title: Rehumanising housing: an ecological understanding of the landlord - tenant relationship

authors: Major, James Darren

subjects: Housing

abstract: 2021 Aotearoa New Zealand is experiencing a housing crisis that is benefitting some while hurting others. In Aotearoa New Zealand it is estimated that 50 percent of the population are living in rental homes. While the nation is experiencing house prices accelerating at levels well beyond increases in income, the segment of society that are renting are being financially left behind compared to those who own property. It is estimated that the average Aotearoa New Zealand home-owner is 14 times as wealthy as the average renter.
This research follows the values and principles of community psychology, placing housing and tenancy in an ecological model. Systems thinking is drawn on to embed tenancies in the context with which they are occurring. Taking a social justice stance while investigating the broader aspects of tenancy, aiming to illustrate why a landlord chooses this business, how political ideology and policy plays a role in that decision. Further, using systems thinking to understand how the landlords’ business and government policy play out in the lives of tenants, highlighting the inequality present in the life-worlds of tenants compared to home-owners.
This thesis uses of a range of methodological approaches that draw from social representations and phenomenological theory. A policy analysis is conducted as well as a detailed analysis of three interviews with a participant. The participant in this research is a landlord in Aotearoa New Zealand.
This research investigated the largely unexamined norms present in the tenancy relationship of the periodic inspection, the funding of the tenancy tribunal and the money held
in bond during a tenancy and finds that there are imbalances of social justice for tenants.
Among the findings it is shown that policy surrounding the tenancy arrangement is largely very old and circumstances have changed greatly, suggesting that a new Act is necessary. Ambiguity in the current Act has led to property management companies generating their own ideas about what property inspections are for. This has in turn led to a situation of intrusive surveillance of tenants. New Zealand support services for tenants were found to be under-developed and
should be increased to match the better overseas practices. At the same time it is argued that the term ‘landlord’ be professionalised and a code of conduct for that role written. These changes would likely allow for an improvement in the lifeworld and agency of tenants. Underlying all these issues it is shown that the prevailing ideology of thirty years or
more of neoliberalism in Aotearoa New Zealand has driven the policies that have led to the current situation. In relation to this element of the research process I also document my changes in thought as my own neoliberal tendencies were challenged and changed through my critical engagement with the practices of applied community psychology.

text: Rehumanising housing: an ecological understanding of the landlord - tenant relationship 2021 Aotearoa New Zealand is experiencing a housing crisis that is benefitting some while hurting others. In Aotearoa New Zealand it is estimated that 50 percent of the population are living in rental homes. While the nation is experiencing house prices accelerating at levels well beyond increases in income, the segment of society that are renting are being financially left behind compared to those who own property. It is estimated that the average Aotearoa New Zealand home-owner is 14 times as wealthy as the average renter.
This research follows the values and principles of community psychology, placing housing and tenancy in an ecological model. Systems thinking is drawn on to embed tenancies in the context with which they are occurring. Taking a social justice stance while investigating the broader aspects of tenancy, aiming to illustrate why a landlord chooses this business, how political ideology and policy plays a role in that decision. Further, using systems thinking to understand how the landlords’ business and government policy play out in the lives of tenants, highlighting the inequality present in the life-worlds of tenants compared to home-owners.
This thesis uses of a range of methodological approaches that draw from social representations and phenomenological theory. A policy analysis is conducted as well as a detailed analysis of three interviews with a participant. The participant in this research is a landlord in Aotearoa New Zealand.
This research investigated the largely unexamined norms present in the tenancy relationship of the periodic inspection, the funding of the tenancy tribunal and the money held
in bond during a tenancy and finds that there are imbalances of social justice for tenants.
Among the findings it is shown that policy surrounding the tenancy arrangement is largely very old and circumstances have changed greatly, suggesting that a new Act is necessary. Ambiguity in the current Act has led to property management companies generating their own ideas about what property inspections are for. This has in turn led to a situation of intrusive surveillance of tenants. New Zealand support services for tenants were found to be under-developed and
should be increased to match the better overseas practices. At the same time it is argued that the term ‘landlord’ be professionalised and a code of conduct for that role written. These changes would likely allow for an improvement in the lifeworld and agency of tenants. Underlying all these issues it is shown that the prevailing ideology of thirty years or
more of neoliberalism in Aotearoa New Zealand has driven the policies that have led to the current situation. In relation to this element of the research process I also document my changes in thought as my own neoliberal tendencies were challenged and changed through my critical engagement with the practices of applied community psychology.

year: 2021

title: ‘Sex, drugs and snowboarding’: (il)legitimate definitions of taste and lifestyle in a physical youth culture

authors: Thorpe, Holly Aysha

subjects: lifestyle

abstract: This paper examines the hedonistic social interactions and lifestyles embraced by many contemporary physical youth cultural participants via the case of snowboarding. Drawing upon an array of primary and secondary sources collected over seven years, I present a three-part analysis of the hedonistic party lifestyle, alcohol and drug consumption (for both pleasure and performance), and the hyper-sexuality, at the core of the snowboarding culture. Engaging Bourdieu’s theory of distinction, and particularly his concepts of field, practice and taste, in dialogue with my empirical evidence, I reveal the definitions of pleasure and the hedonistic snowboarding lifestyle as highly contested. While many cultural participants are complicit to hierarchical and/or violent attempts to regulate the dominant tastes and practices within the snowboarding field, others are engaging in an array of symbolic and embodied struggles to (re)define meanings of ‘pleasure’ in the snowboarding lifestyle and après snow culture more broadly.

text: ‘Sex, drugs and snowboarding’: (il)legitimate definitions of taste and lifestyle in a physical youth culture This paper examines the hedonistic social interactions and lifestyles embraced by many contemporary physical youth cultural participants via the case of snowboarding. Drawing upon an array of primary and secondary sources collected over seven years, I present a three-part analysis of the hedonistic party lifestyle, alcohol and drug consumption (for both pleasure and performance), and the hyper-sexuality, at the core of the snowboarding culture. Engaging Bourdieu’s theory of distinction, and particularly his concepts of field, practice and taste, in dialogue with my empirical evidence, I reveal the definitions of pleasure and the hedonistic snowboarding lifestyle as highly contested. While many cultural participants are complicit to hierarchical and/or violent attempts to regulate the dominant tastes and practices within the snowboarding field, others are engaging in an array of symbolic and embodied struggles to (re)define meanings of ‘pleasure’ in the snowboarding lifestyle and après snow culture more broadly.

year: 2012

title: The use of trastuzumab in New Zealand women with breast cancer

authors: Lawrenson, Ross

subjects: Breast Neoplasms

abstract: Aim

Trastuzumab was first funded in New Zealand for use in HER2+ve stage I–III breast cancer in 2007. This observational study aims to ascertain the patterns of use of trastuzumab in women with invasive HER2+ve breast cancer, and assess the effectiveness of adjuvant trastuzumab in women with stage I–III HER2+ve breast cancer.
Methods

The Waikato and Auckland Breast Cancer Registries have clinical details of 12 372 women diagnosed with invasive breast cancer between June 2000 and May 2013. The proportion of women with HER2+ve breast cancer treated with trastuzumab was examined by age, ethnicity, stage and year of diagnosis. Differences in outcomes including the development of metastases and death were assessed for women with stage I–III HER2+ve breast cancer treated with both chemotherapy and trastuzumab, compared to women treated with chemotherapy alone.
Results

Among the 1587 HER2+ve breast cancer patients, 888 (56.0%) women received trastuzumab. The probability of having trastuzumab decreased with higher age and comorbidity score and increased with year of diagnosis, tumor size and cancer stage. Māori and Pacific women were less likely to be treated with trastuzumab. After adjustment for potential confounding factors, the treatment with trastuzumab improved breast cancer-specific mortality (adjusted hazard ratio 0.57, 95% CI: 0.35–0.93).
Conclusion

Overall, this observational study has shown a substantial improvement in survival for women with HER2+ve stage I–III breast cancer, and much of this improvement can be attributed to the introduction of trastuzumab. Changes in chemotherapy also appear to have led to improved outcomes.

text: The use of trastuzumab in New Zealand women with breast cancer Aim

Trastuzumab was first funded in New Zealand for use in HER2+ve stage I–III breast cancer in 2007. This observational study aims to ascertain the patterns of use of trastuzumab in women with invasive HER2+ve breast cancer, and assess the effectiveness of adjuvant trastuzumab in women with stage I–III HER2+ve breast cancer.
Methods

The Waikato and Auckland Breast Cancer Registries have clinical details of 12 372 women diagnosed with invasive breast cancer between June 2000 and May 2013. The proportion of women with HER2+ve breast cancer treated with trastuzumab was examined by age, ethnicity, stage and year of diagnosis. Differences in outcomes including the development of metastases and death were assessed for women with stage I–III HER2+ve breast cancer treated with both chemotherapy and trastuzumab, compared to women treated with chemotherapy alone.
Results

Among the 1587 HER2+ve breast cancer patients, 888 (56.0%) women received trastuzumab. The probability of having trastuzumab decreased with higher age and comorbidity score and increased with year of diagnosis, tumor size and cancer stage. Māori and Pacific women were less likely to be treated with trastuzumab. After adjustment for potential confounding factors, the treatment with trastuzumab improved breast cancer-specific mortality (adjusted hazard ratio 0.57, 95% CI: 0.35–0.93).
Conclusion

Overall, this observational study has shown a substantial improvement in survival for women with HER2+ve stage I–III breast cancer, and much of this improvement can be attributed to the introduction of trastuzumab. Changes in chemotherapy also appear to have led to improved outcomes.

year: 2017