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Item With polls showing Labour could govern alone, is New Zealand returning to the days of ‘elected dictatorship’?(The Conversation Media Group Ltd, 2020-09-28) Shaw RItem Rogue poll or not, all the signs point to a tectonic shift in New Zealand politics(The Conversation Media Group Ltd, 2020-07-28) Shaw RItem People do change their beliefs about conspiracy theories-but not often.(Springer Nature Limited, 2024-02-15) Williams MN; Ling M; Kerr JR; Hill SR; Marques MD; Mawson H; Clarke EJRRecent research has produced a significant body of knowledge about the antecedents and consequences of individual differences in belief in conspiracy theories. What is less clear, however, is the extent to which individuals' beliefs in conspiracy theories vary over time (i.e., within-person variation). In this descriptive and exploratory study, we therefore aimed to describe within-person variability in belief in conspiracy theories. We collected data from 498 Australians and New Zealanders using an online longitudinal survey, with data collected at monthly intervals over 6 months (March to September 2021). Our measure of conspiracy theories included items describing ten conspiracy theories with responses on a 5-point Likert scale. While there was substantial between-person variance, there was much less within-person variance (intraclass r = 0.91). This suggests that beliefs in conspiracy theories were highly stable in our sample. This stability implies that longitudinal studies testing hypotheses about the causes and consequences of belief in conspiracy theories may require large samples of participants and time points to achieve adequate power. It also implies that explanations of belief in conspiracy theories need to accommodate the observation that beliefs in such theories vary much more between people than within people.Item Predictors of voter support for the legalization of recreational cannabis use and supply via a national referendum(Elsevier B.V, 2022-01) Wilkins C; Tremewan J; Rychert M; Atkinson Q; Fischer K; Forsyth GALBackground A national referendum to legalise recreational cannabis use and supply in New Zealand via the Cannabis Legalisation and Control Bill (CLCB) was recently narrowly defeated. Understanding the underlying factors for this result can inform the cannabis legalisation debate in other countries. Aims To investigate predictors of voter support for and opposition to the CLCB. Method A representative population panel of 1,022 people completed an online survey of intended voting on the CLCB referendum, which included questions on demographics, drug use history, medicinal cannabis, perceptions of the health risk and moral views of cannabis use, political affiliation, religiosity, community size and reading of the CLCB. Regression models were developed to predict support for the CLCB, with additional predictor variables added over successive iterations. Results The most robust predictors of support for the CLCB were use of and policy support for medicinal cannabis use, voting for a left-wing political party, having a positive moral view of cannabis use, living in a small town and having read the CLCB. Predictors of opposing the CLCB were voting for right-wing parties, considering “frequent” cannabis use to be a high health risk, and lifetime use of other drugs. Age, ethnicity, education, employment status, religiosity and lifetime cannabis use were not significant predictors after controlling for other variables. Conclusions Support for cannabis legalization was not based on broad demographics, but rather specific views concerning the medicinal benefit, morality of cannabis use, health risk of frequent cannabis use, political party affiliation, and knowledge of the proposed regulatory controls of the CLCB. The influence of moral views of cannabis use on voting behaviour suggest the need to debate the right to use cannabis. The importance of knowledge of the proposed regulatory controls of the CLCB on voting underlines the need to raise awareness of proposed regulatory controls during debate.Item Practicing concrete universality : psychoanalysis as a political method : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in Sociology, Massey University, Albany, New Zealand(Massey University, 2006) McMillan, Christopher WardLacanian psychoanalysis, embodied in contemporary thought by Slavoj Žižek's dialectical materialist rehabilitation of universality, enables a form of political analysis based on the possibility of structural change. Many political theorists argue that because psychoanalysis stresses the negative ontological base of the social (the Real) it is fundamentally conservative and nihilistic. Conversely, the very political value of psychoanalysis lies in its accent on the Real. However, there are two separate psychoanalytic perspectives on the Real. The idealist approach, which contends that every social construction is essentially conditional, is politically and theoretically limited. In contrast, Žižek's materialist perspective emphasises the fundamental fixity which lies in the necessary exclusion from a universal horizon. Thus, the main political insight of Lacanian psychoanalysis is not to reveal the contingency of the social, but rather the disavowed foundation on which these constructions are based; the concrete universal. This thesis argues for a Žižek-inspired psychoanalytic approach to the political which 'practices concrete universality'. Conversely, while Žižek himself considers his own theoretical endeavours as an application of this task, his work can appear to be at times abstract and obscure, such that the reader is not sure exactly what it is that Žižek is arguing. As such, this thesis seeks to develop a methodological position that practices concrete universality, taking on the fundamental insights of Žižek's position whilst grounding them in a methodology which can be applied for political intervention. The methodology analyses both the manner in which universal imaginaries domesticate the effect of the symptom (that which represents the concrete universal) and the possibilities for practicing concrete universality and in doing so evoking radical structural change. These possibilities are considered against global capital, which Žižek describes as a modality of the Real. Capital has produced a paradoxical and pressing condition in humanity is living both well beyond and beneath its material needs and the finite capacity of the planet to provide for those needs. Rather than seeking an impossible utopian revolution (the removal of all lack), by evoking the concrete universal it is hoped that humanity can rid itself of that lack which is historical contingent; global capital.Item 'As loyal citizens......' : the relationship between New Zealand Catholicism, the state and politics, 1945-1965 : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in History at Massey University, Albany, New Zealand(Massey University, 2014) Buckley, BarryThis thesis has asked how both Church and state worked with one another across three areas of mutual concern, namely education, welfare and the anti-communist campaign. They were moderately successful. A combination of ecclesiology, ideology and pragmatism underpinned the interaction between the parties. Ordinary Catholics, like other Christians, were influenced by both secular and spiritual concerns, and there were a variety of viewpoints within the Church on those issues where the state was involved. The relationship of church and state during the twenty years from 1945 to 1965, was both confrontational and highly supportive. Education had been the point of conflict since 1877, while the anti-communist activity sponsored by the Church actively supported successive governments in rebuffing communism. As the Welfare State expanded, there were differences as to how far the state should intrude into the lives of its citizens. Catholic social teaching was always wary of a slide into totalitarianism, but Church and state co-operated in the provision of a range of caring services whose cost effectiveness was helped by a low cost religious workforce. Such social services were needed for ordinary Catholics amidst the demands of modern living. Until the reforms of Vatican II, the Church was principally concerned with itself and its people. Catholic separatism was accepted by the state as a condition for participation. By 1965 it was evident that reform would change the nature of the relationship between the Catholic Church and the state. From the end of the Second World War until then, both the state and Church had to deal with a changing world: a rapidly expanding population; major changes to education; the slow dissolution of sectarian rivalry; the manner in which secularisation affected state sector policy and the increasing expectation that Christian values and viewpoint have a single unified voice. By 1965 these factors helped put the Catholic Church on a quite different relationship with the state than had been the case in 1945, although not one which saw a diminished role or influence.Item The politics of development aid : the allocation and delivery of aid from the United States of America to Pakistan : a thesis submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Development Studies at Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand(Massey University, 2012) Ali, MuradThis thesis investigates two aspects of the United States of America (USA) foreign aid to Pakistan: allocation and delivery. Regarding the former, the study explores the principal determinants of USA foreign aid to Pakistan during three distinct periods: the Cold War, the post-Cold War of the 1990s and the =war on terror‘ since 2001. In order to have a comprehensive, in-depth and balanced analysis of the primary motivations behind the USA aid disbursement to Pakistan, the study also examines the provision of USA aid to other important USA allies including Egypt, Israel and Turkey. The focus has been to explore to what extent USA foreign aid policies are driven by USA geo-strategic ambitions, and to what extent widely espoused international principles such as poverty reduction as well as democracy and respect for human rights determine USA aid allocations. This research has found that the USA aid regime, both historical as well as contemporary, has largely been motivated and sustained by USA geo-strategic, security and political goals. In the context of USA aid to Pakistan, the thesis finds that the contemporary USA-Pakistan alliance in the =war on terror‘ has striking similarities with the Cold War period. Then, the primary objective of USA aid to Pakistan was anti-communism; now it is anti-terrorism. In relation to the second aspect of the study, the thesis examines the delivery and utilization of USA aid in Pakistan within the 2005 Paris Declaration (PD) framework that contains five interrelated principles aimed at enhancing ownership, alignment, harmonisation, management for development results and mutual accountability between donors and partner countries. Both Pakistan and the USA are signatories to the PD; hence the respective roles of different ministries and departments of the Government of Pakistan (GoP) and the role of Unites States Agency for International Development (USAID) are examined in USA-funded projects. The aim is to investigate to what extent the PD commitments are being implemented in actual practices during the selection, design and execution of development projects. The study has found that there are issues from both the GoP and USAID ends that hinder the actual implementation of the PD commitments. On the part of the former, lack of institutional capacity and corruption are the key challenges. Concerning the latter, USAID still does not delegate authority to GoP institutions to design and implement projects and instead comes up with its own plans and executes these through its international partners working as substitutes for GoP institutions. As a result, almost half of the aid is being consumed by USAID‘s international contractors on the management and administration of USA-funded projects. Furthermore, most aid is being spent on activities which do not address the actual problems of the targeted population. The thesis contributes to the body of knowledge concerning the allocation and delivery of aid from =rich‘ to =poor‘ countries. Its two-fold contribution is, first, it has uncovered the primary determinants of the historical as well as contemporary USA aid provision to Pakistan. Second, it is one of the very few in-depth studies that has looked into the implementation of the PD principles at the country level and has uncovered the constraints responsible for the lack of progress towards achieving the PD partnership commitments in the context of USA aid to Pakistan.Item Making resistance politics : the opposition to genetic engineering in Aotearoa New Zealand : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Sociology(Massey University, 2011) Tucker, Corrina AdeleThe politics making of genetic engineering resistance in Aotearoa New Zealand involves a complex interplay between a diverse core of movement network actors and a broad, mediated collective identity. The movement’s organisational structure and cultural meanings comprise both diversity and cohesion, which enhance each other, making for successful politics making. This thesis demonstrates how these seemingly contradictory movement features were able to coexist. Drawing on in-depth interviews with 18 key activists, this research investigated how the movement was structurally and culturally organised. Previous social movement analyses have tended to separate structure from culture, resulting in one-sided interpretations that have not adequately addressed the role both elements play in making politics. To overcome this shortcoming, this thesis developed a complementary approach to methodology and analysis that drew on social network analysis to investigate organisational structure, and framing to explore meaning-making and the achievement of collective identity. The network structure of the movement is decentralised, non-hierarchical, flexible and complex. This has enabled both diversity (seen in movement sub-groups, strategic and tactical disparities), and coordination (seen in the significant overlap of relational ties and the convergence of actors in mass mobilisations), to exist at the same time. The same kinds of characteristics are evident when looking to framing and movement collective identity. Activists relayed a broad range of oppositions to genetic engineering, but at the same time their concerns were shared at an elementary level, and were posed as challenging common understandings of Aotearoa New Zealand. The movement was therefore deeply engaged with and embedded in the wider cultural context of this country. The characteristics of flexibility and embeddedness displayed in this movement are a powerful combination for movement mobilisation and endurance. Until there is a commercial release of a genetically engineered crop in this country, the potential for future mobilisation remains.Item Making politics go well down under : public journalism in New Zealand daily newspapers : a thesis presented in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Management in Communication Management at Massey University, Wellington, New Zealand(Massey University, 2008) Venables, DavidThe literature on the use of public journalism suggests that it can lead to different news coverage than is traditionally provided by the news media. Specifically, these differences have been identified in story content, use of different sources and use of mobilising information. This thesis asks whether such differences can be identified in newspapers’ coverage of the 2001 Local Body Elections in New Zealand. The research involved content analysis of New Zealand’s six largest daily newspapers, three of them with experience of using public journalism and three with no such experience. Interviews were also conducted with two or three senior journalists involved in organising each paper’s election campaign in order to explore their goals for the election coverage and evaluation of it. The results mirror those of previous research by showing significant differences in the coverage of the newspapers with public journalism experience in relation to some factors, but not others. The papers with a public journalism background consistently used more non-elite sources than the traditional papers, but did not consistently use more female sources. They also included mobilising information in stories more frequently and made greater use of story features, or “elements”, associated with public journalism. However, one of the papers with no experience of public journalism also ranked highly in relation to these two factors. The interviews revealed some differences in goals among the journalists, but this was not a simple split between the journalists on papers with public journalism experience and the other journalists. For example, not all interviewees working for the papers experienced in using public journalism agreed that their goal should be to boost voter turnout. Nor was an overt commitment to supporting the democratic process expressed only by staff on the papers with public journalism experience. The interviews did, however, identify that only the three newspapers with a public journalism background used polling to identify the issues that were important to the public and proceeded to cover these issues during their election campaignItem Formation, durability and susceptibility : coalition traits that affected New Zealand's MMP governments of 1996-2002 : a dissertation presented in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Public Policy, Massey University, Albany Campus, North Shore City, New Zealand(Massey University, 2007) Gillon, Grant MarcThis thesis explores the relevant impact of three influences - policy, personality and opportunity - on New Zealand governments since 1996. The Mixed Member Proportional electoral system (MMP) was adopted by New Zealand for the 1996 general election. The various coalition government arrangements since then have been analysed using a series of case studies of identified events during coalitions’ crucial pre-election, formation, duration and termination stages. The roles assumed by, or perceived of, small parties have been important as have the actions of the pivotal party in each government. My interest in this topic springs from my service as an Alliance MP. I was an Alliance party list Member of Parliament during the 45th and 46th Parliaments (1996-2002). Systems theory was relied upon as the methodology with which to study relevant political processes. Key informant interviews and participant observation were the main research methods. This research investigates the traits, apparent in the coalitions formed from 1996 until 2002, which contributed to each government’s continuation or termination. Each stage reflected the parties’ competing interests as argued by theorists such as Muller and Strøm. Wolfgang Muller and Kaare Strøm knitted together theoretical approaches and concluded that politicians are motivated by competing goals. This seminal work provides the theoretical guideline for explaining events in New Zealand and was adopted as a framework to develop this research. Coalitions faced policy shocks, adverse polls and other critical events during the three coalition governments included in this study. Politicians adapted the formal and informal constraints. In this way, they attempted to strengthen the attributes of both the Parliaments and Cabinet to ensure that they were robust enough to withstand adverse incidents. Politicians’ ambitions fluctuated between seeking office, policy objectives or electoral support depending upon the circumstances of the time. Stable and durable coalitions, as desired by the 1986 Royal Commission on the Electoral System, were those where the relevant parties’ leadership enjoyed positive relationships with each other. However, parties could not be considered to be unitary actors. Intra-party relationships were important factors. Intra-party dissension contributed to inter-party conflict and vice versa. Governments that were terminated earlier than constitutionally required suffered from deteriorating intra-party and/or inter-party relationships. The crucial component identified as an important consideration for the success or otherwise of any coalition government can be summed up as that pertaining to ‘relationship issues’ as affected by policy, personality and opportunity.