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Preparation, characterisation, and application of plant protein-dairy protein hybrid nano assemblies : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Food Technology, Massey University, Auckland, New Zealand
(Massey University, 2026) Thind, Imaan
For centuries, pulses have played a significant role in human nutrition due to their high protein, dietary fibre, vitamins and minerals content. Faba bean is a good source of protein with a well-balanced amino acid profile and offers environmental advantages such as nitrogen fixation and adaptability to colder climates. Despite being rich in nutrients, faba bean proteins exhibit poor functionality, including low solubility, a high tendency to form aggregates, and the presence of antinutritional factors. These challenges limit the commercial use of faba bean proteins in food systems that require strong emulsification and gelation. Combining faba bean proteins with the dairy proteins is a promising approach to improve the functionality of faba bean protein isolate (FPI) while maintaining sustainability. This research is based on this background, which investigates how faba bean protein isolate (FPI) and whey protein isolate (WPI) can be combined to create a functional hybrid which addresses the growing sustainable needs. WPI is well known for its excellent functional properties, such as solubility, interfacial behaviour, and gelation, but it is not particularly sustainable. Combining FPI and WPI is a promising approach, but understanding their different behaviours and the best way to incorporate them is essential for practical use in food systems. In this study, FPI, WPI, and their blends were processed using heat treatment, cold sonication, and thermosonication to investigate the effects of these treatments on particle size, structural organisation, zeta potential, emulsification, and gelation properties. The untreated sample, especially those with high FPI content such as WPI: FPI (2:8 and 0:10), showed larger particle sizes due to stronger hydrophobic interactions. Cold sonication disrupted intermolecular bonds, resulting in a smaller particle size. In contrast, heat treatment was most effective on higher WPI-ratio mixtures (WPI: FPI (10:0 and 8:2)) rather than higher FPI-ratio mixtures (WPI: FPI (2:8 and 0:10)), resulting in higher turbidity and aggregation. Thermosonication was effective in producing smaller, more uniform particles across all samples. Zeta potential results showed that WPI-rich solutions (WPI: FPI (10:0 and 8:2)) exhibited higher negative charge and greater stability. SDS-PAGE confirmed structural changes in mixtures of different WPI: FPI ratios. The results showed that samples with higher FPI (WPI: FPI (2:8 and 0:10)) exhibited greater protein aggregation, particularly under non-reducing conditions. Among all the treatments, thermosonication showed the most precise and most organised band patterns, thus justifying the fact that it induces the reorganisation and unfolding of proteins more than any other treatment. Thermosonication significantly improved (P<0.05) emulsifying properties, especially of the higher FPI-ratio blends (WPI: FPI (2:8 and 0:10)). Under oscillatory rheology, these emulsions showed smaller oil droplet sizes and a stronger gel-like structure. Cold-sonication showed less improvement in emulsion stability and gel-like behaviour than thermosonication, and heat treatment was more effective on the blends with the higher WPI ratio, especially WPI: FPI (10:0). Overall, thermosonication enhanced interfacial behaviour, improved adsorption, and led to the formation of a stronger interfacial film. Acid-induced gels were formed using glucono-δ-lactone to study the gelation properties of the proteins. Untreated and cold-sonicated gels were weaker, while heat-treated gels were stronger, especially in higher WPI-ratio systems, particularly WPI: FPI (10:0). Among the treated gel samples across the WPI: FPI ratios studied, thermosonicated gels were the strongest as confirmed by confocal microscopy, which revealed uniform, dense structures. Water-holding capacity results further confirmed that the thermosonicated gels retained water better, even in higher FPI-ratio samples (WPI: FPI (5:5 and 0:10)). This can be explained by the combined effect of thermosonication's mechanical disruption and protein unfolding. These findings demonstrate that thermosonication, as a processing method, can help overcome the limitations of the FPI by forming a hybrid system with the WPI. The study shows that hybrids of these two proteins behave differently from the individual proteins, and this behaviour can be altered by using the proper processing method. Thermosonication produced the best and most consistent overall results by reducing particle size, improving emulsifying and gelation behaviour, and increasing water-holding capacity. This study highlights the potential of combining WPI and FPI to form hybrid systems that yield high-performing food formulations and support sustainability. This research provides the pathway to develop new protein formulations for the future of sustainable food production.
Organisational-related social support and employee acceptance of change : the roles of occupational self-efficacy as a mediator and mindfulness as a moderator : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts (Psychology) at Massey University, Albany, New Zealand. EMBARGOED until 17th February 2028
(Massey University, 2026) Gardner, Scott
Organisational change is a frequently occurring and pervasive feature of contemporary workplaces, yet employees often differ in how they respond to and accept change. Drawing on Conservation of Resources theory, this study examined the relationships between employee perceptions of workplace social support and employee acceptance of change, with occupational self-efficacy as a potential mediator and mindfulness as a potential moderator of these relationships. Utilising a cross-sectional survey design, data was collected from 142 full-time employees in Aotearoa New Zealand who had experienced at least one type of organisational change within the last six months in their current role. Participants completed self-report measures of perceived organisational, supervisor, and coworker support, occupational self-efficacy, mindfulness, and acceptance of change. Relevant demographic information was also collected. Pearson correlation and regression-based mediation and moderation analyses were conducted. Perceived organisational support and perceived supervisor support were positively associated with occupational self-efficacy, though no significant associations with acceptance of change were identified. Perceived coworker support was not significantly associated with occupational self-efficacy or acceptance of change. Occupational self-efficacy was positively associated with employee acceptance of change across all models. Occupational self-efficacy did not mediate the relationships between any of the three forms of workplace social support and acceptance of change. Rather than functioning as a mediator, occupational self-efficacy was independently associated with acceptance of change. The findings of this study highlight occupational self-efficacy as a key psychological resource that may help explain why some employees respond more positively to organisational change. Organisational efforts to bolster employee beliefs in their ability to perform effectively in their work may be particularly important in the facilitation of change conducive employee responses. Implications for the management of organisational change and directions for future research are discussed.
“Drill, baby, drill” : right-wing populist culture wars in Aotearoa New Zealand 2023-25 : a thesis submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts, Massey University, New Zealand
(Massey University, 2026) Carline, Alison Elizabeth
In March 2024, Aotearoa New Zealand’s newly elected coalition government, comprising the traditionally conservative National Party, libertarian ACT Party, and nationalist/populist New Zealand First Party, introduced legislation to override decades of environmental protection and expedite infrastructure projects, including mining on conservation land. Framed as a solution to bureaucratic red tape and economic stagnation, the Fast-track Bill provoked unprecedented opposition. The coalition Government’s response to critics was not primarily policy engagement but culture wars escalation, using anti-woke rhetoric to delegitimise environmental advocates, Māori rights activists, and scientific expertise. This thesis explores how the struggle for hegemonic dominance operates through culture wars discourse, revealing a strategic cooperation between neoliberal extractive interests and right-wing populism. A political speech by Resources Minister Shane Jones published to YouTube, audio-visual opinion pieces from three right-wing media figures, and eight one-on-one interviews with New Zealanders are analysed through critical discourse analysis and discourse theory. The analyses, informed by Hall’s encoding/decoding framework and theories of affect and fantasy, reveal how “woke” functions as an empty signifier capable of linking disparate issues into a unified threat to “commonsense”, giving voice to resentment and validating gleeful transgression. Culture wars rhetoric represents a faultline in contemporary New Zealand political discourse. It splinters potential progressive coalitions, delegitimises expertise, reframes democratic participation as obstructive, and provides the propaganda infrastructure through which environmental deregulation and resource extraction gain popular consent. With Resources Minister Shane Jones’ culture wars rhetoric as its anchoring focus, this thesis reveals dynamics that extend beyond one politician; Jones provides a lurid articulation of anti-woke sentiments that characterises the governing coalition’s broader approach to democratic contestation.
The culturally grounded leadership dynamic : promoting Māori success in English-medium state boys' schools in Aotearoa : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree, Master of Education (Educational Administration and Leadership) at Massey University, Manawatū, New Zealand
(Massey University, 2026) Haines, Greg
This exploratory study investigates the relationship between leadership action and sustained school success among male Māori learners in Aotearoa New Zealand. Although the national commitment demands that Māori students achieve success as Māori, research has yet to explore the specific culturally grounded leadership dynamic required to drive genuine institutional transformation. English-medium single-sex boys' secondary schools achieve higher University Entrance outcomes for Māori boys than English-medium co-educational secondary schools; the leadership strategies driving this success remain largely undocumented. A qualitative comparative multi-site case study design, grounded in a Te Tiriti-led application of Cunningham's (1998) Māori-centred framework, was employed. The researcher collected data through in-depth interviews with senior leaders, including two Headmasters, and Year 13 Māori students from three boys' secondary schools. The study found that effective leadership establishes this dynamic by integrating Te Ao Māori principles such as mana and whanaungatanga into formal institutional structures. The study identified strategies to more closely align cultural identity with educational excellence, thereby mediating the perceived conflict between peer acceptance and academic success. Academic achievement statistics provide the empirical context for this study, grounding the qualitative analysis of leadership strategies. The thesis concludes by presenting a contextualised model of effective strategy that defines this successful dynamic, offering an empirically-based guide for institutional transformation and policy in Aotearoa New Zealand.
Shopping and consumer culture in Palmerston North c. 1945-85 : presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for a Master of Arts in History at Massey University
(Massey University, 2026) Durkin, Kate
The aim of this thesis is to investigate the different meanings of shopping and consumerism between 1945 and 1985 in Palmerston North, New Zealand. Shopping and Consumer culture in Palmerston North are examined within the wider context of both specific developments in Palmerston North and contemporary trends in New Zealand. Shopping and consumer culture are investigated in three categories. Chapter Two examines changing trends in consumer culture in central city department stores. Chapter Three investigates shopping and consumer culture in suburban contexts, including the Manawatu Co-Op network and the emergence of seniors as a consumer group in their own right. Chapter Four focuses on the impact of Massey University on shopping and consumer culture, in particular the emergence of students as a market for local stores. The relationship between shopping, consumer culture and gender roles will also be discussed during the thesis, as this was an important dynamic in the period under review.