School of Social Sciences and Public Policy
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There is a wide range of research activity in AUT's School of Social Sciences and Public Policy. The school has an active research community, with staff and postgraduate research in areas such as psychology, sociology and public policy.
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- ItemA Critical Review of the Revised IELTS Speaking Test(Macrothink Institute, 2013-12-26) Roshan, SaeedThe International English Language Test System (IELTS) is currently one of the English tests of repute, which is employed to assess the language proficiency of candidates planning to study or work in contexts where English is employed as the language of communication. This study is a critical review of the Revised IELTS Speaking Test (RIST) in order to highlight the strengths and weaknesses of the revised version. The findings indicate that the reduction from 5 phases to 3 phases in the structure, the introduction of an Interlocutor Frame (IF), the change of the rating system from holistic to analytic, and validity are the strong points of RIST. The weaknesses in the RIST could be subjectivity of the test, deviation from IF, and potential cultural bias. The study provides some recommendations for improvement of the Revised IELTS Speaking Test.
- ItemA Year of Pandemic: Levels, Changes and Validity of Well-being Data from Twitter. Evidence From Ten Countries(Public Library of Science (PLoS), ) Sarracino, Francesco; Greyling, Talita; Peroni, Chiara; O'Connor, Kelsey; Rossouw, StephanieWe use daily happiness scores (Gross National Happiness (GNH)) to illustrate how happiness changed throughout 2020 in ten countries across Europe and the Southern hemisphere. More frequently and regularly available than survey data, the GNH reveals how happiness sharply declined at the onset of the pandemic and lockdown, quickly recovered, and then trended downward throughout much of the year in Europe. GNH is derived by applying sentiment and emotion analysis–based on Natural Language Processing using machine learning algorithms–to Twitter posts (tweets). Using a similar approach, we generate another 11 variables: eight emotions and three new context-specific variables, in particular: trust in national institutions, sadness in relation to loneliness, and fear concerning the economy. Given the novelty of the dataset, we use multiple methods to assess validity. We also assess the correlates of GNH. The results indicate that GNH is negatively correlated with new COVID-19 cases, containment policies, and disgust and positively correlated with staying at home, surprise, and generalised trust. Altogether the analyses indicate tools based on Big Data, such as the GNH, offer relevant data that often fill information gaps and can valuably supplement traditional tools. In this case, the GNH results suggest that both the severity of the pandemic and containment policies negatively correlated with happiness.
- ItemAdaptation Finance: Risks and Opportunities for Aotearoa New Zealand(Mōhio Research and AUT, 2022-11-28) Hall, DMethodology: This report was developed through the co-design process of Mōhio’s Climate Innovation Lab, a fixed-term initiative which works with stakeholders to envision financial instruments to mobilise capital for climate-aligned projects and activities. A working paper was prepared through international market scanning and a review of primary and secondary literature on climate adaptation. This working paper became the basis for a workshop with local experts and stakeholders to test the viability of potential instruments in light of Aotearoa New Zealand’s unique cultural, biophysical and regulatory context. The workshop included participants from finance services, insurance, institutional investment, academia and local and central government observers. These insights were reincorporated into this final concept paper. Mōhio would like to thank the workshop participants for their time and expertise.
- ItemAn approach to teaching the writing of literature reviews [Online](Zeitschrift Schreiben, 2008) Turner, E; Bitchener, JStudents face difficulties in writing literature reviews that relate in particular to limited knowledge of the genre (Bruce, 1992; E. Turner, 2005). While there has been valuable research relating to genre and discourse analysis of the literature review (such as Bunton, 2002; Kwan, 2006; O’Connell and Jin, 2001), there is a lack of research into the effectiveness of published writing support programmes. Furthermore, with exceptions such as Ridley (2000) and Swales and Lindemann (2002), there is little explicit advice on how to approach the teaching of the literature review. This paper reports on one of two studies described at the 4th International EATAW conference 2007. It describes an evaluation of the effectiveness of an approach at a New Zealand university to teaching the writing of literature reviews. It focuses on a 15-hour unit of teaching as part of a six-day EAL graduate writing course. The study found clear evidence of improvement in all areas that were targeted.
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- ItemAntarctica: environment, justice, sustainability & development(United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR), 2014-10-31) Verbitsky, JEThis paper focuses on Antarctica and its status as a commons area with potential to facilitate both the human rights objectives and development agendas of global south states. It suggests that, using a combined and complementary environmental justice, just sustainability and cosmopolitan democracy (EJJSCD) framework, global south states can advance a human rights-based approach to development using monies generated from resource extraction in Antarctic waters. In this framework, environmental justice, just sustainability, and cosmopolitan democracy serve as new or emerging paradigms that offer previously untried ways of addressing issues of inter and intra-generational equity, democracy beyond borders, marginalization of global south states in environmental governance regimes, and lack of ongoing capital funding for development projects (both large and small scale) in the global south. The paper argues that the uncertain legal status of Antarctica, the presence of two separate, overlapping legal regimes in the area south of 60º South (the Antarctic Treaty System and the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS)), and rapid technological advances have permitted resource extraction in the form of bio-prospecting to occur without appropriate environmental governance oversight or regulation. This opens up opportunities for global south states, building both upon the concept of sustainable development embedded in the Brundtland Commission report and their common rights and development objectives, to collectively press for regulation of the industry and equitable benefit-sharing from resource extraction utilizing the EJJSCD framework in order to achieve the vital outcomes outlined in the UN Millennium Development Goals.
- ItemAppendix: the New Zealand literature on social class/inequality(New Zealand Sociology, 2013) Crothers, CHNo abstract.
- ItemBangladesh: an umpired democracy(International Foundation for Research and Development (IFRD), 2012) Crothers, CH; Azad, AThis paper reveals that there has been a continuous political confrontation between two archrival political forces in Bangladesh since independence in 1971. In the course of the confrontation, the country has seemingly been divided into two forces: BAL forces and anti-BAL forces. The democratic development in this country since 1991 is a by-product of this confrontation. In 1991, because of the continued mistrust between the two confronting forces, a unique system of interim government (non-party caretaker government) was produced that kept working as a catalyst of power transfer in a democratic way from one government to another till 2008 election from 1991.
- ItemBeyond Catastrophic Forgetting in Continual Learning: An Attempt with SVM(The International Conference on Machine Learning (ICML), 2020-07-18) Benavides Prado, DA big challenge in continual learning is avoiding catastrophically forgetting previously learned tasks. The possibility of improving existing knowledge whilst integrating new information has been much less explored. In this paper we describe a method that aims to improve the performance of previously learned tasks by refining their knowledge while new tasks are observed. Our method is an example of this ability in the context of Support Vector Machines for binary classification tasks, which encourages retention of existing knowledge whilst refining. Experiments with synthetic and real-world datasets show that the performance of these tasks can be continually improved by transferring selected knowledge, leading to the improvement on the performance of the learning system as a whole.
- ItemBiodiversity Instruments(New Zealand's BioHeritage National Science Challenge, 2021-03-29) Hall, D; Lindsay, SNo abstract.
- ItemThe Christchurch Principles(The Helen Clark Foundation and Auckland University of Technology, 2019-11) Hall, DNovember 2019: We believe that the public sphere should be a place of equal participation. As the internet, and social media especially, becomes an increasingly influential public space, these digital media have greater implications for political equality, both online and offline. In some regards, the rise of social media has created new ways for people to participate in public life, to overcome long-standing disadvantages. In other regards, however, it may pose threats, especially through the flourishing of harmful online content. The report presents 10 Principles, which seek to build on the Christchurch Call and the compassion that characterised the response to the March 15 attacks. The project was presented as part of the Paris Peace Forum, with support from Dr David Hall from The Policy Observatory and from Wellington based ‘think and do’ tank the Workshop. https://www.theworkshop.org.nz/
- ItemClimate Finance Landscape for Aotearoa New Zealand: A Preliminary Survey(Mōhio and Auckland University of Technology, 2018-04) Hall, D; Lindsay, SThis report, prepared by consultancy Mōhio, examines climate finance in New Zealand. It includes a snapshot of key existing climate finance flows and a look at the instruments available to the Government and private sector such as grants, debt and bonds. The report also outlines the enabling environment required to better facilitate the flows of finance toward low emissions and climate-resilient outcomes. This includes considerations such as information flows, tracking, regulations, organisational forms, and wider alignment across innovation, research and development and other environmental and social outcomes.
- ItemDisrupting Racism - Young Ethnic Queers in White Queer Aotearoa New Zealand(Informa UK Limited, 2023-08-21) Nakhid, C; Abu Ali, Z; Fu, M; Vano, L; Yachinta, C; Tuwe, MQueer ethnic young people in Aotearoa New Zealand are a multi-marginalized group, many of whom are met with racism and exclusion from a predominantly white queer community. Very little is known about how young ethnic queers in Aotearoa navigate a community that inheres the ideals and structures of racism. This in-depth qualitative study of 43 queer ethnic young people living in two of the largest metropolitan cities in Aotearoa investigates their experiences and relationships with the white queer community through Persadie and Narain’s mash-up analytical process. For these young ethnic queers, disrupting the racist behaviors and practices within queer spaces and of white queers were crucial in helping them challenge, resist, speak up to and reflect on their experiences with white saviourism, objectification, patronization, and rejection.
- ItemEditorial 4(1)(School of Social Sciences and Public Policy, Auckland University of Technology, 2022-02-23) Tauri, Juan; Deckert, Antje
- ItemEditorial: social class and inequality in New Zealand and Overseas: introduction to special issue(New Zealand Sociology, 2013) Crothers, CHNo abstract.
- ItemEmbracing the Muddle: Learning From the Experiences From Interdisciplinary Teaching and Learning Collaboration(School of Education, Auckland University of Technology, 2017-12-15) Neill, C; Corder, D; Wikitera, K-A; Cox, SInterdisciplinary, collaborative teaching and learning is recognised as important for twenty-first century tertiary education that seeks to build students’ critical thinking, cultural competence and global understanding. The core elements needed for truly successful collaboration are, however, little understood. This article presents a critical case study of a teaching team’s reflections on experiences in collaborating over two years to deliver a new interdisciplinary undergraduate course focused on culture and society. The findings highlight the importance of building a robust team culture built upon shared leadership, mutual trust and commitment, grounded by strong institutional support, to give any collaboration integrity and sustainability.
- ItemePortfolios in cooperative education: do they work?(Australian Collaborative Education Network, 2010) McDermott, K; Gallagher, SThis paper documents the process of integrating eportfolios from the multidisciplinary perspectives of the Schools of Languages, Social Sciences and Education. The experiences of Coordinators, Flexible Learning Advisors, Academic Supervisors and students, the stakeholders in Cooperative Education, will be considered. Significant issues will be analysed regarding the use of eportfolios such as cost, time, adequacy of training, software challenges, technical support, availability of computer laboratories, implications for moderation and marking as well as the effectiveness of the communication amongst all involved. Finally, the evolution of the project will be evaluated and future developments identified.
- ItemEstimating the Economic Costs of Ethnic Health Inequities: Protocol for a Prevalence-based Cost-of-illness Study in New Zealand (2003-2014)(BMJ Journals, 2018-06-19) Reid, P; Paine, S-J; Te Ao, B; Willing, E; Wyeth, E; Vaithianathan, RINTRODUCTION: There is significant international interest in the economic impacts of persistent inequities in morbidity and mortality. However, very few studies have quantified the costs associated with unfair and preventable ethnic/racial inequities in health. The proposed study will investigate inequities in health between the indigenous Māori and non-Māori adult population in New Zealand (15 years and older) and estimate the economic costs associated with these differences. METHODS AND ANALYSIS: The study will use national collections data that is held by government agencies in New Zealand including hospitalisations, mortality, outpatient consultations, laboratory and pharmaceutical claims, and accident compensation claims. Epidemiological methods will be used to calculate prevalences for Māori and non-Māori, by age-group, gender and socioeconomic deprivation (New Zealand Deprivation Index) where possible. Rates of 'potentially avoidable' hospitalisations and mortality as well as 'excess or under' utilisation of healthcare will be calculated as the difference between the actual rate and that expected if Māori were to have the same rates as non-Māori. A prevalence-based cost-of-illness approach will be used to estimate health inequities and the costs associated with treatment, as well as other financial and non-financial costs (such as years of life lost) over the person's lifetime. ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: This analysis has been approved by the University of Auckland Human Participants Research Committee (Ref: 018621). Dissemination of findings will occur via published peer-reviewed articles, presentations to academic, policy and community-based stakeholder groups and via social media.
- ItemFight the power: comparing and evaluating two measures of French and Raven’s bases of social power(University of Iowa, 2014-07-15) Wood, JSocial power, or potential for social influence, has traditionally been conceptualized according to French and Raven’s (1959) power typology. The purpose of this analysis was to examine the relationship between a commonly used scale measuring the original 5-factor model and a more recently developed scale measuring the revised 11-factor model, and evaluate the predictive utility of each. Correlations between corresponding bases on the two scales were weak, suggesting a lack of convergent validity. In addition, the 5-factor scale accounted for a substantially greater proportion of variance than did the 11-factor scale when predicting global power.
- ItemFighting complacency and retrogression: reawakening gender equity activism In New Zealand(International Sociological Association (ISA), 2014-07-15) McGregor, JNew Zealand enjoys an impressive reputation for gender equality. It was the first self- governing nation to grant women’s suffrage in 1893 and scores highly in international indexes such as the World Economic Forum’s Global Gender Gap at seventh of 136 countries. In recent political history women held the top four constitutional positions: Prime Minister, Governor General, Attorney-General and Chief Justice, for a short period of time. Yet as feminist academic Prue Hyman (2010) notes, New Zealand has moved from a relatively equal society to one of its most unequal in terms of earnings and income. This paper explores the recent mobilisation of feminist civil society and female-dominated trade unions in New Zealand who are beginning to collectively advocate and litigate on human rights such as equal pay. They are using the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) to harness their frustration, benchmark progress and hold the State party to account for implementation of women’s rights and to prevent retrogression. The paper explores the re-awakening of women’s activism around social and economic rights in a nation with a strong self-regard for its international reputation in progressing gender equality. The paper uses data collected from New Zealand's seven periodic reports to the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women and the Committee's concluding observations and responses to successive governments in relation to Article 11, relating to equal pay and pay equity. It analyses the ebbs and flows of political will and explores the patterns of complacency, frustration and now mobilisation by women's civil society groups who are pressing the case for women’s human rights.