title: Measuring distress in older population: Rasch analysis of the Kessler Psychological Distress Scale

authors: Calkin, Cailen J.

abstract: Objectives: The 10-item Kessler Psychological Distress Scale (K-10) is a widely applied distress measure; however, its psychometric properties were not established with older populations using advanced methodology. The aim of this study was to examine psychometric properties of the K-10 through application of Rasch methodology and if possible, develop an ordinal-to-interval conversion to improve its reliability in older populations.  Method: The Partial Credit Rasch Model was applied to analyse K-10 scores of the sample including 490 participants (56.3% females) aged 70 to 90 years and without dementia from the Sydney Memory and Aging Study (MAS).  Results: The initial analysis of the K-10 showed poor reliability and significant deviation from the expectations of the Rasch model. The best model fit was evident after correcting disordered thresholds and creating two testlet models to address local dependency between items (χ2(35)=29.87, p=0.71). The modified K-10 demonstrated strict unidimensionality, enhanced reliability and scale invariance across personal factors, such as sex, age, and education and permitted development of ordinal-to-interval transformation algorithms. Limitations: Ordinal-to-interval conversion can only be applied for older adults with complete data. Conclusions: The K-10 satisfied principles of fundamental measurement defined by Rasch model after minor modifications. Clinicians and researchers can transform K-10 raw scores into interval-level data using converging algorithms published here without altering the original scale response format, which increases reliability of the K-10.

text: Measuring distress in older population: Rasch analysis of the Kessler Psychological Distress Scale Objectives: The 10-item Kessler Psychological Distress Scale (K-10) is a widely applied distress measure; however, its psychometric properties were not established with older populations using advanced methodology. The aim of this study was to examine psychometric properties of the K-10 through application of Rasch methodology and if possible, develop an ordinal-to-interval conversion to improve its reliability in older populations.  Method: The Partial Credit Rasch Model was applied to analyse K-10 scores of the sample including 490 participants (56.3% females) aged 70 to 90 years and without dementia from the Sydney Memory and Aging Study (MAS).  Results: The initial analysis of the K-10 showed poor reliability and significant deviation from the expectations of the Rasch model. The best model fit was evident after correcting disordered thresholds and creating two testlet models to address local dependency between items (χ2(35)=29.87, p=0.71). The modified K-10 demonstrated strict unidimensionality, enhanced reliability and scale invariance across personal factors, such as sex, age, and education and permitted development of ordinal-to-interval transformation algorithms. Limitations: Ordinal-to-interval conversion can only be applied for older adults with complete data. Conclusions: The K-10 satisfied principles of fundamental measurement defined by Rasch model after minor modifications. Clinicians and researchers can transform K-10 raw scores into interval-level data using converging algorithms published here without altering the original scale response format, which increases reliability of the K-10.

year: 2023-03

title: Military Regimes, Political Power and Human Rights Violations in Postcolonial Algeria

authors: Belkamel, Yassine

subjects: Algeria

abstract: Following Algeria’s bloody war of independence, a new, revolutionary military establishment gradually formed out of several largely independent revolutionary units, stationed mostly on Algeria’s borders.  It soon expanded with the addition of revolutionary fighters from within Algeria, and from French-trained forces, many of whom had fought against the revolutionary forces during the Revolution, and had deserted late in the war from the French military to join the new Algerian military.  A particularly powerful group of officers emerged from the latter group, the “French Officers,” who apparently engaged in a long-term and ultimately successful bid for national political power.
This thesis, which is concerned with the politics behind the massive human rights violations in Algeria, particularly the periods immediately after Independence, and between 1991 and 2002, the “Algerian Civil War,” seeks to explore a central question: why did the Algerian military turn against its own people?  While not denying the role of other groups (e.g., religious groups, ethnic groups) in the violence, the central focus of this thesis is on the distinctive and effective structure and role of the military, which was apparently the dominant political power in Algeria after Independence, and particularly on the role of the French Officers, who appear to have manipulated the presidency through coups d’état and assassinations, in their struggle to achieve political hegemony in Algeria by the 1990s. Central to this was the role played after Independence by Houari Boumédiène in establishing political and military organisations that were particularly susceptible to the growing influence of the French Officers.
Central topical foci of the thesis include examinations of the possible effects (on the central question, listed above) of: professionalization of the military; civil-military relations; historical influences; ethnic and religious influences; political parties and party formation; corruption and economic opportunism; international relations and continuing French influence; and the unique role of the French Officers in the national politics of Algeria.
Methodologies used in this study included the analysis of elite (non-random) interviews, based upon a questionnaire approved by the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences Research Ethics Committee, which the author conducted in Europe and via “Skype” with nearly two dozen prominent Algerian expatriates, for the most part in exile, including former civilian leaders and military officers. Historical analysis was also a central part of the methodology, as well as discourse analysis applied to significant memoirs and newspaper accounts.
The thesis concludes that the immediate self-interests of the French Officers had a determinate effect on politics in Algeria, and particularly on the way in which the military turned against its own people after 1991. The continuing support that the French Officers apparently received from France, while not unexpected, is surprising in its extent and continuity, particularly after acts of terrorism thought to be linked to the Algerian government occurred in France.  An unexpected finding of this research is the significance of corruption and economic opportunism in the Algerian military regime’s long-term strategy.

text: Military Regimes, Political Power and Human Rights Violations in Postcolonial Algeria Following Algeria’s bloody war of independence, a new, revolutionary military establishment gradually formed out of several largely independent revolutionary units, stationed mostly on Algeria’s borders.  It soon expanded with the addition of revolutionary fighters from within Algeria, and from French-trained forces, many of whom had fought against the revolutionary forces during the Revolution, and had deserted late in the war from the French military to join the new Algerian military.  A particularly powerful group of officers emerged from the latter group, the “French Officers,” who apparently engaged in a long-term and ultimately successful bid for national political power.
This thesis, which is concerned with the politics behind the massive human rights violations in Algeria, particularly the periods immediately after Independence, and between 1991 and 2002, the “Algerian Civil War,” seeks to explore a central question: why did the Algerian military turn against its own people?  While not denying the role of other groups (e.g., religious groups, ethnic groups) in the violence, the central focus of this thesis is on the distinctive and effective structure and role of the military, which was apparently the dominant political power in Algeria after Independence, and particularly on the role of the French Officers, who appear to have manipulated the presidency through coups d’état and assassinations, in their struggle to achieve political hegemony in Algeria by the 1990s. Central to this was the role played after Independence by Houari Boumédiène in establishing political and military organisations that were particularly susceptible to the growing influence of the French Officers.
Central topical foci of the thesis include examinations of the possible effects (on the central question, listed above) of: professionalization of the military; civil-military relations; historical influences; ethnic and religious influences; political parties and party formation; corruption and economic opportunism; international relations and continuing French influence; and the unique role of the French Officers in the national politics of Algeria.
Methodologies used in this study included the analysis of elite (non-random) interviews, based upon a questionnaire approved by the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences Research Ethics Committee, which the author conducted in Europe and via “Skype” with nearly two dozen prominent Algerian expatriates, for the most part in exile, including former civilian leaders and military officers. Historical analysis was also a central part of the methodology, as well as discourse analysis applied to significant memoirs and newspaper accounts.
The thesis concludes that the immediate self-interests of the French Officers had a determinate effect on politics in Algeria, and particularly on the way in which the military turned against its own people after 1991. The continuing support that the French Officers apparently received from France, while not unexpected, is surprising in its extent and continuity, particularly after acts of terrorism thought to be linked to the Algerian government occurred in France.  An unexpected finding of this research is the significance of corruption and economic opportunism in the Algerian military regime’s long-term strategy.

year: 2014

title: Stemming the colonial environmental tide - Shared Māori governance jurisdiction and ecosystem-based management over the marine and coastal seascape in Aotearoa New Zealand – Possible ways forward

authors: Joseph, Robert

subjects: ecosystem-based management, Maori co-governance, Treaty of Waitangi, Ocean governance

abstract: Ecosystem-based management (EBM) has become an appropriate international response for addressing the alarming global environmental degradation. EBM is designed and executed as an adaptive, learning-based process that applies the following common international principles:

•	the connections and relationships within an ecosystem;
•	the cumulative impacts that affect marine welfare; 
•	focus on maintaining the natural structure and function of ecosystems and their productivity;
•	incorporate human use and values of ecosystems in managing the resources;
•	recognise that ecosystems are dynamic and constantly changing;
•	are based on a shared vision of all key participants; and
•	are based on scientific knowledge, adopted by continual learning and monitoring.

The New Zealand Sustainable Seas National Science Challenge agrees with the above EBM principles and has adopted them but has also adapted them to an Aotearoa New Zealand context that fundamentally acknowledges mātauranga and tikanga Māori law and shared co-governance and concurrent jurisdiction hence the following Aotearoa New Zealand EBM principles:
•	a co-governance and co-design structure that recognises the Māori constitutional relationship and mana whenua at all levels (whānau, hapū, iwi), together with the guiding principles of mauri, whakapapa, kaitiakitanga, mātauranga-a-iwi and mātauranga-a-hapū;
•	is place and time-specific, recognising/understanding the ecosystem as a whole in all its ecological complexities and connectedness and addressing cumulative and multiple stressors;
•	acknowledges humans as ecosystem components with multiple values;
•	views long-term sustainability as a fundamental value, in particular maintaining values and uses for future generations;
•	includes collaborative and participatory management throughout the whole process, considering all values and involving all interested parties from agencies and iwi to industries, whānau, hapū and local communities;
•	has clear goals and objectives based on knowledge; and
•	includes adaptive management, appropriate monitoring and acknowledgement of uncertainty.

This report focuses on analysing EBM through the incorporation of mātauranga and tikanga Māori and shared concurrent jurisdiction through Treaty of Waitangi partnerships over the marine and coastal environment.

text: Stemming the colonial environmental tide - Shared Māori governance jurisdiction and ecosystem-based management over the marine and coastal seascape in Aotearoa New Zealand – Possible ways forward Ecosystem-based management (EBM) has become an appropriate international response for addressing the alarming global environmental degradation. EBM is designed and executed as an adaptive, learning-based process that applies the following common international principles:

•	the connections and relationships within an ecosystem;
•	the cumulative impacts that affect marine welfare; 
•	focus on maintaining the natural structure and function of ecosystems and their productivity;
•	incorporate human use and values of ecosystems in managing the resources;
•	recognise that ecosystems are dynamic and constantly changing;
•	are based on a shared vision of all key participants; and
•	are based on scientific knowledge, adopted by continual learning and monitoring.

The New Zealand Sustainable Seas National Science Challenge agrees with the above EBM principles and has adopted them but has also adapted them to an Aotearoa New Zealand context that fundamentally acknowledges mātauranga and tikanga Māori law and shared co-governance and concurrent jurisdiction hence the following Aotearoa New Zealand EBM principles:
•	a co-governance and co-design structure that recognises the Māori constitutional relationship and mana whenua at all levels (whānau, hapū, iwi), together with the guiding principles of mauri, whakapapa, kaitiakitanga, mātauranga-a-iwi and mātauranga-a-hapū;
•	is place and time-specific, recognising/understanding the ecosystem as a whole in all its ecological complexities and connectedness and addressing cumulative and multiple stressors;
•	acknowledges humans as ecosystem components with multiple values;
•	views long-term sustainability as a fundamental value, in particular maintaining values and uses for future generations;
•	includes collaborative and participatory management throughout the whole process, considering all values and involving all interested parties from agencies and iwi to industries, whānau, hapū and local communities;
•	has clear goals and objectives based on knowledge; and
•	includes adaptive management, appropriate monitoring and acknowledgement of uncertainty.

This report focuses on analysing EBM through the incorporation of mātauranga and tikanga Māori and shared concurrent jurisdiction through Treaty of Waitangi partnerships over the marine and coastal environment.

year: 2020-06-09