Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Wisconsin--Madison, 1936. / Typescript. Includes abstract and vita. eContent provider-neutral record in process. Description based on print version record. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 173-176).

The approach of this enquiry is to describe and analyze the processes and interactions which occur when Indo-Fijian women seek health care from their medical system made up of traditional beliefs and practices, combined with alternative sources of healing such as the Biomedical system, and some Fijian practices. Throughout, I have been concerned with discovering the strategic choices and decisions which Indo-Fijians employ in their transactions with a number of traditional types of healers such as pandits, pujaris, maulvis, orjahs and dais, as well as doctors and nurses in the biomedical sector. I have used the concept of process as basic to this enquiry and I have paid attention to those processes which display social behaviour in empirical events or situations, and thus on emergent medical systems. Thus, the approach chosen for this study is particularly suitable in the case of Indo-Fijians who arrived in Fiji as indentured labourers, and have had to adapt, to regularize their lives through situational adjustment. The methods used for data collection were participant-observation in two Indo-Fijian settlements and in a Western Biomedical hospital, in health centres and district nursing stations; as well as the use of archival and library materials. The enquiry, the first of its kind on health strategies of Indo-Fijian women, concludes with a chapter which discusses the interactions and processes between all medical care domains used by Indo-Fijians. Indo-Fijians do not distinguish between medical systems; their medical system Is Indian in its ideology but lacks the practice of the therapies of professionalized Indian medical systems; it has retained religious healing, reconstructed and synthesized folk healing traditions from many parts of India, as well as adding elements from Fijian healing. While it is also Western in its use of professional therapies, it lacks the ideological foundations of biomedicine. / Arts, Faculty of / Anthropology, Department of / Graduate

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Hawaii at Manoa, 1996. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 424-433). / Microfiche. / 2 v. (xii, 433 leaves, bound) ill. 29 cm

Thesis (M.A.)--University of Hawaii at Manoa, 1994 / Pacific Islands Studies

Thesis (M.Phil.)--University of Waikato, 2007. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves [214]-222) Also available via the World Wide Web.

The thesis provides a descriptive analysis of a development aid program in Fiji. There are two dimensions to the inquiry. First, the rural development scheme is acknowledged to be about Fijians, about what they take to be their traditional culture and about their response to a program of planned social change. At the same time, the aid program is set within the framework of an international voluntary agency. Hence, the study is also about Europeans and their culture and about their participation in a program of cross-cultural development aid. Moreover, the problem is viewed in historical perspective and from that vantage point the current phase of international voluntary development is seen as a secularized version of the missionization of Fiji more than a century ago. The thesis traces the parallelism between Christianization and world development as a central theme. The thesis consists of three major Parts: the Phenomenology of Tradition, the Phenomenology of Development and the Phenomenology of Change. Within each of these categories, the analysis progresses from a discussion of the epiphenomena to the phenomena to phenomenology. These three Parts of the thesis are preceded by two chapters in Part I which provide a description of the problem and the method and of the people and the setting and are concluded by a single chapter in Part V which summarizes the argument and conclusions. In Part II of the study, I explore the Fijian rendering of na i tovo vakaviti ("the Fijian way of life") as a framework within which to examine the missionary input on the one hand and the international development program on the other. Through an analysis of activities and ideas relating to one's duty to kin, one's duty to chief and one's duty to God, I determine that there are two sets of interrelated institutions existing within the current i tovo vakaviti. I argue that one set of institutions refers to a pre-contact Fijian culture while the second set belongs to a post-contact Fiji. When these latter structures are placed in historical perspective, they are seen to refer to the missionization of Fiji and its colonization by the culture which the missionaries represented. Taking the analysis to a further level of abstraction, it is argued that the model of the moral man predicated on the missionary goal is inconsistent with that of the pre-contact i tovo vakaviti. In the areas of economy, polity and religion, the missionary emerges as a transformer of the traditional Fijian culture. Part III of the study is concerned with a descriptive analysis of the rural development scheme. After examining its major program objectives of encouraging commercial agriculture, the development of leadership potential, and "enhancing the quality of life", I proceed to an analysis of the underlying structures. And that investigation, taking an historical perspective, once again lends itself to an inquiry into two sets of interrelated institutions. The first set pertains to Christianization while the latter refers to world development. While the former is seen as precursor to the latter, both sets are shown to share common structural features, namely, unrestricted exchange, participatory democracy and institutionalized individuality. Continuing the analysis at a third level of abstraction, I provide a model of the moral man consistent with the missionization and development goal. Like his missionary predecessor, then, the European development agent emerges as a transformer of the traditional culture. In Part IV of the study, the emphasis is on the implementation of the YMCA rural work program as a relationship between the international development agency and the recipient community through the rural worker as native agent. Investigation of two community development schemes within the program reveals that what at first glance appear to be dissimilar approaches are, at the same time, a response to the same underlying phenomena. Both the rural worker who appears to be in agreement with the traditional culture and the one who appears to be in opposition to it are, in fact, similarly called upon to stand beyond culture and to change it. The native agent, like the missionary and the development agent, emerges as a transformer of culture. Hence, in the areas of economy, polity and religion, the development aid program is seen as analogous to the missionization of Fiji. / Arts, Faculty of / Anthropology, Department of / Graduate

Thesis (M. A.)--University of Canterbury, 2009. / Typescript (photocopy). Includes bibliographical references (p. 199-213). Also available via the World Wide Web.

Gold mining is often associated with positive economic benefits; however, it may also have negative impacts on the environment and human health. It is essential that communities understand the risks and benefits associated with mining, particularly in developing countries where there is often a lack of legislation governing the environmental performance of mining corporations. The perceptions of local people regarding the risks and benefits of mining may differ significantly from those of company representatives, policy makers, and the scientific community. Indeed, public concerns have sometimes been ignored or downplayed by those responsible for the implementation of environmental policies and practices. Examination of the complex social, economic, psychological, political, and cultural factors influencing risk perception in mining communities is thus important for successful risk communication and management. Issues arising from the interplay between socio-economic benefits and risks are particularly acute in small island states which have isola ted and highly limited economic development trajectories. The lessons learned in such cases are therefore instructive for crisis planning across the developing world. This study conducted firsthand empirical research into the perception of environmental and health risks in the communities surrounding the Vatukoula gold mine in Fiji. Primary data was obtained through a survey questionnaire designed to quantify and evaluate perceived risks (n= 340, representing approximately 24% of the target population). Concurrently, environmental samples were collected to assess the extent of environmental impacts at the study site. Study results revealed that gender is an important variable in risk perception at Vatukoula. Major findings include: (1) women feel they have less knowledge about the risks of mining compared to men; (2) women feel they have less control to avoid the risks of mining compared to men; and (3) women and men tend to receive risk messages from different sources. The information obtained during this study was made directly available to local stakeholders, to aid in risk management and decision-making.

The purpose of this research was to examine teacher perspectives and attitudes on inclusive education for children with disabilities in Fiji. Teachers' perspectives and attitudes are crucial in providing insights that could help improve education and services for children with disabilities in regular schools in Fiji. A qualitative approach using semi structured interviews was selected as the methodology for this research. Nine teachers from nine different schools in Suva, the capital city of Fiji, participated in this research. The nine participants were selected from three different school settings. Three of the participants were from special schools, three were from primary schools and three were from secondary schools. Data collected showed that teachers support inclusive education, however, they had reservations on the inclusion of students with severe disabilities. Several factors were identified to influence teachers' attitudes towards inclusion. The most common factors were severity of disability that the students had, inadequate training of teachers on teaching students with disabilities, inadequate government funding, lack of specialised resource personnel and lack of appropriate equipment and resources to support students and teachers in the teaching learning process. Limited commitment from the Ministry of Education and limited participation and consultation of teachers on policy and curriculum design were also identified as contributing factors for non inclusion of students with disabilities in regular schools. Teachers need to change their perspectives and attitudes and schools need to be welcoming and prepared to accept all students with disabilities into the general education system in Fiji.

This is the first study done to ascertain which factors significantly determine graduation and non-graduation in the Diploma courses at Fiji Institute of Technology. It is a quantitative study and analyses of the effects of the variables sponsored/private, entry level, race, grade point average, course sex, age and rural/urban on graduation and non-graduation. The significance of this study lies in determining which improvements are necessary in order to increase the number of graduates and thus make more effective use of the physical and human resources. Resource utilisation gains added importance because of its national implications. The Diploma graduates are the main source of middle level technical manpower for Fiji; a developing country which since its independence in 1970, has made satisfactory social, political and economic progress. For the period under study, data analysis shows that the percentage of students graduating was 40.8. Furthermore, the major finding was that Government sponsored ethnic Indian male students with New Zealand University Entrance as entry level, belonging to the 24+ age group produced statistically significant results. It has been recommended that both the Fiji Institute of Technology and the Government of Fiji should increase and strengthen Government sponsorship of Diploma students. Fiji Institute of Technology in consultation with industry should work out effective strategies such as better supervision and the monitoring of sponsored students' progress throughout the course and provision of an increased variety of work experiences, in order to improve the weaker areas of practical experience during the course. Since this is the first such study, further research in areas such as the requirements of the Diploma curriculum and the availability of training facilities and equipment, is recommended.