• Login
    View Item 
    •   Home
    • Massey Documents by Type
    • Theses and Dissertations
    • View Item
    •   Home
    • Massey Documents by Type
    • Theses and Dissertations
    • View Item
    JavaScript is disabled for your browser. Some features of this site may not work without it.

    New Zealand's energy policy from the world system perspective : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Philosophy in Development Studies at Massey University

    Icon
    View/Open Full Text
    01_front.pdf (515.4Kb)
    02_whole.pdf (20.69Mb)
    Abstract
    The World-System Theory of Immanuel Wallerstein is a grand-scale theory that is useful as a framework to understand how New Zealand's path of development has been affected by the country's energy policy. The theory is appropriate in application to energy issues because its macro-level of analysis puts emphasis on both exogenous and endogenous factors. Its special emphasis on historical background and context also adds to an understanding of the New Zealand position. The World-System perspective offers three major concepts directly applicable to the case of New Zealand energy policy, namely, the interplay between politics and economics with a particular interest in the role of multinational corporations (MNCs) and the state, the notion of semiperiphery, and the cyclical nature of the world economy. During the period of the 1970s economic downturn marked by two oil crises, New Zealand as well as most other countries and the MNCs suffered a severe setback. However, while most core states, as well as some successful non-core states and the oil majors, could react appropriately to the crises and retain their potential for growth, the semiperipheral New Zealand could not. The country possessed few options because of her intermediate level of industrialisation and less competent state apparatus compared to the MNCs involved. Lacking the intention to promote local industrial capitalists, the New Zealand state chose wrong strategies, first Think Big and then disinvestment, which together have undermined the bargaining position of local entrepreneurs, over-committed the national hydrocarbon resource and disproportionately promoted the interest of the foreign oil corporations. The overall outcome of the energy policy is therefore detrimental to the country's development.
    Date
    1994
    Author
    Debahasatin, Jutha
    Rights
    The Author
    Publisher
    Massey University
    URI
    http://hdl.handle.net/10179/10946
    Collections
    • Development Studies
    • Theses and Dissertations
    Metadata
    Show full item record

    Copyright © Massey University
    Contact Us | Send Feedback | Copyright Take Down Request | Massey University Privacy Statement
    DSpace software copyright © Duraspace
    v5.7-2020.1
     

     

    Tweets by @Massey_Research
    Information PagesContent PolicyDepositing content to MROCopyright and Access InformationDeposit LicenseDeposit License SummaryTheses FAQFile FormatsDoctoral Thesis Deposit

    Browse

    All of MROCommunities & CollectionsBy Issue DateAuthorsTitlesSubjectsThis CollectionBy Issue DateAuthorsTitlesSubjects

    My Account

    LoginRegister

    Statistics

    View Usage Statistics

    Copyright © Massey University
    Contact Us | Send Feedback | Copyright Take Down Request | Massey University Privacy Statement
    DSpace software copyright © Duraspace
    v5.7-2020.1