title: Behavioural antecedents of altruism: a comparative analysis

authors: Wood, Mark Thornton

abstract: Altruism has two main aspects; the one philosophical and the other scientific. After a discussion of the main issues raised by the concept, two definitions having similar criteria were developed. Flight calls in male pheasants were then studied in order to place them either in one of the two altruistic categories or to relegate them to the egoistic category.

The establishment and maintenance of altruism in animal populations was examined in light of the dilemma presented by the classical genetic model for natural selection. A formula which will assist in the separation and delineation of the concept altruism from reciprocity and egoism was developed. The meaning of “others” was considered with respect to genetic coefficients of relationship. Modifications of a model for altruism were made which incorporated a factor covering the potential genetic contribution to future offspring by the altruist over that by the recipient(s). A further factor gave indications of possible values for the cost facet of altruism. These modifications help explain the preponderance of parental care in the animal world as opposed to geriatric care and suggest that older parents may be more altruistically disposed toward offspring than younger parents.

Based on a theory for the establishment and increase of altruistic genes in animal populations, a relationship was hypothesized to exist in the avian order Passeriformes between clutch averages (which were considered to be an index of “genetic investment”) and prosocial behaviour. The positive correlations found supported this hypothesis.

Social grooming in dairy cows were then investigated. The reduced stimulus world of the domestic cow decreases the number of modalities by which rewards may be returned to benefactors and the formula developed to delineate altruism from reciprocity and egoism could thus be more accurately applied. As little is known about social grooming in cows, herd parameters were recorded and several variables were correlated with the giving and/or receiving of grooming actions. Use of an identical twin herd furthered investigation into the meaning of “others” and it was found that grooming preferences fell into a five-point ordinal scale: self, twin, own age group, next nearest age group, and furthest away age group. Age proved to be the most pervasive variable correlated with non-twin social grooming, whereas within twin pairs grooming was consistently correlated with milking order. The altruism found was also shown to be twin-linked (i.e. if one member of a twin pair was altruistic, its twin tended to be altruistic also).

Altruism is here considered almost coeval with egoism, that is almost as old as life itself. It is therefore reasonable to think of altruism as either a primary reinforcer of as being intrinsically motivating.

text: Behavioural antecedents of altruism: a comparative analysis Altruism has two main aspects; the one philosophical and the other scientific. After a discussion of the main issues raised by the concept, two definitions having similar criteria were developed. Flight calls in male pheasants were then studied in order to place them either in one of the two altruistic categories or to relegate them to the egoistic category.

The establishment and maintenance of altruism in animal populations was examined in light of the dilemma presented by the classical genetic model for natural selection. A formula which will assist in the separation and delineation of the concept altruism from reciprocity and egoism was developed. The meaning of “others” was considered with respect to genetic coefficients of relationship. Modifications of a model for altruism were made which incorporated a factor covering the potential genetic contribution to future offspring by the altruist over that by the recipient(s). A further factor gave indications of possible values for the cost facet of altruism. These modifications help explain the preponderance of parental care in the animal world as opposed to geriatric care and suggest that older parents may be more altruistically disposed toward offspring than younger parents.

Based on a theory for the establishment and increase of altruistic genes in animal populations, a relationship was hypothesized to exist in the avian order Passeriformes between clutch averages (which were considered to be an index of “genetic investment”) and prosocial behaviour. The positive correlations found supported this hypothesis.

Social grooming in dairy cows were then investigated. The reduced stimulus world of the domestic cow decreases the number of modalities by which rewards may be returned to benefactors and the formula developed to delineate altruism from reciprocity and egoism could thus be more accurately applied. As little is known about social grooming in cows, herd parameters were recorded and several variables were correlated with the giving and/or receiving of grooming actions. Use of an identical twin herd furthered investigation into the meaning of “others” and it was found that grooming preferences fell into a five-point ordinal scale: self, twin, own age group, next nearest age group, and furthest away age group. Age proved to be the most pervasive variable correlated with non-twin social grooming, whereas within twin pairs grooming was consistently correlated with milking order. The altruism found was also shown to be twin-linked (i.e. if one member of a twin pair was altruistic, its twin tended to be altruistic also).

Altruism is here considered almost coeval with egoism, that is almost as old as life itself. It is therefore reasonable to think of altruism as either a primary reinforcer of as being intrinsically motivating.

year: 1975

title: A Changing Perspective: leading and learning in new ways

authors: Woodward, Phillipa Jean

subjects: Adult Developmental Theory

abstract: Schools are learning places, tasked with providing rich, meaningful and diverse learning experiences for all of its’ learners.  Educational leaders are facing increasing challenges and demands to become more responsive to the fast changing world in which we live and work.  With the increasing complexity and unpredictability that surrounds us, as educators we need to respond in new ways to address the inequity and increasing disparity that exists for our learners. 

The traditional model of schooling that aimed to equip learners with the skills and knowledge to live in a predictable world are no longer fit for purpose, placing new demands on educators.  As leaders we need to consider how we are leading change and building the capability and capacity of ourselves, and others to cope with the increasing complexity and demands of education today.  This requires us to critically reflect on how we create the conditions and learning experiences for our colleagues with the ultimate aim to improve the quality of teaching and learning in our schools.

We need to consider how we can bring about deep and sustainable change in our practice that creates transformational shifts in our learning and leading.  This will require us to rethink about what we pay close attention to and how we shape our schools as authentic learning communities. 

The aim of this research was to explore what leadership practices could support the professional learning and growth of educators in these complex and unpredictable times, with the ultimate goal of improving outcomes for student learners. 

The focus for this research was to investigate whether leadership practices could be strengthened when the leader took in to consideration the adult developmental stages of the team members they were working with.  It was hoped that using the constructive developmental theory to inform leadership practices it may strengthened the learning experiences of the team and subsequently all of the teaching community in the school over time.  These leadership practices required the Key Leader to build their own knowledge of constructive developmental theory and consider how this strengthened their own leadership capacity and then how it could be used to inform the leaders practices in order to support the growth of the team the leader was working with. 

The findings indicated that when we begin to explore the theory of adult development it exposes a great deal more about how we learn, lead and can create conditions for transformation.  It highlighted the importance of deepening our understanding of the developmental diversity of those we lead and work with and responding appropriately to this diversity.   This requires us to ensure learning experiences are developmentally orientated, providing enough support but also challenge to create transformational shifts.

As indicated in these findings, as we gain greater insight in to our own developmental capacity and ways to grow we become far more at ease in working in the complex domain of the unknown unknowns.  We are able to view challenges in new ways, taking a more adaptive leadership approach to how we embrace and lead change. 

When we consider new ways to think, act and engage we have the potential to create places where learners can flourish amongst the uncertainty and complexity.

text: A Changing Perspective: leading and learning in new ways Schools are learning places, tasked with providing rich, meaningful and diverse learning experiences for all of its’ learners.  Educational leaders are facing increasing challenges and demands to become more responsive to the fast changing world in which we live and work.  With the increasing complexity and unpredictability that surrounds us, as educators we need to respond in new ways to address the inequity and increasing disparity that exists for our learners. 

The traditional model of schooling that aimed to equip learners with the skills and knowledge to live in a predictable world are no longer fit for purpose, placing new demands on educators.  As leaders we need to consider how we are leading change and building the capability and capacity of ourselves, and others to cope with the increasing complexity and demands of education today.  This requires us to critically reflect on how we create the conditions and learning experiences for our colleagues with the ultimate aim to improve the quality of teaching and learning in our schools.

We need to consider how we can bring about deep and sustainable change in our practice that creates transformational shifts in our learning and leading.  This will require us to rethink about what we pay close attention to and how we shape our schools as authentic learning communities. 

The aim of this research was to explore what leadership practices could support the professional learning and growth of educators in these complex and unpredictable times, with the ultimate goal of improving outcomes for student learners. 

The focus for this research was to investigate whether leadership practices could be strengthened when the leader took in to consideration the adult developmental stages of the team members they were working with.  It was hoped that using the constructive developmental theory to inform leadership practices it may strengthened the learning experiences of the team and subsequently all of the teaching community in the school over time.  These leadership practices required the Key Leader to build their own knowledge of constructive developmental theory and consider how this strengthened their own leadership capacity and then how it could be used to inform the leaders practices in order to support the growth of the team the leader was working with. 

The findings indicated that when we begin to explore the theory of adult development it exposes a great deal more about how we learn, lead and can create conditions for transformation.  It highlighted the importance of deepening our understanding of the developmental diversity of those we lead and work with and responding appropriately to this diversity.   This requires us to ensure learning experiences are developmentally orientated, providing enough support but also challenge to create transformational shifts.

As indicated in these findings, as we gain greater insight in to our own developmental capacity and ways to grow we become far more at ease in working in the complex domain of the unknown unknowns.  We are able to view challenges in new ways, taking a more adaptive leadership approach to how we embrace and lead change. 

When we consider new ways to think, act and engage we have the potential to create places where learners can flourish amongst the uncertainty and complexity.

year: 2016

title: The Price of Mauri: Exploring the validity of Welfare Economics when seeking to measure Mātauranga Māori

authors: Awatere, Shaun

subjects: welfare economics

abstract: Since the 1980s New Zealand has pursued neo-classical or market-based policies with a particular fervour. Market-based options are seen by resource management decision makers as essential frameworks for efficiently allocating resources, an approach that continues to support the view of the inherent dominance of Western knowledge. This is particularly concerning, given that Māori (the indigenous people of New Zealand), have an important role to play in New Zealand resource management and perceive their own knowledge systems have been marginalised. The primary goal of this thesis is to explore the validity of welfare economics when seeking to measure quantitatively Mātauranga Māori or Māori views of the environment through the contingent valuation method. A contingent valuation study is carried out using three separate samples drawn from the general Māori population in Auckland city, a hāpu/sub-tribe indigenous to the Auckland isthmus, and drivers of motor vehicles in Auckland city. Data collection modes include a postal survey and face-to-face interviews. This thesis challenges the validity of political-legal ethnicity constructs to measure Mātauranga Māori. The search for a central tendency will lead to biased, misleading and inaccurate results. The thesis also challenges the validity of contingent valuation to produce true economic measures and to measure and identify Mātauranga Māori. Despite advances in analytical techniques, economic efficiency measures are always deficient, given the difficulty of capturing and anticipating all impacts and valuing them appropriately. Mātauranga Māori is derived from a Māori epistemology and should be considered or analysed with primary reference to this body of knowledge. Economic analysis is only one important cog in the machinery of resource management policy. Given that an economist's contribution to local and regional resource management is most valuable when focusing on the  economic efficiency  of the proposed resource allocation, it is appropriate that other perspectives such as Mātauranga Māori be considered.

text: The Price of Mauri: Exploring the validity of Welfare Economics when seeking to measure Mātauranga Māori Since the 1980s New Zealand has pursued neo-classical or market-based policies with a particular fervour. Market-based options are seen by resource management decision makers as essential frameworks for efficiently allocating resources, an approach that continues to support the view of the inherent dominance of Western knowledge. This is particularly concerning, given that Māori (the indigenous people of New Zealand), have an important role to play in New Zealand resource management and perceive their own knowledge systems have been marginalised. The primary goal of this thesis is to explore the validity of welfare economics when seeking to measure quantitatively Mātauranga Māori or Māori views of the environment through the contingent valuation method. A contingent valuation study is carried out using three separate samples drawn from the general Māori population in Auckland city, a hāpu/sub-tribe indigenous to the Auckland isthmus, and drivers of motor vehicles in Auckland city. Data collection modes include a postal survey and face-to-face interviews. This thesis challenges the validity of political-legal ethnicity constructs to measure Mātauranga Māori. The search for a central tendency will lead to biased, misleading and inaccurate results. The thesis also challenges the validity of contingent valuation to produce true economic measures and to measure and identify Mātauranga Māori. Despite advances in analytical techniques, economic efficiency measures are always deficient, given the difficulty of capturing and anticipating all impacts and valuing them appropriately. Mātauranga Māori is derived from a Māori epistemology and should be considered or analysed with primary reference to this body of knowledge. Economic analysis is only one important cog in the machinery of resource management policy. Given that an economist's contribution to local and regional resource management is most valuable when focusing on the  economic efficiency  of the proposed resource allocation, it is appropriate that other perspectives such as Mātauranga Māori be considered.

year: 2008