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The UC Research Repository collects, stores and makes available original research from postgraduate students, researchers and academics based at the University of Canterbury.
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A qualitative study of audiologists’ experiences with reflective practice in the workplace.
(2024) Sharma, Sahana
Aims: This study aimed to understand audiologists’ experiences with reflective practice (RP) in the workplace in New Zealand, and the barriers audiologists face in engaging in RP and to investigate audiologists’ experiences with RP during their student years.
Methods: Semi-structured interviews were conducted via Zoom, (n=12) Thematic analysis process was utilised to analyse the content of the interviews.
Results: Four themes were identified; 1) why audiologists reflect, 2) methods used for RP, 3) barriers to engaging in RP and 4) experiences of RP as students. A number of subthemes were identified which provided more detailed understanding of the main themes.
Conclusion: Audiologists engage in RP to learn from experiences, understanding situations that did not go as expected, analysing complex cases, managing emotions, and navigating communication within the workplace. Most commonly audiologists engage in internal reflection and verbal reflection and rarely written reflection. However, engagement in RP is restricted by a number of barriers including time constraints, lack of education about RP, clinician availability to engage in RP activities and perceived negative impact of RP on well-being. Audiologists valued RP activities completed as students and suggested ways to continue the use of RP beyond student years.
Tripartite symbiosis of bacterial communities, ectomycorrhizal fungi and invasive pine.
(2023) Thakur, Vanita
The aim of my thesis was to investigate the bacterial communities associated with ectomycorrhizal fungi and invasive trees and their functional significance.
I began my research by collecting the sporocarps of Suillus luteus across P. contorta density gradient. I used 16SrRNA gene metabarcoding to identify bacterial communities from the sporocarps. I found that increasing pine density results in the substantial loss of bacterial alpha diversity in the sporocarps of S. luteus across pine density gradient. Interestingly, I found no change in beta diversity with pine density. This suggests that bacterial taxa in the sporocarps of S. luteus are being lost at random, rather than some sort of filtering which would result in the homogenisation of bacterial communities.
To further understand the bacterial communities associated with ectomycorrhizal fungi, I investigated the bacterial communities in ectomycorrhizal roots along the same pine density gradient. I identified the fungus on each root with Sanger sequencing and used 16SrRNA gene metabarcoding again to identify bacterial communities. First, I analysed the bacterial communities in the roots which were colonised by Suillus spp. To do this analysis I included all the 11 plots from low pine density to high pine density gradient. Secondly, I tested the effect of fungal host on the bacterial communities associated with the roots at high pine density. I did not include the pine density in this analysis because I only found multiple fungal hosts at high pine density. I found that pine density results in the loss of bacterial alpha diversity in ectomycorrhizal roots without any change in the beta diversity. This implies that loss of bacterial alpha diversity associated with ectomycorrhizal fungi are non-directional and not species specific. Furthermore, this confirms that aboveground (sporocarp) and belowground (roots) bacterial communities associated with ectomycorrhizal fungi responds in the same way to pine density.
This research showed that bacterial communities associated with ectomycorrhizal fungi responds to pine density. Further to test the functional capabilities of bacterial communities associated with ectomycorrhizal fungi, Chapter 3 investigated the enzyme activities associated with the ectomycorrhizal root and examined the potential drivers (biotic and abiotic) of the enzyme activities of ectomycorrhizal fungi. To examine the effect of biotic factors on the enzyme activities of ectomycorrhizal roots, I investigated the bacterial and fungal communities associated with ectomycorrhizal roots. I used 16SrRNA gene metabarcoding to identify bacterial communities from the ectomycorrhizal roots. Further, to identify fungal communities associated with the ectomycorrhizal roots, I amplified the ITS2 region for the fungi. The potential root tip enzyme activities were measured by using the microplate method. I found no evidence that bacteria affect the enzymatic activities of the ectomycorrhizal roots. However, I found that pine density controlled hydrolytic enzyme via nutrients (abiotic) while oxidative enzymes are correlated to fungi (biotic).
In this study, I found that pine invasion results in the loss of bacterial diversity associated with ectomycorrhizal fungi and the similar patterns has been seen in case of the ectomycorrhizal roots sampled from the greenhouse soil.
Similarly, pine invasion results in the loss of overall fungal diversity in the greenhouse roots which is similar to the patterns observed in actual pine plots (Sapsford et al., 2022). This study indicates that short term pine legacies persist in the environment even after the removal of the pine. This study also increase the knowledge of bacterial communities associated with ectomycorrhizal fungi in pine invaded environments.
The sense of copresence in a job interview environment supported by an augmented reality device.
(2024) Figueroa , Felipe
Within an organization, personnel recruitment is a critical activity in the human resources strategy. Job interviews are considered one of the most widely used recruitment methods; however, the evolution that this type of method has undergone over time, especially with the use of new technology, has drawn the attention of researchers in the field of human interface technology. One of the disadvantages of e-recruitment, as the new technological tools of the recruitment process are known, is the negative reactions that the use of technological tools generates in the interviewees.
Augmented reality (AR) has stood out for its use in the industrial and health fields thanks to the display of virtual information in the real world. If we think that the use of this tool could be massified to other work contexts, such as personnel selection, and on the other hand, we take into account the adverse responses that this technology could have on the interviewees, the study of these responses is then relevant. In order to know these responses, exploratory and experimental research has been conducted, grouping the participants in two contexts: one under conditions of interaction with AR technology and the other without such support.
The results of this research show the ability of participants to perceptually isolate a possibly new stimulus (the AR headset) and focus their attention on the interview questions. On the other hand, the importance of the quality of the sustained rapport between interviewer and interviewee is also evidenced as an element that eliminates the theoretical barrier that the use of an augmented reality device could mean.
The effect of people noise on perceived tranquillity.
(2024) Braund, Kea
Increasing urbanisation raises concern about the increase of anthropogenic noise in urban areas, and
its impact on surrounding people and associated tranquillity. Consequently, the positive effects and
importance of preserving tranquillity in urban spaces is valuable. Previous studies have led to the
formation of the Tranquillity Rating Prediction Tool (TRAPT), as a way of assessing the tranquillity of
spaces, ranging from wilderness areas to suburban parks (Watts, et al., 2020; Watts, Miah, &
Pheasant, 2013). Through the use of TRAPT, insight has been gained into the impact of various noise
sources on people (Nicholls, 2017; Watts et al, 2020; Watts, Pheasant, & Horoshenkov, 2011).
However, the disturbance of people noise on tranquillity levels in a residential setting has not been
investigated and established through the use of TRAPT.
This study investigated the effect of people noise on tranquillity, determined using a typical
residential garden setting for the New Zealand (NZ) population. Previous studies using TRAPT in
urban spaces have been based in the United Kingdom (UK), and Hong Kong, as well as NZ (Pearse et
al., 2013; Watts & Marafa, 2017). This study aims to validate TRAPT for use in predicting tranquillity
ratings with people noise for the NZ population. The study extends previous research by focussing
on urban areas. The exploration of people noise and its impact on tranquillity is important to provide
an appropriate means of regulating noise in various settings – rural, urban and city areas.
Recordings of a range of anthropogenic noises were collected and edited into tracks for
participants to listen and rate. Visual stimulus of a residential garden was paired with the tracks to
imitate the desired setting. Participants rated their level of tranquillity after the presentation of each
sound stimulus. A comparison was made between the tranquillity rating (TR) of participants and the
TRAPT predictions. It was expected that the higher the people noise level the lower the perceived
tranquillity. The findings of this study followed this hypothesis, with the TR increasing as sound level
(LAeq) decreased. The perceived tranquillity did not differ from that predicted ratings using TRAPT.
This research has a range of real-world applications, particularly in assessing the effect of people
noise on the level of tranquillity in urban and recreational settings.
Tuaki populations in modern and late Holocene near-shore habitats of upper Whakaraupō/Lyttelton Harbour.
(2024) Henwood, Jessie Leigh
Tuaki/cockles are an important mahinga kai species throughout New Zealand and make up the only major shellfish beds in Whakaraupō/Lyttelton Harbour. Anthropogenic activities can cause a decline in tuaki populations due to the influence they have on the environment. Whakaraupō has undergone major change since European arrival to the area with the construction of the port and expansion of residential development. Additionally, the slopes surrounding the harbour were deforested to establish agricultural activities, influencing harbour sedimentation. Since European settlement in the harbour, mahinga kai resources in Whakaraupō have been in decline and tuaki populations have lower densities in Whakaraupō than other estuaries around Christchurch. Modern tuaki populations in Whakaraupō have been monitored over the last 17 years, but changes in these populations over the late Holocene are currently unknown. This research identifies factors influencing tuaki populations in upper Whakaraupō over the last ~8000 years. Modern populations of tuaki and associated sediment characteristics at 24 sites throughout upper Whakaraupō were analysed to provide a baseline for historical studies. Three sediment cores were collected and used to establish changes in tuaki populations and sediment characteristics over the last 8000 years. Tuaki length and density were used as indicators of population prosperity in both modern and historical settings. Sediment characteristics analysed include grain size, sediment composition, total organic carbon, total nitrogen and total recoverable phosphorus.
Modern populations of tuaki in Whakaraupō vary, however in general are positively correlated to salinity, tidal depth and amount of sand, which is typical of tuaki populations throughout New Zealand. However, population densities were mostly low compared to those in other estuaries in Canterbury, with few edible adults and abundant dead tuaki indicating that the current populations are failing to thrive. Tuaki populations in the sediment cores highlight four main stages of population change. Successful tuaki populations have been present in the harbour for the last 8000 years, as shown in Allandale Bay. However, in Head of the Bay and Charteris Bay from about 3800-2800 cal yr BP the fossil assemblages are dominated by Crustacea and Ostrea chilensis instead of tuaki. After this there is a period of tuaki dominance in all three cores, where their decreasing size in inner harbour areas indicates a shallowing of the harbour due to natural sediment infill. Tuaki of reproductive adult size are still present, but there is an overall decrease towards juvenile sized tuaki. This is followed by a major change in sediment composition and an increase in harbour sedimentation rates due to the deforestation the Whakaraupō catchments that occurred just after European arrival to the area. At this point tuaki populations in the three cores start to decline in density and size, remaining unsuccessful until present time, with very low densities or dominance of juvenile sized tuaki. Therefore, anthropogenic activities in and around Whakaraupō occurring since European arrival to the area have caused changes to the environment which are negatively influencing tuaki populations.