lau SSY; Jan G
    The literature on the job demands–resources (JD-R) theory has flourished for the past decade due to the theory's simplicity and its applications in many areas of work life. However, the literature is lacking on how leaders can utilize this theory to manage employees, especially in the Asian leadership context. Using the JD-R theory, the current study investigated each aspect of paternalistic leadership (i.e., benevolent leadership, authoritarian leadership and moral leadership) and its influence on employees' job resources (i.e., work meaningfulness and influence at work), job demands (i.e., emotional and cognitive demands), work engagement, burnout and the processes involved. Four hundred and thirty-one (431) full-time working employees (mean age: 31.58; female: 57.8%) from various organizations in Malaysia participated in the study. Using structural equation modelling, the study's results showed that the benevolent aspect of paternalistic leadership was related to higher work engagement and lower burnout through work meaningfulness (but not through influence at work). In contrast, the authoritarian aspect of paternalistic leadership was related to higher burnout through emotional demands (but not through cognitive demands), while the moral leadership aspect had no significant relationship to employees' job demands or job resources, with a mediation process not found in either relationship. Overall, the study revealed three contrasting mechanisms for each aspect of paternalistic leadership and suggested how paternalistic leadership may be practised in Asian countries.
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    Comparing empowering, transformational, and transactional leadership on supervisory coaching and job performance: A multilevel perspective.
    (The Institute of Psychology, Chinese Academy of Sciences and John Wiley & Sons Australia Lt, 2020-10) Lee MCC; Ding AYL
    With a leader being able to possess different types of leadership styles, there is a lack of literature investigating which leadership style best facilitates supervisory coaching behavior. The current study aimed to investigate which leadership style would exhibit supervisory coaching behavior, and if supervisory coaching behavior would mediate the relationship between leadership styles and job performance. The study compared the effects of three leadership styles-transformational, transactional, and empowering leadership-on supervisory coaching behavior, which has been reported to influence job performance. A multilevel approach was adopted in this study using 500 employees from 65 organizations within Malaysia. The study found that only empowering and transactional leadership styles exhibited supervisory coaching behavior, which in turn mediated their relationships with job performance. Overall, the findings suggest the importance of leadership styles that prioritize employee development, as these would lead to improved job performance in employees.
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    The role of religiosity in ethical decision-making : a study on Islam and the Malaysian workplace : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Management at Massey University, Manawatu, New Zealand
    (Massey University, 2019) Sulaiman, Rahizah Binti
    In light of the ongoing debate on the relationship between religiosity and ethical decision-making, this thesis seeks to investigate this relationship in the Malaysian workforce environment. This investigation focuses on the Islamic religion, and considers how religiosity affects the articulation and feelings of frontline employees in ways that lead to ethical decisions. To this end, five factors were tested empirically to determine their mediation of the relationship between religiosity and ethical decision-making. These factors were: perceived importance of the ethical issue, moral judgment, ego strength, intention, and conscience. A quantitative research study was undertaken to test eleven hypotheses developed in the thesis. With 160 responses, the initial analysis was an exploratory factor analysis, which was conducted to see how the measures might group into constructs. This analysis was followed by a confirmatory factor analysis to confirm the previous analysis, and to reduce items in the scale, as well as to test validity and reliability of the scales. The final scales were subsequently used for hypotheses-testing using hierarchical regression analysis. The control variables in this study were perceived ethical environment and social desirability responding bias. The findings of this thesis indicated positive relationships between religiosity and perceived importance of ethical issues, moral judgment, intention, and conscience. However, among these, only conscience mediates the relationship between religiosity and ethical decision-making. The thesis gives insights to the perspective of the Islamic religion, especially for Muslims in Malaysia, while contributing to the ongoing discussion in the literature on the relationship between religiosity and ethical decision-making. The highlight in the conscience results inspires employers to hold educational talks to empower employees in terms of Islamic knowledge, on how to navigate the challenging working place. Additionally, there are benefits in using elements such as posters and calls to prayer to remind employees of religious values. The research serves as a good basis for new investigations to explore other personal attributes that mediate the relationship between religiosity and ethical decision-making. Analysing this relationship can assist employers in developing ethical human resources in the organisation. These efforts will not only benefit the organisations, but will contribute to the betterment of society as a whole.
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    Perceptions of technology : a Malaysian primary education perspective : a thesis submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Education at Massey University
    (Massey University, 1998) Abdullah, Nur Juliana
    This study investigates the perceptions of technology held by Malaysian in primary education. In particular, the study looks into students' understandings of and attitudes towards technology. The study was carried out with 521 primary students, 272 girls and 249 boys, and 28 of their teachers in the Malaysian state of Sarawak. A case study design, using a measure of student perceptions of technology consisting of a writing/drawing activity, a picture quiz, and a technology questionnaire, teacher interviews and curriculum content analysis was employed in this study. The findings from this study show that students' understandings of technology are low. Like the findings obtained elsewhere, students associate technology with products, especially high-tech products and electrical appliances. A comparison by gender, however, shows that there is significant difference in the understanding of technology between boys and girls. Meanwhile, in the comparison related to ethnicity, native students' understandings of technology are slightly lower than those of non-native students. In the comparison by location, the findings show that rural students tend to associate technology with building and low-tech products, while urban students tend to associate technology with computers. Malaysian students' attitudes towards technology, however, are positive. This finding parallels findings obtained in Australia, England, New Zealand and elsewhere. Comparison by gender, ethnicity and location shows that there is no apparent difference between boys and girls and between urban and rural students interest in technology. However, native students are more interested in technology as compared to non-native students, while urban students are more positive about the social aspects of technology. This view about technology among students corresponds to the views held by teachers and as stated in the technology curriculum documents.
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    Globalisation in the Malaysian context : the experience of Malay adolescents with 'conduct disorders' : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Psychology at Massey University, Manawatū Aotearoa/New Zealand
    (Massey University, 2017) Daud, Mohd Najmi
    The process of globalisation offers opportunities for a country to progress to be a greater and more competitive nation. The Malaysian government is highly inspired by the concept of globalisation in progressing towards the vision of becoming a developed nation by the year 2020. Globalisation as a process is very demanding, requiring changes to the Malaysian political, cultural, economic, educational and social landscape. These changes have presented immense challenges to Malay adolescents where Western values have conflicted with traditional values and aspirations. Without adequate preparation, the potential incommensurability of values affects the locally defined wellbeing among Malay adolescents. Given that, how Malay adolescents understand and adapt to the globalisation process remains elusive. Therefore, this research is designed to explore the experiences of Malay adolescents who are considered to experience ‗conduct disorders‘ within the Malaysian context of globalisation. This research is a qualitative research inquiry, which utilised Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA) as a method of analysis. IPA is an approach that explores in detail personal lived experience to examine what the world is like from the point of view of the participants. Initial data was collected from 28 participants with 12 participants selected from a rehabilitation centre for young offenders in Malaysia for a more thorough analysis. The lived experience of the participants is presented and explained through three levels of analysis, the participants' demographic background and history, detailed life experiences of each case and finally, the meaning they attached to their experiences. The analysis suggests that the understanding of the Malay adolescents is constructed reflecting the changes in the dynamic of all segments of life alongside the emerging new lifestyles that are embedded in the processes of globalisation. Their lived experiences are described by referring to a complex relationship with and various tensions between different tenets. Those tenets include the traditional Malay cultures, values, beliefs and practices, which are much influenced by Islamic teaching, and the emergent new values and worldviews associated with globalisation and modernisation. Due to their vulnerability regarding self-characteristics, innate capabilities and the systemic flaws of relevant support systems, they are described as problematic in meeting the new, yet challenging environment. The participants lost their primary and reliable sources of survival. Instead, they are being introduced to various alternative resources that promote values and cultures that are against the normality of local practices. As a result, they end up in the criminal justice system. Realising that they have gone ―off track‖, the participants shared their intention to recover through various strategies, which include both action oriented and cognitive frameworks, but at the same time, they expected to face a range of hassles that may contribute to some difficulties for them to make progress. This research comes out with an argument that questions the appropriateness of the relevance of the diagnostic system of conduct disorders as defined in DSM. The experiences of the participants‘ suggested that they simply reacted to the changing context which offered immense challenges to their lived experiences. Therefore, rather than disordered the adolescents can be understood as responding to the conflicting conditions they face. Keywords: Malay adolescents, globalisation, conduct disorders, lived experiences, Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis
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    Considerations of feed demand and supply for the evolution and expansion of beef cattle farming in Sabah, East Malaysia : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Agronomy, Massey University, Institute of Agriculture and Environment, College of Sciences, Palmerston North, New Zealand
    (Massey University, 2017) Gobilik, Januarius
    To develop a plan for the expansion and evolution of the beef industry in Sabah, it was decided to apply relevant farming information and technology from New Zealand pastoral systems. Based on expert recommendation in New Zealand, metabolic energy budgeting (MEB) was chosen as the vehicle for technology transfer, rather than a direct translocation of elements of farm practice between these two countries of vastly different climate. In Phase 1 of the study, farm system evolution in New Zealand over the last two and half decades was evaluated by modelling past systems from historic records for the author to gain experience of New Zealand pastoral systems and to develop MEB spreadsheet tools to identify principles of system improvement; and in Phase 2, the tools developed in New Zealand were applied for evaluation of opportunities for farm system improvement in Sabah. In Phase 1, an evaluation was carried out of cumulative changes on New Zealand lower North Island sheep and beef cattle farms from 1980–81/1985–86 to 2010–2011. Herbage harvested on the farms studied, as determined by MEB, was 7.43 t DM ha–1 yr–1 in 1980–81 and only 5.76 t DM ha–1 yr–1 in 2010–11. Also herbage supply (based on GROW model calculations using weather data) had decreased from 9.64 t DM ha–1 yr–1 to 8.70 t DM ha–1 yr–1 (partly due to an apparent climate change effect). However, with the evolution of farm system configurations over the past quarter century focusing on efficiency gain, the feed conversion efficiency (based on national data) improved from 25 kg feed consumed per kg lamb weaned in 1980–81/1985–86 to 19 kg feed consumed per kg lamb weaned in 2010/2011 and the corresponding increases in meat production from 1980–81/1985–86 to 2010/2011 were a rise from 137 kg to 147 kg total beef and lamb carcass per ha per year. Two major drivers of the higher meat production were an increase in lambing percentage, and an increase in weight of lambs and bulls at sale. In Phase 2, a first study in Sabah using the MEB tools developed in New Zealand involved three cut-and-carry feedlots (Brahman, Bali and Droughtmaster cattle), and utilised 5,981 monthly liveweight records of 485 cattle farmed in this system for the period 2008–2013. A second study in Sabah involved five grazing units (Brahman cow-calf, Bali cow-calf, Droughtmaster cow-calf, and Heifer and Brahman bull Units), and included 30,166 monthly liveweight records for 1353 cattle farmed in this system during the same period. A third study involved three oil-palm-integrated cattle (OPIC) farms (two in 9 yr old plantations and one in a 12 yr old plantation) and 600–700 cattle farmed in this system in 2013 and 2014. In this study, animal growth rates were assumed based on records from the nearest government farm with animals of similar breed. For the three systems, herbage-cutting experiments were carried out in August–October 2014 to estimate herbage growth and nutritive value (metabolisable energy and protein contents), and soil samples collected to describe the soil nutrient content. In the cut-and-carry feedlot and grazing cattle farming systems, the herbage harvested, as indicated by the modelling in these systems, was lower (3.74–7.16 t DM ha–1 yr–1 herbage eaten) than the potential yield of the herbage extrapolated from the cutting experiments (6.9–21.3 t DM ha–1 yr–1). In the OPIC farming system, the modelled herbage harvested in 9 yr old plantations was 2.0–2.4 t DM ha–1 yr–1 and that of 12 yr old plantation was 1.4–1.7 t DM ha–1 yr–1. These values are higher than values for potential herbage supply (0.4–0.8 t DM ha–1 yr–1) reported in literature for plantations of similar ages. In all three systems, herbage nutritive value was low (7.0–8.9 MJ ME kg DM–1; 9%–14% CP), calving percentage was low (33%–47%); soil was acidic and soil nutrient content was low; while invasion of non-sown species (native grass) was high. The best average feed conversion efficiencies (FCE) for these systems were 21.3 kg DM kg LWG–1 (cut-and-carry feedlot), 40.2 kg DM kg LWG–1 (grazing), and 32.2 kg DM kg LWG–1 (OPIC). FCE was found to improve with application of N fertiliser and was not necessarily high when feed consumption was intensified (or at high system feed demand). A key statistic defining the stock-configuration in an efficient system for the cut-and-carry feedlot cattle farming system was 994 kg animal LWT ha–1, or a comparative stocking rate (CSR) of 96 kg animal liveweight per tonne feed consumed. For the grazing cattle farming system, the observed optimum was 506 kg animal LWT ha–1, or a CSR of 94 kg LWT t DM–1. The identification of an optimal CSR for the OPIC farming system was limited (by the data supplied by the farms), but the available data indicated that for 9OP1 the CSR was 89 kg LWT t DM–1, or approximately 231 kg animal LWT ha–1. From the series of studies in Sabah, it is concluded that the future focus of the beef industry to expand and improve the productivity should be first to adjust the farm system configuration especially the stocking rate for optimal FCE under the present forage supply regime (and for that purpose a-CSR type of statistics would be useful to determine the appropriate stocking rate), and only then, to develop a pasture husbandry and fertiliser recommendations aimed at improving herbage dry matter harvested towards a target of 14–20 t DM ha–1 yr–1, with ME of 9–10 MJ kg DM–1, and CP of 14%–16% at harvesting or grazing. The herbage production target for the OPIC farming system, however, cannot be determined until the time trajectory of the decreasing system herbage productivity with decreasing oil palm age is fully understood. The use of supplement in the three systems is optional, but if it is used, it should be targeted tactically to reduce liveweight loss and enhance cow reproductive performance.
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    An agro-economic approach to the optimal allocation of land to rubber, oil palm & cocoa : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Agricultural Science in Agricultural Economics at Massey University
    (Massey University, 1990) Guha, Amitabha
    This study details the formulation of a dynamic mathematical programming model for obtaining optimal crop-soil allocation plans for perennial crops. The hypothetical model was built to complement soil survey studies in making land-use recommendations for Malaysian plantations. The intertemporal linear programming model was constructed to solve the problem of allocating Rubber, Oil Palm and Cocoa to various soil types encountered in Malaysia over a three year land allocation period in such a manner so as to maximize the present value of annual after-tax net income over the crops optimal rotation age. The framework also treats alternative goals by requiring basic consumption needs be met, and permits borrowings (upto a prespecified limit) and lendings to cover annual negative and positive annual cash balances respectively. Data input-output coefficients used in model formulation reflect the agro-economic environment in which Malaysian plantations today operate. However, commodity prices forecasted by the FAO for the commodities concerned were used in the valuation of planted assets beyond the three year land allocation model horizon. The results obtained on computation provide detailed planting plans with respect to the amount of a particular soil type that should be allocated to a crop and the year in which the planting(s) should be carried out. In addition, the amount of labour, fertilizer and capital goods required in any of the three years within the horizon is generated, as is the amount of crop produced and sold, AIso, annual income and expenses are automatically allocated to the various tax-brackets in such a manner as to minimize cash lost through taxation. By making multiple optimization runs, the sensitivity of the optimal plan to changes in the various parameters was also examined.
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    The mad dog and the Englishman : a critical history of the running amok as sponteneous naked savage : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Masters of Art in Psychology at Massey University
    (Massey University, 2005) Panikkar, Rajeendernath
    I began this work with the intention of writing a genealogy of amok, the Malay malaise, not long now incorporated into the American Psychiatric Association's Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM), as a culture-bound syndrome. A reading of Foucault's genealogy, and especially of its innumerable critiques, convinced me of the incompatibility of matching an approach steeped in the Western tradition with a 'syndrome' of a people who were long colonised by this West. Foucault's conceptualization, and attributions, of power were also instrumental in my rejection of his incitement to 'write genealogies' (Sawicki, 1991; p. 15), as a method of resisting the 'often oppressive rationalities of discourse in the human sciences' (Lash, 1991; p. 259). In departing from the genealogical approach I have also gravitated to a postcolonial critique of the writing of the Malay and his amok, which I consider to be far more compatible, given his/ her colonisation by a succession of European imperial powers. Not coincidentally, as he is one of Foucault's most vehement critics, I have refracted this critical history of amok through Edward Said's secular-ethical working of the postcolonial thesis. This is my attempt to avoid what Said views to be the 'retreat of intellectual work' from the 'actual society in which it works' (Ashcroft, 2003; p. 264), and into 'the 'labyrinth of textuality' constructed out of 'the mystical and disinfected matter of literary theory' where a 'precious jargon has advanced' (Said, 1983; p. 4). I have then very deliberately attempted to minimise this 'precious jargon' to make this work more accessible. I have not included a literature review in this work and instead furnish the excuse that it is (this work) a literature review of sorts. It is a literary critique of the historical writing of the Malay and his malaise. A final word concerns the likely controversial use of the term, the 'White Man', which reprises a longstanding, and antagonistic, racial dichotomy which I and many others believe to be fundamental to 'modern' history. Though I explain my use of this term in my work, I make my sincere apologies to those who feel aggrieved with my continual reference to the 'White Man'. At times I have felt as aggrieved but, in considering various alternatives, could not in all honesty disregard the only too apparent authority this self-proclaimed 'White Man' has exerted on history, and more particularly, in the context of this thesis, on the Malay World.