bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
A descriptive study of New Zealand midwives' primary care management of iron status in pregnancy and the postpartum period
Authors:   , Calje Esther 
Published: November 2021

<p>Background: Globally there is no consensus on haemoglobin (Hb) parameters that define maternal anaemia. Therefore it is difficult to distinguish physiological anaemia of pregnancy from anaemia associated with pathology. Low maternal iron status is associated with adverse outcomes, although the evidence is difficult to interpret. Non-anaemic iron deficiency requires prevention and treatment, before end stage iron deficiency anaemia. Increases in serum ferritin (SF) secondary to inflammation, gives misleading results of iron stores if not tested with C-reactive protein (CRP). Given the complexities, how do Lead Maternity Carer (LMC) midwives in New Zealand manage anaemia and iron deficiency, without a clinical guideline? Methods: In this descriptive study, quantitative data was retrospectively collected from September-December 2013, from LMC midwives (n=21) and women (n=189), in one New Zealand area. Main outcomes assessed were women’s iron status. Anaemia was defined as Hb <110g/L in the first trimester, <105g/L in subsequent trimesters, and <100g/L postnatally. Iron deficiency was defined as SF <20 μg/L, if CRP<5mg/L. A secondary analysis of iron status and body mass index (BMI) was undertaken. Results: Of the 186 women who had Hb testing at booking, 46% did not have ferritin tested concurrently. Of the 385 ferritin tests undertaken, 86% were not tested with CRP. Despite midwives prescribing iron for 48.7%, and recommending iron for 16.9% of second trimester women, 47.1% had low iron status before birth. Only 22.8% had Hb testing postpartum, including 65.1% (of 38) with blood loss >500mls. Results of a secondary analysis showed a significant difference (p=.05) between third trimester ferritin levels in women with BMI ≥ 25 (Md SF 14 μg/L) and BMI < 25 (Md SF 18 μg/L). Conclusions: Inconsistent testing of ferritin made it difficult to assess maternal iron status, especially without concurrent testing of CRP. Midwives may not understand and recognise the progression from iron sufficiency to end-stage iron deficiency anaemia. Even without further research this small study may indicate the need for improved education for midwives, and a clinical guideline. More complex studies on the prevalence in New Zealand, BMI and iron status, and maternal outcomes especially in the postpartum period, are warranted.</p>
Exploring opportunities for developing intercultural competence through intercultural communicative language teaching (ICLT): A case study in a Chinese as a foreign language classroom in a New Zealand high school
Authors:   , Kennedy Juliet 
Published: November 2021

<p>This qualitative case study explores naturally arising opportunities for developing intercultural competence through intercultural communicative language teaching (ICLT) in a New Zealand high school Chinese as a foreign language (CFL) classroom. Although developing intercultural competence is a goal of many school curriculums, teacher awareness and implementation of effective intercultural pedagogies is not yet wellestablished. Exploring the naturally arising occurrences of intercultural teaching practices and behaviours in one classroom with no formal knowledge of ICLT provides evidence of how culture may be currently understood and approached in comparative settings. Existing views on culture provide a starting point for further developing ICLT. Data collection methods included classroom observations, stimulated recall, unstructured and semi-structured interviews, and written reflections. One teacher and three students from an intermediate level CFL class participated in the study from June to September 2015. The findings show that while some intercultural pedagogies and behaviours occurred naturally, without an explicit focus on developing intercultural competence students are unlikely to develop the skills, attitudes, and traits which make up intercultural competence in the language classroom. This study suggests that the current cultural activities in class could be transformed into opportunities for developing intercultural competence by adding a regular comparative, connective, and reflective dimension, incorporating the students’ linguistic and cultural experiences. The results of this study illustrate the necessity of expanding teacher awareness and skills in practising ICLT to promote the development of intercultural competence and to increase students’ interest in learning languages in New Zealand.</p>
Cultivating Ownership of Development Aid: The Role of Civil Society in the Pacific
Authors:   , Pirnia Pedram 
Published: November 2021

<p>The principle of ownership and the idea that development aid should be owned by recipients has emerged within the last two decades in key statements from a series of international meetings between major donors and partners, most prominently since the 2005 Paris Declaration when ‘ownership of development aid’ became the first Principle of Aid Effectiveness. The principle was applauded particularly by the governments of rich donor states, but also by their specialist aid agencies and representatives of civil society. However, despite the endorsement and praise of the principle of ownership by all donors and stakeholders, confusion and lack of clarity remains as to what exactly ownership of development aid means especially in terms of policy and practice in the work of development actors. The core proposal of this thesis is that the principle of recipient ownership of development aid, apparently so important at the highest international levels of discussion, must be defined, broken down into relevant ingredients, taken into consideration in terms of policy and practice, and measured. Otherwise, the principle is nothing but empty rhetoric. It is logical to suggest that to have any policy value political concepts should be definable and measureable. Hence, the thesis argues that if one can formulate the relevant ingredients of ownership, one can carefully investigate factors that increase or decrease those ingredients. This is the focus of this thesis. Field research in the Pacific Islands used a mixed methodology that included gathering data on completed development projects and interviewing government officials, major donor officials, other deliverers of aid – particularly the civil society organisations (CSOs) – and especially the project beneficiaries at the grassroots. Projects where CSOs demonstrated particularly close engagement with the communities and beneficiaries were chosen as case studies. Analysing and deconstructing these mechanics and ingredients of ownership produced a new definition for ‘ownership of development aid’ and a range of variables for an Ownership Index and for Ownership Guidelines. These combined tools presented in this research should assist professionals to promote, cultivate and measure ownership of development outcomes that project beneficiaries will maintain, protect and improve over time.</p>
Inflation Dynamics
Authors:   , Parker Miles 
Published: November 2021

<p>This thesis studies inflation dynamics, investigating both reasons why prices change, and why they sometimes do not. It investigates four areas that are of interest to monetary policy makers, but where our knowledge is incomplete. The first area investigated is the causes of price stickiness at the firm level. Insight is given by a large survey of price-setting behaviour of New Zealand firms. There is a large degree of heterogeneity in price-setting practices between, and within, sectors. Explicit contracts, implicit contracts and strategic complementarity are the most widely recognised causes of price rigidity. Menu costs and sticky information are not widely recognised. The second area investigated is how exporters price, and in particular the decisions over currency of invoice and whether to differentiate prices across markets. In sharp contrast to commonly held views, we find that primary sector firms do differentiate prices across markets. Indeed, these firms are more likely to do so in New Zealand than firms in other sectors. Larger, and more productive firms, are more likely to differentiate prices. This thesis then studies the influence that global inflation factors have on domestic inflation. A CPI database for 223 countries and territories extends the previous research, which focuses on high income countries. Global factors explain a large share of the variance of national inflation rates in advanced countries, but not for less developed countries. More generally, global factors have greater influence in countries with higher GDP per capita, financial development and central bank transparency. Global factors explain a large share of the variance of food and energy prices but a much smaller share of the variance of other sub-components. Finally, this thesis carries out the first systematic analysis of the impact on inflation of disasters caused by natural hazards. There is a large degree of heterogeneity, with disasters having little significant effect in advanced countries, but having effects that can persist for years in developing economies. There are also differences between types of disasters and sub-indices of inflation. Storms have a short-run impact on food price inflation that lasts for the first two quarters, before being reversed in the subsequent two. Earthquakes reduce CPI inflation excluding food, housing and energy.</p>
Irrigation and Ecosystem Services: development of an irrigation model for the LUCI ecosystem services framework
Authors:   , Easton Stuart 
Published: November 2021

<p>Poor water quality is currently a major environmental issue worldwide and in New Zealand, where reactive Nitrogen (N) and Phosphorous (P) lost from agricultural fields are significant drivers of water quality degradation in rural catchments. Irrigation application to crops is essential to agricultural production however irrigation inputs can increase N and P losses to waterways via drainage and/or overland flow directly and as a result of reduced soil capacity to buffer rainfall events. Indirect nutrient losses are also increased following irrigation implementation due to amplified farming intensity. Furthermore, irrigation applications represent the world’s greatest consumptive use of water. Improving irrigation efficiency with regard to water use represents a synergistic opportunity for the improvement of a number of different ecosystem services including water quality, water supply, and food production. Spatially explicit modelling of irrigation is needed to determine inefficiencies in water delivery and target these inefficiencies for management or mitigation at sub-field scales. A complimentary need exists for irrigation modelling within ecosystem service decision support tools so that nutrient and water movement can be accurately quantified in irrigated environments. This thesis describes the development and implementation of SLIM – the Spatially-explicit LUCI Irrigation Model. SLIM adapts existing lumped hydrological and irrigation modelling techniques and practices to a fully distributed, spatially explicit framework, so that sub-field variations in water flows resulting from variable soil properties are accounted for. SLIM is generally applicable across New Zealand, using readily available national scale datasets and literature derived parameters. SLIM is capable of predicting irrigation depth and timing based on common management strategies and irrigation system characteristics, or can replicate irrigation applications where information is available. Outputs from SLIM are designed to assist irrigation management decisions at the field level, and to inform the hydrology component of the Land Utilisation and Capability Indicator (LUCI) ecosystem service assessment framework. Standalone SLIM outputs include time-series files, water balance plots, and raster maps describing the efficiency and efficacy of the modelled irrigation system. SLIM has been applied in three different agroecosystems in New Zealand under surface, micro, and spray irrigation systems, each characterised by different levels of data availability. Results show that SLIM is able to accurately predict the timing of irrigation applications and provide usable information to inform irrigation application decisions. SLIM outputs emphasise the importance of soil variability with regard to water loss and risk of nutrient leaching. Opportunity exists for irrigation water use efficiency to be improved through targeted management at sub-field scales in New Zealand farming systems.</p>
Empathear: Design of a system to elicit empathy in siblings of voice hearers
Authors:   , Mokhtar Sarah 
Published: November 2021

<p>It is said that one in five adults will be affected by some form of mental disorder every year, and nearly half the population (45%) will experience a mental disorder at some stage in their life (SaneAustralia, 2004). This research poses the question: ‘How can design elicit empathy in siblings of voices hearers? Testing and using a designed device to simulate dynamic Auditory Hallucinations or ‘Voices’ in order for family members to experience an in-depth understanding of their own reaction to hearing ‘voices’. With multiple studies affirming that families are crucial to recovery, this thesis research targets families to provide an education on how to positively perpetuate the recovery of a loved one suffering from hearing voices. Empathy is the driving concept of this research, challenging the ability of a designed devices ability to elicit empathy. Through the design of a wearable technology scarf and smart phone App (both entitled Empathear) created to emulate ‘voices’, this thesis has developed and tested, a product-service system that provides family members a simulated voice hearing experience which can be undertaken in the family home and out in the general public. These voices adapt to the wearer’s environment, becoming louder, softer, more intense or relaxed. Using Empathear outside of the home is very important to this research as it allows family members to see what it is like to speak to members of the public with the distraction of voices. This research identified four common themes expressed by those interviewed: - Distraction and Concentration - Personal Adaption into a Progressional Experience - Empathy and Appreciation - Positivity for the Future Empathear fills a gap in the market, helping families to take control, becoming their own instigators of positive change. From a case study of user testing of the chosen design output – the Empathear App, it was found that this research was successful in achieving improved empathetic concern, with all sibling participants acknowledging a change in empathy towards their loved one. This generated a motivation, especially in younger participants, to improve the future of their loved one akin to Daniel C. Batson’s Altruism (Chapter 5.1 Types of Empathy). This research worked to avoid personal distress in participants by allowing them the option to turn the App off at any stage, giving participants free range on how they wanted to orchestrate their personal voices experience. Empathear has given premise to understanding that distinguishing the illness from our loved one can be achieved through understanding our own reaction to voices. Participants were given an experience of how their personality could be tested by this adversity, allowing them to recognize the reasons behind their loved ones day to day actions and reactions.</p>
Inhabiting the threshold: the Women's Gallery as liminal space in New Zealand's feminist art history
Authors:   , Baker Kirsty 
Published: November 2021

<p>In the four years between January 1980 and January 1984, a gallery was run in Wellington by a collective of women to display the work of female artists only. This feminist space sought to provide an educational, supportive and inclusive environment, free from the obstacles which were perceived to prohibit women from displaying their work in mainstream art spaces. This thesis tackles the history of this gallery’s reception and seeks to address its absence in the writing of New Zealand’s art history. In reassessing its history, I assert the Women’s Gallery deserves a place within critical accounts of art in New Zealand. Chapter one locates the Women’s Gallery within the cultural and political context of New Zealand society by tracing the development of the women’s art movement, and feminism as a grassroots political movement. An examination of the gallery’s Opening Show serves as an example of the way in which the ideology of the Women’s Gallery shaped its organisational structure. Chapter two pinpoints the time of the gallery’s existence at a point of transformation within feminist thinking. This chapter problematises the evolution of feminist thought from ‘essentialism’ to a critique informed by poststructuralist strategies. A close analysis of artworks demonstrates that the Women’s Gallery was simultaneously occupied by artists who exhibited both tendencies. By proposing Victor Turner’s model of liminality as a framework upon which to base a discussion of the Women’s Gallery, chapter three reframes the gallery as a liminal space. I argue the temporary existence of the gallery allowed women a space – removed from patriarchal power structures – in which to experiment both politically and creatively.</p>
Vietnamese Academics' Research Capacity in Tertiary Contexts
Authors:   , Huynh Tien 
Published: November 2021

<p>Research carried out by academics at higher education institutions (HEIs) has substantially contributed to nations’ development, particularly in a time of globalisation and internationalisation of higher education (HE). A range of studies on academics’ research have been undertaken in western contexts. Those studies can be classified into studies of academics’ research perceptions and studies of factors affecting academics’ research productivity. However, there has been a very limited number of studies on academics’ research capacity and HEIs’ research capacities in Vietnam. Meanwhile, the Vietnamese Government has attempted to develop its HE system to contribute to the success of its national development. Over the past ten years, the Vietnamese Government has issued a series of research related policies and has had a greater investment into the development of its HE system. However, the research capacity of Vietnamese HEIs has been lower than that of its neighbouring countries in the region. Therefore, this study was conducted with the hope that it might provide an in-depth understanding of the research capacities of Vietnamese HEIs and their academics and how they can be better fostered in the Vietnamese HE system. The study was conducted in three public HEIs at different levels in southern Vietnam: provincial, regional, and national. The study employed an interpretive case study approach with a lens of historical and sociocultural theory. Three key tools used for data collecting were surveys, individual semi-structured interviews, and document analysis. The research participants were purposefully selected from the three institutions. For data analysis, the study utilised a combined framework adapted from the predictive model department research productivity of Bland, Center, Finstad, Risbey, and Staples (2005), the model of factors affecting academics’ research productivity of Chen, Gupta, and Hoshower (2006), and Moore’s (2015) social-ecological model: Looking beyond the individual. The study’s findings indicated that the research capacities of Vietnamese HEIs and their academics were influenced by various factors at different levels. At societal level, they include socioeconomic, sociocultural, and political factors. At community level, they comprise resources, research orientation, research networks, professional development practices. At institutional level, they consist of establishment history, geographical location, and organisation. Additionally, the study identified that institutional contexts affected the academics’ research motivation and research engagement at this level. Finally, this study suggested some recommendations for both academic leaders and academics from the three HEIs and Vietnamese HE policy makers to consider so that they may find ways to enhance the research capacities of the Vietnamese HEIs and their academics’ research engagement.</p>
On Idempotent Measures of Small Norm
Authors:   , Mudge Jayden 
Published: November 2021

<p>In this Master’s Thesis, we set up the groundwork for [8], a paper co-written by the author and Hung Pham. We summarise the Fourier and Fourier-Stieltjes algebras on both abelian and general locally compact groups. Let Г be a locally compact group. We answer two questions left open in [11] and [13]: 1. When Г is abelian, we prove that if ϰs ∈ B(Г) is an idempotent with norm 1 < ||ϰs|| < 4/3 then S is the union of two cosets of an open subgroup of Г. 2. For general Г, we prove that if ϰs ∈ McbA(Г) is an idempotent with norm ||ϰs||cb < 1+√2/2 , then S is an open coset in Г.</p>
New Methods for Studying Materials Under Shear with Nuclear Magnetic Resonance
Authors:   , Brox Timothy 
Published: November 2021

<p>For over 30 years, nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) techniques have been used to study materials under shear. Collectively referred to as Rheo-NMR, these methods measure material behaviour due to external stimuli and provide spatially and temporally resolved maps of NMR spectra, intrinsic NMR parameters (e.g. relaxation times) or motion (e.g. diffusion or flow). As a consequence, Rheo-NMR has been established as a complementary technique to conventional rheological measurements. In this thesis, new hardware and experimental methods are presented with the goal of advancing this exciting field through further integration of traditional rheometry techniques with NMR experiments. Three key areas of hardware development have been addressed, including: 1) integrating torque sensing into the Rheo-NMR experiment for simultaneous bulk shear stress measurements, 2) constructing shear devices with geometric parameters closer to those used on commercial rheometers and 3) implementing an advanced drive system which allows for new shear profiles including oscillatory shear. In addition to presenting the design and construction of various prototype instruments, results from validation and proof of concept studies are discussed. This information demonstrates that the hardware operates as expected and establishes an experimental parameter space for these new techniques. Furthermore, these methods have been applied to open questions in various physical systems. This includes exploring the influence of shear geometry curvature on the onset of shear banding in a wormlike micelle surfactant system, observing shear induced structural changes in a lyotropic nonionic surfactant simultaneously via deuterium spectroscopy and bulk viscosity as well as studying interactions of flowing granular materials. The interpretation and implication of these observations are discussed in addition to motivating further studies.</p>