title: Examining processes in the relationship between narrative identity  and psychological functioning

authors: Corbett, Monique

subjects: narrative identity

abstract: Theoretical perspectives and empirical evidence support a link between narrative identity and psychological functioning. When examining this relationship, psychological functioning has typically been conceptualised in terms of diagnostic symptoms. As a result, the transdiagnostic psychological processes underpinning the relationship remain largely unexplored. Additionally, recent research proposes that the relationship between narrative identity and psychological functioning may be reciprocal, but research has primarily utilised cross-sectional data or considered characteristics of narrative identity as predisposing factors. The work in this thesis addresses these gaps in the field by examining potential underlying psychological processes and exploring potential reciprocal associations in a sample of young adults. In the first study, a systematic review was conducted to identify transdiagnostic factors either associated with narrative identity or that mediated or moderated its relationship with psychological functioning. The review comprised 11 studies and revealed mixed findings for the support of rumination, overgeneral memory (OGM), emotion dysregulation, and attachment state of mind as transdiagnostic factors that may be uniquely associated with narrative identity or mediate or moderate the relationship between narrative identity and psychological functioning. In the second study, 245 university students were recruited to investigate the mediating and moderating effects of the identified transdiagnostic factors. Findings revealed that rumination and emotion dysregulation, but not OGM, mediated the relationship between lower causal coherence and psychological functioning. Surprisingly, neither attachment state of mind nor memory tone moderated any relationships between narrative identity and psychological functioning. The third study examined associations between narrative identity as measured by causal coherence and psychological processes utilising the Research Domain Criteria (RDoC) systems, using the same sample of 245 participants at Time 1 and a returning 88 participants at Time 2 (6 months later). Structural equation modelling revealed concurrent and longitudinal negative associations between difficulties in the negative valence system and causal coherence. Furthermore, lower causal coherence predicted later difficulties in the arousal/regulatory system. However, difficulties in the social processes system showed no such associations. The final study investigated the relationship between identification with psychopathology in turning point narratives and psychopathology symptoms. This study utilised the 245 community young adults from studies two and three, as well as 30 in-patient clinical young adults. A novel coding scheme was developed to tap identification with psychopathology within turning point narratives. Findings revealed that higher identification with psychopathology was associated with higher symptoms of depression, anxiety, BPD, rumination and emotion dysregulation. Multinomial regression analysis revealed that identification with psychopathology predicted an individual belonging to the symptoms or diagnosis group above and beyond measures of psychopathology. Moderation analyses revealed that the interaction between identification with psychopathology and belonging to the community group predicted depression, but not for the symptoms or diagnosis nor the clinical group. Overall, this thesis provides crucial insights into the dynamic relationship between narrative identity and psychological functioning, emphasising the significance of cognitive and emotional processes such as rumination and emotion dysregulation. Furthermore, this thesis introduces identification with psychopathology as a potentially important aspect of narrative identity. Understanding these complex relationships can lead to the development of personalised and targeted interventions with greater responsivity. Future longitudinal research that incorporates a range of narrative identity, transdiagnostic, and psychological functioning variables is recommended.

text: Examining processes in the relationship between narrative identity  and psychological functioning Theoretical perspectives and empirical evidence support a link between narrative identity and psychological functioning. When examining this relationship, psychological functioning has typically been conceptualised in terms of diagnostic symptoms. As a result, the transdiagnostic psychological processes underpinning the relationship remain largely unexplored. Additionally, recent research proposes that the relationship between narrative identity and psychological functioning may be reciprocal, but research has primarily utilised cross-sectional data or considered characteristics of narrative identity as predisposing factors. The work in this thesis addresses these gaps in the field by examining potential underlying psychological processes and exploring potential reciprocal associations in a sample of young adults. In the first study, a systematic review was conducted to identify transdiagnostic factors either associated with narrative identity or that mediated or moderated its relationship with psychological functioning. The review comprised 11 studies and revealed mixed findings for the support of rumination, overgeneral memory (OGM), emotion dysregulation, and attachment state of mind as transdiagnostic factors that may be uniquely associated with narrative identity or mediate or moderate the relationship between narrative identity and psychological functioning. In the second study, 245 university students were recruited to investigate the mediating and moderating effects of the identified transdiagnostic factors. Findings revealed that rumination and emotion dysregulation, but not OGM, mediated the relationship between lower causal coherence and psychological functioning. Surprisingly, neither attachment state of mind nor memory tone moderated any relationships between narrative identity and psychological functioning. The third study examined associations between narrative identity as measured by causal coherence and psychological processes utilising the Research Domain Criteria (RDoC) systems, using the same sample of 245 participants at Time 1 and a returning 88 participants at Time 2 (6 months later). Structural equation modelling revealed concurrent and longitudinal negative associations between difficulties in the negative valence system and causal coherence. Furthermore, lower causal coherence predicted later difficulties in the arousal/regulatory system. However, difficulties in the social processes system showed no such associations. The final study investigated the relationship between identification with psychopathology in turning point narratives and psychopathology symptoms. This study utilised the 245 community young adults from studies two and three, as well as 30 in-patient clinical young adults. A novel coding scheme was developed to tap identification with psychopathology within turning point narratives. Findings revealed that higher identification with psychopathology was associated with higher symptoms of depression, anxiety, BPD, rumination and emotion dysregulation. Multinomial regression analysis revealed that identification with psychopathology predicted an individual belonging to the symptoms or diagnosis group above and beyond measures of psychopathology. Moderation analyses revealed that the interaction between identification with psychopathology and belonging to the community group predicted depression, but not for the symptoms or diagnosis nor the clinical group. Overall, this thesis provides crucial insights into the dynamic relationship between narrative identity and psychological functioning, emphasising the significance of cognitive and emotional processes such as rumination and emotion dysregulation. Furthermore, this thesis introduces identification with psychopathology as a potentially important aspect of narrative identity. Understanding these complex relationships can lead to the development of personalised and targeted interventions with greater responsivity. Future longitudinal research that incorporates a range of narrative identity, transdiagnostic, and psychological functioning variables is recommended.

year: 2024-09-09

title: The influence of interacting stressors on soft sediment ecosystem function

authors: Mangan, Stephanie

subjects: Turbidity

abstract: Soft sediment intertidal habitats provide valuable ecosystem services to millions of people worldwide yet are under intense anthropogenic pressure. In particular, the intensification of land derived sediment and nutrient delivery has resulted in elevated water column turbidity and nutrient over-enrichment, both of which can diminish ecosystem functionality. Identifying how these stressors interact and influence benthic ecosystems is crucial to understanding the resilience of these valuable habitats and to help manage effectively to prevent shifts towards ecological tipping points. This thesis therefore investigates the response of benthic primary production and biogeochemical cycling to two pervasive stressors; increasing water column turbidity and sediment nutrient enrichment.
Water column turbidity directly restricts the availability of light to microphytobenthos (MPB), a key primary producer in soft sediment intertidal habitats. However, the degree to which turbidity may limit primary production across New Zealand was largely unknown. I recorded light availability at the seafloor over a 9-month period at 22 sites situated within 14 estuaries. Coupled with a global literature compilation of photosynthesis-irradiance curves, the proportion of time MPB were light limited during submergence ranged from a median of 55–100 %. For estuaries close to 100 % light limitation, emerged intertidal areas represent a refuge for MPB production which is vulnerable to sea-level rise. Using hypsometric curves, the intertidal area of my study estuaries was predicted to decrease by 27–94 % under a 1.4 m rise in sea-level. The combination of high light limitation during submergence and large losses of intertidal area will increase vulnerability to the loss of MPB production and the associated ecosystem services, which can push these ecosystems towards tipping points.
Anthropogenic stressors often occur concomitantly, and therefore understanding how differing degrees of water column turbidity may interact with other stressors, such as increasing nutrient enrichment and influence benthic productivity over alternating periods of submergence and emergence were investigated. A field manipulation study was designed to enrich porewaters at three levels for 20 months, at six sites that spanned a gradient in water column turbidity. While nutrient enrichment had no detectable effect on MPB primary production, water column turbidity had a significant influence, explaining up to 40 % of the variability during tidal submergence, followed by temperature and sediment characteristics. In addition, negative net primary production (NPP) and therefore net heterotrophy for the most turbid estuaries during tidal submergence resulted in an increased reliance on production during emerged periods. This study highlights the prominent role of turbidity over porewater nutrient enrichment in moderating MPB production and supports earlier conclusions of the increasing importance of emerged periods to maintain the health and functioning of coastal habitats.
Soft sediment intertidal habitats are not only hot spots for benthic productivity, but they also play a fundamental role in biogeochemical cycling. The influence of increased nutrient availability on nitrogen and carbon cycling was investigated after 15 and 20 months of nitrogen enrichment. This study highlighted the limited capacity for denitrification, a key process in removing bioavailable nitrogen, to mitigate large increases in nitrogen availability, as evidenced through the consistent rates of net denitrification and reductions in the efficiency at which nitrogen was removed. Denitrification rate was most strongly correlated to carbon supply, trophic status and to a lesser extent, macrofaunal diversity. In addition, analysis of factor-ceiling relationships revealed the vulnerability of estuaries to increasing stressor loads. The appearance of significant nonlinearities with increasing nitrogen enrichment suggests alterations to the interactions of intrinsic dynamics and drivers which can fundamentally alter biogeochemical cycling within soft sediments and increase the likelihood of abrupt non-linear shifts.
Overall, the findings of my thesis demonstrate how the health and functioning of coastal ecosystems can be significantly diminished under increasing anthropogenic stress, and that the vulnerability of coastal ecosystems to the loss of ecosystem functionality will change in the future as global scale stressors intensify.

text: The influence of interacting stressors on soft sediment ecosystem function Soft sediment intertidal habitats provide valuable ecosystem services to millions of people worldwide yet are under intense anthropogenic pressure. In particular, the intensification of land derived sediment and nutrient delivery has resulted in elevated water column turbidity and nutrient over-enrichment, both of which can diminish ecosystem functionality. Identifying how these stressors interact and influence benthic ecosystems is crucial to understanding the resilience of these valuable habitats and to help manage effectively to prevent shifts towards ecological tipping points. This thesis therefore investigates the response of benthic primary production and biogeochemical cycling to two pervasive stressors; increasing water column turbidity and sediment nutrient enrichment.
Water column turbidity directly restricts the availability of light to microphytobenthos (MPB), a key primary producer in soft sediment intertidal habitats. However, the degree to which turbidity may limit primary production across New Zealand was largely unknown. I recorded light availability at the seafloor over a 9-month period at 22 sites situated within 14 estuaries. Coupled with a global literature compilation of photosynthesis-irradiance curves, the proportion of time MPB were light limited during submergence ranged from a median of 55–100 %. For estuaries close to 100 % light limitation, emerged intertidal areas represent a refuge for MPB production which is vulnerable to sea-level rise. Using hypsometric curves, the intertidal area of my study estuaries was predicted to decrease by 27–94 % under a 1.4 m rise in sea-level. The combination of high light limitation during submergence and large losses of intertidal area will increase vulnerability to the loss of MPB production and the associated ecosystem services, which can push these ecosystems towards tipping points.
Anthropogenic stressors often occur concomitantly, and therefore understanding how differing degrees of water column turbidity may interact with other stressors, such as increasing nutrient enrichment and influence benthic productivity over alternating periods of submergence and emergence were investigated. A field manipulation study was designed to enrich porewaters at three levels for 20 months, at six sites that spanned a gradient in water column turbidity. While nutrient enrichment had no detectable effect on MPB primary production, water column turbidity had a significant influence, explaining up to 40 % of the variability during tidal submergence, followed by temperature and sediment characteristics. In addition, negative net primary production (NPP) and therefore net heterotrophy for the most turbid estuaries during tidal submergence resulted in an increased reliance on production during emerged periods. This study highlights the prominent role of turbidity over porewater nutrient enrichment in moderating MPB production and supports earlier conclusions of the increasing importance of emerged periods to maintain the health and functioning of coastal habitats.
Soft sediment intertidal habitats are not only hot spots for benthic productivity, but they also play a fundamental role in biogeochemical cycling. The influence of increased nutrient availability on nitrogen and carbon cycling was investigated after 15 and 20 months of nitrogen enrichment. This study highlighted the limited capacity for denitrification, a key process in removing bioavailable nitrogen, to mitigate large increases in nitrogen availability, as evidenced through the consistent rates of net denitrification and reductions in the efficiency at which nitrogen was removed. Denitrification rate was most strongly correlated to carbon supply, trophic status and to a lesser extent, macrofaunal diversity. In addition, analysis of factor-ceiling relationships revealed the vulnerability of estuaries to increasing stressor loads. The appearance of significant nonlinearities with increasing nitrogen enrichment suggests alterations to the interactions of intrinsic dynamics and drivers which can fundamentally alter biogeochemical cycling within soft sediments and increase the likelihood of abrupt non-linear shifts.
Overall, the findings of my thesis demonstrate how the health and functioning of coastal ecosystems can be significantly diminished under increasing anthropogenic stress, and that the vulnerability of coastal ecosystems to the loss of ecosystem functionality will change in the future as global scale stressors intensify.

year: 2021

title: The moral terrains of Māori tourism

authors: Ringham, Sandra Lee

subjects: Māori tourism geographies

abstract: The objective of this project is to understand how Māori values are integrated into Māori tourism geographies. The research asks three questions. First, how do values shape the moral terrains of Māori tourism? Second, how is Māori tourism constructed through state sponsored branding and policies? Finally, how and in what ways do Māori tourism providers (re)construct their places and identities through practicing Māori values in Aotearoa? 
The critical social geographies of tourism in this thesis are informed by Kaupapa Māori, mana wahine, feminist geography, moral terrains and diverse economies literatures. Methodologies are woven together using: semi-structured interviews; participant sensing; autoethnography; and, discourse analysis. A research whānau (extended family), including kuia and kaumātua (women and men elders), guide the ethical components of research design and practices. Participant sensing took place in northern, coastal and central areas of Aotearoa. As kaitāpoi (Māori domestic tourist) I took part in activities that included animal tourism, local cuisine, camping, high end accommodation, tramping, souvenir shopping, museums, a harbour cruise and visited information sites. Eleven semi-interviews were conducted with Māori tourism providers in northern and coastal spaces. I interacted with approximately 70 people during the course of this research.
The findings of are divided into three substantive chapters. The first is an examination of two Aotearoa’s government tourism agencies’ policies and state sponsored branding. Tourism New Zealand (TNZ) uses language such as ‘best partner’ to attempt to form relationships and policy with Māori. New Zealand Māori Tourism (NZMT) prescribe Māori leadership and adopt a ‘people first’ approach. I untangled concepts of leadership, partnerships and the way strategic priorities are prescribed within the two institutions’ documents to reveal the way power relations are inscribed onto Aotearoa’s tourism terrains. The second chapter analyses state sponsored branding. Here I highlight the inconsistencies in the way Māori identities are represented. TNZ maintains a colonial imagining of traditional performance while NZMT present Māori men as contemporary leaders of diverse tourism experiences. Both organisations, however, continue to represent women as the ‘exotic other’. The three and last substantive chapter considers the lived realities of Māori tourism providers. Participants feel proud of the way their identities are represented on the global stage but concerned with the lack of representations of their contemporary lives and diverse tourism opportunities. Women are leading Māori tourism in a multitude of spaces and Māori tourism providers are practicing diverse economies. I argue that Māori identities, and Māori values, are defining elements of the Māori tourism experience. 
In closing this thesis I argue that the representation and lived realities of Māori tourism needs to be controlled by the tangata whenua who exist and inhabit precious places within Aotearoa’s landscapes.

text: The moral terrains of Māori tourism The objective of this project is to understand how Māori values are integrated into Māori tourism geographies. The research asks three questions. First, how do values shape the moral terrains of Māori tourism? Second, how is Māori tourism constructed through state sponsored branding and policies? Finally, how and in what ways do Māori tourism providers (re)construct their places and identities through practicing Māori values in Aotearoa? 
The critical social geographies of tourism in this thesis are informed by Kaupapa Māori, mana wahine, feminist geography, moral terrains and diverse economies literatures. Methodologies are woven together using: semi-structured interviews; participant sensing; autoethnography; and, discourse analysis. A research whānau (extended family), including kuia and kaumātua (women and men elders), guide the ethical components of research design and practices. Participant sensing took place in northern, coastal and central areas of Aotearoa. As kaitāpoi (Māori domestic tourist) I took part in activities that included animal tourism, local cuisine, camping, high end accommodation, tramping, souvenir shopping, museums, a harbour cruise and visited information sites. Eleven semi-interviews were conducted with Māori tourism providers in northern and coastal spaces. I interacted with approximately 70 people during the course of this research.
The findings of are divided into three substantive chapters. The first is an examination of two Aotearoa’s government tourism agencies’ policies and state sponsored branding. Tourism New Zealand (TNZ) uses language such as ‘best partner’ to attempt to form relationships and policy with Māori. New Zealand Māori Tourism (NZMT) prescribe Māori leadership and adopt a ‘people first’ approach. I untangled concepts of leadership, partnerships and the way strategic priorities are prescribed within the two institutions’ documents to reveal the way power relations are inscribed onto Aotearoa’s tourism terrains. The second chapter analyses state sponsored branding. Here I highlight the inconsistencies in the way Māori identities are represented. TNZ maintains a colonial imagining of traditional performance while NZMT present Māori men as contemporary leaders of diverse tourism experiences. Both organisations, however, continue to represent women as the ‘exotic other’. The three and last substantive chapter considers the lived realities of Māori tourism providers. Participants feel proud of the way their identities are represented on the global stage but concerned with the lack of representations of their contemporary lives and diverse tourism opportunities. Women are leading Māori tourism in a multitude of spaces and Māori tourism providers are practicing diverse economies. I argue that Māori identities, and Māori values, are defining elements of the Māori tourism experience. 
In closing this thesis I argue that the representation and lived realities of Māori tourism needs to be controlled by the tangata whenua who exist and inhabit precious places within Aotearoa’s landscapes.

year: 2015