bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Three Essays on Corporate Financial Constraints
Authors:   , Boasiako Kwabena
Published: November 2021

This thesis is composed of three self-contained empirical essays in corporate finance, with the first two exploring the financial policy and credit risk implications of data breaches, and the third examining whether financing influences the sensitivity of cash and investment to asset tangibility. In the first essay, we contribute to the growing debate on cybersecurity risks and how firms can insulate themselves, at least partially, from the adverse effects of data breach risks. Specifically, we examine the effects of data breach disclosure laws and the subsequent disclosure of data breaches on the cash policies of corporations in the United States (U.S.). Exploiting a series of natural experiments regarding staggered state-level data breach disclosure laws, we find that the passage of mandatory disclosure laws leads to an increase in cash holdings. Our finding suggests that mandatory data breach disclosure laws increase the ex ante risks related to data breaches, hence, firms hold on to more cash as a precautionary motive. Further, we find firms that suffer data breaches adjust their financial policies by holding more cash as well as decreasing external finance and investment.

The second essay examines the impact of data breaches on firm credit risk. Using firm-level credit ratings and credit default swap (CDS) spreads to proxy for credit risk, we find that data breaches lead to increases in firm credit risk. Firms exposed to data breaches are more likely to experience credit rating downgrades and an increase in the CDS spread of traded bonds. Also, firms who suffer data breaches report lower sales and ROA, experience an increase in financial distress, and conditional on a data breach incident, the likelihood of a future data breach increases. Lastly, these effects are magnified for firms with low-interest coverage ratios.

In the third essay, using the financial deregulation of seasoned equity issuance in the U.S. as an exogenous shock to access to equity markets, I investigate the influence of financing on the sensitivity of cash and investment to asset tangibility. I show that financing dampens the sensitivity of cash and investment to asset tangibility and promotes investment and firm growth. This provides evidence that public firms even in well-developed financial markets such as the U.S., benefit from financial deregulation that removes barriers to external equity financing, shedding light on the role of financial markets in fostering growth.
Colonisation: the Experience of a Psychiatric Nurse Through the Lens of Reflective Autobiography
Authors:   , Ramsamy Krishnasamy
Published: November 2021

The oppression of colonization lives on in the daily lives of colonized people. It is vital for us as nurses to understand the effects of that oppression, as well as the restrictive impacts, and dislocation from one's land and culture to-day. Nurses come from both the descendants of colonisers and the colonised. This thesis is a journey and a quest for insights into the impacts and significances of colonisation by looking at historical and socio-political contexts that have bearing on the health of colonised people who remain mostly powerless and marginalized. It is prompted in response to a cultural safety model which advocates that nurses should become familiar with their own background and history in order to be culturally safe in practice. This reflective autobiographical account is a personal effort and provides the foundation for an exploration of issues during nursing practice encounters, from a colonised ethnic minority perspective. The method was informed by Moustakas research approach and Johnstone's Reflective Topical Autobiographical process. The selection of specific events are deliberate, to make visible some of the many barriers that exist within our health structures as pertinent issues for non-dominant cultures that remain on the margin of our society. Maori issues provide a contrast and became a catalyst for me as the author while working for kaupapa Maori services in Aotearoa/New Zealand. The intention of this thesis is to generate new knowledge about what it means to be a nurse from an ethnic minority working in a kaupapa Maori mental health service, and to encourage other nurses to explore these issues further. Some recommendations are made for nurses in the last chapter, as I believe that they are ideally situated to build upon the strengths indigenous people already have and contribute positively toward the improvement of poor health outcomes of the colonized people in an embracing and collective way.
Advocating Practice: the Role of the Community Oncology Nurse
Authors:   , Southgate Deborah G
Published: November 2021

The oncology nurse, along with many other expert practitioners, has a vital role within the community, and due to the many changes within the health system, it will be an even more crucial role in the future. Little is written about the role of the community oncology nurse, which may endanger its very existence. Several nurse scholars as Benner (1984) Johnstone (1999) and Taylor (2000) support and encourage nurses to tell their stories and increase public awareness of their practice. The primary aim of this research was to advocate for, and make known, the role of the community oncology nurse, and to bring alive the hidden but real issues of nursing people in the community who have active cancer treatment. This study is also about my journey from novice to expert in developing the role as a community oncology nurse. The research also aimed to identify and understand practice that community oncology nurses do and often take for granted. To capture the essence of this study the method of reflective topical autobiography was utilized, which gave the opportunity to gather advanced nursing inquiry, and generate new nursing knowledge. To obtain insight into the highs and lows in everyday interaction with patients, reflective practice stories are presented.  The thesis generated by this research is that care required by cancer patients at home goes beyond the scope of traditional community health. It requires nurses to be competent in technological skills as well as bringing in-depth expertise to the practical and human needs of people experiencing cancer. The role involves holistic, family-centered care; anticipating patient and family needs; educating; managing symptoms; advocating; confronting ethical issues; coordinating complex care; and monitoring progress.
The Private World of Nursing Related to Incident Reporting
Authors:   , Elbe Elaine M W
Published: November 2021

During the 1990s governments, professionals and the public in general have had brought to their attention that incidents in healthcare are occurring in larger numbers than had ever been imagined and are costing tax-payers large amounts of money. Research sponsored by governments has tried to identify some objective evidence of the number of incidents and types of incidents that occur and to put forward some tools to assist with the risk management of incidents.  The purpose of this project was to explore the experience of nurses related to incident reporting. The reporting of incidents is important as it identifies professional risks for nurses. A descriptive qualitative approach was the methodology used and individual interviews of five senior nurses was the method of data collection. Attention was given to finding out about the supports for and barriers against nurses in reporting incidents; the outcomes for nurses of incident reporting; and the organisational culture and scope of 'professional' behaviour of nurses around incident reporting.  The findings revealed that nurses identified themselves as the major reporters of incidents. They considered there was not 'a level playing field' for all professionals around who, how and why incidents were reported, investigated and within the post incident processes. The nurses reported that they made daily decisions about what was an incident, and whether to report events as incidents. They identified aids and supports to the decisions they made such as the medium for reporting and fear of what happened when the incident form left the nurse and went to management.  A number of significant implications were identified for nursing, management and organisations in this research. Nurses need to feel they work in organisations which have a culture of safety  around incident reporting. Management need to clearly communicate policies, processes and organisational expectations related to incident reporting. This should include how incidents will be reported, investigated and the purposes for which management use incident reporting information. It is also important that adequate structures are in place to support nurses when an incident occurs as incidents when they occur have stressful consequences for the nurses who are involved. Professional nursing bodies need to give consideration to the development of clear guidelines on the legal and professional accountability of nurses related to incident reporting including the limitations of this accountability. When processes are clear a more effective approach can be taken to incident reporting, learning can occur and this will prevent the recurrence of some incidents.
"Getting on Top of Pain": a Critical Analysis of Surgical Nurses' Talk About Their Work with Hospitalised Patients Reporting Pain
Authors:   , King Suzanne Lavinia Jane
Published: November 2021

This thesis investigates the relationship between language, 'discourse' and professional knowledge and power in a specific context; that of surgical nurses' "talk" about their work managing pain in hospitalised patients. This thesis argues that the work of 'caring for' hospitalised surgical patients who report pain is influenced by discourses which are predicated on different readings/understandings of the body/patient, and from which different knowledge is constructed. Of interest to this thesis are the discourses of biomedicine and nursing, and their role in constructing a particular reality/ies which determine the ways in which surgical nurses talk about their work managing pain.  Using the method of critical discourse analysis, the "texts" of transcribed audio-taped conversations with four registered nurses working in surgical specialties were analysed to uncover 'discourses of pain management'. The results of the analysis indicate that the biomedical construction of pain, and approaches to pain management, remain the dominant influence over surgical nurses' practice. There was evidence of nursing discourses with an emphasis on nurse-patient relationships also playing a role. These discourses were critically examined for what they reveal about relations of professional knowledge and power in this specific context of the nurses' practice. The implications for nursing and nursing research are considered significant because the study critically (re)presents a different perspective on, and reality for surgical nurses' pain management practices. In so doing, it elucidates an explanation for, and understanding of, why surgical nurses take care of patients reporting pain in particular ways.
The Benefits and Challenges of One New Zealand Nursing Undergraduate Clinical Education Model: a Case Study
Authors:   , Sims Deborah
Published: November 2021

This research project has utilised a case study approach to give ward managers a voice in the literature, by exploring and describing from their perspective the benefits and challenges of one particular nursing undergraduate clinical education model. The Tertiary Education Provider contracts the Health Provider to provide Clinical Nurse Educators (CNEs) to support second and third year undergraduate nursing students during their clinical experiences. The CNEs are seconded from their respective wards to meet the organisation’s contractual obligations. Data were gathered from two ward manager’s using semi-structured interviews. A thematic analysis using the ‘colour coding’ method as described by Roberts and Taylor (1999) was used to analyse the interview data. The findings elucidate the role of the undergraduate CNE, highlighting benefits such as the CNE being supernumerary to ward rosters and having time to teach, not only supervise students. CNEs are student-focused and easily accessible as they are based on site. The CNE was the one person who was ‘there’ for a student as a student’s preceptor can change shift-by-shift and day-by-day. One significant challenge which emerged was the replacement of ward staff, not only of senior nurses who can leave their wards for up to 12 weeks to undertake the CNE role but also that of the student’s preceptor if the student’s preceptor was on annual, sick or study leave. Other challenges such as the inability of ward managers to pre-book casual staff; preceptor work-loads; skill-mix issues and fluctuating fulltime equivalents (FTEs) are also discussed.
An Exploration of the Experience of Critical Incident Stress Debriefing on Firefighters Within a Region of the New Zealand Fire Service
Authors:   , Maher Julie Mary
Published: November 2021

This study originates from my practice experience working for the New Zealand Fire Service back in the late 1980's and early 1990's as an Occupational Health Nurse where I piloted a Critical Incident Stress Peer Support programme in the No.4 Region. My interest in the area began after attending a seminar on Critical Incident Stress Debriefing based on Mitchell's model of debriefing (1983). I had begun to recognise in my practice what I believed to be work-related stress but was a little uncertain about where this stress originated. After attending the seminar I began to understand that some of this stress was related to Critical Incident Stress (CIS) from firefighters exposure to critical incidents.  This study explores four firefighters experience of Critical Incident Stress Debriefing (CISD) within a Region of the New Zealand Fire Service. It explores the application of CISD as one component of Critical Incident Stress Management (CISM), and the Nurse Researcher's philosophy of Clinical Nurse practice in relation to the application of CISD. The knowledge gained from the analysis of the data has the potential to influence professionals understanding of their experience and affect future practice and that of others working in the field of CISM.  The aim of the study was to gain a greater indepth understanding of firefighters experience specifically in relation to their participation in a Critical Incident Stress Debriefing (CISD) following their exposure to a critical incident. Much of the literature that supported CISD appeared to offer a rather superficial understanding of the firefighters experience in relation to CISD. I chose to use narratives as the methodology, utilising four individual case studies as a method of social inquiry in order to explore the experience of CISD. The narratives were able to creatively capture the complexity and the dynamic practice of CISD.  An overall pattern of the formalised process was uncovered through the participants' narratives. Eight dominant themes were highlighted from the narratives which included safe environment; ventilating the stress reaction; similar feelings; getting the whole picture; peer support; bonding and resolution. While these themes were common to all the participants, each participant had a particular theme/s which was unique to their experience.  As a Nurse Researcher with dual practice interests in the area of nursing education and Critical Incident Stress Management (CISM), I am in a position to inform practice and service development. It is my belief that the knowledge gained from this study has the potential to be transferred to others working in the field of CISM. The study results are timely, practical and informative at a time of major change in the New Zealand Fire Service.
The Illusion of Separateness, a Philosophical Study of Nursing and Naturopathic Practice: Healing Connections Between People
Authors:   , Kingsbury Katherine Margaret
Published: November 2021

This thesis describes the journey of a practicing Independent Nurse Practitioner and Naturopath towards the understanding of the illusion of separateness and what this could mean in terms of health and healing generally and specifically through the stories of five clients. The study reveals through these stories how the practice developed over time in relation to this idea.  As a result of personal experience, clinical practice and my quest for knowledge I have come to a consideration that what stops or blocks us realizing that we all have an innate potential for self-healing is the illusion of separateness; that is, believing we are beings separate from each other and separate from the rest of nature.  The thesis is presented as a narrative and begins with an account of the events in the practitioner's life that lead to the specific study of natural therapies and the development of a cohesive practice using holistic health practices from a nursing perspective. The text essentially describes the process of establishing a private practice combining two disciplines of Nursing and Naturopathy in New Zealand. The study reveals how a nurse and naturopath's practice is based on the premise that it is crucial to recognise that the personal life and professional life of the nurse inform and influence each other and are always part of the process of care in such a practice.  Three healing modalities that are central to the practice are described in detail. The description is informed by theory and research from nursing, the social sciences and the natural sciences. The study reveals the practical value of postmodern nurse theorists, Jean Watson and Margaret Newman to this practice. This study also briefly discusses the concepts from quantum theory, evolutionary theory and psychoneuroirnmunology that are used in the practice.  The thesis reveals one nurse's journey of practice development using contemplation and reflection that records an important aspect that has already benefited clients and the community where the practice occurs.
Seclusion Management in an Acute In-Patient Unit
Authors:   , Mosley Barbara Joy
Published: November 2021

Trends in modern day mental health facilities have been towards the least restrictive environment with emphasis on patients’ rights, but these rights have to be balanced against the safety of both the patients themselves and anyone else in the immediate environment. One way of restricting a person’s movement is through the use of seclusion, a means of isolating a person in a locked room with minimal stimulus and from where that person cannot freely exit. This study was developed to explore the use of seclusion in an acute in-patient unit for people with mental illnesses. Investigation into this issue was considered important due to an identified large increase in seclusion use over the previous two years. The study used a qualitative research methodology with a descriptive and interpretive approach. Data collection included a retrospective file audit of patients who had been secluded over the past seven years, and one-to-one staff interviews. I also included some personal reflections of seclusion events. The principle reason for using seclusion was violence and aggression in the context of mental illness. It was also used for people who were at risk of, or who had previously absconded from the unit. A recovery approach and the use of the strengths model was fundamental to nurses’ way of working with patients in the unit. Nurses believed that the strengths process should be adapted to the person’s level of acuity and to their ability to engage in this approach in a real and tangible way. Seclusion continues to be a clinical management option in the unit that is the subject of this study. It is used when a person is so unwell that they cannot be managed in any other identified way. However, in many circumstances there are other options that could be explored so that the utmost consideration is given to the dignity, privacy and safety of that person.
Shared Status and Advocating Practices: Nurses Who Work with Clients Who Have a Co-existing Intellectual Disability and Mental Health Problem
Authors:   , Dorofaeff Michael John
Published: November 2021

This research is informed by the interpretive phenomenology of van Manen, and explores the lived experience of nursing fiom the perspective of nurses who provide care for people with a co-existing intellectual disability and mental health problem. Although nursing research is commonly informed by phenomenology, there is a dearth of literature of any description written fiom the perspective of nurses who provide care for people with intellectual disabilities and mental health problems. As a result of the closure of many large institutions in New Zealand there are not many nurses who work with people who have intellectual disabilities and co-existing mental health problems. The study participants were four nurses purposefully selected because they provided care for people with intellectual disabilities and mental health problems. Data was collected using semi-structured interviews, and the researcher identified and wrote about the recurring themes in the transcribed interview data, which best captured the lived experience of the participants. The themes were: criticism of services, holistic caring, working with the client, issues of status, need for specialist knowledge, enduring relationships, diagnostic issues, advocating, modelling good practice; and working alongside. After further analysis the themes were encompassed within the larger interrelated themes of "Status and positioning" and "Advocating practices", and fmally within a single theme of: "The status and positioning of the nurse and the client leads to advocating practices." These themes were found to be consistent with the nursing literature and with the researchers own lived experience as a nurse who works in a specialist mental health intellectual disability service.  The fmdings of this research have implications for a number of groups in New Zealand. Input is required fiom the Nursing Council ofNew Zealand, the nursing profession, nurse educators and the New Zealand Government to raise the status of clients with co-existing intellectual disabilities and mental health problems and the nurses who work with this client group. The roles for nurses who work with this client group are emerging and are likely to be diverse and there is a need for further research to capture the different experiences of these nurses.
Novel Predators and Naïve Prey: How Introduced Mammals Shape Behaviours and Populations of New Zealand Lizards
Authors:   , Hoare Joanne Marie
Published: November 2021

Biotas that evolved in isolation from mammalian predators are susceptible to degradation due to recent human-mediated introductions of mammals. However, behavioural, morphological and life historical adaptations of prey to novel mammalian predators can allow prey to persist in mammal-invaded areas. Lizards in New Zealand are an ideal group for exploring the effects of invasive mammals on vertebrate prey because: (1) the ca. 80 endemic species evolved without mammals as a major influence for 80 my, (2) mammalian introductions during the past 2000 y have differentially affected lizard species, and (3) some species coexist with mammals on the mainland as well as occurring on mammal-free offshore islands. I tested three hypotheses: (1) lizard populations that have persisted on New Zealand’s mainland are no longer declining in the presence of introduced mammalian predators, (2) introduced mammals induce behavioural shifts in native lizards, and (3) lizard behavioural patterns and chemosensory predator detection abilities vary according to exposure to introduced mammals. Trends in capture rates of five sympatric native lizard populations over a 23 year (1984-2006) period demonstrate that not all lizard populations that have persisted thus far on New Zealand’s mainland have stabilised in numbers. Large, nocturnal and terrestrial species remain highly vulnerable at mainland sites. Introduced kiore, Rattus exulans, induce behavioural changes in Duvaucel’s geckos, Hoplodactylus duvaucelii. A radio telemetric study demonstrated that geckos start reverting to natural use of habitats within six months of kiore eradication. Activity patterns of common geckos, H. maculatus, and common skinks, Oligosoma nigriplantare polychroma, in laboratory trials are also correlated with their exposure to mammalian predators. Lizard activity (time spent moving) increases relative to freeze behaviour with greater exposure to mammals. However, specific antipredator behaviours are not elicited by chemical cues of either native (tuatara, Sphenodon spp) or introduced (ship rat, R. rattus) predators. Lizard populations may persist by changing their behaviours in the presence of invasive mammals. However, the continued declines of particularly vulnerable mainland lizard taxa suggest that mammal-induced behavioural shifts may only slow population declines rather than enabling long-term survival. Eradicating pest mammals from offshore islands has proven effective at restoring both populations and behaviours of native lizards, but lizard populations on the mainland also deserve conservation priority. Research directed at understanding the synergistic effects of invasive species that are causing continued lizard population declines and mammal-proof fencing to protect the most vulnerable mainland populations from extinction are both urgently required.
Patient Experience of Joint Replacement Education: a Joint Venture
Authors:   , Gare Lynda Sheree
Published: November 2021

Purpose: To explore patients’ educational experiences and the usefulness and benefits of this health education in the rehabilitation period, when undertaking a total joint replacement. Design & Method: An exploratory, qualitative descriptive study, describing patients’ experiences of health education. Five participants, convenience sampled, were interviewed eight to twelve weeks post surgery following unilateral total joint replacement in a tertiary hospital. Findings: Participants valued the education they received pre operatively, which included written material, video and individual interaction with varied health professionals. Although this was provided in a timely manner, evidence showed limited post operative reinforcement and follow up of given education and preparation for discharge. Three ‘partnership’ themes were identified from data, Communicative, Subservient and Knowledge. ‘Communicative Partnership’ conceptualised the participants’ experiences of the nurse-patient relationship, whilst ‘Subservient Partnership’ captured the participants’ experiences of ‘being’ patients. ‘Knowledge Partnership’ combined the participants’ ideas about knowledge and their retention of this knowledge to assist with their rehabilitation post surgery. Conclusion: The needs and experiences of patients after total joint replacement reflect on transitional change – changes in roles, behaviour, abilities and relationships. Educational contents need to reflect a realistic recovery process to assist with this transitional period, delivered by health care professionals in a manner best suited for patients. This study provides a descriptive study of patients’ perspectives of their journey undergoing a total joint replacement, making the process and their experiences more visible for health professionals. Careful pre and post operative education and planning can facilitate patients' optimism and motivation in their rehabilitation.
Young Children Learning About Maps at School and in the Neighbourhood
Authors:   , Holland Paulette
Published: November 2021

In the New Zealand National Curriculum maps are defined as an essential skill along with graphs and tables. Despite the widespread use of maps in everyday life and their incorporation in more than one area of the curriculum there has been little research in New Zealand on children’s knowledge of maps, their use and where and how children encounter them. The research reported in this thesis is an attempt to broaden our understanding of young school children’s knowledge of maps and in particular the sources of their map knowledge in family, neighbourhood and school. The study was informed by two bodies of work, that of Fay Panckhurst on preschoolers’ map knowledge and its sources, and the NEMP studies which assessed graphs, tables and maps at Years 4 and 8. From a Decile 2 school, a sample of Year 3 & 4 children was selected before they had been introduced to maps at school. The students were interviews individually. Each was asked to select the maps from a collection, which included graphs and tables. The selection task showed that the students knew what maps were but had trouble recognising graphs or tables. The students then answered a set of questions about maps, and drew a map of New Zealand marking it on a number of locations. Over a period of three weeks their classroom teacher taught a unit on maps. The sample students were then interviewed again. While their original answers showed the influence of maps in homes and neighbourhood the classroom unit had provided them with technical knowledge and map language, and their maps of New Zealand improved in relation to shape, relationship of the islands, and knowledge of locations. It is argued that maps are not solely “skills” but as cultural artefacts they appear for example in works of literature, in games and on television and for migrant children they can provide links with countries of origin.
Bullying Behaviour in Schools: Towards Better Understandings and Practice
Authors:   , Cleary Mark
Published: November 2021

This study of school bullying provides an overview of the development of international anti-bullying initiatives, an in-depth analysis of the state of antibullying approaches in New Zealand and a description of the impact of such approaches on the behaviour in one secondary school community. Its findings endorse the use of effective, school-based, anti-bullying interventions, in particular, those developed in Scandinavia and Britain during the last twenty years. The efforts to combat bullying in New Zealand are reviewed. While some New Zealand programmes are found to be effective, the anti-bullying initiatives of the Ministry of Education and the Education Review Office are found wanting, as is their failure to respond effectively to the growing public concern over bullying. A number of anti-bullying interventions undertaken within one school community are evaluated. While generally found to reduce bullying, the limitations of these interventions became evident when one class group was viewed in greater depth in a study which discovered an entrenched bullying ‘culture’ and provided insights into the bullying dynamic. The communication difficulties experienced when a small number of powerful individuals capture the dynamics of power and abuse, and in effect establish the relationship style for the whole group, are then highlighted. As a result of the understandings gained through this classroom-based study, a number of conclusions are developed about the importance of the role played by leaders, both teacher and pupil.
Preceptorship in Nursing: Preceptors' and Preceptees' Experiences of Working in Partnership
Authors:   , Turner Ross Stephen
Published: November 2021

This research is about preceptorship in nursing. There is considerable emphasis placed on health care organisations to support newly appointed graduate nurses, and preceptorship is a recommended model. Despite this emphasis, little is known about how preceptorship partnerships work in practice. The primary focus of this exploratory descriptive qualitative study was to explore the perspectives that preceptors and preceptees, who had worked in partnership, had about how they established and sustained their respective roles. Three sets of registered nurses who had recently completed a preceptorship experience were interviewed about their partnership. Content and thematic analysis of this descriptive data revealed four main themes. The preceptorship relationship grows out of respect for each another and develops as a result of honest and open communication. Preceptees who have an initial positive experience into their new work area settle quickly and efficiently into their new role. Preceptees appreciate preceptors who are welcoming, supportive and willing to undertake the role, while preceptors are happy to undertake the role if the graduate displays an interest in learning and are willing to be guided. The preceptee learns what it means to be a registered nurse in the particular working context, while the preceptor learns how to support learning processes and evidence-based practices. Further exploration and investigation of these themes and of the relationships that evolve during preceptorship partnerships is needed. By understanding these findings, organisations can prepare both the preceptor and preceptee as they begin to undertake their role to ensure future partnerships will be successful.
Feedback in New Zealand Classrooms: Do Students Get the Message?
Authors:   , Vercauteren Deidre Carol
Published: November 2021

There is increasing evidence that feedback is a key factor in successful teaching and learning. It is also clear that there are effective and less effective forms of feedback. To be most effective, feedback should incorporate assessment for learning principles. Although there is a large body of literature on feedback, there is limited use of the student’s voice, and little from a New Zealand context. This thesis investigates students’ understandings of feedback in New Zealand classrooms. A feedback typology is used to categorise and analyse examples of teacher feedback given by the students. Individual student interviews were conducted with responses informing the kinds of questions used for the teacher interviews. Advisory work in schools that involves classroom observations on feedback was also used to substantiate the findings. The sample used for this research came from two schools, four classrooms and focussed on sixteen students. The classes ranged from Years 3-6, which meant that the students were aged between 7 and 10. The analysis concludes that while New Zealand students can describe a range of both evaluative and descriptive feedback their understandings do not always match what the teacher intended. The feedback typology was found to be a useful tool but was problematic in that there was no assurance that feedback was against shared expectations of the task.
Electronic Structure and Thermodynamic Properties of High Temperature Superconductors
Authors:   , Storey James Glenn
Published: November 2021

The generic doping dependence of the thermodynamic, electrodynamic and transport properties of high-temperature superconductors remains a puzzle despite many years of study. We are still awaiting a rigorous scientific theory that explains the resistance-free flow of electric current in these novel materials. In conventional superconductors, observations of the predicted dependence of the superconducting transition temperature on isotopic mass played a key role in identifying a phononic pairing mechanism. In order to elucidate the role of phonons in the high-Tc superconductors, the oxygen isotope effect in the separate components of the penetration depth tensor of the high-temperature superconductor YBa2Cu4O8 was determined from AC susceptibility measurements, performed on biaxially-aligned powders set in epoxy. The results, extracted after assuming values for the upper cut-off radii in the particle size distributions, show that the isotope effect in the bc-plane is negligible compared to those of the ab- and ac-planes. This suggests that the electrons prefer to couple to phonon modes in which the motion of the atoms is perpendicular to the plane of transport. The electronic entropy, superfluid density, Raman response, spin susceptibility and thermoelectric power were calculated from energy-momentum dispersions determined by angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy (ARPES). An excellent match with experimental data was obtained. This is a highly significant result because it provides the first comprehensive link between these bulk properties and the ARPES measurements which are dominated by the outermost CuO2 layer. Thus, in most respects surface effects do not appear to seriously modify or obscure the band structure which governs bulk properties. The calculations reveal the presence of a van Hove singularity (vHs) at the Fermi level (EF ) in the heavily overdoped regime to be a universal feature of the cuprates. The evolution of these properties with temperature and doping can be fully explained by the retreat of EF from the vHs and the opening of a normal state pseudogap as doping is decreased. Consequently, the pairing potential amplitude is found to be a strongly decreasing function of hole concentration, similar to the doping dependence of the exchange interaction, J. The pairing interaction is possibly a universal function of the EF â EvHs with the maximum in the transition temperature (Tc) governed by the exact magnitude of the density of states on the flanks of the vHs. These are key new discoveries which may provide a route forward to solving the puzzle of high-temperature superconductivity.
On Shifting Ground: Self-narrative, Feminist Theory and Writing Practice
Authors:   , Else Anne
Published: November 2021

This thesis centres on a problem that stands at the heart of feminist theory: how women may come to understand themselves as speaking subjects located within historically specific, discursive social structures, to question those structures aloud, and to seek to change them. It combines self-narrative, feminist theory and writing practice to make sense of a body of published work which I produced between 1984 and 1999, with a consistent focus on some form of gendered discourse, by setting it in its personal, historical, and theoretical contexts. Although the thesis is built around published work, it is not primarily about results or outcomes, but rather about a set of active historical processes. Taking the form of a spirally structured critical autobiography spanning five and a half decades, it traces how one voice of what I have termed feminist oppositional imagining has emerged and taken its own worded shape. First, it constructs a double story of coming to writing and coming to feminism, in order to explore the formation of a writing subject and show the critical importance of the connections between subjectivity and oppositional imagining, and to highlight the need to find ways of producing knowledge which do not rely on the notion of the detached observer. Secondly, in a deliberate shift of form and focus, it steps back to canvass the historical context for the work I produced in response to the discursive shift that has become known as the New Right. It argues that by usefully enforcing a focus on the necessity of a commitment to social justice and human interdependence, this shift spurred the development of a feminist discourse, centred on unpaid work, which is capable of understanding and countering New Right perspectives on what it means to be a human being and to live in human society.
Framing User Confidence in a System Dynamics Model: the Case of a Workforce Planning Problem in the New Zealand Army
Authors:   , Markham Jason Yves
Published: November 2021

Despite unresolved controversy and ongoing debate about user confidence in system dynamics models, there has been limited empirical exploration of the concept of user confidence in system dynamics models. This research elicited the concept of user confidence using a framing method (Russo & Schoemaker, 1989); analyzed the confidence criteria using constant comparative analysis (Cavana, Delahaye & Sekaran, 2001) and organized the confidence criteria into a descriptive framework. This research was conducted as an ethnographic case study of a New Zealand Army workforce planning problem. The simultaneous objectives of this research were to elicit the concept of user confidence in a system dynamics model and to assess the usefulness of the framing method for ascertaining user confidence criteria. The findings suggest that users of a system dynamics model had unique views of confidence, and while these views changed during the model-building project, they shared a common perspective of utility. Interestingly, user confidence criteria did not change significantly between the qualitative and quantitative stages of model-building. Output from the system dynamics workforce model supported the dynamic hypothesis that the use of ‘aspirational’ separation forecasts have contributed to New Zealand Army workforce shortfalls during times of high labour demand. Additionally, framing proved to be a useful methodology for eliciting and interpreting the elusive concept of user confidence in this case study. This case study concludes that although the confidence criteria of model users are diverse, extensive and difficult to elicit; framing can be employed as an interpretive filter to ascertain the elements of user confidence.
Crust and Upper Mantle Inhomogeneities Beneath Western North Island, New Zealand: Evidence from Seismological and Electromagnetic Data.
Authors:   , Salmon Michelle Linda
Published: November 2021

Three geophysical techniques have been used to investigate the location and the nature of a large-scale change in crust and uppermost mantle properties below the western North Island of New Zealand. Receiver function analysis reveals a step like change in crustal thickness from ~ 25 km below the northwestern North Island to ≥ 32 km in the southwestern North Island. P-wave attenuation is elevated north of this change in crustal thickness (1000/Qp ≈ 1.9 for α = 0) and is compatible with a wet mantle at near solidus temperatures (T ≈0.97 melting temperature). Attenuation decreases by at least a factor of 2 for the southwestern North Island to values closer to those expected for normal continental lithosphere (1000/Qp ≤ 1 for α = 0). A region of extremely high attenuation (1000/Qp ≈ 5 for α = 0) is observed below the Central Volcanic Region. This value of attenuation is compatible with a wet mantle at temperatures just above melting (T ≈ 1.02 melting temperature). Finally 2D modelling of magnetotelluric data reveals a region of low electrical resistivity (100 Ωm) in the mantle below the region of thinned crust. Like the P-wave attenuation, this region of low resistivity can be explained by a water-saturated mantle at near solidus temperatures (T=0.88-0.97 melting temperature). The changes in crustal thickness, attenuation and electrical resistivity are all coincident with the southern limit of volcanism (~ 39.3°S) at a boundary that runs approximately east-west, perpendicular to the present plate boundary. The only surface expressions of this boundary are the termination of volcanism and the dome-like uplift of the North Island, which has previously been explained by the presence of a buoyant low-density mantle beneath the northwestern North Island. Elevated temperatures and water content inferred from this study are in agreement with this explanation. The sudden transition displayed in all three data sets, but particularly the crustal thickness step seen in the receiver function, calls for a special explanation. Thermal processes are too diffuse to explain the step and instead a mechanical process is called for. One possibility is that the step was created by convective removal of thickened lithosphere.
Ancient Climate and Environmental History From Phytolith-Occluded Carbon
Authors:   , Carter John Alec
Published: November 2021

The best records of atmospheric change of glacial cycles are those from ice cores. However, ice cores cannot provide estimates of changes in atmospheric 13CO2 because of as of yet unresolved technical problems. One of the least understood and important influences on the changes to the isotopic composition of atmospheric CO2 are that of vascular plants. While marine benthic delta 13C records have been used to infer past changes in terrestrial vegetation, accurate estimation of changes in carbon storage on land during ice ages has proved elusive. Other estimates have been made from terrestrial biomes of pollen records but a large discrepancy between marine and land based estimates remains. This thesis offers a new method of deriving an ancient atmospheric delta 13CO2 record using measurements of phytolith-occluded carbon as a proxy. The method is designed to measure delta 13CO2 in ancient phytolith-occluded carbon and convert this signal into an atmospheric delta 13CO2 estimate for the atmosphere. Phytoliths are very small particles of silica (between 5 and 100 microns) that form distinctive and repeatable shapes in most plants. When phytoliths form within a plant, some of the host organic matter is trapped inside the phytolith. Phytoliths have been shown to contain occluded carbon and are present in most terrestrial sedimentary deposits. Moreover, because they survive well in most soils and sediments, the trapped carbon remains intact and preserved from contamination and alteration. Experiments were conducted to characterise and measure the natural variability of modern phytolith-occluded carbon. These included measurement of carbon isotopic fractionation effects between the atmosphere and whole plant material, measurement of carbon isotope fractionation between whole plant matter and phytolith-occluded carbon, and a determination of carbon compounds present in phytolith-occluded carbon. A formula was developed for separating the plant physiological factors from the atmospheric 13CO2 value in the phytolith-occluded carbon, thus providing a basis for estimating atmospheric 13CO2 values. Phytoliths were extracted and occluded carbon analysed from a 7.4m loess core. Changes in phytolith assemblages were used to create a direct record of changes to the local vegetation cover, and isotopic analyses of carbon in phytoliths to generate a record of atmospheric 13CO2 for the last 120,000 years. The record exhibits a number of periods when the atmosphere had very low delta 13CO2 values that correspond with CH4 peaks in the Vostok ice core. It is hypothesized here that these low values are a consequence of the release of large volumes of methane released from marine hydrate (clathrate) deposits into the atmosphere, thereby, diluting atmospheric 13CO2.
Large scaled field tests on soft Bangkok clay
Authors: Balasubramaniam Arumugam
Published: November 2021

In this lecture the interpretations of fully instrumented tests embankments and their role in the development of appropriate ground improvement techniques for highways, motorways and airfields on soft clay deposits is illustrated through well documented case studies in Bangkok, Thailand and Muar Flat Site in Kuala Lumpur. For the Bangkok Plain and with sand backfills the performance of embankments with different schemes of vertical drains was evaluated over a period of 25 years. Aspects such as recharging effects due to the drains, inadequate measures in maintaining vacuum during vacuum applications and possible hydraulic connections with large diameter drains are discussed. For the Muar test embankments, the role of fill strength in residual soil embankment and the field deformation analysis in separating consolidation settlement from immediate settlement and creep settlements is presented. Novel interpretations of settlement from pore pressure dissipations, secondary settlement from field measurements and decay of lateral deformation rate with time were also made.