The characteristics of traditional discipleship taught and practiced in Samoan society reflect the consideration of the church’s needs and demands which are more important than family. For example, one characteristic of becoming a disciple is that he or she is expected to abandon his or her family and follow Jesus. However, public criticism of this...

The thesis gives a postcolonial and queer analysis of queer lives in Fiji. It asks how queer Fijians negotiate the requirements of racialised and sexualised subjectivity in a context of ongoing social marginalisation. Drawing on Ahmed’s (2006) Queer Phenomenology, I undertake a phenomenological close reading to explore the effects of the family, church, and nation...

The development of parent training programmes has become one of the most widely utilised and cost effective means of prevention and treatment for problematic child behaviours and parenting practices. To date there has been limited research regarding the effectiveness of these programmes for Pasifika people. This study explored the acceptability and accessibility of the Incredible...

Tonga reputably has the highest per capita number of PhDs in the world; this indicates the high value placed on formal education by Tongans. At the same time, many Tongans, especially those living in New Zealand, are amongst those seen as ‘failures’ of the education system. With the latter concern particularly in mind, this thesis...

My research examines the relationships between the formal health and education sectors, schools, external donors, non-government organisations (NGOs) and communities with regard to health in Tuvalu. A significant contribution of my research is the development of a Tuvaluan conceptual framework for health and wellbeing, which I have called the Ola Lei Conceptual Framework. My thesis...