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Portraits of people and places of developing countries : a literary analysis of the public faces of development as presented in popular literature : case study: A Small Place (1988) by Jamaica Kincaid : a thesis presented in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Masters of Philosophy in Development Studies at Massey University
(Massey University, 2006) Faloon-Cavander, Jacinda,
The literature that keeps me awake at night, containing written images that impress a certain public face of development, is the topic and exploration of this thesis. That the general public still lack in understanding regarding matters of development is key to carrying out this literature analysis. Images of the developing world are everywhere, and as such, an example of non-technical, non-industry specific creative writing is chosen for examination to highlight this point. The short, punctuating and controversial 'essay' A Small Place, by Caribbean author Jamaica Kincaid, is the case study for this thesis. The literature review is in four parts presenting the idea of public faces of development, the importance of interdisciplinary study combining literature with the humanities, an view of the underpinning contemporary themes of development - focusing on foundations of belief as opposed to physical conditions of development situations, and an introduction to Jamaica Kincaid and issues in Caribbean women's literature. Through the example of this case study, that takes its shape from close observations of the text, I conclude that popular literature has not only a literary place in ethnographic discussions, but an important historical and scientific place that helps the general reader to identify the difference between truth and fallacy represented in the various public faces of development.
Synergising youth empowerment and co-design to transform Pasifika youth into agents of social change : a novel approach to advance healthy lifestyles in Pasifika communities : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements of Doctor of Philosophy in Public Health at Massey University, Wellington campus, New Zealand
(Massey University, 2020) Prapavessis, Dani
Current population health statistics demonstrate the need for innovative approaches to improve health outcomes and prevent non-communicable disease (NCD) for Pasifika peoples. This research builds off pilot studies on the effects of youth empowerment programmes to address obesity-related issues amongst Pasifika communities. It developed and tested an original model of co-design embedded within the youth empowerment framework of the Pasifika Prediabetes Youth Empowerment Programme. The programme was co-delivered with two community health service providers (one rural and one urban), employing Community-Based Participatory Research (CBPR) methodology. N=29 youth (aged 15-24 years) participated in eleven educational and capacity-building modules that comprised the empowerment and co-design components during weekly sessions from MayOctober 2018. At the end of the programme, the model of co-design generated two individualised community intervention action plans to reduce prediabetes in their communities. This research employed a qualitative research design with four data collection techniques and thematic analysis to evaluate the effects of the tested programme. It used an original framework of social change to determine the impacts on the youth’s values, knowledge, and behaviours as well as the community organisations, and the socio-cultural norms of each community. It also explicated the contextual considerations of programme uptake in each location. Overall, this research illustrated that co-design is an effective addition to empowerment frameworks. It demonstrated how to operationalise co-design in a community-based setting with youth, and the tested model provided a practical framework to translate empowerment ii outcomes into the community. The programme analyses also led to a more nuanced understanding of social change. This research developed a concept of the process of social change that can be used to inform future programme development and evaluation. This research suggests future translations of the programme to maximise uptake and postulates different community contexts and settings for delivery, beyond Pasifika prediabetes prevention.
A period of change : menstruation in the media : a 60-credit Journalism project presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Journalism at Massey University, New Zealand
(Massey University, 2020) Bhamidipati, Soumya
This project examines the portrayal of menstruation in news and other media. It provides an in-depth examination of New Zealand media coverage of the ‘Positive Periods’ petition for government funding of menstrual products in schools and explores how news coverage of issues can lead to social change movements. Additionally, it examines the use of framing, news values, as well as the practical limitations of journalists who have covered menstruation stories in New Zealand media.
Development education and social change : a study of a Christian development action agency : a thesis ... for the degree of Master of Philosophy in Social Sciences at Massey University
(Massey University, 1982) Elliott, Michael Cowan
Over the past twenty-five years the social teaching of both the Roman Catholic Church and the World Council of Churches has produced critiques of the dominant capitalist and socialist theories of development. The teaching focuses on issues of justice and liberation, and on the poor and oppressed peoples of the world who must become the primary beneficiaries of development programmes. In New Zealand the churches, which have a history of ecumenical cooperation, jointly established an agency to pursue development education and action in a manner consistent with this social teaching. The agency was established in the course of a conference which helped participants reflect on an exposure to situations of poverty in Auckland, and it has consistently followed this action-reflection methodology. Its founders committed it to a structural change approach to development rather than to concepts of incremental planned change. The agency (The Ecumenical Secretariat on Development, ESOD) has employed the community organization techniques of Saul Alinsky, complemented by the conscientization methodology developed by Paulo Freire, as tools for the establishment of a socialist society. These techniques, promoted amongst groups working for justice and liberation in New Zealand, provoked a demand for more disciplined analysis, as pieces of local action recognized the need to relate to a global perspective. In response, the agency developed a programme of structural analysis, "Education for Social Change", which is based on learnings from both historicist and structuralist marxist schools. Analysis in turn has revealed the limitations of the community organization approach unless it is linked to fundamental political processes. Commitment to the need for structural change in society, and to the poor and oppressed as agents of change, inevitably brought the agency into conflict not just with the political establishment, but with elements within the churches.
An exploration of women's involvement in social change current directions in community work practice : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Social Work Massey University
(Massey University, 1994) Brown, Loretta
This thesis explores the nature of community work in Aotearoa, specifically women's involvement in radical practice. The research particularly aimed to present a portrait of the elements of contemporary feminist inspired practice, as well as to investigate the significance of ideology in the participants' work. A feminist research methodology is used, namely multiple, in depth, semi-structured interviewing. Three, two hour interviews were conducted individually with four women who work for social change. The interviews involved a reciprocal process of story telling and self reflection, where the women explored how they understand themselves and what has shaped their commitment to social change. The women's stories encompass personal and every day aspects of life, an articulation of their vision for the future, and a commentary on aspects of broader institutional change. The research identifies aspects of the social context currently effecting community work, including the impact of libertarian political philosophies, and the ramifications of sexual abuse of children. The insights gained are examined in the light of contemporary theories of community work and social change, in particular critical theory, feminism and postmodernism. The significance of ideology for community work practice is shown to be highly relevant for contemporary practice. Consequently, the Sayer Ideology Model (1990) of community work can be seen as having potential for the education of those working for social change. The current directions and issues for contemporary practice are identified, generally focusing on the unique aspects of our lives which are neglected and denied by the dominant patriarchal culture. A strong emphasis on aspects of women's spirituality was demonstrated, and this was strengthened by a feminist analysis and a strong political analysis. The radical agenda in community work is shown to be alive and growing, despite the challenges of the current context.
Gendering trauma and healing in a post-conflict environment : Las Dignas, mental health, and the empowerment of Salvadoran women
(Massey University, 1999) Leslie, Helen Margaret
There is no doubt that the experience of war, be it war between nation states or civil war, varies considerably for both male and females. The twelve year civil war in El Salvador was no exception. Salvadoran women who worked in various sectors as combatants, urban collaborators, home-makers, nurses, cooks or radio operators for the guerrilla forces, experienced the war and now experience so-called peace, in ways that relate directly to the construction of the female sex in Salvadoran society. As a result of these gendered experiences many Salvadoran women are suffering trauma despite the cessation of the war in 1992. This trauma acts to disempower these women and to prevent them from actively participating in the important processes of post-conflict reconstruction currently taking place in Salvadoran society This thesis aims to analyse the approach taken by one Salvadoran organisation for feminist political action, Las Dignas, in healing the trauma of Salvadoran women. Reviewing relevant literature on gender and development theory and gender and conflict theory, and drawing on feminist methods in the fieldwork context, it will show how the healing process employed by Las Dignas is empowering Salvadoran women at both personal and socio-political levels. The conclusions derived from this research process are as follows. Firstly, by incorporating mental health into their gender and development programme, Las Dignas has recognised the importance of a gendered approach to healing in the post-conflict context. This form of approach has the potential to empower women to reconstruct their gendered identities so that they are able to actively participate in efforts to eradicate the machismo, inequality and poverty that continues to plague Salvadoran society. Secondly, because it is evident that a gendered approach to healing has been successful in empowering women in post-conflict El Salvador, there is a need to integrate the concept of empowerment into mental health interventions for women in the numerous post-conflict environments that also exist in today's world.
From rocking the cradle to rocking the system : women, community work and social change in Aotearoa : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy, Department of Social Policy and Social Work, Massey University
(Massey University, 1991) Craig, Wendy
This dissertation explores women's involvement in community work in Aotearoa. It is argued that women's significant contributions to community work have been hidden, devalued or ignored in mainstream writing and teaching. This study documents women's experiences and their perceptions of these experiences; such stories which are very seldom told. It also focusses on an explanation of social change from the perspective of women community workers. These women view community work as a site of struggle for change, through the processes of empowerment, self-determination and working collectively. Sixteen women, eight Maori and eight pakeha, participated in this study. These women have been identified as change agents and throughout their stories they constantly link their daily experiences to national, global and structural issues. All of the women have made a commitment to working towards change. This commitment has not always been been without cost to themselves and to their families. Although the changes that the women have achieved can, at times, be seen as reformist in nature, it is argued that as women's community work challenges the practices of the state, it contributes to social change processes. The approach taken is informed by my socialist feminist perspective. Issues pertaining to gender, race and, to some extent, class are considered in this thesis.. The study concludes that future theorising about community work in Aotearoa, must, of necessity show, more effectively how gender, race and class are interrelated. The differences between the Maori and pakeha women's stories indicate that gender cannot be examined in isolation from race. The existence of gender, as a category, is shaped also by other relations such as race and class. In articulating their struggles for change, the women reveal that there is much to be learned about the politics of caring. The women recognise that they have been trained to be the caregivers in society. For these women, however, caring plays an important role in the social change process. Their approach is based on an empowering model rather than a dependency one. Yet, whilst the women celebrate their own capacities related to caring, they are also concerned that men stand back from, and even devalue, this essential role which enables society to function. Thus community work is frequently conceptualised as women's work, and the women have to struggle to be recognised and paid for it. This thesis also shows that, despite the differences between the Maori and pakeha women, their relationship is generally co-operative and the potential for them to learn from one another exists. Through their collective involvement in the Aotearoa Community Workers Association the women have found ways to work towards a partnership which is based on an understanding of the rights of Maori as the indigenous people of Aotearoa. This research serves as a celebration of the women's experiences and knowledge of community work in Aotearoa. It is documented in a way that other women community workers can use to reflect on their own work. The challenge of any research and action is to not only record people's experiences, but also to use our knowledge, both written and oral, to provide an explanation of our current reality in order to , if necessary, change this reality. This dissertation, as part of a social process, has attempted to achieve this aim.
Silent invocations : music, sublimation, and social transformation : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Sociology at Massey University, Albany
(Massey University, 2011) Bolitho, Wendy Anne
On the premise that human subjectivity and social bonds are formed through language, Lacanian psychoanalysis is utilised in contemporary cultural and social-political theory as an analytic tool to explore human relationality, identity formation and to ascertain the dynamics of social life in the hope that the worst manifestations of violence and exploitation might be averted. The Lacanian wager suggests that any significant and lasting transformation of human relationality requires the reconfiguration of the unconscious co-ordinates of subjectivity through a particular practice of speech and speaking. In this assertion, however, Lacanian theory appears to present a point of impasse around the inability for the kernel of the human condition (the Lacanian Real) to be negotiated by purely symbolic means. Given that music and musical practices are closely allied to the structure of language and its temporal articulation as speech, but have remained outside psychoanalytic theorisation, this thesis approaches the Lacanian opus from the perspective of artistic musical practices to reassess the mechanisms that forge and reshape human relations and social formations. If cultural practices are the fulcrum upon which the entwinement of the social-political realm and singular instances of subjectivity emerge, then artistic practices and processes – especially musical improvisation and composition – offer a particularly felicitous model to explore and explicate the mechanisms and conditions of contingent possibility through which reconfigurations of social-political life might occur. Applying a wide range of theoretical and practical musical knowledge to the close reading of the English translations of Jacques Lacan's Seminars and writings, this thesis makes the case that 'music' (understood as a performative and creative trans-subjective act of structuring sound) constitutes an alternative form of artistic 'writing practice', and a viewpoint from which a productive analysis and creative expansion of psychoanalytic theory can justifiably be envisaged. To this end, it also identifies the need to reconsider the prevailing emphasis on unconscious fantasy and its traversal in post-Marxist debates, in favour of a rearticulation of the efficacy of artistic practices that Lacan considered to be a privileged form of sublimation capable of social transformation.
The influence of context : social movements, knowledge, and social change : a thesis presented in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Sociology at Massey University
(Massey University, 1999) Denton, J. A. Margaret
Sociological approaches to social movements are discussed. I argue that the unintended consequences of social movement activity tend to be ignored. Social movement activity often exacerbates existing social divisions, and how this happens is not explained. I argue that this exacerbation is a consequence of divergent understandings, where it is not simply the case that one side of the conflict is 'right' and another 'wrong'. I examine debates in quantum physics, feminist epistemology, the sociology of scientific knowledge and ecocentric sociology for insights into how such differences in understandings arise. I find four different ways in which knowledge is shaped: through our ongoing socialisation, through the particular experiences that we draw on (observe) to form that knowledge, through physiological processes, and through being shaped for an end use. To take the influence of these contexts into account we need to maintain a distinction between reality and preterreality, and between noumena and phenomena. I argue for an evolutionary approach to understanding the ongoing mutual influence between our experiences and our understandings. I draw on Durkheim's theorisation of the emergence of understandings from social categories and recent work in the sociology of emotions to develop an understanding of the ongoing processes of mutual inherence that constitutes our identity in relationship to our social experience. I argue that the social does not exist as noumena; yet our understandings usually assume that it does. The social exists in the phenomena we experience, and is increasingly stabilised by socialised noumena as our shared understandings diverge. Social movements enable understandings to emerge from the social experience of the movement; but people outside the movement do not share that experience. Any understanding is not readily grasped by people who have not had congruent social experiences. Being exposed to social movement understandings will then mean that the ideas and experiences that were not congruent will be revisited and so reinforced. When social movement insights are enforced through regulative fiat the social situation can diverge further by introducing new forms of closure. I examine some ways in which this has occurred in public sector reforms in New Zealand. I suggest a way in which social movements can act to avoid this, by developing social movement sacraments that align processes of mutual inherence with social movement objectives.
Motivation for change in the discipline of children : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Social Work, Massey University, Auckland, New Zealand
(Massey University, 2009) Madgeskind, Sharon Mary
Since becoming the first English speaking country to legislate against the physical discipline of children in 2007, there has been much debate in New Zealand for and against the parental practice of smacking. For some it has meant a welcome amendment to legislation that protects the human rights of children, for others it raises fears that parents can be criminalised for smacking their children and that the rights of parents to discipline their child, as they see fit, are being eroded. Working for an organisation that fully supports the Amendment to Section 59 of the Crimes Act, 1961 and that promotes the human rights of children; the motivating factors that encourage a parent to stop the practice of physically disciplining their child became of interest to the researcher for this thesis. Ten participants, who had used physical discipline and who had made a decision to stop the practice, were recruited to take part in a qualitative study. The data collected was analysed through a thematic analysis process using five motivational contexts found in previous research on the topic. The five contexts were experiential, relational, biographical, regulatory and ideological (Davis, 1999). The findings of the research for this thesis concur with the previous research and add further information about the motivating factors. The findings also identify the strategies that parents have found useful to achieve success in their endeavour to change their disciplinary practice. Furthermore the importance of and the distinction between the human rights of the child and parental rights have been highlighted.

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