title: Labour unions, wellbeing, and individual differences: How are unions related to global and domain-specific wellbeing, and who tends to join them?

authors: Sutherland, Cian

subjects: Psychology

abstract: Labour unions have been instrumental in the institution and maintenance of what many in the Western world would now consider basic business practices, from the forty-hour working week to stringent health and safety regulations. Despite their historical influence and contemporary resurgence in popularity evincing their importance to many members of the past, present, and future working class, unions are a disproportionately large blind spot in the industrial-organisational psychology literature. While several studies have found correlations between union membership or level of participation in one’s union and positive and negative economic, health, and psychological outcomes, we do not know how unions affect their members’ subjective sense of wellbeing. We also do not know who those members tend to be in terms of personality or sociopolitical characteristics—a significant oversight given the relationships between these individual differences, workplace outcomes, and wellbeing. This thesis sought to connect and address both gaps. 

Unionised (n = 307) and non-unionised (n = 162) academic staff from public secondary and tertiary schools in New Zealand (n = 287) and Australia (n = 182) were recruited via email to participate in an online survey from June 25th to September 14th, 2023. Unionised staff were further classified as casual (n = 152) or dedicated (n = 155) members, depending on their willingness to participate in union activities. The survey assessed union attitudes and beliefs (study-specific questions, Kelly and Kelly (1994) questionnaire, New Zealand Worker Representation & Participation Survey), personality characteristics (HEXACO-60, HEXACO Interstitial Altruism Scale, Goldberg’s (1999) 10-item International Personality Item Pool Representation of the NEO-PI-R Neuroticism Domain, Authenticity Scale), sociopolitical characteristics (Auckland Individualism-Collectivism Scale, study-specific questions), and global and domain-specific wellbeing (I COPPE). 

Two-way ANOVAs comparing total I COPPE scores between members and non-members, and casual and dedicated members, in Australia and New Zealand, found no statistically significant differences in wellbeing; notably, mean wellbeing scores were relatively high in all groups. Logistic regression models using demographics and personality and sociopolitical characteristics significantly predicted variance in union membership (member/non-member) and participation level (casual/dedicated) in New Zealand (22.50%, 25.00%) and Australia (28.20%, 48.70%); the individual differences that served as significant predictors were different in each of the four models. Finally, a linear regression model (collapsed between countries) using demographics, individual differences, and union membership significantly predicted variance in total global wellbeing (15.60%); union membership was not a significant predictor. 

Although union membership was not a significant correlate of wellbeing, most members and many non-members attributed improvements in working conditions and wellbeing to the influence of unions. We believe that, rather than having no significant beneficial or detrimental effect on wellbeing, unions positively affect the standards of the education industry holistically. Additionally, education unions seem to attract different people in different countries. It seems unlikely, then, that differences in the wellbeing of members can be attributed to correlations between individual differences and wellbeing. We conclude that future research should investigate wellbeing and individual differences in unions in different countries, industries, states of industrial relation, and time periods.

text: Labour unions, wellbeing, and individual differences: How are unions related to global and domain-specific wellbeing, and who tends to join them? Labour unions have been instrumental in the institution and maintenance of what many in the Western world would now consider basic business practices, from the forty-hour working week to stringent health and safety regulations. Despite their historical influence and contemporary resurgence in popularity evincing their importance to many members of the past, present, and future working class, unions are a disproportionately large blind spot in the industrial-organisational psychology literature. While several studies have found correlations between union membership or level of participation in one’s union and positive and negative economic, health, and psychological outcomes, we do not know how unions affect their members’ subjective sense of wellbeing. We also do not know who those members tend to be in terms of personality or sociopolitical characteristics—a significant oversight given the relationships between these individual differences, workplace outcomes, and wellbeing. This thesis sought to connect and address both gaps. 

Unionised (n = 307) and non-unionised (n = 162) academic staff from public secondary and tertiary schools in New Zealand (n = 287) and Australia (n = 182) were recruited via email to participate in an online survey from June 25th to September 14th, 2023. Unionised staff were further classified as casual (n = 152) or dedicated (n = 155) members, depending on their willingness to participate in union activities. The survey assessed union attitudes and beliefs (study-specific questions, Kelly and Kelly (1994) questionnaire, New Zealand Worker Representation & Participation Survey), personality characteristics (HEXACO-60, HEXACO Interstitial Altruism Scale, Goldberg’s (1999) 10-item International Personality Item Pool Representation of the NEO-PI-R Neuroticism Domain, Authenticity Scale), sociopolitical characteristics (Auckland Individualism-Collectivism Scale, study-specific questions), and global and domain-specific wellbeing (I COPPE). 

Two-way ANOVAs comparing total I COPPE scores between members and non-members, and casual and dedicated members, in Australia and New Zealand, found no statistically significant differences in wellbeing; notably, mean wellbeing scores were relatively high in all groups. Logistic regression models using demographics and personality and sociopolitical characteristics significantly predicted variance in union membership (member/non-member) and participation level (casual/dedicated) in New Zealand (22.50%, 25.00%) and Australia (28.20%, 48.70%); the individual differences that served as significant predictors were different in each of the four models. Finally, a linear regression model (collapsed between countries) using demographics, individual differences, and union membership significantly predicted variance in total global wellbeing (15.60%); union membership was not a significant predictor. 

Although union membership was not a significant correlate of wellbeing, most members and many non-members attributed improvements in working conditions and wellbeing to the influence of unions. We believe that, rather than having no significant beneficial or detrimental effect on wellbeing, unions positively affect the standards of the education industry holistically. Additionally, education unions seem to attract different people in different countries. It seems unlikely, then, that differences in the wellbeing of members can be attributed to correlations between individual differences and wellbeing. We conclude that future research should investigate wellbeing and individual differences in unions in different countries, industries, states of industrial relation, and time periods.

year: 2024-01-25

title: Initial sedimentation processes and the  early geological evolution of three maar craters,  Hindon Maar Complex, Otago

authors: Murphy, Caitlin Emily Joy

subjects: sedimentation,

abstract: The Hindon Maar Complex, located near Hindon, 25 km NW of Dunedin, consists of four volcanic craters infilled by lake sediments and mass flow deposits. The maars form part of the Waipiata volcanic group, which was active from 25–9 Ma. Drilling of Maar 1, Maar 3 and a sediment-filled depression between the inferred locations of Maar 2 and Maar 3 revealed up to 10 m of laminated biogenic lake sediments underlain by siliciclastic mass flow deposits. This project describes the siliciclastic deposits from these drill-cores and from limited outcrops of Maar 2. Physical properties, stratigraphic logs, X-ray fluorescence spectrometry, Also XRD, SEM and optical petrography are used to create a facies analysis and infer the processes of initial sedimentation into the maar craters following the maar-forming eruptions. 
A total of 10 facies are identified within the Hindon Maar complex. Facies 1–6 show the progression of crater wall stabilisation from rockfalls which occurred weeks to years after the initial eruption to the formation of organic rich lake-sediment units which would have been deposited hundreds of years post eruption. Facies 1–6 have a high proportion of mica, quartz and schist grains, indicating extensive incorporation of the country rock. Nonconsolidated mottles are found throughout facies 2–5 and are interpreted as the remnants of weathered pyroclastic materials which were sourced from failures in the upper crater walls or tephra ring. 
Facies 1 is a laminated carbonaceous lake sediment consisting almost entirely of organic matter. Facies 2 is a nonconsolidated laminated silty clay formed by debris flows. Facies 3 is a consolidated silty fine sand with discrete gravel lenses and 5% mottles formed as a result of mass flows. Facies 4 is a fine gravel breccia comprising up to 35% mottles, which is formed by mass flows originating in the upper crater or tephra ring. Facies 5 is a poorly consolidated fine gravel breccia which formed as a result of turbidity currents. Facies 6 is loose schist and quartz grains of fine gravel to medium pebble size, formed by rockfalls into the early lake. 
Facies 7 is a silty clay which is geochemically and mineralogically different to all other facies. Facies 7 exhibits convoluted bedding and is an example of a slump deposit occurring locally in Maar 3. Due to its significant differences to all other facies, it is assumed to have had a different parent material.
Facies 8–10 are found in the area of a major gravity anomaly associated with Maar 3. These deposits are composed of silt and clay sized particles and have elevated Fe. They have high magnetic susceptibility and density and are interpreted as weathered pyroclastic material of the tephra ring.
The infilling of Maar 1 occurred initially as a series of coarse-grained mass flows into the crater (Facies 6 and Facies 5). Once the crater wall began to stabilise and the occurrence of rockfalls decreased, Facies 4 was deposited, resulting from high crater wall collapse. This was followed by furthered, small cater wall collapse of Facies 3. Facies 2 was later deposited once crater wall failures halted, and resulted from the erosion, rather than the collapse, of the crater wall. Once the crater wall was fully vegetated, Facies 1 began to accumulate, forming thick organic rich deposits, indicating the maar lake was stratified and had an anoxic bottom layer.
The infilling of Maar 3 followed the same pattern. However, there is a significant lateral offset between some units of the same facies, which may indicate more complex processes, such as faulting. The exact history of Maar 3 cannot be determined with the information acquired.

text: Initial sedimentation processes and the  early geological evolution of three maar craters,  Hindon Maar Complex, Otago The Hindon Maar Complex, located near Hindon, 25 km NW of Dunedin, consists of four volcanic craters infilled by lake sediments and mass flow deposits. The maars form part of the Waipiata volcanic group, which was active from 25–9 Ma. Drilling of Maar 1, Maar 3 and a sediment-filled depression between the inferred locations of Maar 2 and Maar 3 revealed up to 10 m of laminated biogenic lake sediments underlain by siliciclastic mass flow deposits. This project describes the siliciclastic deposits from these drill-cores and from limited outcrops of Maar 2. Physical properties, stratigraphic logs, X-ray fluorescence spectrometry, Also XRD, SEM and optical petrography are used to create a facies analysis and infer the processes of initial sedimentation into the maar craters following the maar-forming eruptions. 
A total of 10 facies are identified within the Hindon Maar complex. Facies 1–6 show the progression of crater wall stabilisation from rockfalls which occurred weeks to years after the initial eruption to the formation of organic rich lake-sediment units which would have been deposited hundreds of years post eruption. Facies 1–6 have a high proportion of mica, quartz and schist grains, indicating extensive incorporation of the country rock. Nonconsolidated mottles are found throughout facies 2–5 and are interpreted as the remnants of weathered pyroclastic materials which were sourced from failures in the upper crater walls or tephra ring. 
Facies 1 is a laminated carbonaceous lake sediment consisting almost entirely of organic matter. Facies 2 is a nonconsolidated laminated silty clay formed by debris flows. Facies 3 is a consolidated silty fine sand with discrete gravel lenses and 5% mottles formed as a result of mass flows. Facies 4 is a fine gravel breccia comprising up to 35% mottles, which is formed by mass flows originating in the upper crater or tephra ring. Facies 5 is a poorly consolidated fine gravel breccia which formed as a result of turbidity currents. Facies 6 is loose schist and quartz grains of fine gravel to medium pebble size, formed by rockfalls into the early lake. 
Facies 7 is a silty clay which is geochemically and mineralogically different to all other facies. Facies 7 exhibits convoluted bedding and is an example of a slump deposit occurring locally in Maar 3. Due to its significant differences to all other facies, it is assumed to have had a different parent material.
Facies 8–10 are found in the area of a major gravity anomaly associated with Maar 3. These deposits are composed of silt and clay sized particles and have elevated Fe. They have high magnetic susceptibility and density and are interpreted as weathered pyroclastic material of the tephra ring.
The infilling of Maar 1 occurred initially as a series of coarse-grained mass flows into the crater (Facies 6 and Facies 5). Once the crater wall began to stabilise and the occurrence of rockfalls decreased, Facies 4 was deposited, resulting from high crater wall collapse. This was followed by furthered, small cater wall collapse of Facies 3. Facies 2 was later deposited once crater wall failures halted, and resulted from the erosion, rather than the collapse, of the crater wall. Once the crater wall was fully vegetated, Facies 1 began to accumulate, forming thick organic rich deposits, indicating the maar lake was stratified and had an anoxic bottom layer.
The infilling of Maar 3 followed the same pattern. However, there is a significant lateral offset between some units of the same facies, which may indicate more complex processes, such as faulting. The exact history of Maar 3 cannot be determined with the information acquired.

year: 2018

title: Epidemiological evidence that can help to improve timely diagnosis of colorectal cancer in New Zealand.

authors: Hirsz, Malgorzata

subjects: Colorectal cancer

abstract: Incidence rates of colorectal cancer (CRC) in New Zealand (NZ) are among the highest in the world. The long-term survival rates in NZ are poor, which has partially been attributed to late diagnosis. Considering that CRC is a curable disease if diagnosed early, conducting research targeted at the improvement of early diagnosis is therefore important. This thesis provides statistical models for the calculation of CRC incidence rates in the entire NZ population and population strata defined by age, gender, ethnicity and diabetes status, and a model for CRC risk in individual patients referred to the secondary care. The models presented here could assist health professionals in the selection of patients for further investigation to facilitate earlier diagnosis. The empirical part consists of three independent observational studies, briefly described below.

Sub-study 1. The objectives were, first, to describe trends in CRC incidence in the NZ population and, second, to investigate whether there are any strata defined by gender and ethnicity with especially increased incidence rates of CRC. To address these objectives, I analysed data from the New Zealand Cancer Registry (years 1994–2018) using an age- period-cohort (APC) model. The overall CRC incidence rates in NZ decreased between 1994 and 2018 by an average of 1.31% per year. However, the decrease was observed only in patients 50 years and older. In those 30-<50 years old, the incidence rates increased between 1994 and 2018 regardless of gender and ethnicity. The increase was similar for proximal, distal and rectal cancers. The APC analyses revealed very strong cohort effects that could explain nearly the entire trends in CRC incidence, pointing out generations born in the 1970s and 80s being affected by the increased incidence rates, rather than individuals 30-<50 years old. The cohort effects were different in Ma ̄ori and non-Ma ̄ori populations. In non-Ma ̄ori born between approximately 1939 and 1955, incidence rates decreased sharply. By contrast, those Ma ̄ori generations have not benefitted from the sharp decrease in rates. However, CRC incidence increased substantially in both M ̄aori and non-M ̄aori groups born in the 1970s and 80s.

Sub-study 2. The objective was to estimate the IRR for CRC in patients with diabetes compared to those without diabetes, with relation to diabetes duration and use of insulin for diabetes control. Registration in the Virtual Diabetes Register (VDR) in the years 2014–2018 was used as a marker of a diabetes diagnosis. Tables with counts of the entire NZ population stratified by age, gender, and ethnicity were obtained from Statistics NZ. In total, data from 310,710 patients with diabetes, corresponding to 1,277,284 person- years and 2512 incident CRC cases were analysed using a Poisson regression model. Diabetes was associated with an overall increased CRC incidence of 13% compared to non-diabetes [IRR=1.13 (95% CI: 1.08, 1.18)]. The IRR was especially high in the first three months after diabetes diagnosis [IRR=2.55 (95% CI 2.02, 3.21)], likely due to detection bias. The association was equally strong in males and females. However, in the analysis by ethnicity, the incidence of CRC was increased only in non-Ma ̄ori patients and restricted only to those younger than 75 years.

Sub-study 3. The objective was to develop a predictive model for CRC risk in individual patients referred to secondary care. To develop such a model, I extracted information from free text included in e-referrals from GPs’ to the Gastroenterology and General Surgery departments in the Waikato Hospital from 2015-2018, including: symptoms; test results; and family history of CRC. The reference test was a full colonoscopy with visualisation of the cecum. Data from 3015 patients, 20-<90 years old were analysed using a logistic regression model. The final model included the following predictors associated with increased CRC risk: anaemia, rectal bleeding, palpable mass in abdomen or rectum, weight loss, age and gender, and a decreased CRC risk: family history of CRC, abdominal pain, and inflammatory bowel disease. The model discriminates patients with low CRC risk well. According to the final cross-validated model, around 20% of patients from our cohort had performed colonoscopy despite a very low CRC risk (less than 1.5%).

In conclusion, the APC analysis revealed an alarming pattern. According to the fitted APC model, the combination of increasing age and cohort effect in generations born in the 1970s and 80s will bring a wave of CRC diagnoses in the near future when the young generations with high CRC incidence rates will replace the old generations with low CRC incidence. The results from this study could therefore help policy-makers to plan the needs for gastroenterology services.
Secondly, CRC incidence rates in diabetes have been found to be slightly increased com- pared to non-diabetes but only in non-Ma ̄ori individuals younger than 75 years.
Third, the results suggest that males underutilise health services. As shown in sub- study 3, males underwent fewer colonoscopies than females, despite having a higher risk of CRC. The higher detection bias in males than in females (sub-study 2) could also suggest underuse of health services by males, but the difference was not statistically significant.
Finally, based on the fitted models for CRC incidence in sub-studies 1 and 2, population- wide CRC screening for Ma ̄ori and patients with diabetes, based on the incidence, instead of age alone, would be proposed to start at age 57.5 years if the screening in the general population starts at age 60 years.

text: Epidemiological evidence that can help to improve timely diagnosis of colorectal cancer in New Zealand. Incidence rates of colorectal cancer (CRC) in New Zealand (NZ) are among the highest in the world. The long-term survival rates in NZ are poor, which has partially been attributed to late diagnosis. Considering that CRC is a curable disease if diagnosed early, conducting research targeted at the improvement of early diagnosis is therefore important. This thesis provides statistical models for the calculation of CRC incidence rates in the entire NZ population and population strata defined by age, gender, ethnicity and diabetes status, and a model for CRC risk in individual patients referred to the secondary care. The models presented here could assist health professionals in the selection of patients for further investigation to facilitate earlier diagnosis. The empirical part consists of three independent observational studies, briefly described below.

Sub-study 1. The objectives were, first, to describe trends in CRC incidence in the NZ population and, second, to investigate whether there are any strata defined by gender and ethnicity with especially increased incidence rates of CRC. To address these objectives, I analysed data from the New Zealand Cancer Registry (years 1994–2018) using an age- period-cohort (APC) model. The overall CRC incidence rates in NZ decreased between 1994 and 2018 by an average of 1.31% per year. However, the decrease was observed only in patients 50 years and older. In those 30-<50 years old, the incidence rates increased between 1994 and 2018 regardless of gender and ethnicity. The increase was similar for proximal, distal and rectal cancers. The APC analyses revealed very strong cohort effects that could explain nearly the entire trends in CRC incidence, pointing out generations born in the 1970s and 80s being affected by the increased incidence rates, rather than individuals 30-<50 years old. The cohort effects were different in Ma ̄ori and non-Ma ̄ori populations. In non-Ma ̄ori born between approximately 1939 and 1955, incidence rates decreased sharply. By contrast, those Ma ̄ori generations have not benefitted from the sharp decrease in rates. However, CRC incidence increased substantially in both M ̄aori and non-M ̄aori groups born in the 1970s and 80s.

Sub-study 2. The objective was to estimate the IRR for CRC in patients with diabetes compared to those without diabetes, with relation to diabetes duration and use of insulin for diabetes control. Registration in the Virtual Diabetes Register (VDR) in the years 2014–2018 was used as a marker of a diabetes diagnosis. Tables with counts of the entire NZ population stratified by age, gender, and ethnicity were obtained from Statistics NZ. In total, data from 310,710 patients with diabetes, corresponding to 1,277,284 person- years and 2512 incident CRC cases were analysed using a Poisson regression model. Diabetes was associated with an overall increased CRC incidence of 13% compared to non-diabetes [IRR=1.13 (95% CI: 1.08, 1.18)]. The IRR was especially high in the first three months after diabetes diagnosis [IRR=2.55 (95% CI 2.02, 3.21)], likely due to detection bias. The association was equally strong in males and females. However, in the analysis by ethnicity, the incidence of CRC was increased only in non-Ma ̄ori patients and restricted only to those younger than 75 years.

Sub-study 3. The objective was to develop a predictive model for CRC risk in individual patients referred to secondary care. To develop such a model, I extracted information from free text included in e-referrals from GPs’ to the Gastroenterology and General Surgery departments in the Waikato Hospital from 2015-2018, including: symptoms; test results; and family history of CRC. The reference test was a full colonoscopy with visualisation of the cecum. Data from 3015 patients, 20-<90 years old were analysed using a logistic regression model. The final model included the following predictors associated with increased CRC risk: anaemia, rectal bleeding, palpable mass in abdomen or rectum, weight loss, age and gender, and a decreased CRC risk: family history of CRC, abdominal pain, and inflammatory bowel disease. The model discriminates patients with low CRC risk well. According to the final cross-validated model, around 20% of patients from our cohort had performed colonoscopy despite a very low CRC risk (less than 1.5%).

In conclusion, the APC analysis revealed an alarming pattern. According to the fitted APC model, the combination of increasing age and cohort effect in generations born in the 1970s and 80s will bring a wave of CRC diagnoses in the near future when the young generations with high CRC incidence rates will replace the old generations with low CRC incidence. The results from this study could therefore help policy-makers to plan the needs for gastroenterology services.
Secondly, CRC incidence rates in diabetes have been found to be slightly increased com- pared to non-diabetes but only in non-Ma ̄ori individuals younger than 75 years.
Third, the results suggest that males underutilise health services. As shown in sub- study 3, males underwent fewer colonoscopies than females, despite having a higher risk of CRC. The higher detection bias in males than in females (sub-study 2) could also suggest underuse of health services by males, but the difference was not statistically significant.
Finally, based on the fitted models for CRC incidence in sub-studies 1 and 2, population- wide CRC screening for Ma ̄ori and patients with diabetes, based on the incidence, instead of age alone, would be proposed to start at age 57.5 years if the screening in the general population starts at age 60 years.

year: 2021