title: "It was like being torn apart". The experiences of young men who become fathers while at school. A critical interpretive analysis of discourses of Young Fatherhood.

authors: Cooper, Kerry Kia maia

subjects: Teenage Fathers

abstract: This is an exploratory study that reports the experiences of a sample of five participants, young men who became fathers while still at school. I talked to these young men about their personal stories which relate their personal introspection on interactions with institutions and relationships with people in their lives, set within a socially constructed reality that positions young men who become fathers in a certain way. Discourse and hegemony are collaborative constructive processes that shape and sculpt the conditions of the lives of everyone and it is the intention of this study to illuminate the workings of particular discourses in the context of these young men’s lives. 

This research is interested in how or whether the assumptions underpinning the socially dominating discourses of youth, gender, marriage and family were reflected in the participants’ experiences. The study aims to critique this social situation, which assumes immaturity when it comes to the experiences of young men who father children while still at school. The invisibility of these young men’s experiences in the current research literature as well as in society generally, except in pejorative ways, brings focus upon both the research landscape and the lens that is being looked through. 

It is not the intention of this research to make sweeping statements or to pretend that the findings of the study represent the findings of all who have an experience similar to the participants’. What this enquiry does intend to achieve is to bring alive the humanity of five personal stories of real people and shed light on the processes that played a part in their construction. 

The importance of the research is to gain a greater understanding of and insight into the experiences of these young men and what the reality is for them as they see it.

text: "It was like being torn apart". The experiences of young men who become fathers while at school. A critical interpretive analysis of discourses of Young Fatherhood. This is an exploratory study that reports the experiences of a sample of five participants, young men who became fathers while still at school. I talked to these young men about their personal stories which relate their personal introspection on interactions with institutions and relationships with people in their lives, set within a socially constructed reality that positions young men who become fathers in a certain way. Discourse and hegemony are collaborative constructive processes that shape and sculpt the conditions of the lives of everyone and it is the intention of this study to illuminate the workings of particular discourses in the context of these young men’s lives. 

This research is interested in how or whether the assumptions underpinning the socially dominating discourses of youth, gender, marriage and family were reflected in the participants’ experiences. The study aims to critique this social situation, which assumes immaturity when it comes to the experiences of young men who father children while still at school. The invisibility of these young men’s experiences in the current research literature as well as in society generally, except in pejorative ways, brings focus upon both the research landscape and the lens that is being looked through. 

It is not the intention of this research to make sweeping statements or to pretend that the findings of the study represent the findings of all who have an experience similar to the participants’. What this enquiry does intend to achieve is to bring alive the humanity of five personal stories of real people and shed light on the processes that played a part in their construction. 

The importance of the research is to gain a greater understanding of and insight into the experiences of these young men and what the reality is for them as they see it.

year: 2012

title: Translating MDG 3: Gender, Empowerment and the Adolescent Girl in Maharashtra, India

authors: Nandedkar, Lalitgauri

subjects: Adolescent Girls

abstract: This thesis is an exploration of Millennium Development Goal (MDG) 3, tracing its path from a global aspiration to its translation into a developing world context. Adopted in 2001 by the United Nations, the eight MDGs represented a global effort to address issues such as poverty, health, social injustice and environmental degradation. Goal 3 specifically was aimed at gender equality and women’s empowerment. Despite an extensive scholarship on the MDGs in general and on the specific issue of women’s empowerment in the development context, there has been little scholarly attention directed at the place and role of adolescent girls in the context of gender equality and empowerment. Similarly, there is a critical need to examine how policy formulated at the global level is translated into local contexts and with what consequences. This research undertakes a qualitative, in-depth, small-scale case study of a gender empowerment programme located in rural Maharashtra, India, to examine how a broad goal of gender empowerment is translated into a UNICEF-funded local programme for adolescent girls. 

The absence of adolescent girls in the gender and development and feminist scholarship has meant that existing feminist analytical frameworks are inadequate for this study. Hence, I draw on a range of scholarship on Third World feminism, the women, culture and development paradigm, the social relations framework, as well as on youth and citizenship to develop an adolescent girl and development perspective. Deploying this perspective as an analytical tool serves to provide a fresh insight into how Goals conceptualised at the global level translate to influence policy affecting the lived realities of adolescent girls in rural India. 

The empirical case study, grounded in feminist qualitative research methodology, employs this perspective to undertake a thematic analysis of primary documents and transcripts of interviews and focus groups to illustrate how themes and ideas about empowerment, responsibility and development play out in the neoliberal context of development in India. In deploying this framework, the thesis seeks to understand how well-intentioned programmes, such as the Deepshikha programme in rural Maharashtra, often become the site of neoliberal development initiatives that maintain rather than challenge power structures. In addition, it explores the implications of excluding adolescent boys from development interventions. 

The analysis demonstrates that while the Deepshikha programme offers many avenues to political, social, economic, and personal empowerment for adolescent girls, it is not without its contestations. Embedded in narratives of self-responsibilisation, adolescent girls are burdened by multiple pressures in their daily lives. Although often socially perceived as a person of lesser value, the adolescent girl, nonetheless, becomes an object of investment through which she is meant to uplift herself. The thesis examines how, through processes of volunteerism and instrumentalism embedded in notions of the active citizen, the adolescent girl fulfils her duties within family and community while continuing to challenge established hierarchical and structural forms of power. 

This research is significant as there is a paucity of academic scholarship on adolescent girls in the development context. It demonstrates how the translation of a global policy initiative, MDG 3, into a local empowerment programme affects the dynamics of gender relations, with specific reference to adolescent girls and boys in rural Maharashtra. It also contributes to a critical scholarship in the area of gender and development that explores the structural and hierarchical oppression that adolescent girls face and the implications this has for their communities.

text: Translating MDG 3: Gender, Empowerment and the Adolescent Girl in Maharashtra, India This thesis is an exploration of Millennium Development Goal (MDG) 3, tracing its path from a global aspiration to its translation into a developing world context. Adopted in 2001 by the United Nations, the eight MDGs represented a global effort to address issues such as poverty, health, social injustice and environmental degradation. Goal 3 specifically was aimed at gender equality and women’s empowerment. Despite an extensive scholarship on the MDGs in general and on the specific issue of women’s empowerment in the development context, there has been little scholarly attention directed at the place and role of adolescent girls in the context of gender equality and empowerment. Similarly, there is a critical need to examine how policy formulated at the global level is translated into local contexts and with what consequences. This research undertakes a qualitative, in-depth, small-scale case study of a gender empowerment programme located in rural Maharashtra, India, to examine how a broad goal of gender empowerment is translated into a UNICEF-funded local programme for adolescent girls. 

The absence of adolescent girls in the gender and development and feminist scholarship has meant that existing feminist analytical frameworks are inadequate for this study. Hence, I draw on a range of scholarship on Third World feminism, the women, culture and development paradigm, the social relations framework, as well as on youth and citizenship to develop an adolescent girl and development perspective. Deploying this perspective as an analytical tool serves to provide a fresh insight into how Goals conceptualised at the global level translate to influence policy affecting the lived realities of adolescent girls in rural India. 

The empirical case study, grounded in feminist qualitative research methodology, employs this perspective to undertake a thematic analysis of primary documents and transcripts of interviews and focus groups to illustrate how themes and ideas about empowerment, responsibility and development play out in the neoliberal context of development in India. In deploying this framework, the thesis seeks to understand how well-intentioned programmes, such as the Deepshikha programme in rural Maharashtra, often become the site of neoliberal development initiatives that maintain rather than challenge power structures. In addition, it explores the implications of excluding adolescent boys from development interventions. 

The analysis demonstrates that while the Deepshikha programme offers many avenues to political, social, economic, and personal empowerment for adolescent girls, it is not without its contestations. Embedded in narratives of self-responsibilisation, adolescent girls are burdened by multiple pressures in their daily lives. Although often socially perceived as a person of lesser value, the adolescent girl, nonetheless, becomes an object of investment through which she is meant to uplift herself. The thesis examines how, through processes of volunteerism and instrumentalism embedded in notions of the active citizen, the adolescent girl fulfils her duties within family and community while continuing to challenge established hierarchical and structural forms of power. 

This research is significant as there is a paucity of academic scholarship on adolescent girls in the development context. It demonstrates how the translation of a global policy initiative, MDG 3, into a local empowerment programme affects the dynamics of gender relations, with specific reference to adolescent girls and boys in rural Maharashtra. It also contributes to a critical scholarship in the area of gender and development that explores the structural and hierarchical oppression that adolescent girls face and the implications this has for their communities.

year: 2017

title: Ka moemoeā o koutou kaumatua...

authors: Whitiaua, Ropitini

subjects: Ruatāhuna

abstract: Founded by the spiritual leader and prophet Te Kooti Te Turuki Arikirangi, the Ringatū faith came into existence in the 1870s during a very turbulent time for Māori. Struggling for survival many Māori tribes and communities accepted the teachings of Te Kooti and the principles of the Ringatū church as a means of maintaining their independence, beliefs and culture. A truly syncretic religion, the Ringatū church combines traditional Māori customs and beliefs with Christian scriptures forming a religious institution that fits within Christian doctrine while maintaining many important Māori philosophies. 
Throughout the latter stages of the 19th century and into the 20th century the Ringatū faith found fertile soil in many regions and grew in popularity and strength. Areas like the Bay of Plenty and sections of the East Coast became strongholds of the church and to this present day the Ringatū faith still functions within these areas. Therefore it is not surprising that Ruatāhuna, a small and isolated community located in the centre of Te Urewera has been part of the Ringatū movement since its inception. This community sheltered Te Kooti while he was being hunted by government forces, and the people became devout followers of the Ringatū faith. Therefore the proficies of Te Kooti and the principles of the church have become central in the identity and cultural practises of Tūhoe and the community of Ruatāhuna. 
For generations the Ringatū church has been the main spiritual institution within Ruatāhuna, with its gatherings being attended by the vast majority of the community. Its influence has permeated throughout every facet of Ruatāhuna life including spirituality, politics, social controls and even cultural practise. However in the past 30 years there has been a significant decline in the influence and popularity of the Ringatū church, and its tenants are now maintained by just a few families. This decline is most evident during the monthly gatherings of the Ringatū community in Ruatāhuna on the 12 of each month, ‘tekau-mā-rua’, where there are now only about 20 regular attendees. 

This thesis explores the Ringatū faith within Ruatāhuna from its origin, its development through the decades and current position. It examines the changing dynamics of the church in recent times in order to understand why its popularity and influence has shifted. Finally this study seeks a path forward for the Ringatū church in a modern world, looking at how the faith can respond to the needs of a new generation and to find a purpose in a new age.

text: Ka moemoeā o koutou kaumatua... Founded by the spiritual leader and prophet Te Kooti Te Turuki Arikirangi, the Ringatū faith came into existence in the 1870s during a very turbulent time for Māori. Struggling for survival many Māori tribes and communities accepted the teachings of Te Kooti and the principles of the Ringatū church as a means of maintaining their independence, beliefs and culture. A truly syncretic religion, the Ringatū church combines traditional Māori customs and beliefs with Christian scriptures forming a religious institution that fits within Christian doctrine while maintaining many important Māori philosophies. 
Throughout the latter stages of the 19th century and into the 20th century the Ringatū faith found fertile soil in many regions and grew in popularity and strength. Areas like the Bay of Plenty and sections of the East Coast became strongholds of the church and to this present day the Ringatū faith still functions within these areas. Therefore it is not surprising that Ruatāhuna, a small and isolated community located in the centre of Te Urewera has been part of the Ringatū movement since its inception. This community sheltered Te Kooti while he was being hunted by government forces, and the people became devout followers of the Ringatū faith. Therefore the proficies of Te Kooti and the principles of the church have become central in the identity and cultural practises of Tūhoe and the community of Ruatāhuna. 
For generations the Ringatū church has been the main spiritual institution within Ruatāhuna, with its gatherings being attended by the vast majority of the community. Its influence has permeated throughout every facet of Ruatāhuna life including spirituality, politics, social controls and even cultural practise. However in the past 30 years there has been a significant decline in the influence and popularity of the Ringatū church, and its tenants are now maintained by just a few families. This decline is most evident during the monthly gatherings of the Ringatū community in Ruatāhuna on the 12 of each month, ‘tekau-mā-rua’, where there are now only about 20 regular attendees. 

This thesis explores the Ringatū faith within Ruatāhuna from its origin, its development through the decades and current position. It examines the changing dynamics of the church in recent times in order to understand why its popularity and influence has shifted. Finally this study seeks a path forward for the Ringatū church in a modern world, looking at how the faith can respond to the needs of a new generation and to find a purpose in a new age.

year: 2015