Migration and female labour : Samoan women in New Zealand

Labour migration from underdeveloped countries of the 'Third World' to developed countries of the 'First World' was a marked phenomenon in the thirty years that followed the end of the Second World War. These labour migrations were initially produced by a demand for low skilled workers but have set in place a process which has resulted in the formation of large ethnically differentiated populations of migrants and their descendants in developed countries. This thesis focuses on one such labour migration and considers the position occupied in the New Zealand labour market by two groups of Samoan women; the Island born women who have migrated from Western Samoa, and the New Zealand born women who are part of the new ethnic minority developing in New Zealand as a result of labour migration. The discussion is based on an analysis of census data and the findings of a series of indepth semi-structured interviews with Samoan women living in Christchurch. It is shown that New Zealand born and Island born women have quite different experiences in the New Zealand labour market. The Marxian concept of a Reserve Army of Labour is employed in an attempt to analyse the labour force position of the two groups of women. The difficulties experienced in the application of this concept demonstrate the inadequacy of an analysis based purely on the working of capital. The experiences of Samoan women in the New Zealand labour force can only be understood with an analysis which takes into consideration the articulation of capitalism and patriarchy

Determinants of Friendship in Social Networking Virtual Worlds

This paper examines the determinants of friendship between two users in a virtual world who are unaware of each other's real identities. Drawing on theories of homophily, heterophily and propinquity, three virtual world behaviours are analysed: avatar appearance, avatar location, and avatar communication. Data are collected on 179 participants interacting in a novel virtual world. The main results show that: (1) avatars did not tend to form friendships with avatars that are similar in appearance to themselves but did tend to form friendships with avatars that are dressed differently from themselves; (2) in terms of location, the closer an avatar stands to other avatars, the more likely the avatar is to receive a friend invitation; and (3) the fewer words an avatar uses in communication, the more likely the avatar is to receive a friend invitation. This paper contributes to theories of virtual world interaction and to using virtual worlds as a data collection platform

How User Personality and Social Value Orientation Influence Avatar Mediated Friendship

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to study the influence of user personality and vlaues on the number of connections users make, the number of requests for connections that users give out, and the number of connections invitations users receive. Design/methodology/approach – This is a field study of 179 participants interacting in a novel virtual world. The world’s server logs are used to capture sociometrics about the users and their interaction. Findings – Findings suggest that personality and values influence the number of friends users make and the number of friendship requests users give out, but not the number of friendship invitations users receive. Only one personality trait – conscientiousness – exhibits homophily. Originality/value – Personality and social value orientation have rarely been studied together in information systems (IS) research, despite research showing the two have an impact on IS relevant constructs. The use of server logs for data capture is novel. Avatar friendship is an under-researched concept in IS

From Placards to Partnership: the changing nature of community activism and infrastructure in Manchester, UK and Auckland, Aotearoa New Zealand

First paragraph: This report details the findings of a comprehensive cross-national analysis of how new sites of local governance, particularly partnerships, act to encourage or discourage voluntary activism. It is based upon findings from a two-year research project 'Placing Voluntary Activism' conducted in Manchester, UK and Auckland Aotearoa New Zealand between 2005  and 2007. The research design comprised a questionnaire survey of voluntary community organisations (VCOs) operating in the fields of mental health and community safety followed by 128 interviews with VCOs, key figures from the local, regional and national statutory sector and activists in these two fields of interest

Governing terrorism through risk: Taking precautions, (un)knowing the future

The events of 9/11 appeared to make good on Ulrich Beck's claim that we are now living in a (global) risk society. Examining what it means to ‘govern through risk’, this article departs from Beck's thesis of risk society and its appropriation in security studies. Arguing that the risk society thesis problematically views risk within a macro-sociological narrative of modernity, this article shows, based on a Foucauldian account of governmentality, that governing terrorism through risk involves a permanent adjustment of traditional forms of risk management in light of the double infinity of catastrophic consequences and the incalculability of the risk of terrorism. Deploying the Foucauldian notion of ‘dispositif’, this article explores precautionary risk and risk analysis as conceptual tools that can shed light on the heterogeneous practices that are defined as the ‘war on terror’

Be Free? The European Union's post-Arab Spring Women's Empowerment as Neoliberal Governmentality

This article analyses post-Arab Spring EU initiatives to promote women's empowerment in the Southern Mediterranean region. Inspired by Foucauldian concepts of governmentality, it investigates empowerment as a technology of biopolitics that is central to the European neoliberal model of governance. In contrast to dominant images such as normative power Europe that present the EU as a norm-guided actor promoting political liberation, the article argues that the EU deploys a concept of functional freedom meant to facilitate its vision of economic development. As a consequence, the alleged empowerment of women based on the self-optimisation of individuals and the statistical control of the female population is a form of bio-power. In this regard, empowerment works as a governmental technology of power instead of offering a measure to foster fundamental structural change in Middle Eastern and North African (MENA) societies. The EU therefore fails in presenting and promoting an alternative normative political vision distinct from the incorporation of women into the hierarchy of the existing market society