Auckland Medical Aid Trust has sponsored,
promoted and/or funded a number of publications, research projects and conference presentations. Most of this research is undertaken as part of a programme of doctoral scholarships and other research sponsorships.
AMAT works closely with Universities New Zealand
Te Pōkai Tara in promoting and support research by doctoral scholars in
NZ universities, funding a programme of doctoral scholarships. Below is a selection of research outputs from past and current scholars
and research fellows, either published on this website as complete papers, or as links to other research publication
Parker, G. (2019)
Mothers at large: Governing fat pregnant embodiment. (Doctor of Philosophy), The University of Auckland, Auckland.
This thesis responds to a cultural moment in which the reproductive potential of fat women’s bodies has been problematised as a public health crisis. Informed by a feminist poststructuralist epistemology and methodology, and in particular Foucault’s method of problematisation, this thesis takes a critical stance on the contemporary logics and truth claims made in relation to maternal obesity, peeling back these knowledges to reveal them as social-cultural and politically influenced phenomena. Through in-depth, semi-structured caring conversations with 27 self-identified fat and ethnically diverse women who were trying to conceive, currently pregnant, or who had recently had a baby, this research reveals how the problem of pregnancy fatness has come to be, whose interests are served, the effects of this problematisation, and how this might be different.
Parker, G. (2019)
Doctoral thesis
reflection: On the complexities of doctoral research and reproduction.
What does it mean to research reproduction whilst
moving through your own reproductive experiences? This reflective piece was
adapted from the postscript of my doctoral thesis in which I explore the
complexities of having undertaken critical feminist research in the field of
reproduction whilst moving through my own reproductive experiences with the
birth of my two daughters. The ways in which we shape, and are shaped by,
reproductive research are explored.
Parker, G (2020).
A big
bias. Otago Polytechnic Research.
A short research review that
highlights the need for, and key findings of my critical feminist research
on maternal obesity and sizeism in fertility and maternity care
Parker, G. (2017).
Shamed into health? Fat pregnant women's views on obesity management
strategies in maternity care. Women's Studies Journal, 31(1).
(open access journal)
Fat pregnant women are being targeted with obesity
management strategies in maternity care as a result of contemporary
anxieties about the future health harms and health care costs of obesity in
pregnancy. What it is like for fat pregnant women to be on the receiving
end of discourses and practices in maternity care that problematise their
bodies? And can weight-centric maternity care fulfil its ambition of
improving maternal and child health?
Parker, G., & Pausé, C. (2018).
“I'm Just a Woman Having a Baby”: Negotiating and Resisting the
Problematization of Pregnancy Fatness. Frontiers in Sociology, 3, 5.
(open access journal)
This article explores how fat pregnant people
construct successful narratives around their pregnancies and birthing
despite or in challenge to the pathologisation, medicalisation and
stigmatisation of pregnancy fatness as a contemporary health and social
issue.
Parker, G., & Pausé, C. (2018).
Pregnant with
possibility: Negotiating fat maternal subjectivity in the “War on Obesity”.
Fat Studies, 7(2), 124-134. (Requires a subscription to the journal,
or university library access).
The embodied temporality of pregnancy fatness in
the mist of the “obesity epidemic” is explored through interviews with 27
ethnically diverse, cisgendered, self-identified fat pregnant people in
Aotearoa New Zealand.
Parker, G., & Pausé, C. (2019).
Productive but not
constructive: The work of shame in the affective governance of fat
Pregnancy. Feminism & Psychology, 29(2), 250-268. (Requires a
subscription to the journal, or university library access).
The productivity of shame
as an affective-discursive practice implicated in the neoliberal governance
of “healthy pregnancy” is examined in the narratives of 27 ethnically
diverse, cis-gendered, self-identified fat pregnant people in Aotearoa New
Zealand.
Gibson, H. (2018)
Surrogacy in the age of The Handmaid’s Tale. The Spinoff, 22 May.
An article by one of our current scholarship recipients, as part of her PhD research on surrogacy in New Zealand.
Murphy, N. (2017)
Traditional Māori understandings of menstruation.
L.O.G.I.C.(16)2 11-14
An article written by Ngahuia and
published in the journal of The New Zealand Journal of Primary Healthcare
Nurses, that examines attitudes of shame and inferiority amongst Māori women as harmful to health and wellbeing, and argues that health care workers need to show sensitivity to complex feelings about the issue..
Le Grice, J., Braun. V. & Wetherell, M. (2017) “What I reckon is, is that like the love you give to your kids they’ll give to someone else and so on and so on”: Whanaungatanga and mātauranga Māori in practice. New Zealand Journal of Psychology, 46(3).
(Requires a subscription to the journal, or university library access).
Le Grice, J. & Braun. V. (2017)
Indigenous (Māori) Sexual Health Psychologies in New Zealand.
Journal of Health Psychology, 0(0). DOI: 10.1177/13591053177399
(Requires a subscription to the journal, or university library access).
Murphy, N. (2017).
Lady
of the Woven Light, Lady of the Tide: Hinateiwaiwa and the Ritual Knowledges
of the Whare Tangata. A summary of Ngahuia's doctoral research
that examines censored and marginalised ceremonial traditions related to
Māori women through a mana wahine epistemological framework. Mana wahine is
a Kaupapa Māori methodology that interrogates colonisation as dehumanising
of Māori women. This research is intended to produce emancipatory
customary knowledge to uplift Māori whānau and iwi and provide wider society
with rich ethnographic knowledge based on evolving Māori wisdom and
traditions
Murphy, N. (2017).
Bibliography. A comprehensive list of resources for Ngahuia's
doctoral research as described above
Tonkin, L. (2017).
Egg
freezing for future fertility. An information sheet outlining a
post-doctoral research project, that explores the issue of egg
freezing for future fertility for women in Aoteroa/New Zealand. The study
explores women's conceptualisation of their stored eggs, prior to
fertilisation. It will have wider implications for women’s wellbeing, policy
and practice in the development of reproductive technologies, and whanau
formation and functioning.
Le Grice, J. (2017). Indigenous (Māori) perspectives on abortion
in New Zealand. Feminism & Psychology 27(2).
http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/0959353517701491 The paper addresses the
dearth of exploratory research on Indigenous (Māori) perspectives on
abortion. As part of an Indigenous feminist (Mana Wāhine) interview study, the paper offers a rich and
nuanced account of Māori perspectives on abortion, describing how these are
structurally embedded within particular socio-historical and socio-cultural
contexts, including Māori ideologies and theories, colonisation and
Christianity, and women’s rights activism.
Le Grice, J., & Braun, V. (2016). Mātauranga Māori and reproduction: Inscribing connections between
the
natural environment, kin and the body. AlterNative: An International Journal of Indigenous Peoples,
12(2)
"http://content.alternative.ac.nz/index.php/alternative/article/view/456
The reproduction of Indigenous people, who have experienced ongoing cultural and ethnic marginalization,
has long been a source of
contention in colonizing contexts. The present article engages a pūrākau
(narrative) methodology (Lee, 2009) to construct a culturally relevant PhD literature review and synthesize
a range of source materials to develop an account of traditional Māori knowledge (mātauranga Māori) pertaining to reproduction in a New Zealand context.
Le Grice, J. (2014). Maori and Reproduction, Sexuality
Education, Maternity and Abortion. (Doctor of
Philosophy), The
University of Auckland, Auckland http://hdl.handle.net/2292/23730
This PhD thesis investigates Māori and reproduction, casting a net
around the wider phenomenon to understand reproductive decisions,
parenting, sexuality education, maternities and abortion, as spheres of
mutual influence. Drawing on a Mana Wāhine theoretical approach, the
reproductive histories of 15 Māori men, 16 Māori women, and 12 key
informant participants were elicited through qualitative individual
interviews and thematically analysed by a Māori critical realist
ontology and Māori social constructionist epistemology.
Le Grice, J.
(2014). Maori and abortion: An impossible choice? Women’s Health Update,
18(3)
http://www.womens-health.org.nz/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/Womens-Health-Update-Sept-2014.pdf
Abortion is a complex area where contemporary western and Māori values
do not easily align. This brief article summarises customary Māori
knowledge of reproduction, infertility and the loss of conception, the
impact of colonisation, and how contemporary Māori make sense of
abortion.
Northcroft, L., Velvet Stone Media, Te
Māngai Paho, King, K., King, A., Tipene, T., & Le Grice, J. (2015).
Te
Iti Kahurangi: The Journey to Success [Se: 2, Ep: 11].
https://www.maoritelevision.com/tv/shows/te-iti-kahurangi-journey-success/S02E011/te-iti-kahurangi-series-2-episode-11 A quirky profile series that celebrates our people. This episode features:
Husband and wife duo Kebraska and Amber King, surfing champion Thandi Tipene and Jade Le Grice.
Le Grice, J. (2016) Māori and Reproduction, Sexuality Education,
Maternity & Abortion. (pdf 191Kb).
A summary report of Jade's PhD thesis that forms the basis of her ongoing research.
The research is supported by a post-doctoral Fellowship sponsored by Auckland Medical Aid Trust,
intended to result in publication of research concerning reproductive health and well-being.
Nakarawa, J. (2015) The
Best Interests of the Child and Relocation Disputes. (pdf 418Kb). A
paper
submitted by a University of Waikato PhD candidate as a current recipient of the
Auckland Medical Aid Trust Scholarship. The paper examines some of the factors involved in assessing the best
interests of the child in the aftermath of parental separation,
in a society that continues to uphold the ideal of the permanent, nurturing and protective family. The focus of the paper fits within an
interpretation of 'human reproduction' as including the influence of politics and legislation on human reproduction
issues, raising children, and the general field of social reproduction.
Njagi, J. W. (2012) Gender
Power And Reproductive Rights: Discourses Of Abortion In Kenya - March 2012.
(pdf 160kb). Abstract of a University of Waikato PhD thesis submitted by the
recipient of the Auckland
Medical Aid Trust Scholarship. The thesis analyses discourses of abortion in Kenya, with
the aim of
unearthing why an issue that is clearly a serious health and social problem remains
largely unaddressed.
The research, which offers a feminist political analysis of the discourses of all the
major actors in the
abortion debate, makes a significant contribution to the feminist scholarship on abortion
politics.
Njagi, J. W. (2012) Discourses
of Abortion Reference List - March 2012. (pdf 352kb). A
list of references related to the politics and discourses of abortion, with specific reference to
abortion in Kenya (see listing
above).
Simmonds, N. (2011) Mana
Wāhine Reference List - September 2011. (pdf 168kb).
A list of references collected to date of scholarship pertaining to indigenous and Maori feminisms
specifically related to mana wahine and maternities. Naomi is a recipient of the Auckland Medical Aid Trust
Scholarship, working on a PhD thesis at Te Whare Wananga o Waikato
The University of Waikato.
Richdale, J. (2010) Lifting the Veil of Silence. (pdf 91kb). Abstract
of a University of Auckland PhD thesis submitted by the recipient of the inaugural Auckland Medical Aid Trust Scholarship.
The thesis examines ordinary New Zealanders' narratives about their abortion experiences and public
representations of abortion from 1919 to 1937.
Richdale, J. (2007) A Bibliography of Abortion Literature. (pdf 227kb).
Compiled when the author was a PhD student at the University of Auckland and was the recipient of the inaugural
Auckland Medical Aid Trust Scholarship. The bibliography includes journal articles that are not
ordinarily accessible on the average library catalogue and should prove useful for those wanting to read more
widely than published books. The bibliography is also available as
a regional list (pdf
239kb).
Auckland Medical Aid Trust (2007) Human
Embryos - The Subject of Research. (pdf 55kb). A Submission
from Auckland Medical Aid Trust on the use of Gametes and Human Embryos in
Reproductive Research. The submission was made as part of consultation undertaken by the Advisory
Committee on Assisted Reproductive Technology (ACART), for the purpose of providing the Minister of
Health with an advisory report.
Richdale, J. (2006) The 'problem' of abortion in 1930s Aotearoa New Zealand: a study of social
attitudes in selected print media 1936-1938. (pdf 134kb) The author is a
current PhD student at the University of Auckland and was the recipient of the inaugural Auckland Medical Aid Trust
Scholarship. The
paper explores
what
aspects of the practice of abortion were considered a problem at that time, how its
problematic status was defined and
what solutions were proposed.
Auckland Medical Aid Trust (2005) The Charities
Bill. (pdf 16kb) A submission to Social Services Select Committee on the Charities Bill (later to become the Charities Act 2005).
Auckland Medical Aid Trust (2000) Submission to Law Commission (pdf
80kb) on Preliminary Paper 38
Adoption Options for Reform: A Discussion Paper
AMAT Research Institute (1999) Research Institute Newsletter. (pdf 39k) Publication
outlining the early
development and focus of the AMAT research institute.
- Brewerton, M. (1999) Global Trends
in Adoption Services. (pdf 32kb) Presentation of research project
on international funding mechanisms for adoption services. Paper presented at the
Auckland Medical Aid Trust conference: National and International Trends in Adoption. Logan Park Quality
Hotel, Auckland, 13 November 1999.
Devine, N. (2002) The Question
Concerning Educational Technology. Paper presented to University of Sydney/University of Waikato symposium. December, 2002.
Fitzsimons, P. (1998) Neoliberalism
and Social Capital. Presentation of research in preparation for AARE
symposium, Neo-liberalism, Welfare and Education: The New Zealand Experiment. New Orleans,
April 2000.
Fitzsimons, P. (1998) Sex
Abuse: An Issue in Human Sexuality. Revised extract
from a research paper
recently published in an international academic journal: 'Michel Foucault: Regimes of
Punishment and the
Question of Liberty', International Journal of the Sociology of Law (1999), 27, 379-399.
Fitzsimons, P. (1999) Questions
concerning AMAT, Technology and Human Reproduction. Research report
for Auckland Medical Aid Trust.
Kelly, B. (1999)
Public and Private Provision of Adoption Services (pdf 67k).Edited and expanded version
of paper presented to the Auckland Medical Aid Trust conference: Options for Reform in Adoption: National and International Trends in Adoption, 9 December 1999.Presentation based on extracts from her
MSocSc thesis,The Role of the State and the Private Sector in the Provision of Placement and Long Term Support Adoption Services In New Zealand.
Weaver, A. (1999) The Pros and
Cons of Early Intervention Strategies. Extracts from a paper presented at the Auckland Medical Aid Trust conference: National and International Trends in Adoption. Logan Park Quality Hotel, Auckland, 13 November 1999.