Sample Research Proposal on Analysis on the Measures on the Development of Whanau in New Zealand.

Abstract             Whanau development is an initiative of both the Maori Community and the Crown. The basis of this initiative is the Treaty of Waitangi in which it establishes the partnership of the Crown and the Whanau. The New Zealand Government proposed the Whanau Development Project in which it is an initiative to help reduce the inequalities of Maoris in New Zealand and help strengthening the communities. The project is divided in six regions having a total of fourteen communities. Whanau Development project has its share of strengths and weaknesses. But in most cases whanau development foster positive outcomes in Maori communities. Whanau development project is for communities having a common goal for their whanau, together with good leaders.   Introduction             According to Durie[1] (2004a) Maoris are indigenous people of New  Zealand their population consists 14% of the total New Zealand population. The Maori community is a very significant contributor in the success and the progress of New Zealand. The New Zealand Government has developed initiatives in which it focuses on improving the services to Maoris by developing a Whanau Development Project. Whanau is a term used by the Maoris which means extended family based on shared ancestors. In establishing the Whanau Development Project the Treaty of Waitangi is used as the basis. Objectives of the Study The aim of this study is to analyze the initiatives the New Zealand Government is promoting in the development of whanau.   Significance of the Study The significance of this study is it will be an effective tool in finding out the development initiatives the New Zealand Government has done for the whanau, identify if there are improvements or lack of improvements. This study will help in giving suggestions on the development initiatives with a high regard in whānau.   Scope and Limitations The scope of this study is on the Analysis on the Development of the Whanau. This study is done using the qualitative method in which studies and researches related to this study where reviewed and evaluated   Literature Review Definition of Terms               Whānau. It has been defined that whanau is a scattered group that is based on a mutual whakapapa or a descent from a shared ancestor, and in which particular commitments and duties are maintained. The word whanau has been extended in recent times which include non-traditional conditions like Maoris having similar interests but do not have a direct blood relationship starts to form a cohesive group.[2] (Durrie, 1994b)             Family.  Families are described according to the composition, if it's single-parent family, nuclear or extended. The socioeconomic status, if the family is earning a high, middle or low income. The age distribution, if the family is child dependent or young. The ethnicity, if the family is Maori or Pakeha. And by the way the family communicates with the society. [3](Ministry of Health, 1998, p. 2)             Kaupapa. It is the underlying concepts and philosophies in which the tikanga is based upon. The concepts have weakened over the last 200 years because of the influence of different cultures.[4] (Maori.org.nz, 2006)             Tikanga. Coined from the Maori word tika which means true. Tikanga are the traditions and customs that are passed down overtime. (Maori.org.nz, 2006)               According to the Minister of Maori Affairs, Hon. Parekura Horomia[5] (2004), "The success of Maori is not only good for Maori but for the country as a whole." In addition he said that whanau is a highly significant contributor to the end result of an individual, in which comprises the society. In the New Zealand budget last 2004, the government allocated $14 million a year in Whanau development. The budget supports whanau based initiatives, focusing on encouraging and upholding whanu based programs and actions, activities on sports and culture, and development of Maori enterprise. Furthermore Horomia quoted that "Strengthening the whanau through front-end investment will have many positive consequences- it will provide support, inspiration, and guidance to individuals that make up the whanau."              In the current New Zealand society, the Treaty of Waitangi it has a specific policy in whanau. The treaty established the relationship between the Monarchy and the Maoris. (Ministry of Health, 1998, p.27)  Robyn Munford [6](2002) identified the following that needs to be understood in the treaty:             Protection. In the treaty signed in 1840 it stated that Maoris rights in citizenship must be protected and warrants tino rangatiratanga which means that their resources and cultural identity must be guaranteed. This is the fundamental belief on how Maori youth must have tino rangatiratanga and access in processing their full cultural identities.             Participation. Participation in the Treaty of Waitangi means that Maoris must have the opportunities to take part In New Zealand Society and participate in pursuits that promote cultural identity.             Partnership. The treaty emphasizes that the Crown, Maoris and immigrants must have a partnership. And the people coming in New Zealand must have an understanding of the treaty. In services, partnership means that there should be clearness in delivering culturally sensible services.             The New Zealand Government created a number of ways in which it helps in the development of whanau. The government made essential steps in the progress of whanau development. One of those is stated in a Press Release by the New Zealand Government (2000), the Ngai Tahu whanau development is an initiative by the government in which it strengthens whanaus in Ngai Tahu rohe. The Associate Minister of Social Services and Employment and Maori Affairs Tariana Turia said that "The initiative will establish a network of whanau development workers, or Pouarahi to work with whanau. They will play a critical role in ensuring they can access resources and entitlements and assist in planning based on their needs in aspiration." The model received $112,000 last 2000 which helped the whanau progress. According to Turia, by engaging a entire government approach, there would be a considerable betterment of access, utilization and efficient service to whanau, a well-organised way of providing government services to whanau and reducing wastage of taxes are some of the end results the government will get.             According to Ruth Berry[7] (2004), the national government listed 10 programmes regarding the race-based funding. The programs listed are the following:             Te Mangai Paho. Te Mangai Paho supplies funds for the production of television programs, radio stations, language CDs in Maori version and language.             Special Housing Action Zones. It offers a two-year interest free loan to organizations who want to build houses and sell it to low-income families, the main goal of the project is to improve housing.             Decile Funding for Schools. The system provides under-privileged schools extra funds and gets $682 a year per student.             TeachNZ Scholarship. Given to aspiring Maori and Pacific Islanders teachers are a $10,000 worth scholarships.             Improving Responsiveness of Education to Maori. This is an initiative of the Ministry of Education in which it changes the beliefs and practices of teachers and improves the way of teaching for Maoris.  Maori Organizational Development Assistance Programme. The aim of this initiative is to aid Maori organizations upgrade their capacity in attaining employment and enterprise outcomes for the Maori community. Whanau Development Initiatives. One of the Reducing Inequality capacity building-initiative of the New Zealand Government, the aim of this initiative is to strengthen Maori communities. Work Track Extension Programme to Maori and Pacific Islanders. It is a development initiative for Maori and Pacific Islanders at risk in having long-term unemployment. It provides assistance in employment. Community Education Initiatives. It provides funds to Pacific and Maori providers in order to diminish family violence. Maori Smoking Reduction Initiative. It is an initiative that targets Maori people in order to reduce Maori smoking. In addition the New Zealand Government developed the Whanau Development Project (WDP) a three year initiative that presents results in "Reducing Inequalities" and "Capacity Building" policies for the Maori Community. The government set up twelve initiatives in six regions via Maori decision making based on the ambitions and priorities of local Maoris for whanau. In the development of whanau each Maori community identified Whanau Development Project based on their aims and objectives.[8] (Dallas, Ngarimu & Roberts, 2002) The aim of Whanau Development Project is "to pilot a mechanism for identifying and supporting programmes that will provide support to and develop families and whanau, in order to pre-empt a need fro remedial social services." (Dallas et al, 2002) According to the Ministry of Social Development [9](2004), communities that participate in the Whanau Development Project are grouped in two types:  New Providers. It is set up in reaction with the Whanau Development Project. The Maori community is grouped together to estimate the needs, set up infrastructures and generate and provide creative initiatives in reinforcing the whanau. Existing Providers. Existing providers employ the Whanau Development Project in extending and developing their services. They also help in developing skills and having positive changes in whanau.  An example of a provider is the Tekohanga Reo National Trust Board[10] (2003), the Te Kohanga Reo National Trust is a charitable trust founded in 1982 which functions as an advocate in promoting encouraging and giving support to Kohanga Reo and whanau. The four fundamental basis of the the Te Kohanga Reo concepts are: Total immersion in Te Reo Maori and Tikanga Maori, Management and decision making by whanau, accountability to the Creator, the Kohanga Reo movement, whanau, hapu, iwi and the government, and commitment to health and well being of the mokopuna and whanau.  The Waitekere City Council also held an initiative in in Whanau Development, the creation of Waitekere a great place for kids (), the policy "understands the rights, needs and best interests of childresn and youth and takes into account the provision of services, projects and activities."  Whanau Development project has also its share of weaknesses; the Ministry of Social Development (2004) reported that development sites needed more financial funding and assistance. Restoring the trust of Maori communities to the government decreased because of the involvement of a third party on the development project. Using contracts in the project may not be a suitable measure in workin with maori communities because the negotiation process eats a great amount of time and the initiatives changes overtime and most contracts are already inappropriate or not sot suitable because it is already out of date. And a lot of Development project sites have hard times securing financial needs in whanau development. The Ministry of Social Development (2004) reported positive results for the whanau, hapu, iwi and Maori in communities which implemented the Whanau Development project. The examples are:             Development of Infrastructure.  Providers set up whanau development bases in communities. It became a central point for activities in the community and future service provisions.             Skills Development. Providers acquire business and strategic planning skills in which they use in assisting communities in developing and delivering local initiatives, that in the future will help in development and employment.             Building Relationships. As a result of Whanau Development Project a strong relationship among the community, whanau, hapu and ministry had developed.             Cultural Development. Whanau development project cultivates initiatives in which traditional skills and history are being taught on Maori communities to strengthen cultural identity among whanau.             Youth Development. The schools and families in communities that established a Whanau Development Project reported that there are positive changes in youth behavior. There is a rise in the self-esteem, confidence, respect for authority figures, favorable decision-making, and involvement in education.             Educational and employment outcomes. Participants taking part in the whanau development project initiatives gained employment after their involvement.             Service delivery. Providers improve and developed their services in the Maori community as people became knowledgeable about the scope of the services available for them.             Additional Services. Aside from the traditional services the providers give, a number of sites provides additional services like giving business advice to Maoris.   Methodology             Different literatures were acquired via different electronic databases such as Google and Yahoo by using the keyword whānau development. This electronic search obtained different articles. The articles were read. After reading the articles it is then sorted to those who are relevant to the study and those that are not. The articles that were chosen uses different policies and approaches, of which are important factors in the development of vital knowledge in carrying out this research.              A literature review is an important part in producing a research because there numerous literature reviews that gives evidence and support for a point of view and argument. Some related literatures were created to provide a background for different researches. Others persuade the readers to accept the alterations and some just states a concept in order for readers to fully understand the topic.             The main objective of a literature review is to share to the readers the ideas, and pieces of information that has been already approved. It must be guided by a common knowledge and includes the strengths and weaknesses of the study. It is a broad, scholarly, comprehensive, in-depth, systematic and critical review of scholarly publications, unpublished scholarly print material, audiovisual material and personal communication.[11] (Beanland et al, 1999).               The literature reviews support the content and significance of the study. It is written at the first part of the paper. The related literatures put the study in a specific context by relating it to other studies, confirming and challenging the results and presenting new knowledge and ideas. [12](Richardson, 2000)             The reviewer of the literatures must be knowledgeable enough to choose the studies that were accepted and credible. All studies give and provide literatures, although the purpose for the accreditation of the related literatures changes depending on the methodology of the study. Having important and relevant related literatures gives the author or authors the chance and possibility to make the readers believe that the objective, process and outcomes of the study have great bases of knowledge.   Critique the Articles             Articles will be chosen from different articles yielded using electronic database.  The articles chosen were related to the chosen topic. Using the eight articles pieces of information were gathered and rendered to cause equilibrium on the examination regarding the past literatures. The Critiquing Framework by Bray and Ree [13](1995) was used in the ten articles. It uses twelve questions in scrutinizing the article. It is a simple and very convenient that enables the authors in identifying the right direction of the articles.   Search Strategy             The main objective of the search strategy is to look for different citations identified as consensus development, clinical trial reviews, citations from articles and journals and etc. the initial step is to look for a research topic, a researcher usually poses a question. Once the topic has been identified search it up using the keywords on articles in the university library, encyclopedias and medical journals. The researchers must outline the topic and must take note the significant references and bibliographies.   Electronic database searches             With the rapid pace of technology nowadays, Internet is the new source of related literature apart from the usual like the libraries. Internet provides various online libraries such as the Questia,  which gives the latest researches, studies and books that is very useful in creating a thesis proposal. An electronic library in Universities which provides CD-ROMS that can be easily accessed by the students is also another way of getting pieces of information regarding the topic of your study. CD-ROMS is a very effective tool in looking and scanning for different bibliographies and references.  The use of different search engines like google and yahoo is another manner in which a researcher can find different online journals and articles for free.    Ethical Considerations             The main principle in the ethical context is it must include beneficence, respect in human dignity and justice. The respondents on the research must not be harmed if they participated in the study. The conductor of the research must ask consent to the participants and its immediate family. The patients must be guarded from physical and psychological harm during the conduction of the research. If the participants were physically and psychologically harmed and damaged, the study and the samples would be automatically removed from the study.  [14](Polit et al, 1999)             Ethical considerations give information on every step on the international research procedure. If the authors or researchers develop questions without thinking carefully the ethics involved, the researcher cannot conduct his/her study abroad. (a) Institutional Protection of Your Informants- if the study requires the participation of human beings like interviewing using questionnaires, the research proposal must be first reviewed and approved by the Institutional Review Board before starting the study. It may require the researchers to ask for informants to sign consent forms to ensure anonymity of the participants. (b) Personal Responsibility – the primary responsibility of the researcher is to do no harm. Researchers have the personal ethical responsibility on the decisions and actions regarding on the research. When working with others especially if it involves the participation of human, the researchers must: represent oneself honestly, ask permission in conducting an interview, don't make promises you cannot keep, be prompt and respectful, be grateful for the time and effort the participants have given, present your credentials and give contact information so that your participants can reach you.       Conclusion             From the literatures collected, and evaluated it, the outcomes of having a Whanau Development Project in Maori communities are positive and produced favorable results among Maoris in numerous sites in which the projects were established. The development projects are partly responsible for the positive results in the community, in the development of services given to Maoris and the help these providers have given in retaining the cultural identity among Maoris especially to the children and youth. The locally managed initiatives also provided good outcomes. The Maori communities warmly received the development, in which they could create their own Maori based initiatives and whanau development actions. Although whanau development has its strengths it also has its share weakness, new sites may have difficulties at first especially when dealing with the Maori community and the government. And some projects have minimal support from the government. According to the Ministry of Social Development, the whanau development project is suitable to communities having one common vision, good leaders and accepting to lead the development. If all communities have one common vision added with a good leader the progress of the development project will be smooth having no tensions.