title: Change in Local Places: the experince of a peri urban community

authors: Wright, Jason John

subjects: Change

abstract: ABSTRACT

This thesis explores change in place, and particularly the social tensions that arise from change in peri-urban communities. In this study, a review of relevant literature indicates that rural/urban fringe areas are dynamic places, as pressure for the conversion of rural land uses to rural residential function creates social and economic anxiety. 

With pressure for change, tensions between people, both inside and outside of the local community become more clearly articulated, as change for some members of the community is an un-welcomed progression. Others, who may have no association with the local community, grasp the opportunity for change, particularly if financial return is the end reward. This study considers various approaches to the analysis of these changes in place and develops a methodology that reveals the social dimension of change, and more particularly the tensions associated with shifting land use patterns and changing demographic characteristics in the peri-urban location of Matangi.

text: Change in Local Places: the experince of a peri urban community ABSTRACT

This thesis explores change in place, and particularly the social tensions that arise from change in peri-urban communities. In this study, a review of relevant literature indicates that rural/urban fringe areas are dynamic places, as pressure for the conversion of rural land uses to rural residential function creates social and economic anxiety. 

With pressure for change, tensions between people, both inside and outside of the local community become more clearly articulated, as change for some members of the community is an un-welcomed progression. Others, who may have no association with the local community, grasp the opportunity for change, particularly if financial return is the end reward. This study considers various approaches to the analysis of these changes in place and develops a methodology that reveals the social dimension of change, and more particularly the tensions associated with shifting land use patterns and changing demographic characteristics in the peri-urban location of Matangi.

year: 2006

title: Clustering using finite mixture models

authors: Hunt, Lynette Anne

abstract: This thesis introduces a class of multivariate mixture models that includes latent class models and mixtures of multivariate normal distributions as special cases. Like latent class models, these models make free use of local independence to reduce the number of parameters in the model and to lead to descriptions of clusters that are easily understood. Provision is made for the introduction of within cluster associations between the variables. 

Discrete, multivariate normal and location model distributions are the ‘atoms’ with which the models are built, but where more is known about the nature of the distributions in sub-populations other types of distributions could be used in place of these. 

We use the EM algorithm to find the maximum likelihood estimates of the model parameters, however the emphasis is less on parameter estimation than on the use of the estimated component distributions to cluster the data. We implement the approach of multivariate mixture models with a Fortran 77 program. The program is used to fit models to several data sets, including a large medical data set. Analysis of the resulting clusters shows that sensible clusters have been achieved. 

The thesis shows how our ability to analyse data using multivariate mixture models can be extended to include the facility to handle situations where data are missing at random in the sense of Rubin (1976). The program written for this thesis incorporates this facility. The scope of the methods proposed is illustrated by clustering several data sets.

text: Clustering using finite mixture models This thesis introduces a class of multivariate mixture models that includes latent class models and mixtures of multivariate normal distributions as special cases. Like latent class models, these models make free use of local independence to reduce the number of parameters in the model and to lead to descriptions of clusters that are easily understood. Provision is made for the introduction of within cluster associations between the variables. 

Discrete, multivariate normal and location model distributions are the ‘atoms’ with which the models are built, but where more is known about the nature of the distributions in sub-populations other types of distributions could be used in place of these. 

We use the EM algorithm to find the maximum likelihood estimates of the model parameters, however the emphasis is less on parameter estimation than on the use of the estimated component distributions to cluster the data. We implement the approach of multivariate mixture models with a Fortran 77 program. The program is used to fit models to several data sets, including a large medical data set. Analysis of the resulting clusters shows that sensible clusters have been achieved. 

The thesis shows how our ability to analyse data using multivariate mixture models can be extended to include the facility to handle situations where data are missing at random in the sense of Rubin (1976). The program written for this thesis incorporates this facility. The scope of the methods proposed is illustrated by clustering several data sets.

year: 1996

title: From the rākau to the ngākau

authors: Derby, Melissa

subjects: research

abstract: The Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) in Aotearoa New Zealand has funded 11 National Science Challenges (NSC), which aim to tackle a series of big questions affecting wellbeing in society. One Challenge, A Better Start: E Tipu E Rea, is investigating four key focus areas that children encounter in their early development and is seeking to identify the factors that contribute to forming a solid foundation for fostering wellbeing and lifelong success. Central to the principles of this Challenge is the Treaty of Waitangi in that the Treaty provides a framework to guide whānau engagement, policy change, and praxis. This article describes how a ‘ngākau’ rather than a ‘rākau’ approach to shaping research inquiry within this Challenge facilitates more authentic and mana-enhancing whānau engagement in research interactions (Macfarlane, 2019). The development of a whānau questionnaire is drawn on to illustrate the ngākau approach in practice.

text: From the rākau to the ngākau The Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) in Aotearoa New Zealand has funded 11 National Science Challenges (NSC), which aim to tackle a series of big questions affecting wellbeing in society. One Challenge, A Better Start: E Tipu E Rea, is investigating four key focus areas that children encounter in their early development and is seeking to identify the factors that contribute to forming a solid foundation for fostering wellbeing and lifelong success. Central to the principles of this Challenge is the Treaty of Waitangi in that the Treaty provides a framework to guide whānau engagement, policy change, and praxis. This article describes how a ‘ngākau’ rather than a ‘rākau’ approach to shaping research inquiry within this Challenge facilitates more authentic and mana-enhancing whānau engagement in research interactions (Macfarlane, 2019). The development of a whānau questionnaire is drawn on to illustrate the ngākau approach in practice.

year: 2021