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Following the terrorist attacks of September 11 2001, the Bush administration articulated an anti-terrorism grand strategy of armed democratisation in the Middle East that constituted the heart of the “Bush Doctrine.” This strategy derived primarily from the framework of activist democracy promotion developed by neoconservatives, and reached its apex in 2003 when it served as the rationale... [Thesis or Dissertation]

While traditional behavioural parent training programmes have assisted families with concerns of child behaviour problems, they have not kept abreast with recent conceptualisations of the development of problematic behaviours in the parent-child relationship. Research has indicated that understanding of this relationship needs to go beyond bidirectional explanations and that a dialectical... [Thesis or Dissertation]

Self-management programmes provide one form of education for people with diabetes. Evaluations of these programmes allow for a better understanding in regard to their impact and whether outcomes are met. Very little research has used qualitative methods to capture participants’ experiences of these programmes and their perception of psychological outcomes. This is the first qualitative... [Thesis or Dissertation]

The advent of genetically modified (GM) food in New Zealand in 1998 saw the beginning of a highly politicised debate about GM use in the country. The concern over GM and the political situation after the 1999 general election saw the Government establish a Royal Commission of Inquiry on Genetic Modification in May, 2000. The Royal Commission and strong public opposition to GM, evident in large... [Thesis or Dissertation]

The objective of this research is to investigate the materiality and volatility of comprehensive income for non financial firms in a non US environment. As the FASB and IASB are planning to require the reporting of comprehensive income in a single performance statement, it is important to resolve the issues surrounding the materiality and the volatility of comprehensive income. This study... [Thesis or Dissertation]

Phosphate (P) supply is one of the major determining factors to plant productivity, since the element affects the growth and the development of plants. In response to Pdeficiency treatment, plants display alterations in root system architecture caused by changes in primary root (PR) and lateral root (LR) length and LR density. In this thesis, the root growth of the agronomically important... [Thesis or Dissertation]

This study consisted of two sheep grazed dryland pasture experiments. Experiment l compared sheep production from 3-year-old cocksfoot based pastures grown in combination with white, Caucasian, subterranean or balansa clover with a ryegrass-white clover pasture and a pure lucerne forage. Sheep liveweight gain per head from each pasture treatment and the pure lucerne stand was recorded in the... [Thesis or Dissertation]

This paper is based on an empirical study, conducted in 2005/06. It provides reflections on gender and development approaches employed in development projects in Sudan and identifies the challenges that development providers need to address when they plan for future interventions. It argues that addressing gender issues requires an in depth understanding of local values, and women’s needs and... [Working or Discussion Paper]

The simplified analysis of piles in laterally spreading soils is burdened by uncertainties. Key parameters affecting the pile response, such as the stiffness degradation and lateral displacement of the liquefied soil, cannot be uniquely defined, but rather vary over a wide range. In this paper we explore the effect of variations of model parameters on the pile response by means of a... [Conference Paper]

Most soil-structure interaction (SSI) studies use fairly simple rheological soil models that assume the soil-foundation system remains elastic. The goal of this study is to use these simplified models and systems to analyse almost exhaustively the impact of using these models on designing structures to account for SSI. To achieve this objective, an equivalent linear soil-structure model was... [Conference Paper]

The picnic blanket, as a textile object, is infused with meaning by its colonial history and its inherent use. Its purpose goes beyond providing a soft and dry surface to sit on. By putting down your picnic blanket you can temporarily stake your claim on that piece of land. We might consider the picnic blanket as a private haven in a public space. The cross-over between private and public space... [Thesis or Dissertation]

This paper investigates the impact of organic agriculture development initiatives on the wellbeing of small-scale farmers in Cambodia. Wellbeing was measured subjectively, with fifty seven organic farmers asked what is most important in their lives, and the impact of the organic initiatives assessed in these areas. Farmers in the study considered the ability to grow sufficient rice for their... [Working or Discussion Paper]

There are many idiosyncrasies in the emotion of regret that we do not fully comprehend and our traditional reliance on economic theories of human decision-making, which view regret as stemming from illogical and explicit decision-making processes, may be the cause. This thesis explores the development and testing of the Dual Process Theory of Regret (DPTR) which claims that individuals use both... [Thesis or Dissertation]

Background: Social participation is essential to well-being for adolescents with and without disabilities. Adolescents with a disability, however, often have fewer friendships and experience social isolation compared to their peers without disability. Telecommunications play a vital role in facilitating social participation for adolescents yet those with a disability experience reduced access.... [Thesis or Dissertation]

Professional ethics and legal competencies require midwives practising in New Zealand to provide care for childbearing women in a partnership characterised by continuity, equality, mutual respect, trust, shared responsibility and decision making. New Zealand is culturally and legislatively a bi-cultural environment and the cultural safety of Maori (indigenous peoples) are prioritised within... [Thesis or Dissertation]

South Wanganui Basin (SWB), New Zealand, is located behind the southern end of the Hikurangi subduction system. One of the most marked geophysical characteristics of the basin is the -150 mGal Bouguer/isostatic gravity anomaly. Sediment fill can only partly explain this anomaly. 3-D gravity models show that the gravity anomaly associated with the basin is generally consistent with a downwarp...

My novel, ‘Sam and Susana’ is set in Auckland in 1968. The story centres on the developing relationship between two students: Sam, a 21 year old from a middle class palagi family, and Susana, a Samoan girl from Otara. When they meet Sam is cynical about university, dedicated to sports and to his drinking companions, but unresolved in almost all other areas of his life. He desperately wants... [Thesis or Dissertation]

Library websites and search tools are a crucial interface between the user, the organisation and its resources. Most users now have easy access to other sources of information via the Internet, such as Google, and studies show the vast majority are using these in preference to library resources. The information architecture of library search tools is unfamiliar to users and is believed to... [Report]

Given the increasing prevalence of Islam, current socio-political climate and visibility of Muslim women in Western societies the current study aimed to investigate 1) the nature of religious discrimination experienced by Muslim women in New Zealand and 2) the influence of perceived religious discrimination and differing facets of Islamic identity (psychological, behavioural and visible) on the...

The uplifted accretionary prism of East Coast Basin, in Hikurangi Margin, North Island, New Zealand, exposes late Miocene slope mudrocks (Whangaehu Mudstone, < 10% carbonate) in coastal cliffs north of Cape Turnagain that contain conspicuous tubular carbonate concretions (50–85% carbonate) supporting near-central conduits. Pipe and bulbous morphologies dominate, ranging in exposed length... [Journal Article]

Content removed from thesis due to copyright restrictions: Eaton, C. J., I. Jourdain, et al. (2008). "Functional analysis of a fungal endophyte stress-activated MAP kinase." Current Genetics 53(3): 163-174. Scott, B. and C. J. Eaton (2008). "Role of reactive oxygen species in fungal cellular differentiations." Current Opinion in Microbiology 11(6): 488-493.In the mutually beneficial association between the fungal endophyte Epichloë festucae and perennial ryegrass, fungal growth is highly regulated and coordinated with that of the host. This implies there must be signalling between the fungus and its host to maintain this close association. Recent work has shown a novel role for reactive oxygen species (ROS) in this symbiotic maintenance, with... [Thesis or Dissertation]

Heteronormativity, the concept that heterosexuality is an institutionalised norm, and a superior and privileged standard, is held firm when related discourses of gender, sexualities and family form converge. In a study of heteronormative discourse in the context of early childhood education, teachers shared accounts of practices where notions of gender, sexuality and family form were in some... [Event]

In this paper, we show that people frequently return to previously-visited regions within their documents, and that scrollbars can be enhanced to ease this task. We analysed 120 days of activity logs from Microsoft Word and Adobe Reader. Our analysis shows that region revisitation is a common activity that can be supported with relatively short recency lists. This establishes an empirical... [Conference Paper]

Understanding how stand and terrain parameters impact the productivity of harvesting machines is important for determining their optimum use. Productivity studies in forest operations are often carried out on new equipment, or on equipment being used in new conditions. Such information is normally presented as a productivity or efficiency function; that is, a regression equation that best... [Conference Paper]

Polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHAs) are polyesters composed of (R)-3-hydroxy-fatty acids. A variety of gram-positive as well as gram-negative bacteria and some archaea are able to produce these biopolymers as energy and carbon storage materials. In times of unbalanced growth, when carbon is available in excess but other nutrients are limited, PHA inclusions are formed. These granules are... [Thesis or Dissertation]