title: The neuropsychosocial sequelae of multiple sclerosis and the impact for familial caregivers

authors: Brassington, Jan Christie

abstract: Multiple Sclerosis (MS) is the most common neurodegenerative disease diagnosed in young adults. Many people live with the disease throughout their early, middle and late adulthood. It has far-reaching effects for individuals, families, and social networks. The study of its impact is an important precursor to the design of effective, efficient interventions for all concerned. This research sought to examine the physical, cognitive, and psychological effects of MS in a New Zealand community-based sample. Its impact on familial caregivers was also investigated. 

One hundred and two people with MS were assessed over a 14-month period. In comparisons with a demographically-matched control group, the cognitive performance of the MS sample was found to be impaired on psychometric measures of current intellectual functioning, learning, retention, delayed recall, recognition memory, and areas of attention/concentration and executive functioning. The MS sample also reported significantly more psychological difficulties than the control group. No statistically significant relationship was found between the cognitive functioning of the MS sample and their physical functioning, time since symptom onset, disease course, level of fatigue, or medication use. However, there was a statistically significant relationship between the sample’s cognitive functioning and both their psychological functioning and the time since their MS diagnosis. 

Analyses were undertaken with a subset of participants with MS whose cognitive performance was worse than the remainder of the MS sample in relation to the control group. This subset was found to require significantly more changes to their homes and more community services, and they experienced more social handicap than the rest of the MS sample. 
Familial caregivers of the participants with MS reported significantly more symptoms of anxiety and insomnia, significantly higher levels of burden, and significantly less satisfaction with the quality of social support that they received, compared to a demographically-matched control group. The caregivers’ appraisals of the functional impairments of their family members with MS made the most consistently significant unique contribution to the prediction of these areas of caregiver functioning. The significance of these results for people with MS, their familial caregivers, and society at large are discussed.

text: The neuropsychosocial sequelae of multiple sclerosis and the impact for familial caregivers Multiple Sclerosis (MS) is the most common neurodegenerative disease diagnosed in young adults. Many people live with the disease throughout their early, middle and late adulthood. It has far-reaching effects for individuals, families, and social networks. The study of its impact is an important precursor to the design of effective, efficient interventions for all concerned. This research sought to examine the physical, cognitive, and psychological effects of MS in a New Zealand community-based sample. Its impact on familial caregivers was also investigated. 

One hundred and two people with MS were assessed over a 14-month period. In comparisons with a demographically-matched control group, the cognitive performance of the MS sample was found to be impaired on psychometric measures of current intellectual functioning, learning, retention, delayed recall, recognition memory, and areas of attention/concentration and executive functioning. The MS sample also reported significantly more psychological difficulties than the control group. No statistically significant relationship was found between the cognitive functioning of the MS sample and their physical functioning, time since symptom onset, disease course, level of fatigue, or medication use. However, there was a statistically significant relationship between the sample’s cognitive functioning and both their psychological functioning and the time since their MS diagnosis. 

Analyses were undertaken with a subset of participants with MS whose cognitive performance was worse than the remainder of the MS sample in relation to the control group. This subset was found to require significantly more changes to their homes and more community services, and they experienced more social handicap than the rest of the MS sample. 
Familial caregivers of the participants with MS reported significantly more symptoms of anxiety and insomnia, significantly higher levels of burden, and significantly less satisfaction with the quality of social support that they received, compared to a demographically-matched control group. The caregivers’ appraisals of the functional impairments of their family members with MS made the most consistently significant unique contribution to the prediction of these areas of caregiver functioning. The significance of these results for people with MS, their familial caregivers, and society at large are discussed.

year: 2000

title: Cyborg Art: An Explorative and Critical Inquiry  into Corporeal Human-Technology Convergence

authors: Borst, Elizabeth Margaretha

subjects: cyborg

abstract: This thesis introduces and examines the undervalued concept of corporeal human-technology interface art, or 'cyborg art', which describes literal, figural and metaphorical representations of increasing body and technology integration. The transforming (post)human being is therefore the focus; who we are today, and who or what we may become as humanity increasingly interfaces with technology. Theoretical analysis of cyborg imagery centres on the science fiction domain, in particular film and television, as opposed to art. Yet a profusion of cyborg art and art practices abound within contemporary society; each differing art form (for example, performance, interactive, digital, sculpture or painting), offering possible 'symbolic function' and 'critical potential' concerning increasing cyborgisation. I therefore argue in this thesis that cyborg art has social value, and reveal throughout the way this artistic focus depicts key ontological and sociological themes of body-technology merger. Seventy-two artworks are examined in total, each demonstrating relevant concerns and aspirations regarding present and envisioned impacts of technoscience.

The cyborg-inspired artworks included in this study are primarily situated within four fundamental dimensions of humanity: birth, death, gender and ethnicity; and within three main spheres of corporeal-technological developments: prosthetics, telematics and genetics. Key concepts and themes explored within these realms include ectogenesis, post-genderism, necrotic and ethno-cyborgs, augmentation and reconstruction, tele-erotics and tele-puppets, and transgenics. In addition, three new cyborgian concepts are introduced: the udopian cyborg, which is an aesthetic representing technology's paradoxical dimension - technology as evoking fear and yearning, and having the potential to benefit and harm humanity; the permeative gaze of technoscience, which is a new technologised gaze focusing on how human skin no longer serves as a boundary and barrier to the inner corporeal realm; and lastly, triadic convergence, which denotes the way artists are increasingly creating entities which are a melding of animal, technological and human components.
Multimethod research serves as the methodological base for this thesis, as both qualitative and quantitative methods are incorporated into the research design. Hermeneutics is adopted as the analytical/interpretive perspective and approach. The empirical research includes semi-structured in-depth interviews, qualitative (artists') email questionnaires, and structured quantitative questionnaires. Triangulation is employed in order to obtain varied responses to, and perspectives on, technology and the technological epoch, art and cyborg art, and the cyborg. A theory of cyborg art is constructed by interweaving the collated findings with interview participants' responses to a selection of cyborg artworks, and theorists' perspectives on the aforementioned concepts, derived from visual culture, cyborg theory, and critical postmodern theory. The ultimate goal of this thesis is to present the underlying theoretical breadth and creative depth of cyborg art, and to demonstrate that cyborg art can act as a catalyst for increasing societal awareness of, and interest in, corporeal human-technology merger. I analyse the critical relevance of this under-examined artistic focus, and address why cyborg art should be recognised as a new postmodern art genre, and complementary to theoretical discussions of cyborgisation. I argue overall that cyborg art is a valid and critical sphere of inquiry into the increasing integration which exists between humanity and technology.

text: Cyborg Art: An Explorative and Critical Inquiry  into Corporeal Human-Technology Convergence This thesis introduces and examines the undervalued concept of corporeal human-technology interface art, or 'cyborg art', which describes literal, figural and metaphorical representations of increasing body and technology integration. The transforming (post)human being is therefore the focus; who we are today, and who or what we may become as humanity increasingly interfaces with technology. Theoretical analysis of cyborg imagery centres on the science fiction domain, in particular film and television, as opposed to art. Yet a profusion of cyborg art and art practices abound within contemporary society; each differing art form (for example, performance, interactive, digital, sculpture or painting), offering possible 'symbolic function' and 'critical potential' concerning increasing cyborgisation. I therefore argue in this thesis that cyborg art has social value, and reveal throughout the way this artistic focus depicts key ontological and sociological themes of body-technology merger. Seventy-two artworks are examined in total, each demonstrating relevant concerns and aspirations regarding present and envisioned impacts of technoscience.

The cyborg-inspired artworks included in this study are primarily situated within four fundamental dimensions of humanity: birth, death, gender and ethnicity; and within three main spheres of corporeal-technological developments: prosthetics, telematics and genetics. Key concepts and themes explored within these realms include ectogenesis, post-genderism, necrotic and ethno-cyborgs, augmentation and reconstruction, tele-erotics and tele-puppets, and transgenics. In addition, three new cyborgian concepts are introduced: the udopian cyborg, which is an aesthetic representing technology's paradoxical dimension - technology as evoking fear and yearning, and having the potential to benefit and harm humanity; the permeative gaze of technoscience, which is a new technologised gaze focusing on how human skin no longer serves as a boundary and barrier to the inner corporeal realm; and lastly, triadic convergence, which denotes the way artists are increasingly creating entities which are a melding of animal, technological and human components.
Multimethod research serves as the methodological base for this thesis, as both qualitative and quantitative methods are incorporated into the research design. Hermeneutics is adopted as the analytical/interpretive perspective and approach. The empirical research includes semi-structured in-depth interviews, qualitative (artists') email questionnaires, and structured quantitative questionnaires. Triangulation is employed in order to obtain varied responses to, and perspectives on, technology and the technological epoch, art and cyborg art, and the cyborg. A theory of cyborg art is constructed by interweaving the collated findings with interview participants' responses to a selection of cyborg artworks, and theorists' perspectives on the aforementioned concepts, derived from visual culture, cyborg theory, and critical postmodern theory. The ultimate goal of this thesis is to present the underlying theoretical breadth and creative depth of cyborg art, and to demonstrate that cyborg art can act as a catalyst for increasing societal awareness of, and interest in, corporeal human-technology merger. I analyse the critical relevance of this under-examined artistic focus, and address why cyborg art should be recognised as a new postmodern art genre, and complementary to theoretical discussions of cyborgisation. I argue overall that cyborg art is a valid and critical sphere of inquiry into the increasing integration which exists between humanity and technology.

year: 2009

title: Pretty difficult: Implementing kaupapa Māori theory in English-medium secondary schools

authors: Bishop, Russell

subjects: Te Kotahitanga Project

abstract: Developed in New Zealand some twenty years ago, kaupapa Māori has had a successful impact in education, notably in Māori-medium settings such as kōhanga reo, kura kaupapa Māori and wharekura. However, in mainstream educational settings, where the vast majority of Māori children continue to be educated, achievement disparities between Māori and their non-Māori peers persist. This article focuses on Te Kotahitanga, a large-scale kaupapa Māori school reform project that seeks to address educational disparities by improving the educational achievement of Māori students in mainstream schooling. Experiences with implementing Te Kotahitanga would suggest that reforming mainstream educational practices along kaupapa Māori lines is not easy. This article examines three main impediments encountered in attempts to implement the Te Kotahitanga project in mainstream schools: confusion about the culture of the Māori child; uneven implementation of the project; and problems with measuring student progress. For the project’s aims to be realised, professional development needs to be ongoing, iterative and responsive.

text: Pretty difficult: Implementing kaupapa Māori theory in English-medium secondary schools Developed in New Zealand some twenty years ago, kaupapa Māori has had a successful impact in education, notably in Māori-medium settings such as kōhanga reo, kura kaupapa Māori and wharekura. However, in mainstream educational settings, where the vast majority of Māori children continue to be educated, achievement disparities between Māori and their non-Māori peers persist. This article focuses on Te Kotahitanga, a large-scale kaupapa Māori school reform project that seeks to address educational disparities by improving the educational achievement of Māori students in mainstream schooling. Experiences with implementing Te Kotahitanga would suggest that reforming mainstream educational practices along kaupapa Māori lines is not easy. This article examines three main impediments encountered in attempts to implement the Te Kotahitanga project in mainstream schools: confusion about the culture of the Māori child; uneven implementation of the project; and problems with measuring student progress. For the project’s aims to be realised, professional development needs to be ongoing, iterative and responsive.

year: 2012